Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Paiton Forbis excels on, off volleyball court for Paris High School.
WEST FORK — If you look up the word winner in the dictionary, it just might include a picture of Paiton Forbis.
The Paris High School senior has proven to be the epitome of success, on and off the court.
This school year alone, she has been voted president of the Future Business Leaders of America, the president of the National Honor Society, and oh yeah, was voted homecoming queen earlier this fall. All this, while sporting a 3.98 gradepoint average.
Despite all of her accomplishments off the court, Forbis’ real prowess comes on the volleyball court, where she is hoping to lead the Eagles to their fifth straight Class 3A state championship. The road to another title begins Tuesday in Paris, as the Eagles (35-1) host Central Arkansas Christian (8-10) in the first round.
“It’s a total team effort,” the humble Forbis was quick to point out. “This is just a great group of girls to be teammates with, to hang out with and to grow up with.”
Paris won its first volleyball state championship in 2015, when Forbis was in just the eighth grade. But her sister, Ashlin, was on that team, so Paiton has been able to witness this entire historical run since it began.
“I have been watching or playing throughout that entire time,” Forbis said. “When I watched my sister play, I knew that’s what I wanted to do. I wanted to be part of that.”
In the three years that Paiton has taken the court for the Eagles, Paris has produced an incredible 104-5-2 match record. Again, she is quick to share the credit with her fellow seniors, Robyn Gossard, Faith Mainer and Ciara Boswell.
“I think the run that we’ve had shows more about our girls than anything, with their work ethic and their want-to,” said second-year head coach Jordan Devine. “They are begging us to get into the gym in April. They work hard, but they love it. And these girls stay after practice every day to work some more. Literally, we have to turn the lights out to get them to go home.”
Forbis earned all-conference honors last season, and was selected to the all-state tournament team. She was an all-conference honorable mention following her sophomore season. This season, she leads the team with 275 points, 790 assists, 73 service aces and 433 total serves. That is in addition to her 198 digs and 87 kills.
“She’s probably one of the smartest volleyball players I have ever coached or ever seen,” said Devine, a former Eagle volleyball player herself, before graduating in 2007. “Paiton is just so volleyball intelligent. It’s impressive just to sit back and watch her play. She makes good decisions, and she makes the right decisions at the right time.
She is just a very smart volleyball player.”
Forbis began playing volleyball competitively six years ago, with many of the same teammates she has now. She said the group has become more than just teammates
“The best word to describe it is ‘family,’ that’s really the biggest part,” she said. “We have the same likes. We have the same morals. And that “family” is what holds us together.”
Last Monday, the entire team gathered at the Forbis household to carve pumpkins together.
“We spend a lot of time with each other and really like to be around each other,” she added. “This is just a great group of girls.”
The expectation of the Paris volleyball program continues to be passed on to the next group of incoming Eagles.
“When I came in I immediately knew what we were fighting for and what the goal was, and we don’t drop those expectations,” Forbis said. “When the new sophomores came in we made sure they knew what the expectations were — we just never stop. After we win a state championship, we immediately start working toward the next state championship.”
Not only because it’s her senior year, but this season holds an extra special place in Forbis’s heart. She and her teammates wear three colored ribbons on their shoes in remembrance of three people no longer with us. A yellow ribbon represents a fellow classmate who passed away during their freshman year. A green ribbon represents Boswell’s mother and a red ribbon represents Mainer’s father, who both passed away earlier this year.
“We wear those ribbons to keep them in our hearts and to remind of what we are doing this for,” Forbis said. “This has probably been the most special season for us, because we’ve just been working so hard to win it for those we are remembering.”
For a town of less than 3,400 people in the Arkansas River Valley, Paris may be best known for its volleyball success, more than anything else.
“It’s awesome to know that what the girls have worked for and built, is kind of what Paris is known for — championship volleyball,” Coach Devine said.” It makes all their hard work worth it. It’s fun to see them get some recognition for the hard work that they put in.”
After she graduates in May, Forbis plans to attend the University of Arkansas and major in broadcast journalism. As far as her volleyball playing career, nothing is in place as of yet, but she would definitely be willing to listen if the Razorback program offered her an opportunity.
“Right now, our focus is on winning another state championship,” Forbis said. “I think we represent so many people, so this is not just about the girls on this team. It’s about honoring those who are no longer with us, and giving our entire town a reason to be proud.”
But the real pressure to keep streak alive falls squarely on the coach, a positive pressure that Devine welcomes with open arms.
“We had just left Hot Springs, right after last year’s state championship, and I was already seeing the hashtag for this year, #DriveForFive,” she said.
When asked how long this championship streak can last, Devine’s reply was short and simple.
“As long as we want it to,” she said with a big grin. “It’s just a matter of how much the next group wants it and how much they want to work to get it.
“But right now, we are just focusing what we have to do this season.”