Kaylee Fifer admits she has a rather unconventional relationship with her mother.

    The Guyer standout – who recently signed to play volleyball at Colgate University -- has a court set up in her backyard, and every so often she plays against her mom, Allison. Allison, by the way, was once a standout at Texas Tech.

    “It’s really competitive between us, and there are consequences for losing,” Kaylee laughed.

    Fifer said the rivalry is so juiced that sometimes each will invite a friend over for doubles tournaments. And Heaven forbid if one were to lose one of these grudge matches.

    “Unfortunately she has,” Fifer said when asked if her mom has ever beaten her. “If you lose you have to do pushups or other conditioning drills, it’s competitive. We go back and forth (with wins).”

    The extra work has made Fifer one of the elite volleyball players in the area and she leads a solid group of local athletes to sign letters of intent within the last few weeks. Flower Mound basketball stars Mallory Singleton and Laura McCoy each signed last Wednesday to play at SMU and UNT, respectively, while Rachel Cunningham – a Flower Mound volleyball standout – also decided on UNT.

    “It’s real exciting because as a player you don’t have to worry about it (decision) anymore,” Singleton said. “I can just focus on the season and eventually playing there.”

    While Singleton and McCoy are just getting their senior seasons started, both Fifer and Cunningham are completely focused on training for the next level. Fifer – who made the All-State team in both her sophomore and junior seasons and could very well be named to that list again in a matter of days -- said she expects to start, but said the opportunity will not be given to her. She has already had the coaching staff email her the strength and conditioning program so she can get ready for fall practices.

    Fifer led the Wildcats this year with 813 assists and had a .258 hitting percentage.

    “I want to have the best opportunity possible, so that’s why I’m working so hard right now,” Fifer said. “It’s comparable to the high school workouts I’m used to, so I’m adjusting well to it. I’m just excited to have a chance to keep playing.”

    Cunningham is similar to Fifer in that volleyball expertise runs in the family. Her sister is a senior standout at Biola University. While the Jaguars didn’t make the playoffs this past season, Cunningham was part of a group of athletes that helped the program become one of the top-rated programs in the area over the last few seasons. This past year, she record 108 kills and 23 blocks and showed her versatility as both an outside hitter and libero.

    “Where I’m going now, the way you perform in practice determines whether or not you start,” Cunningham said. “I’m just excited to have the opportunity and to have this decision out of the way.”

    McCoy and Singleton are primed to lift the Jaguars to the playoffs again this year. As a junior, McCoy was 13th in Class 5A in scoring with 492 points (14.9 points per game average). She also averaged 3.8 assists per game and just shy of two three pointers per game. Singleton was also a big gamer, helping the Jaguars average 52.4 points per game on offense a year ago.