It’s a good thing that senior setter April Rice doesn’t easily get confused for Lemont.
It could be really bad news for one of her hitters.
That’s because although most of her sets are soft and to the sweet spot, her left-arm swings for kills usually result in cannon shots.
“Yeah, I definitely have a different mindset when I’m hitting,” Rice said, laughing. “I just want to hit the ball as hard as I can. But when I’m setting, I make sure to be soft with it and make it clean without any doubles or anything.”
Her sets, her hits and even her serves were razor sharp Tuesday night during a 26-24, 25-21 victory over visiting Oak Lawn in a South Suburban Conference crossover match.
Rice led Lemont (19-5, 7-1 SSC Blue) with nine kills, 21 assists and two aces. Sophia Swiderski and Fiona Tkach each had five kills, while Olivia Sarno contributed 18 assists and Nora Miller made 12 digs.
Maryam Hussein paced Oak Lawn (18-3, 7-1 SSC Red) with seven kills and two blocks. Sinead Conroy and Hailey Wierzgac added three kills apiece. Kasey Thompson chipped in with 16 assists and Emma McAuliffe recorded 10 digs.
Rice, an Elon recruit, made her most critical contributions at the end of the first game.
Lemont trailed 24-23 when Rice, in the front row as a right-side hitter, took a set from Sarno and slammed it straight down. Then, she went to the service line and landed an ace before Jessica Windstrup put down the winner with a tip kill.
Oak Lawn coach Kathleen Miller called it for what it was.
“Big-time players make big-time plays,” Miller said of Rice. “Gosh, she’s so good.”
Just call her Prime-Time Rice.
“Yeah, I want to be up there at the end,” Rice said. “But honestly, I prefer setting because I know I have control of the game and I can trust teammates like Sophia to put the ball down.”
Rice’s role at Elon will either be as a 5-1 setter or a 6-2 setter/hitter. She gave a two-fold reason for committing to the Division I private school in Elon, North Carolina.
“I’m going there because I really like the coaches and the campus,” Rice said. “It’s also near my sister (Amanda Rice). It’s only about an hour away from where she is at N.C. State.”
Their connection remains strong.
“She’s doing well,” April said. ‘It’s her senior season and she’s been getting a lot of stats. She recently just hit 500 kills.”
April Rice is putting up big numbers herself during her senior season with 307 assists, 120 kills, 118 digs and 26 blocks.
She was called on to take an even bigger leadership role when first team all-area selection Keira O’Donnell transferred to Benet.
“I was actually very excited,” Rice said. “I do like being a leader, especially when I’m setting, but also hitting and playing six rotations. It feels like I have a big role and I need to provide.”
She’s done well on many accounts, according to Lemont coach Chris Zogata.
“April does a lot of good things for us,” Zogata said. “My focus with her is here, but it’s really about being prepared to play at Elon. It’s really about pushing her to play at that higher level.
“When she hits, she’s a terminator. She comes up with some big blocks. And she moves the ball around nicely when she’s setting. It’s been a pleasure to have both Rice kids here at Lemont.”
The other Lemont kids? Count Swiderski as a big fan — and a friend.
“It’s wonderful being her teammate,” Swiderski said. “The high-fives after blocks are great. As a setter … you just really know she’s going to get the ball there to you.
“When she goes to do something, you know it’s going to be something great.”
Tony Baranek is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
