For Libertyville senior Sydney Meyer, family and volleyball are intertwined.
Two of her cousins, freshman Brynne Colton and junior Elle Burchfield, are in the program, and Meyer’s older sister Stella played for the Wildcats too.
“I got to play this season with my actual family,” Meyer said. “Being able to play with Brynne was great because my sister got to play with Mia Colton, who is also our cousin. And I got to play with Elle.”
Meyer recalled that her sister played an integral role in Libertyville’s run to a supersectional in 2023.
“I got to watch my sister play and see her grow up and fall in love with it,” Meyer said. “That made me fall in love with the game.”
On Monday, Sydney Meyer got her chance to make an impact in a supersectional too. The 5-foot-10 right-side hitter recorded two kills, two blocks, two digs and an assist in the Wildcats’ 25-16, 25-22 loss to Fremd in the Class 4A DeKalb Supersectional.
Senior outside hitter Claire Evans led Libertyville (32-8) with nine kills, senior outside hitter Elle Knight had four kills, four digs and two blocks, junior libero Charlie Fleegle had 14 digs, and setter Brynne Colton had nine assists and eight digs.
Meyer, who played on every level of the program during her high school career, led a spirited comeback in the second set against the Vikings (31-7). She landed a kill and had an assist as the Wildcats erased an 11-3 deficit to tie it at 16-16.
“Sydney was sort of a late bloomer,” Libertyville coach Greg Loika said. “She worked extremely hard on her game and physicality. She had a couple of moments in this postseason where she was just huge for us.
“Her physical abilities on the right side of the court cemented a spot for her. She was a really good blocker at the net, and we got positive offense from her as well.”
Meyer became a varsity starter as a senior like her older sister.
“She was always my biggest role model,” Meyer said. “Stella always told me to stick with it and work hard. I aspired to be like her. That’s why this summer I did all the camps and showed up to all the practices and games and gave it my all.”
Evans said Meyer always put in the work.
“Every day she tries so hard and leaves it all out on the court — in practices, in games and in the weight room,” Evans said.
Meyer finished the season with 96 kills and 41 blocks. Loika said he couldn’t help but notice the parallels in the Meyer sisters’ high school careers.
“She had the same trajectory as her sister and came up late and had an unbelievable senior season,” Loika said. “She showed a lot of patience and commitment. That produced, for her, a slice of time that she maximized.”
Meyer said she has played her final match.
“I feel like it’s been a long time coming for my volleyball career,” she said. “It’s been so much fun.”
Bobby Narang is a freelance reporter.
