Libertyville junior Nate Knight once dreamed about becoming an elite basketball player.
He also tried football, playing defensive end for a program in Park Ridge when he lived in Chicago.
But Knight’s life changed coursed during the summer before his freshman year.
“I was always more of a basketball kid, even did AAU,” he said. “But when we moved to Libertyville, I had family here who played volleyball.
“One day, my dad told me why don’t I try taking some private lessons with a club. He told me I don’t have to do it anymore if I don’t like it.”
Knight actually didn’t like volleyball, at least at first. But he stuck with it anyway.
“I like being good at things, but I wasn’t good at volleyball right away,” he said. “I just kept doing it.
“It was a rough transition from basketball to volleyball. The individual movements, like spiking the ball, were really tough.”
Knight got the hang of it quickly, though. In his third season of volleyball, the 6-foot-9, 215-pound Ball State commit is a towering presence in the middle for the Wildcats (21-1, 5-0), whom he has led to the top of the North Suburban Conference. He has become “the go-to guy when we need a big play,” said Libertyville junior libero Jackson Kern, a UC Irvine commit.
Knight, who has an 11-6 vertical, had 138 kills, a .410 hitting percentage and 67 blocks, all team highs, through Thursday. He saves some of his best performances for the Wildcats’ toughest opponents. He had 10 kills and 10 blocks against Glenbrook South, 12 kills and three blocks against Stevenson, and 11 kills and three blocks against Vernon Hills — all wins.
“He just can do anything you ask him to do,” Libertyville coach Jennifer Smith said. “He’s got a huge block and great body control in the air and is able to make a quick adjustment and deflect the ball, which is a very high-level thing that not a lot of high school kids can do.”
Knight had 185 kills and 73 blocks last season, his first on the varsity team.
“His biggest improvement is his diversity in his shots,” Smith said. “We typically run middles three or four set plays, but last year he was only proficient in one or two. Nate now puts the ball away. We can now rely on him to be the go-to guy in really any set because he can terminate the ball. He’s so aggressive offensively.”
Knight, who quit basketball following his freshman season but said he still gets asked to play “all the time,” credits hard work for his rapid rise in volleyball. He said teammate Connor Desiron’s father Jeremy, a former volleyball standout at Rutgers, has been a big factor in his success.
“My attacking for sure is better,” Knight said. “I’ve started to limit attacking areas and grown more comfortable in myself as a hitter. I can go up and do certain shots that I was not able to do last year. Coach Desiron also fixed my approach and position and all the important things you have to do as a middle.”
Knight has learned well. Libertyville senior setter Aarav Bamrolia, who has 447 assists this season, said Knight makes his job considerably easier.
“What makes Nate so good is his high contact,” Bamrolia said. “Nate is able to jump and hit over any block. He can hit all spots on the court with his excellent vision.
“Nate is also one of the most versatile middles that I’ve seen.”
With Knight, the Wildcats look like one of the best teams in the state.
“If we keep improving steadily, we could potentially make a state run,” Knight said. “That’s our goal. But we still have a long ways to go.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.
