More than 40 family members came to cheer and go crazy Thursday for middle hitter Parker Crims on Shepard’s senior night.
That group included two former Marines, a Navy veteran, a few teachers, a mechanic and a college administrator — many wearing Parker Crims T-shirts.
“This is the most family members to see me play,” Crims said. “There are aunts and uncles, grandmas, grandpas, cousins, brothers, everything. This means so much to me. I do this for them.
“They’ve been my supporters since I can remember. They are always there for me. Someone is always at my game — every single game. This is only the half of it. This isn’t even all of it.”
The Millikin-bound Crims wanted to put on a big show against Stagg, but she experienced a nightmarish first game. All turned out well for Crims the rest of the way, however, in the host Astros’ 22-25, 25-19, 25-20 nonconference win over the Chargers in Palos Heights
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Crims finished with 17 kills — including 16 in the final two games — to lead Shepard (24-9). Olivia Wal added eight kills and Jenna Powers picked up six to go with four aces as the Astros head into the postseason on a seven-match winning streak.
Katy Zumerchik and Amelia Kadamus tallied 11 kills apiece for Stagg (16-15). Nicole Maka had seven.
Crims, meanwhile, struggled through a first game in which she was either blocked or she hit shots into the net and out of bounds. Playing in front of family and friends gave her some early jitters.
“There was some pressure,” Crims said. “But I was in my head a lot. I made some errors and I kind of let the errors get to me. As an athlete, I’ve been working on that for a long time.
“But I had a chance to turn it around. I got a couple of talks from my coaches and my teammates. I realized this is it and I had to do my best and leave it all out there. That’s what I did the second and third sets.”
Crims came through with nine of Shepard’s 15 kills in the second game and then seven of the Astros’ 16 kills in the decisive third game. She also credited senior setter Sarah Egan.
“It just takes one or two kills to get it back,” Crims said. “I’ve been working with my setter on connecting for the whole season and last season. We have just been working our best.
“We’ve been working hard and I think it shows on the court.”
Earlier in the season, Stagg beat Shepard 18-25, 25-20, 25-18 on Aug. 30 at the Chicago Christian Tournament.
With Stagg taking a one-game lead Thursday, the Astros were looking for a spark. With her team ahead 18-17, Powers put away a kill and followed that up with three straight aces for a 22-17 lead.
“I try to focus on my serves,” said Powers, a junior outside hitter. “When I go back there I want to make sure it’s over and in. When you get a good serve, it gets the team going a lot, especially an ace. It puts us in a better position.
“I feel like this win is pretty big for us. It’s senior night and was their last game here. We’re really going to miss them. I’ve played with them all of the years I’ve been here, so it’s a really big win.”
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Powers will also miss the power and purpose that the outgoing Crims brings to the Astros.
“She brings a lot of energy,” Powers said of Crims. “She’s a big blocker and a big hitter. When she gets those kills and those blocks, it really gets our energy up.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.