Girls volleyball: Metea Valley libero Bialek believes in helping others, on the court and off

Metea Valley libero Sienna Bialek loves to play volleyball, but she lives to serve others.

The 5-foot senior is an aspiring nurse.

“I love helping people in everyday life and I would love to do that as a profession,” Bialek said. “I want to love my job when I’m older, so I think that is something I would really like.”

Bialek is following in the footsteps of her grandmother, Rose, who recently retired as a radiology nurse.

“She is just really excited because she also loves to help people just like I do,” Bialek said. “I think that is very special because we’re like the only two people in our family to be nurses. We share that passion together.”

Bialek’s teammates witness that passion every day.

“Sienna will make the best nurse,” Metea Valley senior setter Rachel Keeler said. “She is so caring, so thoughtful.

“She puts everyone before herself and thinks of everyone from so many different points of view. She’s always thinking of how somebody else might feel or how different things might affect other people before herself.”

Bialek, an honors student who has an unweighted 4.0 GPA, demonstrates that off the court. She is vice president of Metea’s Best Buddies club and a member of the Key Club, which does volunteer work in the community.

Then there Bialek’s efforts during matches.

“That really shows even on the volleyball court,” Keeler said. “She’s sacrificing everything.

“She is saying, ‘My fault, my bad,’ even when it’s not her fault, just because that’s the kind of person she is.”

Bialek is the Mustangs’ smallest player but she plays the toughest position. Playing defense is hard work and rarely results in glory, but Bialek is excelling in her second varsity season.

“She’s done a fantastic job,” Metea Valley coach Dave Macdonald said. “She’s one of our captains, is a leader of this group and shows it not so much vocally but with her hustle.

“She’s so fast. I compare it to Mighty Mouse back in the day. She gets all over the place.”

Bialek did that again on Wednesday, hustling to try to blunt Geneva’s potent attack. She had eight digs and two assists as the Mustangs (12-19) lost 25-14, 25-8 on their senior night in Aurora.

“She’s gone up against some great hitters this season and has answered the bell,” Macdonald said. “She’s great to have in practice, pushes all the girls, pushes us as coaches to hit harder at her. It’s been wonderful.”

Bialek began doing gymnastics when she was 3 and thinks the athleticism from that sport carried over to volleyball, which she began in seventh grade.

“What got me into volleyball actually was my dad (Robert),” Bialek said. “He sells phones and he went to (Sports Performance) and he asked them, and they’re like, ‘Hey, you should try volleyball.’”

So Bialek quit gymnastics and began playing for Sports Performance. Her senior night was the penultimate home game of her career.

“We fought really hard but we did get overcome today,” Bialek said. “We just work really well together and I love all my teammates.”

Many of Bialek’s fellow seniors also plan to go into health care. Some, including Inaaya Hashwani (pediatric nurse practitioner), Raina Parekh (psychologist), Katey Frazier (speech pathology) and Sophia Manuel (physician assistant) already have specific specialties picked out, while Eileen Wilson and Mia Brackey, have not.

Keeler will major in sports marketing and Allyse King plans to pursue sports marketing.

“It shows their personalities,” Macdonald said. “They want to not only help to grow this program and continue the amazing culture and continue to push that to be better, but also to make a difference when they get out of here and save lives and do a bunch of stuff.”

Some of Macdonald’s former players are doctors and nurses.

“This group of girls is going to do great things as well,” Macdonald said. “They have the great personality and the work ethic and the ability to be health care professionals.

“We’ve had some girls do that in the past. I love seeing what they do once they leave us and all the awesome things they’re doing.”

Bialek wants to be a pediatric nurse because she loves working with children. She also loved playing with the Mustangs.

“We all combine really well,” Bialek said. “We’re all really great friends inside and outside of volleyball. I’m excited to keep competing for the rest of the season and I’m excited to see what later brings.”