North Forsyth has seen its fair share of coaches, but one that surely sticks out is Coach Kaylee Crumley. Crumley is the female weight lifting teacher as well as the head volleyball coach. She has been coaching for 12 years, three years teaching whilst in college at a college level and nine years at the high school level. This year she won the award for Forsyth County Volleyball Coach of the Year from Forsyth County News.
Crumley grew up playing softball and basketball, later switching to volleyball. When she was playing at a college level, she was inspired by her coach at the time. She realized that she could have a balance between life and coaching. Starting small, she started teaching lessons to high school athletes in Athens Ga as she was attending the University of Georgia and later got a call asking to coach at Truett McConnell college. She was coaching in Hall County when a coaching position opened up at North Forsyth.
“I’m a pretty big family person, and so it just made sense to be teaching and coaching in the community we live in and we go to church in. So it was kind of a no-brainer.” Crumley states.
This past year, the team made it to state before losing 3-2 to Walton High School. In relation to the team’s success she points to their strong chemistry and motivation. She went on to say, “Sacrificing for each other and pushing for each other. They all were on the same page the entire season, from when we got together in May all the way through the end of October,”
The teams biggest challenge this past year is how young a lot of the team is, seeing as three senior players graduated in 2024. The team combated this challenge with having dedicated new players. “We had two key freshmen really put in some work, and a key sophomore,” she says.
Her goal for the 2026 season would be to win a State Championship. Crumley plans to keep the strong team bond going in the following season. One way the team is more successful is because they’ve changed their perspective on the season. Rather than looking at the season head-on, they look at it month by month, step by step. This helps the team stay focused on their goals.
She is also hoping to win all home games and possibly host a few state playoff games. “Playing at home is huge. When we do have a crowd, it’s a great crowd, getting all those little wins to eventually get the big win,” Crumley states.
Her biggest inspiration is her family, her faith and the team itself, “The girls inspire me with how hard they work. I see the sacrifices they make. And so if they make it easy for me to show up like they want it.”
