Diggin’ It Kelli Haye Leads EV With Inspiring Play In The Back Row

East Valley’s Kelli Haye digs volleyball.

And the Knights are enjoying early season success as a result.

EV has a chance to already surpass the win total of last year’s 4-6 team when the first half of the Frontier League season ends this weekend.

Haye isn’t surprised.

“I think we’ve always had the talent,” she said. “This group works well together. We’re friends on and off the court.”

New coach Jim Dorr is quick to credit Haye’s serving and play in the back row with East Valley’s current 4-1 league record.

“She serves extremely well and is one of the top two passers on the team,” he said. “We want the ball going to her on serve receive.”

Dorr also credited Haye’s all out defense against Colville that helped EV to its third win of the year.

“We were in deep trouble and she had four digs to help us out,” he said.

A dig occurs when a player dives to save a ball headed for the floor.

“The floor is my friend. I’ve never been afraid to hit the floor,” said Haye. “(I do) whatever it takes to get the ball up. It’s mostly reaction at that point.”

Volleyball is a game in which separate parts make up the whole.

Front row players are charged with hitting and blocking. There’s no hitting without the setter. Back row players receive or dig and pass. Without that, the setter can’t feed her hitters.

What Haye does best is provide leadership and continuity in the back row of a volleyball match.

“When I’m standing up there the whole time I want them to hit me the ball,” she said. “It’s kind of ‘I dare you’. It’s a challenge between me and the hitter.”

She watches a player’s shoulder to determine if the ball will be tipped over the net or hit deep.

“I kind of react before the play,” she said. “If I’m wrong I’m on the floor.”

As a server, Haye has had a knack for finding a defense’s soft spot.

“I have a zone in mind and picture that the ball is going there,” she said.

She also directs EV’s running and stretching exercises, said Dorr.

So far it has paid off in EV’s hot start. Players understand their roles and many have factored in the success.

Dorr’s philosophy, said Haye, has stressed the mental aspect of the game more than fundamentals, which the varsity players already have.

“If we’re down he lets us pick ourselves up,” she said. “If we’re way off he gives us strategy.”

Haye, who was a member of last year’s state qualifying softball team, said she would like to duplicate that in volleyball.

Dorr does not disagree.

“I expected us to do well. The kids have worked really hard and part of that is Haye,” he said. “When you have seniors who are taking that role and good sophomores coming up, the two combine for a successful season.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Photo