Unflappable: Chemistry helped Kids America 18U volleyball team set new standard

COSHOCTON — Universally, they look back with fond memories.

The Kids America U-18 Junior Olympic volleyball team did things during the winter and spring of 2022 that left an indelible impression on most everyone who followed them.

Coached by Jen Bickel and Mee Ok Won and directed by Coshocton High School coach Cari Bahmer, the 18-and-under team lost only three times in 64 matches en route to a USA Volleyball Junior Nationals appearance in Phoenix.

The team featured five Coshocton County products — Coshocton's Ella Bible, Lindsay Bryant and Jalynn West, Ridgewood's Karissa Humphrey and River View's Ashley Newell. They comprised half of the team's roster.

Tri-Valley products Abby Stanford and Katya Liber, Garaway's Meghan Petitte, West Holmes' Harmony Mast and Danville's Sydney Wilson rounded out the team, which featured a wealth of size and a dominant setter in West, who was a first-team All-Ohio pick as a senior.

They won 122 of 133 possible sets en route to nine gold championships and a runner-up finish in the Ohio Valley region. They earned titles in events at Orrville, Kids America, Lithopolis, Sherrodsville, Cedar Point, Bethany (West Virginia) and The Highlands. They medaled in all 10 regular season tournaments.

"It was 10 girls who all shared the same passion for the game of volleyball," Bickel said. "When you have a JO team, and you have kids from different schools and bring them together, you don't always get their personalities to mesh. From Day 1, it just blended. And the talent was unmatched. Out of the 10, eight are playing at the next level."

A banner donated by Charlie Lenzo, of Lenzo Studio, featuring full photo cutouts of each player accompanied with their names, was unveiled at Kids America last week as the team reconvened for a final time.

It was a fitting placement — Kids America's indoor courts are where the team trained twice a week from December 2021 until May 2022. That was followed their high school season that spanned three months, some even longer.

Bible hopes the banner encourages younger girls to chase their volleyball dreams.

"I'm excited for other girls to come in and be like, 'Oh I remember them, that's really what hard work shows,'" Bible said.

The commitment to training and improving their all-around skills were a hallmark of the team, but moreso was its ability to coexist and thrive in competition.

"They were all good athletes, but there was something about the way we played together," West said. "The chemistry off the court was impeccable, it was like nothing I’ve experienced on our Coshocton team or anywhere. They were all my best friends and still are to this day.

"Obviously they’re amazing athletes and would probably be standouts on any team," West added. "But together it’s so hard to put into words how awesome it was to be together and play together."

That the team could put their personal agendas aside for the betterment of the team was something that surprised the coaches, who said some players left all-around roles with their high school teams to enter a situation where they only rotated at certain positions.

One was Bible, now running track at Ashland, who went from an all-around role with Coshocton to the middle of a back row rotation with Humphrey for Kids America. Bickel said the chemistry and friendships — and the team's level of success — made those scenarios easier to accept.

"They had had to take a back seat and either play the front or play the back," Bickel said. "(Petitte) played middle for Garaway but only played defense for me. Ella went from playing six rotations at Coshocton and only played defense for me. They're just very unselfish girls. They did what they had to do for the betterment of the team. And 61-3 shows you."

West said it was universally accepted that roles were being defined to maximize the team's success.

"There was never any doubt as to who should be playing where," West said. "There was no animosity about it. I was just pure love. They all accepted it because they just wanted to win."

The team bonding started early in the process.

"I remember it was tryouts week and we already had our team together," Bible recalled. "We went over on the court and played for the first time together. We didn't know each other's names. It was such a huge difference by the end of the season, because we were a whole different team."

Bible gave up basketball her senior season to play a second season with Kids America, something she does not regret.

"I loved every minute of it," Bible said of her Kids America experience. "We were together for two years, but last year was just really special. We put in a lot of hard work, which showed when we went to Nationals. We were in the gym three days a week for four or five hours. It showed we could do it."

That work especially paid off for Bryant and West, who took their success with Kids America and helped lead Coshocton to their first regional tournament in 17 seasons. It was that setter-hitter combination that carried the offense, especially during the tournament.

Bryant said playing for Kids America, with the training in practice, helped develop her full skill set. Like Bible a year earlier, she was a full rotation player with West at Coshocton.

"At practices, everybody practiced every position," Bryant said. "Even for me setting, I never set, but we worked on that. So if I had to set in the back row or in the front row, I was able to do stuff and execute."

Bahmer said experience gained playing for Kids America has helped the older players adapt to their college teams. Others, like Bryant and West, will join their college teams in the fall.

The program began eight years ago, with many of the players on this team having played together for four years — some longer. The success of the program helps attract players, many who try out to simply get the offseason training that wouldn't otherwise be afforded.

"Most of these kids playing at the next level, whether it's track, softball or volleyball, it's huge for a lot of reasons," Bahmer said. "Just being together and being a team I think will help them in the long run, too.

"They're great kids," Bahmer added. "They're all unique, but they also get along so well. I think that is what made this team special. It was their camaraderie. For them to get back together like this for the holiday, it shows that team chemistry is huge."

sblackbu@gannett.com; Twitter: @SamBlackburnTR

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Kids America 18U volleyball in Coshocton, Ohio set new standard