St. Charles E.'s Homann a hitter's best friend

Last year at this time, St. Charles East girls volleyball coach Jennie Kull listed setter Laura Homann as a player to watch out for in the 2007 season.

Kull sure knows her stuff.

Not only was Homann the player to watch out for, but she ended up being the player that did it all for the Class 4A state-bound Saints, which is why she was chosen as this season's Tri-Cities All-Area captain.

"The reason why we are so cohesive is because of her leadership," Kull said. "She's like the quarterback, and she's got the values and efforts to go with it."

"She's really stepped it up," added senior Courtney Sjostrom. "She really brings the team together. She's always positive, always there, clapping her hands, whether we are doing good or bad. She's never down. She's really improved."

Homann was a shy sophomore setter on last year's team, but had the opportunity to work with great hitters like Emily Staples, last year's all-area captain, and Rachel Caricato, a current player at North Carolina-Wilmington.

"I was the baby of the team and I pushed myself to learn where I had to set the hitters," Homann said.

So by the time the 2007 season rolled around, Homann was ready.

"I came in with the knowledge and ability, so it was a lot easier to be a leader on the team," Homann said, who spends the club season at Fusion.

Before she even stepped on the court, Homann started the season off on a positive note. She was voted team captain on a roster filled with seniors on the team's bonding trip to Wisconsin, where they went rock-climbing.

"I didn't expect it, but (being captain) has been really cool," Homann said. "I've had to step it up on the court because being a setter, you touch every ball."

Did she ever step it up. At first, Homann's No. 1 target was outside hitter, Mattie Boyd. When those two connected, great things happened. Boyd, a DePaul-bound senior, has 392 kills going into Friday's state tournament.

"It's so cool to set to her because she will find the ball, even when it's an awful set," Homann said. "She'll go and get the kill off it."

As the season went on, Boyd wasn't the only hitter getting the ball. Young hitters like Caroline Niski, Jacqui Seidel and Haley Streich came on strong later in the season, as they worked with Homann in practice. Success at practice turned into success during matches, as those three, along with Sjostrom, combined for 610 kills.

"I wanted to run the offense the best way I could," Homann said. "At the beginning of the year, we had Mattie and I was like, "OK, who else?' Then we had Courtney and then everyone else started stepping up."

Homann posted 1,023 of the Saints' 1,062 assists this year (Seidel had the other 39). She's also leading the team in aces with 42.

"She is very talented," Kull said of Homann, who was influenced to play volleyball by her older sister, Barb, a member of the 2005 all-area team. "She really has organized and orchestrated our offense. She sees the game and understands the game."

Perhaps Homann learned a thing or two from her hitters, as she recorded 157 kills of her own, most of which were tip kills at key moments. This is pretty good for someone who has always been a setter and joked that she doesn't have a ton of skills as a hitter.

The tip kill became one of her trademark moves. It was the Saints' secret weapon, but not anymore.

"I'm supposed to be watching the blocker at all times, but if the defense cheats back, you can see it," Homann said. "But if it's a weird play…I'll just throw it back and think, 'Oh please, go down. It's a free ball, please don't kill the ball back.'"

"She just knows where to put them," Kull added on Homann's tip kills. "She just looks and put the ball where (the opponents) are not. She feels like that is part of her job on the team."

All these talents will not go unrecognized from D-I volleyball programs. Homann is being recruited, but hasn't made her choice yet.

"I've narrowed it down to, 'I want to play volleyball somewhere.' That's it," Homann said.

For now, she is focused on this weekend's state tournament, somewhere the Saints haven't been since the 2001 season.

"It's going to be so sad no matter what happens, win or lose," Homann said. "Our seniors will be gone, which is like half our team."

Homann, however, returns next year for another season of Saints volleyball.

"She's such a positive person," Kull said. "I'm a lucky person to have her."