Girls volleyball: Cary-Grove's Olson set on being the best

It's probably cliché to say Erin Olson was born with Cary-Grove's Blue and White in her blood.

With Olson though, she was born to be a Cary-Grove star as much as anyone could.

Both of Olson's parents, Mark and Tammy, teach at Cary-Grove. Mark is the school's boys soccer coach; Tammy the Trojans' softball coach with Mark as assistant.

"I grew up wanting to play for Cary-Grove," Erin Olson said. "I love it there. I have always been that kid who never left Cary-Grove."

Perhaps the only surprise is that volleyball became Olson's sport. Especially after she played travel softball for seven years with her dad as the coach, and her mom was a college softball player at Northern Illinois.

Erin played varsity softball as a freshman center fielder for the Trojans - and her parents. She wasn't always a fan of the April weather, and by her sophomore year she made the decision to give up softball and focus all her attention on a sport that had become her favorite, volleyball.

"They supported me the entire way," Olson said. "My dad said, 'I saw it coming.'"

It's no wonder that the first description Cary-Grove volleyball coach Patty Langanis uses for Olson is "gym rat," or that Olson conducted the interview for this story not only after practice, but after she stayed after practice to work on her own.

"I'm in the gym a lot," Olson smiled. "I was always hanging around (as a kid).

"I just like the opportunity to work on stuff, work on my game and do it so it doesn't take time out of practice. Honestly I just love playing."

Olson put the finishing touches on her outstanding Cary-Grove days this fall, setting the Trojans to a 32-5 record heading into the sectional championship match, before she continues playing volleyball next year at Bradley.

Olson and St. Charles North's Claire Anderson are this year's Honorary Co-Captains of the Daily Herald Fox Valley All-Area girls volleyball team.

"She's unstoppable," said teammate Delaney Bayer, a senior libero. "There's no other word to describe her. She's incredible. How she connects with everyone on the team, all the hitters. We can give her not a good pass and she can run anything.

"She has the smarts. She has an awesome personality on and off the court."

Olson left a similar impression on opposing coaches.

"Erin Olson is a phenomenal setter and will do very well at Bradley," said Batavia coach Lori Trippi-Payne, whose team has played Cary-Grove three straight years. "She is a competitor who is very smart and able to fool middle blockers very well."

Langanis can appreciate the myriad of things Olson does well more than most.

The 20th-year Trojans coach watched Olson debut on varsity her sophomore year as a right side. She moved to setter as a junior and set over 700 assists while earning All-Area honors.

Olson followed it up with an even better senior season. She entered sectional play with 708 assists, 49 aces, 138 kills, 170 digs and 76 blocks.

Langanis has seen so many greats for the tradition-rich Trojans, and Olson is right there with them.

"Erin does an amazing job distributing the ball," Langanis said. "She feels the game a lot more. A lot of setters have to learn that with time but Erin studies the game. She's really a student of volleyball. She has been for years. She feels and senses when things have to be done. She knows when it's open with her experience."

Olson's ability to take a bad pass and turn it into a perfect set is something Langanis marvels at.

Olson also swings more often than most setters, using her athleticism and smarts to put away balls when the defense doesn't expect it.

"It's kind of instinctual," Olson said. "My hitters do a great job even if I put them into a bad situation. They are always putting it away. My defense makes it really easy on me by always giving me perfect passes every time. I honestly couldn't ask for anything more from them."

Olson honed her skills at Sky High. Having two parents as coaches, Olson is appreciative of all those who have worked with her.

"All the coaches I've had have made me love the game especially Langanis and one of my coaches from Sky High, they have instilled that love of the game," Olson said.

The Trojans won the Fox Valley Conference Valley Division this year without losing a match, the highlight Olson said of playing high school volleyball.

She certainly made life difficult for those Fox Valley coaches.

"She's an excellent setter," Dundee-Crown coach Christine Hopkins-Muehl said. "She's very crafty. She doesn't give away a lot of her sets. Very impressive, hardworking setter."

"She's a phenomenal player," Huntley coach Karen Naymola said. "Definitely takes over matches when she needs to. She's an offensive threat and a defensive threat."

College coaches picked up on Olson's unique ability. She settled on Bradley around last Thanksgiving.

Olson said her favorite class at Cary-Grove currently is biology. She wants to become a physical therapist.

"I love school as strange as that may sound I love school," Olson said. "After I visited their campus I thought, 'I need to go there.' I'm really looking forward to it."

Much of Olson's free time is spent with a book ("I love reading everything and anything," she said) - that is when she isn't in a gym.

As much as Olson will miss Cary-Grove when she graduates next spring, you can bet the Trojans will miss Olson even more.

"She's just an athlete," Langanis said. "She's an incredible softball player. She grew up a gym rat. She is one of your old school athletes who converted into volleyball a few years ago. She's our quarterback and she's been fantastic."