Sleepless in Taylorville: Volleyball team embraces school's first trip to state finals
TAYLORVILLE — Teammates and coaches agree: Sam Logue doesn’t quit.
The Taylorville volleyball senior libero has helped the Tornadoes (30-9-1) reach the Class 3A state semifinals for the first time in school history.
“She has improved so much and I’m so proud of her,” fellow senior Elle Richards said of her teammate. “I don’t even know how she does it, but she works her butt off in every game and on every play and she brings that excitement out on the court. She hustles after every ball on every play.”
Coach Kim Peabody said Logue will sacrifice her body diving to the court play after play in order to keep points possible for the Tornadoes.
“She’s going to put her body on the floor for everything,” Peabody said. “She will go after every ball and that’s something we stress in practice as well.
“You have to make an effort on every ball because if it only comes up one out of every 10 times, that might be the time we need it to come up during a game. She’s bought into that and she’s all-in.”
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Logue leads the team in digs with 384.
“I want to put in max effort to win the point,” Logue said. “I knew it would help my team to win so I wanted to put in all the effort I could. I try to get to every single ball, no matter what.”
Taylorville faces LaGrange Park Nazareth in the second game of the 3A state finals at approximately 5:30 p.m. Friday in CEFCU Arena on the Illinois State University campus in Normal.
Sleepless nights
Following the Tornadoes’ 22-25, 26-24, 25-23 win over Normal U-High to win the 3A Chatham Glenwood Supersectional last Friday, sleep could wait. And wait some more in a few cases.
“That Friday night and even that Saturday night, I don’t think I slept at all,” said senior Sophie Mizeur. “My eyes were wide open and still to this day, it’s still a memory of whether it was the game-winning point or in the huddle or focus on my face throughout the game, I still think about it and it still puts a smile on my face.”
Mizeur leads the Tornadoes in assists (811) and service aces (52) and is second in digs with 347.
“I had trouble sleeping,” another senior, Elle Richards, said. “It was so overwhelming and I was so excited and I’m so proud of my team that we were able to do that but I was so overwhelmed with emotions.”
Richards’ 357 kills leads Taylorville and she’s third on the team in digs (302), blocks (41) and aces (35).
Peabody says she also had a mostly sleepless night after Taylorville punched its ticket to state on Friday but with four kids at home, slumber has been much easier in the following days.
Three-year starting libero
Believe it or not, Peabody says, her libero was once a hitter. Peabody, who also coaches the Taylorville Junior High eighth grade team, said Logue can jump and played well on the front line — even into high school.
But she couldn’t imagine not having Logue in the role she’s playing now.
“Serve-receive passing is the name of the game in my opinion and she’s so good at it,” Peabody said. “She’s so good at her job and you don’t get a lot of glory for that job. No questions asked: a very selfless girl and she’s done a tremendous job for us.”
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Logue has tried to set the right tone emotionally for her teammates from the beginning.
“I guess just my attitude and my passing,” Logue said on what got her promoted to the varsity team as a freshman.
“I was always so cheerful on the court and off the court. When I was a freshman on varsity, I was always cheering for everyone on the court. I think it was just my attitude and I just wanted to provide a good attitude for my team.”
Logue isn’t sure if this is her final hoorah for her volleyball career. She’s pretty firm that she wants to go to Lincoln Land Community College for early childhood education. But after years of hitting the hardwood floors in gyms across central Illinois, she might not be able to put her body through that again.
“I think my body’s been through enough,” Logue said.
She said she’s definitely got two more games in it, though.
“I’m going to give everything I can because it’s my last two games of my high school career,” Logue said.
Having seen the Doug Collins Court at ISU on TV only, she’s excited to finally step out on the big court on Friday.
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“I think when I get there it will sink in and it will be like, ‘Gosh, I’m going to be playing here and there’s going to be so many people watching me,’” she said. “I thought (about playing at state); I’ve always wanted to and now we made it so I’m like kind of excited and nervous.”
Mizeur said even though the Tornadoes will graduate four seniors, volleyball will continue to excel at Taylorville High School for a while.
"I think last year made it a volleyball school, and I think we’re going to carry that on for a few more years, too," Mizeur said.
Contact Ryan Mahan: 788-1546, ryan.mahan@sj-r.com, Twitter.com/RyanMahanSJR.
Class 1A volleyball state finals
At CEFCU Arena, Normal
Friday’s semifinals
Freeport Aquin (39-1) vs. Sterling Newman (29-7-1), 9 a.m.
Lutheran (37-3) vs. Norris City-Omaha-Enfield (38-2), 10:30 a.m. (approximately)
Saturday’s third-place
Semifinal losers, 9 a.m.
Saturday’s championship
Semifinal winners, 10:30 a.m. (approximately)
Class 3A volleyball state finals
AT CEFCU Arena, Normal
Friday’s semifinals
Joliet Catholic (23-17) vs. Wheaton St. Francis (28-12), 4 p.m.
Taylorville (30-9-1) vs. LaGrange Park Nazareth (21-16), 5:30 p.m. (approximately)
Saturday’s third place
Semifinal losers, 4 p.m.
Saturday’s championship
Semifinal winners, 5:30 p.m. (approximately)
This article originally appeared on State Journal-Register: IHSA volleyball state finals: Taylorville makes first appearance
