Headed to Penn State as libero, Falduto moves to outside hitter and powers ICCP to state

Picture it: Spring 2021 in the IC Catholic Prep gym.Coach Nancy Kerrigan is mulling what to do after her team’s No. 1 outside hitter went down with an ankle injury. As she scans the gym, she sees a freshman libero who could really swing her arm.Kerrigan calls her over, and that freshman, Ava Falduto, says, “You need a hitter. I’ll do it.”That was then, this is now. Falduto is a junior and led the Knights to their first Class 2A supersectional since 2014, a match in which they beat Chicago Christian 25-15, 25-22 at home to advance to state, where they’ve been three times previously.That evening, Falduto — the Captain of the Daily Herald Girls Volleyball All-Area Team and a Penn State recruit — was bouncing back from food poisoning but still recorded 18 kills and 9 digs to propel her team to a 32-1 record and a berth in the state semifinals against Freeburg at approximately 1:30 p.m. Friday.”We played Chicago Christian earlier in the year,” Falduto recalled, “and it was a fun game but we knew we’d have to put the gas on harder. I don’t think anyone expected us to do what we did. We really wanted it and went full out.”But that’s what Falduto has been doing for nearly two years for the Knights and Kerrigan — going full out as an outside hitter, even though she still plays libero for club and will play that position in college.Her season statistics bear out her success at the outside hitter position. Heading into state, Falduto has 449 kills, 278 digs, 34 assists, 29 aces and 29 blocks.”She’s a workhorse,” Kerrigan said. “It’s rare to find a kid who’s earned a position at an elite-level college, (but) she’s here to learn and work every day. “She’s constantly questioning and wants to get better. She’s committed to being the best she can possibly be.”Falduto started in volleyball as a first grader, and in third grade, she attended an Oak Brook Park District volleyball camp run by New Wave Volleyball Club. It didn’t take long for the counselors to realize she had potential, and so they encouraged her to try out.She did, and that put an end to her short-lived softball career, which previously had been her No. 1 sport.Fast-forward to today, and she credits her sister, Kaitlyn, and her cousin, Sophie Hurt, with teaching her the key tenets of the game, but much more than that.”I learned from (Kaitlyn) and my cousin that you have to work hard and be dedicated in each practice and game,” she said. “And you have to have fun, because you only get that opportunity once in your high school career.”By virtue of her play, and that of teammates like junior setter Lucy Russ and junior libero Alysa Lawton, she’s growing into team leadership.”I think she’s a very consistent hitter and knows the game well, and is a very talkative person on the court,” Russ said. “(She) knows how to hype everyone else.”Added Lawton: “If any teammate is having a problem in school or on the court, she’s always there. She is a great captain and a great teammate.”Only the future will tell what Falduto will accomplish her senior year, but beyond that, she knows she made the right choice by committing to Penn State.”I have a great relationship with the coaches, and when I went to camp there over the summer, I knew (that’s) where I wanted to be,” she said. “I want to win a national championship and I knew that’s the program that can get me there.