Gigi Navarrete’s last words to her Mother McAuley teammates before they took the court for warm-ups weren’t filled with too much fire.
“Especially with this being our first match coming around, I just wanted the team to have fun,” Navarrete said. “Of course, I wanted us to play our hardest, but the message was fun.
“That’s the most important to thing to do in volleyball. That’s why we play.”
McAuley had fun and then some Tuesday night in a 25-10, 25-19 nonconference victory over visiting Joliet Catholic.
Navarrete, a 5-foot-6 senior libero, was the defensive leader with 13 digs for the Mighty Macs (1-0). Ellie White had 10 kills, 10 digs and four blocks, while Olivia Klapp contributed 13 assists and Maeve Moonan had five kills.
Olivia Chovanec contributed six kills and six digs for Joliet Catholic (1-1). Jessica Horn added 10 assists.
Another eye-opener for McAuley was Ellery Rees. The 6-3 junior middle hitter had four kills and three blocks.
Rees also had seven aces. During one run, she served for 12 straight points.
“Being my first varsity match, I was not expecting anything special,” Rees said. “But then one after another, I just kept getting aces. I was like, ‘Oh, my gosh.’ I couldn’t believe it.”
The captain approved.
“I mean, Ellery’s serving run … wow,” Navarrete said, laughing. “That was amazing.”
Navarrete had a great summer at the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships. The Northwestern recruit led defensively as 1st Alliance 17 Gold won the national title.
“It was crazy,” Navarrete said. “We had such good chemistry and bond. Having only nine people on our team made it easier to trust each other. We took it day by day and point by point.”
One of those watching Navarrete at nationals was White, who was competing for 1st Alliance 16 Gold.
“It was super cool watching Gigi grow as a player,” White said. “We grew up together, and we’ve been friends since we were little. It’s so cool watching her and seeing how far she’s come.”
When Navarrete talks, White and the rest of the Mighty Macs listen. Navarrete is the undisputed vocal leader of the team.
“I definitely like that role,” she said. “My teammates have always helped me, kept on motivating me. It’s really important for me, especially as a libero who can’t really put the ball down, to help out my hitters.
“I feel I have that communication and leadership ability. But it’s not just given. I’ve been working hard since freshman year on it.”
McAuley coach Jen DeJarld puts her in very rarefied air.
“Gigi is one of the best leaders we’ve ever had,” DeJarld said. “She is a vocal leader. She dictates the court. Not only is she a leader in her play, she also leads by example.
“She’s the one in the weight room in the offseason, leading by example. She takes the initiative whether it’s setting up the nets or organizing team functions off the court.”
In one regard, Navarrete is a throwback.
“Kids in general these days are not vocal anymore,” DeJarld said. “I don’t know if that’s because of our phones and texting. But even talking to college coaches is very different nowadays than it was even 10 years ago.
“We have a lot of players who don’t talk on the court. But Gigi has always dictated, from the time she was a freshman to now as a senior. The wealth of experience and charisma and energy she brings every day in practice and at games is really going to be hard to replace when she leaves us.”
Joliet Catholic went into Tuesday’s match coming off a 25-20, 25-20 win in its season opener against St. Laurence. The Angels bounced back from a difficult start, trailing 16-2 in Game 1, to challenge McAuley in Game 2.
“I think we spent too much time watching what they were doing,” Joliet Catholic coach Kisha Cameron said. “We knew coming in that McAuley was tough. There is a reason they were the runners-up last year at state.
“We’re a little young and we were a little overwhelmed by everything. But we pulled it together.”
