State Serves Up Tall Order But Size Isn’t Everything As Mead, Ferris Stars Hope To Prove

People tend to concentrate on the tall, booming hitters when watching volleyball teams from Mead or Ferris high schools.

Yet the schools’ fortunes this weekend may be determined more by their averaged-sized players.

Ferris senior Darcy Ruemping and Mead junior Staci Schuerman have been steadying influences this year.

Neither tops 5-foot-8, but their performances were instrumental in securing berths at the WIAA/ Dairy Farmers of Washington State AAA tournament. The 16-team tourney begins its two-day run at the Arena at 9:30 this morning.

Ruemping and fourth-ranked Ferris claimed the Greater Spokane League and District 8-AAA titles. The Saxons have had an emotional week, losing their first match of the year at the Region IV-AAA tournament and losing 5-10 middle blocker Missy Blackshire.

Blackshire, a strong candidate for GSL most valuable player, is ineligible for state after breaking the school’s athletic code last Saturday. She has practiced with the team this week and can sit on the bench during state contests.

“We just, as a team, are going to pull together,” said Ruemping, the team captain. “We’re going to get through it. There’s no other choice.”

Matters have been quieter for second-ranked Mead, thanks to a breakthrough week. Despite heavily recruited 6-3 MB Jessica Sanborn, the Panthers never achieved their potential until winning the regional tourney. Mead finished tied for second place in the GSL and advanced No. 3 from district.

“It was a little frustrating,” Schuerman said of league and district, “but we pushed ourselves to (qualify for state). We proved to ourselves we could do it.”

Mead last played at state in 1989.

Mead’s season low may have been an Oct. 1 match against Ferris. The Panthers won the first two games but dropped the final three when Ferris, especially Ruemping, started defending Sanborn’s slams.

“A lot of kids think of defense as the boring part of the game, but I think (Ruemping) gets as excited about that as anything,” said Ferris coach Stacey Ward.

Ferris also won the second league match with Mead, then everything else in sight until the Panthers pushed Ferris one loss away from elimination at region.

Ruemping said the Mead loss came at the right time, taking away the pressure of protecting a perfect record.

One of the first to encourage Ward after the loss was Freeman principal Dennis Schuerman, Staci’s father.

Ferris and Mead players have been close for several years. Ward’s husband Keith taught volleyball to four of Mead’s starters at Colbert Elementary.

“He likes to bring that up all the time,” said Staci Schuerman, who learned the overhand serve from Keith.

What Keith Ward didn’t teach Schuerman was aggressiveness. She learned that from older brothers Nick and Alex, both collegiate baseball catchers.

During Mead’s loser-out district match against Central Valley, Schuerman slammed into a wall while chasing a loose ball. She refused to leave the match.

“When I go for those balls, I’m so determined that I don’t see (danger) coming,” Schuerman said. “I’ve been known to run into chairs and bleachers. That time, I was dizzy and didn’t know where I was at first. I couldn’t remember the couple of plays after that.”

Ruemping’s innate ability is lateral movement. She and former Ferris volleyball player K.C. Richards twice placed in the top four in doubles at the State AAA tennis tournament.

Ruemping played backup setter as a sophomore and defensive specialist as a junior. She willed herself into becoming a good hitter.

“She’s kind of a perfectionist in general, a 4.0 student,” said Stacey Ward. “She wasn’t satisfied with having a limited specialist role on the team. I think in club season she set out to make herself the best offensive player she can.”

Given Blackshire’s absence, it’s beneficial that Ruemping turned her attention to offense.

“We still have five great hitters and a great setter (Janelle Morrisette),” Ruemping said. “So we still have great firepower.”

, DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: Color Photo

MEMO: This sidebar appeared with the story: PAST AAA CHAMPIONS Kentridge (1989) is the lone former champion in this year’s State AAA volleyball tournament field. Here are the other past champs: Renton: 1977, ‘80-82 Kent-Meridian: 1978-79 Wenatchee: 1983 Shadle Park: 1984-85, ‘87-88, ‘93 Kentwood: 1986 Eisenhower: 1990 Columbia River: 1991 Lewis and Clark: 1992, ‘94 North Central: 1995