Hartmann takes charge once again at Rosary

Faster. Stronger. Smarter. Those are the three words Rosary volleyball coach Lisa Kasper called her best player, Christine Hartmann.

"She's developed into an all-around player," Kasper said.

After three full seasons on varsity, Hartmann has learned a thing or two. Now, entering her senior year, the setter/right-side hitter is projected to be one of the best players in the Tri-Cities area and Suburban Catholic Conference.

"She's definitely going to bring everything she has," teammate Lindsey Weber said. "She's our leader. She takes charge."

"This is her year," Kasper added.

Hartmann has been leading since sophomore year after an impressive freshman year, when she was an outside hitter and the first player off the bench.

Hartmann learned from some of the best that year, including Catherine Smale (who now plays at Iowa) and her older sister, Rachel (Minnesota). The Royals set a school record for wins (32-6) that year and won a regional title.

"It was definitely good for me playing, with Catherine Smale and my sister," said Hartmann, who finished with 183 kills. "I had a good time playing along with them."

Eight seniors departed from that team, leaving Hartmann, a sophomore, as Rosary's best player. She continued to hit and occasionally was a setter, the position Rachel played before she graduated.

Hartmann's sophomore year was supposed to be a rebuilding year. With Hartmann leading the way, the Royals didn't do so bad. They finished 20-17 and won another regional title.

"We depended on her a lot … and she did a great job," Kasper said at the end of that season.

Hartmann finished that year with her team-leading 300 kills and 47 blocks. She was second in digs with 207 and had a 94 percent serving accuracy.

As a junior, her stats were even more impressive, as she guided the Royals to yet another regional title. She broke the school record with 54 aces and also led the team in assists (570) and blocks (104). She was second in digs with 200 and recorded 135 kills. She would have had more kills if she was used as an outside hitter more than a setter.

"A lot of the girls stepped it up, and that helped me out a lot," Hartmann said.

This year she will be setting and hitting on the right side ("she has been killing the ball," Kasper said), which means Hartmann has played three positions for the Royals.

"She does whatever we ask her to -- she never complains," Kasper said of Hartmann. "That's what I love about her. She's very easygoing."

Hartmann's easy-going attitude, apparently, makes or breaks practice. She had to leave early one day for a doctor's appointment, and the team missed her.

"You could just feel the energy level go down because she wasn't there," Kasper said.

Perhaps this is why many Division I schools took notice of Hartmann. In March she chose the University of Kentucky after a pair of visits.

"I got along well with the coaches and I fit in really well with the girls on the team," said Hartmann, who chose Kentucky over Nebraska and Louisville.

Kasper liked the fact Hartmann chose something other than a Big Ten school, which is something Rosary grads seemed to gravitate toward in the past.

"I'm excited for her," Kasper said. "She's going somewhere different where she will get to play right away, which is good."

Kind of like freshman year at Rosary.