Now, Neuqua Valley’s Maria Mayhew knows how the other half lives.
A hitter her whole life as a volleyball player, the junior right-side was convinced to try setting last club season. She didn’t hit for months.
Then high school rolled around.
“I told her to get ready to hit because she was going to be hitting for us,” Neuqua coach Kelly Simon said. “She’s doing a great job.”
Indeed, if there’s any rust, it hardly shows.
Mayhew was unstoppable at the net, and had her hands in seemingly every part of the action Tuesday in host Neuqua’s 25-18, 25-18 DuPage Valley Conference win over Naperville Central.
Mayhew slammed 12 kills on 20 attempts, and she also had 12 digs, seven assists and two aces for good measure.
Wichita State recruit Kora Kauling added four kills and 13 assists, and Shannon Skryd had three kills for Neuqua (9-6, 2-0), which also beat Central at the Wheaton Classic last weekend.
The 5-foot-10 Mayhew’s move to setter during club seems a practical one. At her size, she might be better suited facilitating at the next level. She’s also now setting three rotations for Neuqua, sharing those duties with Kauling.
The new skill seems to benefit her when she’s swinging away.
“I understand how the setter is, what they’re going to do,” Mayhew said. “I think the time off hitting actually helped. Seeing different areas of the court helped me improve other skills.”
She seems to have a knack for finding the right spot.
Mayhew knocked down a pair of well-placed kills in the heart of Central’s defense to get Neuqua out to a 12-5 start in Game 1, and found openings down the line later in the match.
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When the Redhawks (8-9, 1-1) did manage a block, Mayhew more often than not drove a spike off it out of bounds.
“She’s so disciplined in everything she does and her timing is so much better,” Simon said. “She was early all the time as an attacker last year, but this year it’s right on. I think her court vision and overall game has improved because she’s had to train so differently setting.”
The connection between Mayhew and Kauling is apparent, and no coincidence.
Mayhew called for and received sets throughout Game 1, then returned the favor to Kauling on game point.
The two kept it going in Game 2, with Kauling serving up three Mayhew slams for a 7-0 lead.
“I’ve been lucky enough to have her for three years,” Mayhew said. “We hit on JV, last year she was my setter as well, and we’ve formed a great connection.”
Central was able to take the first game of a three-gamer Saturday with Neuqua, but never got in rhythm Tuesday.
Any chance at a comeback in Game 1 was halted by a rash of service errors.
Sarah Schank kept Central within striking distance throughout, managing seven kills. Molly Stock added six.
“Our service errors kept us from going on any kind of runs and our serve receive really struggled,” Central coach Jeff Danbom said. “I still think our ceiling is high.”
Joshua Welge is a freelance writer for the Naperville Sun.