There were smiles all around on Mother McAuley’s side of the net after Andrew scored its first point.
It wasn’t the point that had the Mighty Macs smiling — it was the Thunderbolts’ student section shouting out the “overrated” cheer.
One of the amused for McAuley was junior Ellery Rees.
“We’re used to it,” Rees said. “People will say that. We just kind of shake it off. Actually, it makes it more exciting for us when a whole fan section is against us. It’s kind of fun.”
Rees, a 6-foot-3 middle hitter, responded with a smash that went straight down for a kill. She followed it up with a tip for another point.
There was more where that came from Thursday night as McAuley rolled to a 25-15, 25-11 nonconference victory in Tinley Park.
Rees led the way with four kills and five aces for the Mighty Macs (2-0). Michigan recruit Ellie White
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added four kills, while Tess Hayes had 11 assists and five digs, Northwestern commit Gigi Navarrete contributed 10 digs and Mary Hannon added six.Amber Gahse totaled five blocks, three kills and three aces for Andrew (0-1). Brooke Haggerty added six digs, while Julita Latka had three kills and five digs.
Rees is off to a tremendous start in her first varsity season. In two matches, she has eight kills and a team-leading 12 aces.
She’s surprising even herself with those results at the service line.
“In practice, we work on that float drop serve,” Rees said. “It just drops in front of the passer. It just keeps working for me, I guess.”
Rees is the niece of McAuley coach Jen DeJarld, who kept Rees on the freshman level as a freshman. As a sophomore, she played on the JV.
Family favoritism? Not here.
“No, definitely not,” DeJarld said, smiling. “I mean, Ellery was a good 5-11 last season but raw and still developing and trying to keep up with her body.
“She had a great club season and was on the top team with Ellie White, Sam Falk and Keira Ohse. She got a lot of great experience.”
She’s not 5-11 anymore, either.
“And I don’t think she’s done growing,” DeJarld said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she gets up to 6-4 at least.”
Rees is rapidly becoming one of Hayes’ favorite targets to set in the middle.
“I’ve known Ellery since she’s been at McAuley as a freshman,” Hayes said. “It’s really fun playing with her. She’s super vocal and a really versatile player. Her serve is insane. It’s so good.”
Rees has also been aces in her attitude about taking a one-step-at-a-time journey to the varsity.
“It’s a lot of work playing middle, especially with blocking,” Rees said. “Everything is so quick, with quick movements to get from one side to the other. You have to be reactive and hit as fast as you can.
“My freshman and sophomore years, I was still developing. I deserved to be on the freshman team and then JV. Everything was right. Now, I’m finally at a point where I can play at this level and compete at this speed we’re playing at. Now, I’m here.”
Andrew coach Emily Connolly, who won a state championship as a player in 2004 at McAuley, guided the Thunderbolts last season to a Class 4A supersectional.
She’s in rebuild mode now.
“We have four freshmen that are on the floor with some sophomores,” Connolly said. “But Amber Gahse, Brooke Haggerty and Jules Latka all know what success and winning looks like.
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“There are a ton of moving parts and we’re a brand-new team. It was really nice to have a super-competitive team to play against to kind of see where we’re at.”