Over the years, Kayla Birmingham has put away more than 1,000 kills for St. Laurence.
Senior setter Vianne Villa was glad to play her part in hooking up a healthy chunk of those kills.
“I love setting Kayla,” Villa said Birmingham, a senior outside hitter and Green Bay recruit. “I get a good feeling whenever she slams the ball down. I feel good and the team feels good.”
By that criteria, the Vikings were feeling good Monday night as Birmingham produced 22 kills.
St. Laurence, however, couldn’t carry over its early momentum in a tough 21-25, 25-15, 25-21 loss to GCAC rival DePaul Prep at the Class 3A Hinsdale South Supersectional in Darien.
The 5-foot-11 Birmingham tallied eight kills in the first game, six in the second and eight more in the third for the Vikings (31-6), who have made it to the supersectional three straight seasons but haven’t been able to break through to the state semifinals. Aubrey Martinez added nine kills.
DePaul Prep (37-3) was led by Kalia Kroth with 13 kills, while Amira Boone followed with 10 and Layla Christian had seven. DePaul ended up with 13 block kills, with Christian assisting on seven.
DePaul will play at 4 p.m. Friday in the state semifinals at CEFCU Arena in Normal against Mahomet-Seymour (37-3), a 25-17, 25-27, 25-18 supersectional winner over Mascoutah.
Birmingham, meanwhile, was named to the Illinois Volleyball Coaches Association Class 3A All-State first team. Senior libero Natalie Martinez and Villa were named to the second team.
After Monday’s match, Birmingham looked back on her four years on St. Laurence’s varsity with not only fondness but appreciation as well.
“I have been given the biggest opportunity, here,” she said. “I came in, and the first time I ever saw coach Yop (Ellen Yophick) at an open house, I wasn’t a well-known volleyball player. I didn’t play club. I didn’t go to camps.
“Coach Yop was kind of surprised and didn’t know who I was, but I guess my freshman year, I really showed her what I could do. I just want to give a shoutout to coach Yop because she’s the one who helped progress me in my career.”
Yopchick was more than happy to be there for Birmingham’s progress.
“She’s a workhorse,” Yopchick said of Birmingham. “She’s a four-year starter who didn’t play all the way around as a freshman, but she was adamant about getting in the gym and getting better, and that’s what she did.
“She’s now a six-rotation outside hitter. She anchors our serve receive. She anchors our defense. And she gives everything she has in the front row.”
Birmingham said there was a great learning curve from when she was an unknown freshman to becoming one of the top hitters in program history.
“Each year taught me something different,” Birmingham said. “My junior year was a big step up for me because we lost so many seniors from the year before. I had to take on a leadership role.
“The year before, I was kind of quiet. But I took the step up and that got me to where I am today.”
Birmingham said she will miss having Villa set for her.
Villa, a three-year varsity regular, may be recognized as one of the best setters in the state but her future is in lacrosse, the sport she will play in college at Carthage.
She took up lacrosse as a freshman and loved it.
“There isn’t much of a future in volleyball for a 5-1 player,” Villa said, acknowledging her lack of height. “But in lacrosse, I can used my speed.”
“She is genuinely an incredible athlete,” Birmingham said of Villa. “She’s one of my best friends, and it’s really hard to see her go. I’ll continue to watch her play lacrosse.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
