SAXONBURG — Skylar Burkett first caught the eye of Seton Hill volleyball coach Rick Hall during a camp last summer.

Hall set up a trash can on the other side of the net and challenged players to serve the ball into it.

When it was Burkett's turn, she spun the ball in her hands, threw it up in the air and did her potent — but sometimes erratic — jump serve.

She pounded the ball straight into the trash can.

“It was a crazy thing looking back,” Burkett said.

Hall was intrigued. He was also enamored with Burkett's quickness, athleticsm and ability to do everything and anything on a volleyball court.

But Burkett wanted to explore her options. Her goal was to always play Division II volleyball and she put herself on the map with two standout seasons.

As a senior, she helped Knoch to its third straight WPIAL Class 3A championship and also made the all-state team.

Burkett wanted to do her due diligence and visited several schools before things came full circle and she finally committed to Seton Hill.

“It's pretty late to be committing,” said Burkett, chuckling. “Seton Hill was really my first opportunity, but I knew I had a lot of options.”

Even with a bevy of schools calling on the explosive star, Seton Hill remained prominently on Burkett's mind.

“I fell in love with the campus and the coach is really cool, too,” Burkett said. “It happened to be the right fit.”

Burkett is also happy to get the decision out of the way.

She said she's lucky because she still had an offer on the table, even with the coronavirus pandemic wrecking havoc on recruiting.

“With this whole coronavirus thing going on, I would have been freaking out if I didn't have any options,” she said.

She did have options and now Burkett is preparing to make the leap to the Division II level.

Burkett is no stranger to making leaps, both on the court and off of it.

At Knoch, she bided her time and finally had a breakthrough campaign as a junior with 194 kills, 456 digs and 61 aces.

She only got better as a senior.

Burkett gave up basketball this winter to focus completely on volleyball.

She said she realizes she may have to wait to make an impact at Seton Hill.

The Griffins were 19-11 with a relatively young roster.

“I'm just really excited,” Burkett said. “I'm going to work as hard as I can. I know what it's like to work myself up the ladder.”

Burkett is trying to stay in shape the best she can with schools and facilities shuttered. She's running her winding, hilly road and peppering a volleyball with her younger sister, Journey, as much as possible.

Burkett said Hall wants her to add muscle to her frame. She said he sees her as an outside hitter or defensive specialist.

“He wants to bulk me up,” Burkett said. “He thinks I can jump even higher.”

Burkett plans on majoring in musical therapy.

Burkett writes songs on her piano and performs them on social media. She hopes her music can help a wide variety of people one day.

“Music is an important part of my life,” Burkett said. “Music can impact our lives emotionally, but also scientifically. Music can change brain patterns and I want to do that. I have four years to find out what I can do.”