Violet McNece always strives to be the best player and teammate she can be. She's a competitor and a winner, and when she transferred from Navy to Morehead State, she recognized those same qualities in head coach Ashton Feldhaus.
"When talking to Coach Feldhaus about this program, I knew immediately this was a place I wanted to be," McNece said. "The focus on teamwork, hard work, and winning is something I enjoy doing. I'm a competitive person who hates to lose, and I'm willing to do anything it takes to win. When I was talking to Coach Feldhaus, I knew she felt the same and was going to recruit people who are willing to do the same."
McNece was a decorated high school player. She led Incarnate Word Academy to three Missouri Final Fours and two State Championships.
The 2020 state tournament was canceled due to COVID-19, so she very well could've had three State Championships to her name.
But McNece's drive to win didn't start when she stepped foot on a high school court. It began in her hometown of Chesterfield, Missouri.
"Chesterfield is a suburb outside of St. Louis, Missouri," McNece said. "I knew everyone in my grade, and it was competitive at all times.
"I took my love for the game and directly applied it to becoming not only the best player I could be, but the best teammate I could be."
When it comes to winning, McNece is all about it. No matter the circumstance, McNece will do whatever it takes to put her team on top.
"Winning is always the best feeling," McNece said. "Whether we're making lots of shots, or we can't throw a beach ball into the ocean, winning is the best feeling. Even in tough games, being able to overcome adversity and get the win is the best feeling."
It doesn't matter if the shots are splashing like cannonballs or clanking like beach balls off a pier, McNece makes it clear: winning is the goal, and she'll do whatever it takes to make it happen.
That 'whatever it takes' mentality that McNece has doesn't come from nowhere. She credits her dad as her biggest influence.
"I've always looked up to my dad because he's the hardest worker I know," McNece said. "I can say I became a Division I basketball player because of him.
"He was always encouraging my sister and I to do better and holding us accountable to ensure we were putting in the work outside of practice. He was always pushing us to be the best players we could be."
McNece is a winner on and off the court. Winning off the court includes the cockpit of a plane as well!
Apart from being a standout basketball player, she's also flown a T-34 plane solo and in an F-18 fighter jet simulator.
She spent two years at Navy before transferring to Morehead State. McNece is a traveler, and if she could fly anywhere in the world, she'd do it with her best friends and sisters.
"I'd go through the Mediterranean Sea with Jaiden and Sariah, my best friends from high school and the Naval Academy, and my two younger sisters, Macie and Evie."
McNece is a fierce competitor and a hard worker. She's put in the time and dedication to reach the Division I level, and she wants to advise the young girls who look up to her to do the same.
"Hard work will always beat talent when talent fails to work hard," McNece said. "Staying on the grind despite the results, whether good or bad, will always lead to where you want to go. It can also be inspiring to your teammates, causing them to work harder, which only betters your teammates. Never give up, and always work as hard as you can."
Morehead State is getting a great player and an even better person in McNece. She's a team player, a great shooter, and someone who's willing to do whatever it takes to win.
"Our team will always work the hardest, play together, and win together," McNece said.
