Bailey Webster isn’t waiting until fall to head to the University of Texas.

The St. Paul’s volleyball All-America signed early with Texas and plans to enroll there next month. She said she will graduate early from St. Paul’s and head to Austin in mid-January.

“I felt like it was a lot of benefits to it,” said Webster. “It will get me ready. I’ll have a chance to train with the girls, to pick up weights and to learn, so I would be ready for the fall and I would be more acclimated to the campus.”

Webster added that she likes to be organized and that she can better balance the demanding fall volleyball season with her academic load if she gets adjusted this spring. She also said that she would like to graduate from college a semester early, so she can get a head start on the master’s degree she likely will add to her undergraduate business degree.

Webster will continue to play basketball for the Gators until she graduates.

“I didn’t know whether play or not, but I’m so close with all my basketball team and they all wanted me to play and I still love basketball. We settled it with [Coach Jim Stromberg], so I can go halfway [through the season],” said Webster.

Webster, a 6-foot-3 outside hitter, will take time out to play in the inaugural Under Armour All-America High School Volleyball Match and Skills Competition in Omaha, Neb., on Dec. 21.
--Katherine Dunn