This Garnet Valley junior is a rising star in the beach volleyball world. She just came home with some hardware.

The first day of school at Garnet Valley High was Aug. 26. Sarah Wood, however, will start her junior year classes Monday because she was in Shangluo, China, representing Team USA in beach volleyball.

And she’s coming back with some hardware.

The 16-year-old Wood, along with her partner, Sally Perez, 17, a UCLA freshman from North Carolina, earned a bronze medal at the FIVB Beach Volleyball U19 World Championships on Sept. 1. They won the third-place match against Thailand. Myriah Massey and Lily Dee Davis of Team USA, who defeated Wood and Perez in a semifinal, took home gold with a win against Spain in the final.

Wood’s name is becoming known in the beach volleyball world. At age 14, she was the youngest player to advance from a qualifier to the main draw in an Association of Volleyball Professionals beach tournament. Next, the 6-foot-2 split blocker traveled to California to train with Olympians Taryn Kloth and Kristen Nuss.

“I’ve gotten better as a player,” Wood said, “and have met some new people, which has allowed me to make new connections and play with better people.

“The game is just so much fun to me. I love being able to travel and play on a beach with whoever, whenever, and wherever. It’s just stress-free. You can just go play, and just have so much fun.”

The world championships were Wood’s first international experience with Team USA, and she hopes they won’t be the last. The goal is to represent her country at the Olympics, possibly in Los Angeles or 2032 in Brisbane, Australia.

However, her parents, Greg and Krista, themselves former volleyball players, have reminded her to stay present.

“I think she’s a rare athlete,” Greg Wood said. “We sort of have an obligation to support her in whatever she wanted to do, whether it was ballet, violin, or math. But she also needed to remain a 16-year-old, so she has that balance. Both of those things were important to fuel her dream, make sure that she felt supported, and make sure she was grounded.”

After her freshman year, Wood began to expand her training beyond Stars and Stripes Volleyball Club in New Jersey. But national tournaments came with the price of missing school and falling behind. The Wood family sought out alternative schooling options for the following year, and the district allowed Sarah to move core curriculum classes online while her electives remained in person.

» READ MORE: Beach volleyball runs through the Wood family’s veins, and each sister has paved her own path in the sport

It gave her the ability to spend more time on her training in places like California, Florida, and Texas — the main locations for beach volleyball matches in the U.S.

“Really, beach volleyball is in Southern California — in Hermosa Beach and Manhattan Beach — which is where she is right now, getting ready to play,” Greg Wood said. “That’s where all the best players in the U.S. and, quite frankly, in the world, are. Being at one of the Southern California schools, if [Sarah] ends up going there, you have access to all of these great players and all of these great tournaments that happen sort of right in your backyard.”

Sarah Wood was competing in the Hermosa Beach Open, which ran from Wednesday to Saturday. The event showcases some of the top talent in professional beach volleyball. Afterward, it’s getting caught up with school. This year, she has four in-person classes.

It’s a commitment, but academics come first, Sarah Wood said, and since June 15, she also has had to juggle meeting and chatting with college coaches. June 15 is the beginning of the first contact period, when coaches can begin contacting high school athletes.

“She’s had a lot of calls and a lot of offers on June 15,” Greg Wood said. “She’s really been focused on playing professionally this summer and then representing the U.S., but she’s getting close to announcing where she’s going to go to college, I think she’s going to be announcing soon.”

Wood has been talking with schools from the states with the top beach volleyball locations, but didn’t name a university. She said she’s looking for a program that will push her to get into international competitions while she can compete for a national championship.

Greg and Krista were proud to see their daughter on the podium representing Team USA. The couple introduced their daughters, Sarah, Maddie (who now competes at the University of Tampa), and Lauren to the sport and coached them growing up. They even had a beach volleyball net installed in the backyard, so the girls could play whenever they wanted to.

And it’s still where Sarah spends countless hours practicing when she’s back home.

“It’s super special,” she said. “Just having them constantly there to help me, it’s really cool, and helps me stay sharp.”