LUMBERTON — The Sandhills Community College volleyball team has seemingly had a recruiting pipeline from Robeson County in recent years.

That continued Wednesday as Lumberton senior standout Aydan Bullard signed with the Flyers.

“I just liked the environment and the welcoming that I had when I first walked into Sandhills,” Bullard said. “That’s really it, just the family feel.”

Bullard, a three-sport star for the Pirates who plays basketball and soccer, says volleyball is her favorite sport. Now, it’s the one she’ll play at the next level.

“I’ve always really liked all the sports I’ve played, but volleyball stuck out to me,” Bullard said. “It’s a very big dream that I’ve had since I was a little girl, so living up to it is so cool.”

Bullard had 78 aces in her senior volleyball season, third most in the United-8 Conference, and also had 180 digs and 80 kills.

“I believe they’re getting an all-around player,” Lumberton coach Kali Carter said. “She’s stepped up so many times the last two years for my team. She’s been an All-County player the last two years, an All-Conference player for the last two years. She can set, she led us in aces.”

“I like that she can do it all,” said Sandhills coach Alicia Riggan, who was present at Wednesday’s ceremony. “She can play the front line, she can serve, she can play the back row. That’s kind of what we’re looking for in players, whether they can come in and be an asset to the front row or they can come in and be aggressive on the back line, but just that she can do that already makes her more valuable for the outlook for our program.”

Starting with the high school class of 2021, Bullard will become the eighth player from Robeson County to play volleyball at Sandhills, located in Pinehurst. This includes Lumberton’s KeKe Lawrence, who has been named an National Junior College Athletic Association Division III All-American in both her seasons at Sandhills; Lawrence, who was present at Bullard’s signing, announced Tuesday she is committing to Elizabeth City State University.

“I really like that the girls in this county are being so successful in a sport, and that Sandhills is such a big deal, because I get to make a family with family that I already have,” Bullard said.

“We’ve kept great relationships with these schools, and these girls come out there, they work really hard and they’re coachable, and it makes our job a lot easier because our job is to teach the skill and enhance that a little bit more,” Riggan said. “We’re just very fortunate we’ve created that pathway with these schools and have such a good reputation and see products come through and continue playing after Sandhills.”

Bullard also had an offer from Fayetteville Tech. She could potentially play both indoor and beach volleyball for the Flyers.