Photo courtesy of Emory University.
Sara Carr, left, was named a first-team All-American after a stellar sophomore season at Emory.
Many of the same things being said now about Grace Carr are the same things that were said about Sara Carr just a few years ago.
“She’s one of the best hitters in the state.”
“She’s a competitor.”
“She’s a star.”
The Carr sisters have been a big part of the huge success in recent years experienced by the Mountain Brook High School volleyball program. The Spartans won three straight state championships from 2014-16, winning it all in Sara’s final two years and again in Grace’s freshman year at Mountain Brook.
Sara is now a junior at Emory University, starring on the volleyball team there as well. Grace is a junior at Mountain Brook.
Separated by nearly four years, the sisters are both elite outside hitters, wear the same jersey number and share many of the same mannerisms on the volleyball court. But there are also differences.
ELITE ON THEIR OWN MERIT
Sara has gone on to do great things at Emory, continuing her stellar career. As a sophomore in 2017, she helped lead her team to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals and was a first-team All-American.
“Sara’s work ethic is unmatched,” said Jenny McDowell, head coach at Emory. “She comes to the gym every day with a passion to make our team better. She is a dynamic athlete, but more importantly, she has the heart of a champion.”
If there was any temptation for Grace to rest on her laurels and ride the proverbial coattails of her sister, it never surfaced. Although, Sara did push her younger sister to be the best she could be.
“She was hard on me, in a good way,” Grace said. “She wanted me to get better. I would always go to her games and see the things that she did well and I wanted to do that.”
Sara said she doesn’t know what she looks like when she plays, but she enjoys watching her sister play at a high level and believes there are quite a few similarities.
“She’s a really smart player,” Sara said. “She’s got a lot of finesse and makes everything look so smooth.”
Photo courtesy of Emory University.
After winning two state championships at Mountain Brook, Sara Carr (24) now stars at Emory University as an outside hitter.
Libby Grace Gann was a part of all three state title teams at Mountain Brook and is one of the few players who got a chance to play with both sisters during their high school days. Gann said the two are “phenomenal” players in their own right.
“It’s amazing they both made a name for themselves,” Gann said. “If you took away their last name, they would still be two MVPs and legendary in Mountain Brook High School.”
Gann said she “gets chills” thinking about how successful Sara is now at the college level, considering they played together in high school. Grace is certainly a proud sister, as well, and is deciding whether to pursue playing beyond high school.
“I’m really proud because I know it didn’t come easy,” Grace said. “I know she spent a lot of time and made a lot of sacrifices to get where she has. It makes me happy because she’s worked so hard and is so passionate.”
WHAT'S IN A NUMBER
An obvious similarity between Sara and Grace is their jersey number. Sara wears No. 24 to this day at Emory and has worn the number in volleyball since her elementary school days. Grace now dons No. 24 for the Spartans.
“I just got No. 24 from Sara,” Grace said.
Sara can trace the significance of the number a little further back, remembering that she began asking for the number after seeing older brothers Evans and Jordan wear it on their jerseys during football and basketball seasons long ago. But even for Sara’s older brothers, the number wasn’t chosen randomly.
Gregg Carr, now an orthopedic surgeon, starred as a linebacker at Auburn University from 1981-84 and was named a first-team All-American in 1984. He is married to Juli, who cheered at Auburn. He wore No. 54 during his college football days, but his children credit him for starting the trend of wearing No. 24 from his earlier days of playing baseball.
“I noticed it in my dad’s baseball picture,” Sara said. “My oldest brother had it because of our dad. It just happened where we all had been 24.”
Even Ann-Harrison, who is 11 years old and the youngest of the five, wears 24 in club volleyball.
REACHING THEIR POTENTIAL
Sara has had her share of adversity so far this season, battling the effects of a concussion and a shoulder injury. But she is hopeful to contribute to the team more and more as the final stretch of the season draws near, as Emory looks to make it three straight years with an Elite Eight appearance.
For Mountain Brook, Grace is one of seven juniors, along with Sarah Catherine Cooper, Ann Vandevelde, Liz Vandevelde, Mary Katherine Fowlkes, Ellie Dayhuff and Kate Amberson. On a team with no seniors, there have been natural ups and downs, but Grace said the group has played together for several years and is “really close.”
Photo by Kyle Parmley.
Mountain Brook's Grace Carr (24) is looking to finish the season on a high note, as one of seven juniors for the Spartans.
“I think we have a really high potential, and we just all have to click,” Grace said.
Her words may prove true, as the Spartans recently won the Margaret Blalock Tournament in October, winning in the final over McGill-Toolen, the perceived top team and Class 7A defending champion.
If the Spartans peak at the right time, the Carr sisters may have another thing in common: two state championship rings.
