DeWilde emerges as a force in the middle for the Indians

~ St. Vincent opens play at the state volleyball tournament Friday.

St. Vincent junior Sarah DeWilde may be an upperclassman, but she jokes that she is the least experienced member of the Indians' varsity volleyball team.

DeWilde, who sat the bench as a sophomore and accumulated most of her playing time on the junior varsity team, has joined a starting lineup this fall with four seniors and a junior who have been playing together since middle school.

"I'm just kind of the rookie you could say for this team," she said. "Not so much now, but in the beginning, it was kind of intimidating.

"They had a really good team last year and we didn't lose any seniors."

DeWilde worked in the offseason to earn a starting spot by playing club ball, routinely lifting weights, attending volleyball camps and working to improve her game techniques to try to break into an experienced Indians lineup.

And she was successful, having an instant impact as a rookie. In the quarterfinal match alone, against Crystal City last week, she played especially well on defense, blocking 16 shots. Indians coach Mindy House called it one of her best performances this season.

For DeWilde, it marked another exciting moment this season -- something she never imagined last season while riding the bench.

With the victory, DeWilde and the Indians (29-5-2) will play in the 33rd annual volleyball state tournament at the UCM Multipurpose Building in Warrensburg on Friday and Saturday.

"Every time I would block a ball, I could hear the fans on the sidelines and that little second you have to celebrate was awesome," DeWilde said. "Everybody on the court, it was amazing. It's just so much fun when you're hitting and everything is going right. I was just excited because it was gelling right.

"I didn't expect to be a starter. I didn't expect to get a lot of playing time. I just mainly tried to work as hard as I could and see what I could do. I didn't know what to expect this season."

House said DeWilde has been a force as a middle blocker from the beginning of the year.

"She jumped in right with those girls and they just play along with her," House said. "She is one of our big middles so she's been starting pretty much throughout the year. She went to a lot of camps in the summer and she's always the one in the beginning of practice doing stretch bands by herself."

Offseason work paid off

DeWilde said not playing on the varsity last season was tough.

"It's difficult to sit the bench," she said. "I got a lot of playing time in JV, but if you see a teammate struggling, you just want to help them out but you're sitting the bench and you can't really help them. All you can do is cheer for them and support them."

She attended camps and played from November to April with a club team in Farmington to improve her skills. During the summer, she did conditioning drills, including running, along with weight lifting. Teammates said she has brought the same work ethic with her into this season.

"Sarah has been working real hard at the middle and she's been blocking real well," senior Sara Moll said. "She lifted weights and she played with the Farmington team and she worked hard [during the offseason.] I was in weight lifting class last year and I saw her there every day lifting."

DeWilde said she worked on her technique as a hitter and blocker while attending camps and playing club ball. She learned quicker sets and better timing on offense and worked to improve her footwork and blocking on defense.

"It's a lot about timing, judging and playing the whole court, especially when you're in the middle," she said. "You've got both sides of the court to look at. Mainly you work on timing and trying to read your setters and know where the passes are coming from. It's a lot of mind games and you just got to know exactly where you need to be."

Playing with experience

DeWilde said she did not find out she would be a starter until her coach told her the starting lineup before the season opening match.

"I didn't know for sure, but I had little guesses in my mind," she said. "Mainly when we practice, we do a lot scrimmaging and trying to fit everyone in to see what works for the team. I was always in there with them, so you kind of assume you have a starting position, but you never know."

The other starters have been playing together since middle school, so they are able to read one another and know where each other is going to be on the court. Joining a group that has so much experience playing together was difficult for DeWilde at first, but she's made the adjustment.

"I was nervous but confident the first game," she said. "They know where everybody else is going and you stick someone else in there and it's a different ballgame."

Courtney Besand said: "All of us have played for a really long time together and she hasn't played with us. So when she came in, she felt she had to work harder to earn her spot."

DeWilde, like the rest of her teammates, said she is ready for this weekend. She said the four-and-a-half hour bus trip should be fun, but she cannot wait to step onto the floor.

And when she does, she will take the same approach she did to earn her position.

"I'm excited for everyone to be together and to end the season right," she said. "I'm just playing to do the best I can. If victory is in the hands, then go for it."