Belleville West junior J鈥橪a Sparks admitted she had some concerns when her coach approached her over the summer about switching from middle to outside hitter.
鈥淎t first I was a little worried, because that means I have to learn how to pass,鈥 Sparks said. 鈥淏ut after I started learning, it got better, and I became more comfortable with it.鈥
Sparks has proven to be a quick learner, which is big reason why the Maroons are off to a 10-4 record, their best start to a season since 2021.
West coach Me鈥橝shah Franklin had faith that Sparks would pick up the new position quickly.
鈥淚 just kind of threw her into the fire with it,鈥 Franklin said. 鈥淪he's only been playing outside since July of this summer, so she is learning a lot about the position on the fly, but it just says a lot about her skill that she's able to, you know, play at a high level without having all the tools mastered yet.鈥
Sparks said the connection she has with setter Adela Gagen helped with the transition.
鈥淭he passing and the timing,鈥 Sparks said. 鈥淏ecause as a middle usually your timing has to be faster and quicker. But for outside, you do have quick sets, but they are still a little bit slower, so you still have to wait a little bit.鈥
Gagen likes having Sparks on the outside.
鈥淚 think it was definitely harder for her, but she's an athlete, so she was able to, like, adjust quickly, and it gives us the advantage to run a quicker offense now,鈥 Gagen said.
West, No. 8 in the large school rankings, has started putting it together, winning nine of its last 10 matches. That includes taking home the championship of the Jacksonville Invitational girls volleyball tournament Saturday.
After sweeping pool play, the Maroons swept Concord Triopia in the semifinals before taking down Dunlap 25-15, 25-17 in the championship match.
鈥淭hey were bigger than us, more physical than us, just an overall, pretty solid team, and they were steamrolling teams throughout the entire tournament,鈥 Franklin said of Dunlap. 鈥淪o, we knew that when we played them, we were going to have to step up our game, and the girls did just that.鈥
Sparks dominated in the championship, smashing 14 kills on 16 attempts with no errors.
鈥淢e and her were connecting better than we have ever and we both realized that,鈥 Gagen said. 鈥淎nd like we said it out loud, like 鈥榠t鈥檚 our game.鈥 I mean, the other team couldn't stop her, so I set her over and over again.鈥
Gagen was dominant in her own right with 25 assists against Dunlap in just two sets.
鈥淪he was setting the correct person, getting us 1-on-1s, you know, just really going into her IQ bag to set us up for success,鈥 Franklin said. 鈥淪he played a huge, huge role in the success of this weekend.鈥
The Maroons are more than just a two-player show, of course.
Senior Addison Geluck provides a strong, physical presence at middle blocker. Senior Corinne Leech, a McKendree recruit, is the team鈥檚 most consistent all-around player. Freshmen Lela Stinson and Mia Leech are carving out roles while adjusting to the varsity level.
鈥淛ust because we are having success doesn't mean that it is going to be maintained,鈥 Franklin said. 鈥淪o, we have to be able to do the little things in the gym, you know, to maintain that and also with maintaining that, that also builds confidence and consistency. And sometimes in high school ball, consistency can be the thing that helps you win or the thing that helps you lose.鈥
West is in a much different place than it was a year ago, when it struggled to begin the season. But the Maroons found their game during the stretch run to finish 2023 with a .500 record after reaching a Class 4A sectional final.
The team has built on that strong finish to start this season, which includes a win over defending Missouri Class 3 champion Blair Oaks.
鈥淚t was like a super good feeling that we're starting strong from the beginning, because last season, in the beginning, we struggled a little bit, and it took us a while to put the key pieces together,鈥 Gagen said. 鈥淏ut now that we're doing it from the start, makes me have a lot of hope for how the rest of our season is going to go.鈥
Franklin hopes the winning ways become the norm at West. Now in her third season as coach, Franklin has been trying to change the mentality within the program.
鈥淥ur minds are a strong thing, and we are what we believe,鈥 Franklin said. 鈥淚t took me a long time to get them to believe that we can be more than just the middle of the conference. It took me a while to get them to believe that we can beat any team, no matter what ranking, that stands across that net.鈥
Part of that is the strong team chemistry the Maroons have. The players are friends off the court, which translates to success on the court.
Gagen said that bond has developed naturally.
鈥淎 lot of us hang out like outside of volleyball also, and have grown up with each other, so that helps,鈥 Gagen said. 鈥淎nd then a few of the freshmen that we have, they're just very like, bubbly people that just connected with us right away, and we all just fit together so well.鈥
Sparks believes the best of yet to come for West.
鈥淛ust to continue to trust each other and just really play together, and not have any hesitation on any plays,鈥 Sparks said. 鈥淛ust like trust that our passer is going to get a ball, trust that our setter is going to set and the hitter鈥檚 going to put the ball down. It's just all about trust.鈥
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Belleville West outside hitter J'La Sparks (left) celebrates scoring with teammate Lela Stinson. Belleville West played Collinsville in a Southwestern Conference volleyball game at Belleville West High School in Belleville on Tuesday September 17, 2024. Photo by Tim Vizer
Belleville West outside hitter J'La Sparks hits the ball over as Collinsville players Talesha Gilmore (22) and Alyssa Huckleberry try to block. Belleville West played Collinsville in a Southwestern Conference volleyball game at Belleville West High School in Belleville on Tuesday September 17, 2024. Photo by Tim Vizer