Knowing that she wasn’t blessed with the ideal height for an outside hitter, Waubonsie Valley senior Naomi Dowd had to get to work on her vertical leap early in life.
Like, try third-grade early for the 5-foot-9 Dowd at her club program, Sports Performance.
“I’ve been there awhile,” she said. “They do a lot of stuff like dynamic workouts, explosiveness in our jumps and just our training in general. We’re very technical in everything we do.”
The Northern Illinois recruit honed those skills to become one of the area’s most dynamic players. She put it all on display in Wednesday’s 25-17, 25-15 nonconference win over St. Charles East.
Dowd led both teams with 10 kills for Waubonsie (9-9). Kaitlyn Reinhard added seven kills and four digs, while Ava Bellafiore chipped in with five kills and Liv O’Hara had four kills and 14 assists.
Kaleigh McQuillen tallied three kills for St. Charles East (5-9).
Dowd only plays three rotations, so when she’s in the match, the Warriors try to get her the ball as much as possible. While it clearly provides offensive production, the effects are felt in other ways.
“She definitely is a player that will get us those momentum points, the points that fire up the whole gym,” Waubonsie Valley coach Kari Galen said. “Everybody gets excited about it.
“She’s definitely one of our key players who does a lot for us, so we try to get her the ball as much as we can. She’s a very dynamic player.”
Dowd realizes the impact she has on momentum, too. She can feel it when the crowd gets into it.
“I feel like it’s a team effort, but it’s nice to be able to help with the momentum, especially when I know we’re down a couple points and we need to get back in it,” Dowd said. “It’s like me getting a kill isn’t just helping my own self-esteem, but it’s helping get the team back on track.”
For her part, Dowd feels like that is big part of her personality. It comes out during the other three rotations when she’s on the bench for the Warriors.
“I like to think I do it as much as possible,” Dowd said. “When I’m on the bench, I try to be screaming as loud as I can, giving as much energy as I can even when I’m not on the court.
“I’m still a presence there. I try my best to be there.”
Dowd interspersed five kills as the Warriors cruised to the win in the first game.
In the second game, Waubonsie took control early, gaining a 9-3 lead behind a pair of kills from Dowd and three aces. Dowd helped put it away with a pair of kills, building an 18-12 lead.
“She jumps really well and she’s just athletic,” Galen said of Dowd. “She’s just very blessed with her athletic abilities, and she’s a hard worker. She’s receptive to feedback, which is a big thing with her being successful.”
In Tuesday’s three-game loss to rival Neuqua Valley, Galen felt a switch in her team’s mentality.
“I think it kind of lit a fire for us,” Galen said. “They came out super focused. We talked as a team about what we needed to do to change our preparation before games.
“They followed through with that, and we were successful.”
Dowd hopes Wednesday’s win will help carry the Warriors the rest of the way.
“This game was a good sign for us,” Dowd said. “We had a whole talk before the match. We play our best when we have fun. We know that. So, making sure that’s a priority throughout the match and the rest of the season is important to us.
“It completely can change our play.”
Paul Johnson is a freelance reporter for The Beacon-News.
