Stagg’s Amelia Kadamus is able to drink water in practice again.
But there was a time in the past when she skipped it. The sophomore middle hitter remembered when she was in seventh grade at Palos South and sat the bench.
“The whole time,” she said. “It was my first year of playing volleyball, but I refused to let that get to me. When we had water breaks, I would tell the coach instead of drinking water, I wanted to hit some more.
“I had fallen in love with the sport, and I wanted to give it my all.”
More hitting and less water, plus playing club with the Attack and coach Milosz Hebda, helped turn things around for Kadamus. In one year, she went from bench player to the Southwest Interscholastic Conference Tournament MVP as an eighth grader.
“I give a lot of credit to him,” Kadamus said of Hebda. “He really pushed me and had more faith in me and saw the potential in me.”
Now a starter on the varsity for Stagg since her freshman season, Kadamus confirmed she drinks water during water breaks. She helped refresh her team Wednesday night in a wild 25-16, 9-25, 25-15 nonconference victory over Chicago Christian in Palos Hills.
Kadamus tallied three aces and a kill during a 14-2 run in the first game after the Chargers (9-15) trailed 11-4. She also added three kills in the third and deciding game.
Ella DeBow led Stagg with eight kills, while Lily Henning added five kills. Karolina Stonkus finished with five kills and contributed key back-to-back aces in the third game.
For Chicago Christian (13-14), Ella Agema totaled all four of her kills in the second game and had three aces in the first game. Quinn Grevengoed had five kills and five aces, while Chase Grevengoed chipped in with six kills.
The 5-foot-9 Kadamus, meanwhile, said she was more “jittery” as a freshman but has calmed down since and is taking on a lot of responsibility for Stagg.
“I play a position that has a lot of action,” she said. “I have to hit. I have to block. I transition. I would like to say I improved a lot over the summer, and I have a higher expectation for me.”
Stagg coach Peggy Clemens said Kadamus is a steady presence.
“She always has the intensity, but she’s never too up or too down,” Clemens said. “She’s the one we can go to in a pinch. She definitely helps in the front row with her blocking and saves us a lot.
“She’s just very steady for us.”
At one time, Stagg had a 4-12 record, but since the calendar turned to October, the Chargers have gone 5-3 and are gaining confidence as the season goes on.
“I think we’ve been smarter about everything,” Stonkus said. “We’ve bonded more and we understand each other better now.”
Against Chicago Christian, Stagg put behind a tough showing in the second game. After seven ties through a 9-9 deadlock in the third game, the Chargers began to take charge.
This could have been a match Stagg would have lost earlier in the season.
“We’re a younger team and the time that we had playing on the floor is starting to show in matches,” Clemens said. “They are getting more comfortable with each other on the court.
“We’re just going for it. We are realizing that we can do it against any team so go for it.”
And water breaks or no water breaks, Kadamus enjoys playing the sport.
“I like the excitement and the action,” she said. “It really brings out the athletic side of me.”
Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
