When Stella Sheeran was just 12 years old, she knew she wanted to someday be a Division I volleyball player.
Just four years later, Sheeran has already made that dream come true.
The Olympia High School rising junior and volleyball standout announced June 20 her commitment to the University of Washington to play beach volleyball. Sheeran’s verbal pledge came just five days after she began communicating with UW’s coaches, as Division I coaches cannot initiate recruiting communication with student athletes until June 15 after their sophomore year.
She had competed in camps in front of her future coaches, but official recruiting communication didn’t take place until just two weeks ago. Sheeran didn’t need much time after receiving an offer from the coaching staff to come to the conclusion that UW was the perfect fit for her.
“I’ve worked really hard for this. All of my coaches and my mom have helped a lot. I couldn’t have done it without any of them,” Sheeran, a defender in beach volleyball and outside hitter/libero in indoor volleyball, said. “I also know that I’m not done here. This is just the start of everything, and I need to work to find my spot at UW.”
Sheeran began playing volleyball at the age of 10, starting with indoor volleyball with DaKine before trying beach volleyball two years ago. Last season, she took up beach volleyball full time, falling in love with the challenge of the two-versus-two structure compared to the six-on-six format of indoor volleyball.
Plus, it’s hard to beat playing the sport you love on the beach.
Sheeran first grew interested in beach volleyball when her older sister Anna Sheeran, who was the starting libero on North Thurston’s 2025 3A state championship team, started playing beach volleyball. At first, Stella mildly enjoyed beach volleyball but vowed to stick with indoor. But the more beach tournaments she competed in, the more that preference started to teeter in the opposite direction. Sheeran found immediate success in beach volleyball, drawing interest from at least six colleges, including UW, which was the only in-state school that contacted her on June 15.
“I love the coaches a lot. I’ve gotten to know both of them because I did a camp there once, and their assistant coach [Abbie Hughes] came from Arizona State, and I did a camp there with her,” Sheeran said. “They seemed very nice. I watched the team a little bit, and it’s something I wanted to be a part of.”
Sheeran visited the UW campus multiple times and knew the school was toward the top of her list immediately. Coaches reached out on June 15 to schedule a call, and after a 40-minute call later that week, they extended an offer.
“I was so happy. I wasn’t expecting it on the first call, especially as a defender. It’s harder because coaches usually want to get their blockers first, and I’m only 5-foot-6 so I’m not a blocker,” Sheeran said. “But it was really exciting. The head coach Steve [McFadden] was very friendly on the call. Coach calls can be very stressful because it could make or break if I get an offer, but it felt like a normal conversation.”
Sheeran had the chance to watch the Huskies practice and compete at Alki Beach, and she was fascinated by how the coaches focused on the mental side of volleyball, utilizing mental reps for their players before every practice. She witnessed a strong connection between the players, along with between the coaches and players.
“They’re all very close to each other. I want to be close to my team. I want it to feel like another family, and that’s why I really chose to go,” Sheeran said.
This fall, Sheeran will be a veteran on a young Olympia Bears team that lost five seniors, four of which were All-South Puget Sound League selections, from a season ago. She believes the team can make a run at a sixth consecutive state tournament appearance.
“I definitely want to make it to state. It’s gonna be hard, but I think we can still do it,” she said. “Our team’s very young. A big goal is for our team to connect with each other well because a bunch of us have never played with each other before. It’s a growth year, but also within the growth year, I still want to compete and be successful.”
The stress of the recruiting process is over for Sheeran, whose goal of choosing her next destination before the upcoming BVCA National Championship Tournament in Hermosa Beach, California, was realized. Volleyball wasn’t her first sport, as she played soccer for eight years and basketball for a couple of years, but the energy and unpredictability of volleyball drew her in and hasn’t let go. Now, Sheeran gets the opportunity to continue her athletic and academic career at the University of Washington, where she will compete for a team that finished 21-14 in 2026 and pulled off multiple victories over ranked teams.
“Volleyball is a different play every point. You never know what to expect. When I was a kid, it was always my dream to go play in college,” Sheeran said. “I’m very competitive. I’ll go for everything. I’ll bring a lot of fire to the team and a lot of energy. I also want to be there to support my teammates. Whatever they need, I’ll be there for.”
