Winthrop senior Brookelynn Thomas knows what it takes to excel at her craft while constantly going up against much bigger competition on the volleyball court.

It's a mindset she obviously inherited from her mother Carmen, who faced the same obstacles game-after-game while playing for the Eagles women's basketball team from 1991-1995 as a 5-10 post player.

Former Winthrop head women's basketball coach Robin Muller remembers Carmen well.

"She was an undersized player who did not back down from physicality," Muller recalled. "She was a very good rebounder and scored well in the paint."

And score she did, finishing her four-year career as a member of Winthrop's prestigious 1,000-point club, with 1,081.

Like her mother, Brookelynn faces an up-hill battle at the net every game. And there's no back down in her game.

The former All-Region and All-State selection at Blythewood (SC) High School, is listed as 6-foot on the Eagle roster, but says with a smile, "I'm actually 5-11."

That means she's routinely going up against front-line players who stand 6-2 or taller. She's proven night-after-night she can more than hold her own.

Brookelynn made the Big South Conference All-Freshman team, was honorable mention all-conference last season and a preseason first team selection going into her senior year. Through Winthrop's first 22 matches she's leading the team in kills (209) and blocks (80), impressive numbers that also place her among the Big South Conference leaders.

Brookelynn sees her determination at the net as a way to test her strength against the taller players she faces night-after-night

"It's the one-on-ones that are my favorite," the management major said after a recent practice. "The person in front of me is the person I have to beat. If I hit it as hard as I can and it breaks through your block, that's a win for me. If you hit as hard as you can and I block it, that's another win for me."

Brookelynn makes up for the height disadvantage with a tremendous vertical jump that continually causes people to say, "She plays like she's 6-2 or 6-3."

"I take that as a real compliment because you don't see many girls my height playing in the middle," she said. "I work on my vertical jump every summer. I can touch 10-3 right now, but I think I can do better."

Winthrop head coach Heather Gearhart has wanted to move Brookelynn to the right side for a while, but because of injuries she's been forced to keep her in the middle. And according to Gearhart, Brookelynn's willingness to take one for the team has caused teammates to "Look up to her."

When it comes to basketball, Brookelynn, a National Honor Society member, admits her mother wanted her to follow her footsteps. "I played basketball from like 5 to 14, but then I stopped and concentrated on volleyball,"  she said, "Sure my mom wanted me to play basketball, but she was like, as long as I was playing a sport she was happy with my choice."

And in the long run that decision has proven to be the right one. So, is there a future in volleyball after graduation? "Maybe I'll go pro," she said. "Not 100 percent sure right now. For the longest time I didn't want to go overseas, but my coach told me a lot of good things about it. It seems like a fun opportunity that would give me the chance to travel and play with different people."

If that's her choice, Brookelynn knows she'll be facing many obstacles. But like always, she's ready to take them on.