More than enough people have given Mother McAuley’s Ava Calle their opinion on how she’s too short to play volleyball. She has heard it all but keeps proving the critiics wrong.
The 5-foot-2 junior libero was also told she’s too short to play college volleyball — and certainly not Division I. He response? She committed to Youngstown State before the season began.
So much for that.
“I hear it all the time — I’m too short,” Calle said. “I just play over it. I don’t really care about height. It’s second nature to hear that stuff at this point.
“Sometimes, I’m out there to try to prove people wrong. But I’m just playing for my team and I’m not really worrying about what other people say. I don’t care about outside validation.”
Calle continues to come up big on defense for the Mighty Macs. She chalked up eight digs Tuesday night in a 25-21, 25-18 GCAC Red win over host St. Laurence in Burbank.
UConn recruit Keira McQuillan put down 11 kills for McAuley (26-3, 5-1), while Jayce Prohaska added 10. Coastal Carolina-bound setter Peyton Heatherly produced 27 assists.
Aubrey Martinez and Abby Ambrose each had nine kills for the Vikings (20-7, 3-3). Senior libero Leah Romano left the match early in the second game with a leg injury and did not return.
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Calle, meanwhile, makes up for any size issues with toughness.
“Ava is definitely a strong force for us,” McAuley coach Jen DeJarld said. “She’s one of the strongest defenders in the state, I believe. She’s little and she’s quick.
“She scurries in on short balls and throws her body relentlessly. She’s pretty fearless.”
Calle confirmed she has always been aggressive.
“I tell myself, ‘Just go,’’’ she said. “I don’t know … I don’t think about it that much. In club, I used to run over the chairs. It’s crazy. I’ll do it any time.”
DeJarld also noticed a change in confidence from Calle’s sophomore year to this season.
“She has taken control of our back row with her leadership and her talking and she’s one of our best passers,” DeJarld said of Calle. “She’s kind of an all-around stud for us.”
McAuley has won 10 straight matches since a 25-21, 25-19 loss to Benet on Sept. 22 in Lisle.
Included in that spree are two victories over two-time defending Class 4A champion and neighborhood rival Marist and a pair of victories over Louisville’s Assumption, which was ranked No. 3 in the nation by the American Volleyball Coaches Association/USA Today.
“This team has awesome people all around,” Calle said. “I feel like all around everyone plays for each other and no one is self-centered. I love the whole tradition and culture at McAuley.
“I love everybody around us.”
The Mount Greenwood resident got started in the sport thanks to her mother. Erin Calle, nee Rochford, played at Queen of Peace, which was located next to St. Laurence before closing.
“She just put me in a lesson and I loved it,” Ava said of her mother.
Ava also tried basketball and gymnastics when she was in grade school but those two sports fell by the wayside so she could concentrate on volleyball at McAuley.
“Volleyball is such a big part of my life,” she said. “My life would be so different without it.”
Even though the libero position tends to get overlooked, Calle loves playing there.
“I like to get points for my team,” she said. “If I can give a perfect pass, I know my hitters will kill the ball. If I can keep doing that over and over again that would lead my team to victory a lot.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.