Senior middle hitter Ryan Beaumont is becoming the cornerstone of this year’s team for Lockport.
Ryan’s hitting and blocking have been off the charts for the Porters as he follows in the footsteps of Josh, his older brother. He also will try to follow Josh by playing middle in college at Cornerstone, an NAIA men’s volleyball program in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“Growing up, I watched Josh and he was a very good middle hitter,” Ryan Beaumont said. “He inspired me to play volleyball. He was the starting middle at Cornerstone for four years.
“And I hope to do the same.”
First, the 6-foot-3 Beaumont has a little work to do at Lockport. He chalked up 10 kills Thursday night, leading the Porters to a 25-23, 26-24 nonconference win over host Joliet Catholic.
Hunter Fash added five kills to help the Porters (13-3) snap a two-match losing streak. Drew Miller delivered 10 digs, while Antonio Fiordirosa tallied 14 assists and Zack Johnson had 11.
Johnson, a sophomore setter/right-side hitter, won a joust at the net with Lockport trailing 23-22 in the first game to pump the Porters up.
“That was a big moment,” Lockport coach Nick Mraz said. “That joust tied it and gave us momentum. Before that, it seemed like a flat night for both sides.”
“It’s timing and strength together,” Johnson said. “There’s a fine line between the strength and the timing to get it right.”
And he got it right.
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“That helped our energy for sure,” Beaumont said.
Viterbo-bound Aydan Garcia led Joliet Catholic (7-3) with 10 kills, while Cole Czerkies chipped in with four kills and two solo blocks.
Beaumont, meanwhile, entered Thursday’s match with a team-high 95 kills and a jaw-dropping .469 hitting percentage to go along with a team-best 29 blocks.
“He’s been definitely our rock,” Mraz said of Beaumont. “He’s our leading attacker in kills and maybe even in attempts, which is rare for a middle.
“But that’s also a credit to our passers, who keep us in system as much as we are. The scouting reports are out there and you see defenses bunch up more. But he’s still doing a great job for us.”
Beaumont deflected the credit to his teammates.
“Our team has some of the best passers in the state,” he said.
Beaumont picked up varsity time as a freshman, but during his sophomore year, the coaches decided that letting him develop with the junior varsity would pay off in the long run.
“The family has a team-first mentality and there’s not a selfish bone in their bodies,” Mraz said. “They understood development was important. When he got his opportunity as a junior, he ran with it.”
“We can trust him in all the situations,” Johnson said. “He’s one of the best attackers on the team.”
Beaumont wants to study business at Cornerstone, which features Oak Forest graduates Mitchell Carrera and JeQuarri Shannon on this season’s roster.
“It’s not the biggest school — it’s a small Christian school and it’s religion-based,” Beaumont said. “That’s why I want to go there.
“Since my brother went there, I’ve seen the campus and it’s a school that I can trust during my four years of time there.”
Volleyball has been his main sport, but as a freshman, he dipped his toe in the pool, so to speak, when he joined the junior varsity swimming team. But he left soon thereafter because he said it was a tough fit with club and high school volleyball commitments.
“Volleyball is such a team-based sport,” Beaumont said. “The community that you can be with on your team … people say you have teammates but it’s more like a family.
“And that means a lot to me.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.