The youngest of three children, Carly has made it a clean sweep of Gearys representing their state at national school sporting carnivals.

The 14-year-old will travel to Adelaide in August to compete at the 2008 School Sport Australia netball championships.

Sister Jessica, 17, made last year’s Victorian Catholic schoolgirls’ netball side, and was a member of the Victorian 17-under team that won this year’s national title.

Brother Jack, also 17, played Australian rules football for the Victorian primary school team several years ago and is now in the Bendigo Pioneers squad.

Carly learned of her own state schoolgirls’ honour last month after the final trial of an intense selection process.

It came as a bit of a surprise to her family because she was one of the younger girls trying out, and will still be eligible for the team next year.

“It was quite unexpected because she is a bottom-age player and she’s not old enough to be in a regional netball academy,’’ mother Mandy Geary said.

“She had to attend an initial screening day then go back with all the academy girls, who had gone straight through to the second try-out.

“We didn’t really think she had a chance.’’

Carly is a talented young goaler and wing attack for Golden Square in the under-17 division of the Bendigo Bank-backed Bendigo Football-Netball League.

But she is being developed as mainly a centre court player in the state schoolgirls’ team.

The Catholic College Bendigo Year 8 student travels to Melbourne every weekend for Victorian training, and will spend two days over the coming school holidays undergoing intensive netball coaching.

She also spends several sessions a week at the Bendigo Gymnastics Centre, developing her co-ordination, fitness, self-discipline and core strength, which has helped her netball improve immensely.

Carly started netball when she was in Grade 3 at St Therese’s Primary School, then played for the Falcons club before joining her siblings at Golden Square this year.

She is also a star on the basketball court, playing for Generals locally, and has represented country Victoria at championships in Port Macquarie in January, and the Bendigo Braves under-14 squad at national titles in Canberra last October.

She enjoys the challenge of juggling both sports at a high level, but could soon face the tough task of having to decide which one to concentrate on.