Sam Vanda has been making up for a little lost time, not that she had anything to prove.
All around and all out just seems to be how this three-year varsity player rolls for Geneva.
“I really try to work on everything,” she said, “because you never know how a match is going to go.”
If the game isn’t clicking in the front row for this 5-foot-10 junior outside/right-side hitter who never leaves the court, she tries to step it up in the back row.
“Wherever I can be to help out on the court,” Vanda said. “It’s really important for a player to do whatever they can, whether it’s pass, set or hit.”
She did it all Thursday night, posting a team-high nine kills and putting in strong defensive work as the host Vikings pulled out a 25-22, 25-27, 25-16 win over Waubonsie Valley.
The left-handed Vanda had to sit out the first two matches of the season for Geneva (6-2) after missing time during preseason tryouts due to a family commitment.
“I feel like we peaked so late last season,” Vanda said. “We felt like we had unfinished business and wanted to come back even stronger.”
Geneva, which went 17-20 last year in coach Lauren Kosecki’s second season, started strong without Vanda.
The Vikings beat Neuqua Valley and South Elgin in three-game matches. She returned for the 32-team Mizuno Crimson Classic hosted by Plainfield North last weekend at the Great Lakes Center in Aurora.
In Vanda’s first action of the season, the Vikings dropped a pair of Friday pool-play matches. It left them in Crimson, the lowest bracket, for Saturday. Geneva won three straight to finish 25th overall.
Vanda had 36 kills in those five matches to take the team lead for the season. She also averaged five digs and was named to the all-tournament team.
“She does a nice job for us,” Kosecki said. “She plays all the way around. She’s a strong passer. She puts the ball away when we need her to do it, front row and back row.
“She’s a good little leader out there as well, saying the right things. She understands what needs to be done, and that’s a big part of being a pretty good player.”
Vanda, who moved from West Aurora’s district before her freshman year and Kosecki’s first leading her alma mater, feels she’s connected with the former All-American at Northern Illinois and Michigan State.
“I feel like we really get each other,” Vanda said. “We both have that competitiveness, and so does our team. We have fun off the court but know when we need to get locked in.”
Waubonsie (3-4) rallied to take the second game with junior right-side Naomi Dowd putting down the final two points to break a 25-25 tie.
Earlier in the week, the 5-9 Dowd announced her commitment to a scholarship offer from Northern Illinois.
Geneva answered, however, taking advantage of five Waubonsie errors to bolt to a 7-1 lead to open the third game and closed it out.
“We go through little divots, where I feel like we almost go silent,” Vanda said. “But we always come back and come together, realizing, ‘We need to end this right now.’
“We know how good we can be. We’re just constantly trying to get there.”
Junior middle Fiona Turnbull and senior middle Charlotte Potvin bolstered the attack with eight and five kills, respectively.
“Fiona really came alive,” Kosecki said.
Junior outside hitter Kaitlyn Reinhard led Waubonsie with nine kills.
“We’ve been working a lot on controlling our chaos, making sure we hit a good out of system ball,” Kosecki said. “I think that was a difference for us.
“We need to do a little bit better job of starting and finishing, but I like how they fought back to get the win.”
