Volleyball: Versatile freshman Okwura making big impact for Seven Lakes
Having only played volleyball for two years, the 6-foot-3 middle/right side hitter is finding her way nicely for the Spartans
With her Seven Lakes team ahead two points, desperately trying to hold off a Jordan club seeking a fifth and decisive set, freshman Nlonna Okwura saw a Jordan attacker leap to swing at the volleyball.
Okwura timed her jump perfectly from the right side. But she did not raise her hands high and hope the ball would crash into her outstretched fingertips.
She knew better.
Okwura tracked the ball, reached her hands over and stuffed the ball down on the other side of the net for the final match point in the fourth set of the Spartans’ 3-1 win over Jordan at Jordan High on Tuesday.
Okwura did not wait for the ball to find her hands. She kept reaching until her hands met the ball.
“She does a really great job of pressing over, recognizing that it’s not how high you jump but how far you reach over,” Seven Lakes coach Amy Cataline said. “She understands that to be a great blocker, you have to be able to reach over. That comes very natural to her, to grab the ball on the other side, opposed to just throwing your hands up as high as you can.”
Okwura’s talent and volleyball IQ belie her years.
Having only recently turned 15 years old, she is quickly acclimating herself to a tradition laden Seven Lakes program, perhaps the next face in a long line of Spartan greats.
Okwura had eight kills, five blocks and four digs against Jordan, a pivotal win that allowed Seven Lakes (26-9, 8-4 Dstrict 19-6A) to tighten its hold on third place in an intense 19-6A playoff race with four games left.
She is averaging a modest 1.2 kills per set with 64 total blocks. But when Okwura gets her chances, she capitalizes, boasting a 39.6 kill percentage (fourth-best on the team) and 27.2 hitting percentage (second-best).
“It’s been a really exciting experience,” Okwura said. “It’s great to have a supportive team. These are people who want the best for me. It’s been pretty easy playing on varsity because there are people who have been here longer than me who are supporting me and helping me.”
Okwura has only been playing volleyball for two years. Natural gifts have made it difficult for Cataline to keep her off the floor.
The obvious is the size. Okwura is a legitimate 6-foot-3.
“She’s big,” Cataline said. “She’s got it, physically.”
But it’s more than that. Before stepping onto the Seven Lakes campus, Okwura had only played the middle.
With Seven Lakes set at that position this season with two seniors, Cataline moved Okwura to the right side.
Okwura, who still plays the middle at times, has flourished, learning to attack faster and getting more comfortable as a reliable option for senior setter Kate Avery Kuehn.
Not only is Okwura big and physical at the net, she is quick on her feet and a fast learner.
“She gets better every week with her timing, when she attacks and our setter learning to trust her,” Cataline said. “That has taken time, and she has worked really hard in practice to prove that she’s good enough to be set.”
Okwura does not have a preference of playing the middle or right side. She can do either with ease.
“Middle is a little more tiring,” she said. “Some of the (skills) are the same, some are different. On blocking, you still press at each position. Get your elbow up. Swing fast.”
Okwura said she plays for her team. She means it.
Cataline said the team took Okwura under its wing from day one, showing her the ins and outs of playing for one of the top programs in the region year in and year out.
They trust her. And for that, Okwura trusts them, and does what she can to play her best for them.
“Playing out there, I just want to have the mindset of whatever I’m doing, I’m doing for my team,” Okwura said. “What I do is to benefit them, too.”