Brennan sets the way for Bulldogs

Shannon Brennan walked into Notre Dame and started on the varsity volleyball team as a freshman.

The standout senior is trying to lead the Bulldogs to a Class 3 state championship three years later.

"Overall she's a great player," Notre Dame coach Tara Stroup said. "She's the only four-year starter I've coached since I've been here, which has been a long time now. She came in as a freshman good enough to play varsity, and we had a good team that year. She's gotten better every year. She makes good decisions, she's really experienced and she's competitive. I can't say enough good things about her."

Notre Dame (32-5) will play in the round-robin portion of the final four Friday at the Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Mo.

It's been a long road for Brennan, from knowing little about the world of high school volleyball to developing into the leader on a talented squad.

Notre Dame's Shannon Brennan sets the ball for Bailey Martin during a match earlier this season.

Brennan admits the first year was a little rocky, but the experience she gained was invaluable.

"I honestly didn't know what to expect," Brennan said. "I remember the first game I ever played was against Farmington, and that was a bad game. I hardly knew anybody on the team, I had never really been friends with any of them before. It was like I had big shoes to fill. I had to show that I could play on varsity and keep my spot on varsity."

Stroup said she had her concerns about the long-term effects of the early exposure of varsity play on Brennan, but the player has alleviated any potential problems with a strong work ethic.

"When you have a young player that has so much success at first, sometimes they get to where they're not coachable when they get older," Stroup said. "They start thinking they know more than everybody else, and that's not been the case with her."

Brennan has been a valuable player for the Bulldogs through her four years. She helped Notre Dame to a fourth-place finish in Class 3 and was named honorable mention all-state as a junior.

Notre Dame's Shannon Brennan spikes during a match against Farmington earlier this season. (Kristin Eberts)

This year the Bulldogs' setter has taken on a more vocal leadership role and increased productivity on the court.

Brennan led the team with 379 assists and 31 service aces through district play. She also was second on the team with a .343 kill percentage and third with 146 kills.

Perhaps the biggest role she has filled has been as a leader, a duty vacated with the graduation of Meghan Dohogne.

"That's one of things I was worried about this year when we lost Meghan Dohogne," Stroup said. "She [Dohogne] was a good player last year, but had such a crucial leadership role. I was worried about who's going to fill this leadership position. Some of my more experienced girls are also more quiet. They are good players, but they're not loud or vocal. I was hoping it'd be [Brennan] that would step up and do it, and I'm glad she has."

Added teammate Ashley Humphrey: "It's nice to know you have one person out there to show everybody it's OK, that when you're down 10-3 that you can still come back from that. Shannon is determined to do that every single game."

Senior Shannon Brennan and her Notre Dame teammates are preparing for the Class 3 final four volleyball tournament, which begins Friday in Kansas City, Mo. (Laura Simon)

Brennan downplays any pressure of having to be the leader.

"I really don't feel the pressure," Brennan said. "I know I have a crucial job. I've been on this team for four years and everybody looks to me as the leader. If I'm down, it's like a domino effect."

Family influence

Her success and talent has been building for much of Brennan's life.

Her mother played four years of volleyball at Saint Louis University, and Brennan said volleyball was a natural part of growing up.

"It started with my mom," Brennan said. "She taught my dad how to play, and my dad would teach me how to play. I would just bump the volleyball with him."

She continued to grow up in volleyball, often tagging along with her parents and practicing on the side.

"My mom and dad would play Wednesday night leagues, and my mom helped coach the [Immaculate Conception] teams," Brennan said. "I would just kind of tag along and help with drills and set against the wall and pass against the wall and hit against the wall. It was also my dad too. Me and him would go outside and pepper back and forth."

Brennan started competitive volleyball in sixth grade, playing for Immaculate Conception in Jackson.

"When I first started playing, I didn't want to be a setter," Brennan said. "I wanted to be a hitter. My mom would always tell me. 'Shannon, you need to set,' and I was like, 'No, I'm going to be a hitter. I loved getting hits. Now when I face all these tall players I'm like, 'Yeah, I need to be a setter.'"

Brennan said she realized setting was the best option in eighth grade and now appreciates the role.

The setter doesn't necessarily get the glory, but the position is crucial for the offense to flow.

"She is the best player I think I've ever coached as far as when and where to place the ball at the right time," Stroup said. "She hits it down the line when we need to or she takes the second ball and tips it when the other team's not expecting it. She's smart and has a lot of experience."

Brennan realizes the impact her position has on the team, but she's thankful she has teammates that make her job easier.

"It's my job as a setter to make the hitters look good," Brennan said. "It's my job to run the team and it's my decision where the ball is going to go. All of that comes with really good passes. I'm lucky to have a really good passing team. This is one of the strongest serve-receive teams we've had in a long time, and it makes my job so much easier when the passes are right on and it helps when you have really consistent hitters to set to."

Brennan will attempt to lead the Bulldogs to their first state championship in volleyball this weekend.

It's a far cry from when Brennan was a freshman, but a spot she's worked hard to be in.

"Experience and extra practice," Brennan said of her success. "Eventually people catch up to your skill level and you don't stand out if you don't practice any more. You have to keep that repetition going."