An offseason might be a foreign concept for Briar Ray.
The recent Oakland-Craig graduate made the quick transition between seasons from volleyball to basketball to track and field to summer softball throughout her four years of high school.
She participated in a sport all 12 possible seasons and lettered in 10 of those.
“I had maybe one day off each month in June and July (last year),” Ray said. “I was pretty booked up in those times. I’d usually have weights in the morning, then have open gym for volleyball or basketball, then have softball practice, then probably be back to be playing volleyball or basketball for a summer camp and then maybe even have a softball game, too.
“There’s always something every night, so it’s kind of crazy that I don’t have that now. It’s even scary a little bit.”
While things have slowed down only a little bit for Ray this summer as she focuses on preparing for playing volleyball at the College of Saint Mary in Omaha while still playing softball, her impact for the Knights is far from being over.
Ray has played a big role in the continued success of the Oakland-Craig volleyball and girls basketball programs, which have become regular qualifiers in their state tournaments.
And while Ray had the standout senior seasons that made her an all-state selection in both of those sports, it’s her other qualities that the coaches who know her best talk about more than her impressive stat lines.
That’s not surprising considering that Ray didn’t put in all that time for herself during her busy high school summers but for her teammates.
“I kind of pride myself in being a multi-sport athlete,” Ray said. “A lot of people can put in a lot of time and be good in one sport, but I just try to not only be there for my now sport volleyball, but I tried to be there for all my sports.
“I didn’t want to be a one-sport athlete. I wanted to be well-rounded because I wanted it not just for myself but for my teammates. My teammates love basketball, so I wanted to be the best basketball player I could be for them. That’s what made me work so hard in every sport that I was in.”
For her performance over the past school year, Ray has been selected as the Daily News’ girls athlete of the year.
In volleyball, she broke the Class C2 season record for kills with 650, averaging 6.3 per set with a .251 hitting percentage. She added 421 digs, 90 aces and 541 serves received to help the Knights finish third in Class C2.
Ray averaged 18.1 points, 10.0 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.8 steals in basketball to lead Oakland-Craig back to the state tournament one year after she helped the Knights claim a Class C2 championship.
“I’m pretty happy with how it all went,” Ray said of her senior year in sports. “Obviously, we would have liked to have two state championships, but we’re really happy with how we finished out and what we accomplished. To do anything with my best friends on the court is special.”
Ray was a huge part of Oakland-Craig’s success this year in volleyball and basketball, and that wasn’t only because of her production.
“She just was such a leader for us obviously as far as her skill level but also with the person that she is,” Knights volleyball coach Becky Rennerfeldt said. “She’s just a great leader, and she was our go-to for everything. She did a great job, and she was the reason why we were able to have as successful a season that we did.”
Girls basketball coach Scott Guzinski said Ray could have averaged 20-plus points per game if she wanted to, but that’s not the type of player that she was.
“She just did whatever was necessary for us to be successful, and I think that showed how much confidence she has in herself,” he said. “She didn’t always have to be the one to score the points or handle the ball. She just wanted to win, and she didn’t care how we did that.”
Ray made a strong impression on Guzinski in volleyball, which he admits he “doesn’t know diddly about” and sits in the stands as a parent to his daughter, Sonya, who has been a classmate and teammate of Ray’s since fourth grade.
“When our kids were in subdistricts playing Laurel and things weren’t going well, (Ray) was always talking,” he said. “Everything that she says is always positive. She always tries to uplift her teammates. I’m not sure I could do that in that situation. Even when things aren’t going well, that’s just who she is.”
And when things are going well, opponents better watch out.
The prime example of that was the first-round state volleyball matchup against second-seeded Guardian Angels Central Catholic.
Ray piled up 39 kills in the four-set win to surpass the Class C2 single-season kills record of 577 set by her teammate, Brandi Helzer, one year earlier.
“I knew she was obviously doing really well, but I didn’t know the exact number of kills that she had,” Rennerfeldt said. “At a certain point, one of the girls said that she thought she was breaking the record. But at that point, all I wanted to do was win.
“Afterwards, it was really cool and fun to celebrate her success in that game. It got to that point where she was just money, so we just kept feeding her because they didn’t have an answer for her.”
Even seven months later, Ray is quick to deflect any credit for that type of performance and make sure that it is honored as a team achievement.
“That match was kind of like a dream to me,” she said. “Looking back, it was so incredible. The crowd was so insane.
“It was electric the whole time, and my teammates couldn’t have been more supportive through the whole thing. They saw that I was starting to get hot, and my setter kept feeding me the ball. My teammates kept hyping me up every time, so it was pretty cool to be surrounded by such amazing people the entire time.”
