- Milyn Minor’s background in dance, basketball, and soccer shaped her versatility and timing on the volleyball court.
- She draws inspiration from her athletic family, especially her mother, a former college volleyball player, and her brothers, who instilled her strong work ethic.
Milyn Minor’s athletic career started on the dance floor.
It continued on the basketball court and soccer pitch.
Scott’s senior hitter doesn’t do the Griddy, knock down 3-pointers or score goals very much. Instead, she concentrates on kills, assists, digs and blocks, all of which will be needed for the Eagles to defend their 10th Region volleyball championship.
“I’m a very well-rounded athlete, and I think that helps me a lot more, too,” Minor said.
Scott coach Andrea Sullivan is in her 23rd season in Taylor Mill. She’s seen former Eagles Lauren O’Connor, Milyn’s mom, Candi Downs Minor, and Kelly Franxman continue at the University of Kentucky (Franxman transferred from Xavier to UK).
Sullivan needs just a single word to include Milyn Minor in such august company – competitor.
“She competes every second of every game, every practice,” Sullivan said. “She’s not huge (Minor stands 5-10), but I think just her tenacity … She’s very crafty on the court.”
Minor is part of an athletic family. Her dad, Shannon Minor, played high school basketball at Colerain and North College Hill and collegiately at Northern Kentucky University, brother Marshal scored five goals and served five assists at Scott from 2020-23, and brother Mitchel, a senior on NKU’s men’s basketball team who trains for marathons and plans to run 2,025 miles this year.
What’s more, in May she was named one of 16 members of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association 2025-26 KHSAA Student Advisory Group.
Shannon Minor believes Milyn learned her work ethic from her brothers and parents.
“You know, I think all those things kind of contributed to her … putting all that stuff together,” he said. “Her being the youngest one, she took all that in and applied it.”
Milyn Minor started dancing at age three. She played basketball until sixth grade and was serious about soccer until about seventh grade.
“My mom played volleyball, and she ended up playing in college,” Milyn said. “And growing up, I kind of just played in the summer, kind of for fun. And then as a seventh-grader, I was able to play for Scott. Coach Sullivan kind of helped me grow into the sport, and I fell in love with it here at Scott High School. And I loved the competitiveness with it, and I loved the team that I was playing with, and I just really enjoyed playing the sport.”
Sullivan thinks Minor’s the perfect teammate.
“She’s a great captain, she’s a great leader in our program, Sullivan said. “
She helps the younger girls get better, she motivates them. She sees things … because she’s such a student of the game and because she watches so much film, she does a great job just helping us offensively look for things.”
Minor said the dance lessons help her in volleyball.
“You have to be on time with a lot of things; I think that helps me a lot with being able to play every single position,” she said.
It also helps to have Candi in the stands offering constructive criticism.
“She definitely can say a few things that helps me out. She’s a really big inspiration for me, so when I always have questions or things like that, sometimes she’s another person that I can go to, and she is really well-knowledged in the volleyball area,” Milyn said. “But she also likes to stay back and she likes to just watch.”
Scott has struggled early – a 3-0 (25-16, 25-18, 25-15) loss Monday at Beechwood and Tuesday’s 3-0 (25-16, 25-14, 25-10) home setback to St. Henry. For the season, Minor had 25 kills, 11 digs, three blocks and two aces. (Her career totals are 1,534 kills, 1,203 digs, 142 blocks, 85 assists and 258 aces.)
Minor, meanwhile, hopes her legacy is to remind teammates and others that volleyball is still enjoyable.
“Volleyball can still be fun, I think, especially in this generation,” Minor said. “Sometimes, a lot of our girls and I’ve seen in other girls, they put a lot of pressure on themselves, and I think it’s really important to make sure that it’s just a sport and that we’re all here just having fun.”