By Noah Allison–
Heading into this year, Anne Kordes’ volleyball team was full of new faces. Last year was a team with five seniors, including two fifth year senior middle blockers in Brooke Mattingly and Randi Ewing.
A gap in the middle of any team, regardless of the sport, is a bad thing. Not too often can a transition from two five-year players to two first-year players be seamless, but you’ve got to hand it to Coach Kordes and these freshmen, because that’s what it’s been.
From the first game in Louisville’s inaugural ACC season, the freshman combination of Tess Clark, a six-foot-three MB from Phoenix, Arizona and Maggie DeJong, a six-foot MB from Sioux Falls, South Dakota has given the Cards a spark and a chance with any opponent.
On the year, Clark is third on the team in kills with 178, and DeJong is fifth with 80. Keep in mind that DeJong had to sit out for a few weeks due to injury, yet she still ranks in the top five of all her position’s impactful stats.
From preseason on, the rest of the Cards on the team raved about the work ethic and professionalism.
“They’ve been amazing. I can’t even tell you how impressed I’ve been, not just the work ethic, the attitude, the intangibles; that’s all great. But how fast they have picked everything up, how cerebral they are and how nothing has flustered them thus far. I think that’s the biggest key.
“Every game they are there to play no matter what. They don’t care who’s ranked or that they’re freshmen. They’re certainly not playing like it, so it’s been fun,” head coach Anne Kordes said.
Both youngsters knew that they were going to have a role on the team given the graduation of last year’s middles. They didn’t spend their summer on the couch; that’s for sure.
“Honestly, in my head, there was two spots and two of us, so it kind of made sense,” Clark said. “It definitely pushed me to work really, really hard because starting as a freshman is a big thing for any college team, so I knew that I was going to have to make a big impact just like the two middles that were here last year. They were amazing, so I had to follow in their footsteps and be strong in the middle with everything I do.
“I think my past coaches have definitely taught me that nothing comes easy, so I work really hard for everything that I want to get. So coming in, my mentality was work as hard as I can to make an impact on this team because I mean I play for my team, so I have to work as hard as I can to help them.”
DeJong shared Clark’s mindset heading into the season.
“I know the two previous middles were extremely hard workers and so I really wanted to make a big impact on this team. Coming in as a freshman, I just knew that everyday I had to give it my all. Make a positive impact when I am out on the court and when I’m not playing I’ve still got to communicate with my teammates and do what I can to make everyone better,” DeJong said. “I’m improving as I go, and I’ve still got a lot to work on, so I’m just excited for the next few years.”
Without a doubt, their early success is a product of their camaraderie, okay, maybe I made that sound too formal. The youngsters in the middle are plain goofballs, and the light-hearted friendship they share allows them to thrive through the brutal preparation it takes to succeed on such a stage.
“It’s great because we are like the same person; its really creepy and we just bond over every hard drill that we have to do together. Just having her here is motivation because I work hard to make her better and she works just as hard to make me better. It just helps us both in the long run,” Clark said.
DeJong echoed the love they share for each other.
“Tess is so amazing; we’re pretty much like sisters. We can be weird together and we pretty much just get each other. I push her and she pushes me and she makes me improve as an individual player, and I hope I make her improve.”
In a season where the Cards are improving, the blocking game is an area in which the freshmen have been able to make an immediate impact.
As a team, the Cards have 162 blocks this season to their opponent’s 111. Of those, DeJong is fourth on the team with 36 while Clark leads the team with 85.
“I like blocking the other person’s hit because taking away a kill from someone is just the best feeling ever. I just love denying them,” Clark said with a cheerful smile.
“Blocking is a game changer, it can change a whole match. We spend every single practice for an hour and a half just blocking. We know that when we get in the game, if we can get that one block and change the momentum of a match, it’s a big thing. Blocking is huge, and it’s something that everyone has to work on, including me and Maggie.”
For this young but talented Louisville volleyball squad, the impact of these young freshmen bode for a bright future.
Photo by Austin Lassell / The Louisville Cardinal