To break a state record held by a former teammate was a special achievement.
“It’s incredible to play with such amazing talent through the years, and then to get up to their level my senior year is pretty awesome,” Ray said. “I have siblings, so who knows? Maybe they’re next up. But it’s pretty awesome to have that right now.”
That Ray turned out to be such a successful athlete during her high school career wasn’t a shock to her coaches.
“She’s been an athlete, and when you’re in a small town, you know who your athletes are,” Rennerfeldt said. “She’s been an athlete since I moved here, and in her freshman year, she was good in the gym. It took her a little while to get out the freshman jitters with the inconsistency, but she ended up starting for us toward the end of her freshman year.
“So she played in the state tournament in four years. She was a right-side for us that freshman season, and even as a freshman, she had that ‘let’s go’ attitude of doing everything that I can to win that game. There were even some moments that freshman season at the state tournament that we needed her. I knew that she was going to be a game-changer for us, and then every year, she got a little bit better. By her senior year, she was just a huge asset for our program.”
Guzinski got to see her potential in grade school.
“She’s always been basketball-wise super aggressive,” he said. “We came here when my daughter, Sonya, was in fourth grade, so I’ve coached those kids since then.
“(Briar) has always stood out that even when she wasn’t the most skilled player, she would still play harder than anyone else and was really, really aggressive to the point where she would foul people all the time. We had to get her to back off a little bit. She’s always had talent, but early on, it was just her having that motor.”
Sports have always been important to Ray.
“I don’t remember a time in my life when I wasn’t going to sporting events and playing sports,” she said. “It’s pretty special to get the awards that I’ve gotten, the experiences, all the friendships. I couldn’t be more grateful.”
A supportive family has helped Ray reach her full potential athletically.
“I think a lot of that comes from her parents being all-in on activities and sports and wanting our school to be successful,” Guzinski said. “They’ve taught all four of their kids that if it’s important to them, they make it family time going to these tournaments.”
Ray recognizes everyone who has helped her along the way so that she can do things like have a 39-kill match in a state tournament.
“I couldn’t do it without family, friends, coaches, teammates, community – everyone,” she said. “I have to give a lot of credit to them because I wouldn’t be in position to do that if it weren’t for them helping put me on that state stage or putting me in youth camps.”
Volleyball was the college choice for Ray, although basketball made a comeback bid after the Knights won their championship during her junior year.
And the College of Saint Mary’s quickly felt like the right place to pursue playing at the next level.
“When I went on my college visit, the coach made it feel really homey, and I could just tell he believed in me and knew what I can do,” Ray said. “That made me excited for what is to come.”
She plans on majoring in elementary education and minoring in coaching. A return to Oakland-Craig someday is in the realm of possibility.
“Sports have been in my life forever, and I would love to come back here and coach because this place has been so special to me,” she said. “We’ll see what the future holds, but it would be pretty special to be able to come back to my hometown.”
Guzinski joked that in 10 years when he’s ready to take on an assistant coach role, he would love to work alongside Ray.
“She would be so good for kids,” he said. “I think she understands that kids play their best when they feel good about themselves and are confident. She can correct people, but she does it in such a way that she’s not demeaning or negative. She’s got that next-play mentality, and she can spread that to others.”
Rennerfeldt also sees an excellent role model in Ray who could make a smooth transition to the coaching profession.
“Young girls in our elementary look up to her, and that goes along with her character,” she said. “She has a great character, so she’s a great person to look up to.
“She’s mentioned that her dream is to go get her teaching degree and then come back to Oakland to teach and coach. We’ve kind of joked about how she can be the next Oakland-Craig volleyball coach. She’s going to be a legacy here forever and definitely someone girls will continue to look up to.”
Each year, the senior girls basketball players write an essay for a scholarship. Guzinski said his favorite part from Ray’s essay was her remembering watching from the stands as the girls basketball team played in the state tournament about 10 years ago, wanting to be one of those players someday who the little girls look up to and hope to become.
“There’s a kid right there who gets it,” he said. “It’s not about them. It’s about paying it forward.”
And that might be the biggest part of Ray’s athletic legacy at Oakland-Craig even with all of her impressive statistics and performances.
“Role models to me are everything,” she said. “Growing up, I had so many incredible role models, so I knew I wanted to make the same impact they made on me.
“Every time I stepped on the court, I wanted to make the best impression to everyone whether I was playing my best ball or my worst ball. I wanted to show that I had my energy through the entire game, gave the best effort that I could give and just tried to leave it all out on the court.”
2025: Sophie Humphrey, Battle Creek
2024: Chloe Hanel, Clarkson/Leigh
2023: Laney Kathol, Cedar Catholic