Kyla Briscoe may be on crutches as she recovers from a ripped-up ankle, but she’s still a vital part of the Wolf volleyball program. (John Fisken photos)
Briscoe cheers on her classmates during the season-opening football game.
“Really? You’re gonna take my picture … again?” (Valen Trujillo photo)
Kyla Briscoe is a walking, talking ray of sunshine.
The Coupeville High School junior, who celebrates a birthday today, is the same now as when she was, say, five years old.
She’s taller, certainly, and a far more polished athlete now than she was as a kindergartner, that’s true.
But she remains as friendly, warm, and irrepressible as she has always been, a genuinely kind and caring young woman who is fiercely loyal to her family and friends.
Kyla has a backbone of steel, which you can see as she deals with the disappointment of missing volleyball season.
Having shredded her ankle during a summer camp in Bellingham, she’s on crutches and missing out on a final chance to play alongside big sis Tiffany.
As hard as the ordeal has to be, Kyla has remained front and center with the spikers, showing up for practices and games, staying a vital part of a team for which she lettered her first two years.
The hope is she will be able to return for basketball season, rejoining a squad she helped take to state last year.
If not, if the rehab stretches on longer than anticipated, Wolf b-ball coaches David and Amy King plan to keep Briscoe just as involved as volleyball coach Cory Whitmore has done.
And why not?
Having Kyla’s energy, good humor and quiet wit around to brighten up her team’s day is huge.
Whether she’s playing or helping out, she is invaluable.
That carries over off the court, as well.
I’ve known Kyla most of her life, and she and Tiffany are as rock-solid a duo as they come.
You mess with one, you better be ready to mess with the other, as on-court foes have discovered, because they don’t back down when defending their sister.
Highly-intelligent, well-spoken (though generally soft-spoken … in public, at least), Kyla should make parents Amy and Rich very proud.
She is one of the best and brightest we have in Wolf Nation, and, as much as she’s probably blushing right now and dismissively waving away the praise, she truly deserves it.
So, from all of us, happy birthday Kyla, and may you have a speedy recovery.
There are a lot of stars, but you, Miss Briscoe, are a true superstar.
