BCC locks up local volleyball recruit

SHALLOTTE—Coach Stephanie Beach didn’t have to travel far to find the Brunswick Community College volleyball program’s first local recruit.

West Brunswick High School senior Jordan Clear signed with the Lady Dolphins last Friday in the school library.

Beach was an assistant coach at West Brunswick the last two years and saw first hand what Clear can do on the court.

“She is very scrappy,” Beach said. “She can dig up any ball sent over the net. She’s got great height (5-8). She’s powerful and a good athlete. She’s good at every sport she plays.”

Clear is one of the top female athletes at West Brunswick, where she also plays basketball and soccer. She started playing volleyball in the seventh grade and says it’s her favorite sport.

“I don’t get tired of volleyball,” she said. “I don’t look forward to the end of the season. There’s never a dull moment in volleyball.”

Last fall, Clear helped lead the Lady Trojans to a runner-up finish in the Mideastern 3A/4A Conference and overall record of 20-4.

West Brunswick advanced to the third round of the state 3A playoffs before falling to the eventual state champion, Greenville D.H. Conley.

Clear played outside hitter and recorded a team-high 43 service aces and team-high 276 digs, which was 100 more than anyone else on the team. Her 193 service points ranked second and she also had 88 kills and 19 blocks.

Clear said the fact that Beach is leading the college’s new volleyball program was a big factor in her decision to sign with BCC.

“I wanted to go to community college for two years to get my main courses out of the way, and Beach was going there and she talked me into it,” Clear said.

“I didn’t expect to play college sports, but hopefully with Beach we’ll be successful. She’s hard at times, but she’s very enthusiastic.”

Clear said she plans to go to nursing school at East Carolina after two years at BCC.

Beach said she hopes Clear is not the last local athlete to sign with BCC. She has talked to several players from South Brunswick but said recruiting the first class has been difficult.

“Not a lot of people really know about it. It’s so new and they’re unsure because they don’t know people who have done it. People are uncertain,” Beach said.

“I’ve been talking to a lot and they say if I’m playing volleyball I’m coming to BCC. I just have to persuade them to come two years to my school and then transfer.

“I don’t have any scholarship money to give so that’s a challenge too, even though community college isn’t very expensive. I can offer a great location and the beach.”

Beach played volleyball at Anderson (S.C.) University.

“I’ve been through the whole recruiting process. I wanted somebody to show me they wanted me with money, and unfortunately, I can’t do that. Maybe in a few years I’ll be able to.”

Clear is the second signee for the program, which is scheduled to play its first season in the fall.

Kelly Garry, a 5-foot-3 defensive specialist and setter from Webb High School in Oxford, was the first volleyball player to sign with BCC.