HOMETOWN
Marian head coach John Fallabel conducted a sign-up session for the Anthracite Volleyball Club on Monday night.
“That’s where the train starts,” Fallabel said about the club, which will develop players for Marian and other area high school programs.
Where that train ends may be where Marian is now — the opening round of the PIAA Class A Tournament.
The District 11 champion Fillies will oppose District 4 champion Towanda at 6 p.m. at Shamokin Area High School.
Fallabel is hoping the Fillies can atone for Marian’s last visit to Shamokin for a PIAA Tournament match, in the 2012 PIAA Class A semifinals.
He said, “The girls are, ‘Oh, they’re bad.’ I said, ‘Wait a second. We lost to Williamson from their league.’ ”
Current senior Courtney McCall was a freshman member of that squad, and the first-year starting setter is one of five players from Marian’s 2013 PIAA Class A state championship squad that’s around for Marian’s fourth straight foray into states.
“It’s been the fastest four years of my life, and it’s been a great experience. I took it for granted because I got to experience so much with a great group of girls,” she said.
Those girls include current senior teammates Danielle Spillman and Abby Pilla. They enter their third trip to the state playoffs.
“Even though I was on the bench, I got a lot of experience from the other girls on the court just watching them run plays,” Pilla said. “Seeing how they play volleyball added to my skills.”
Now Pilla is counted to be part of Marian’s rotation and to teach the younger Fillies what can be expected throughout the PIAA Tournament run.
Spillman, the Fillies’ starting defensive specialist, takes that task seriously — for a personal reason.
“My sister, she’s a freshman,” Spillman said. “I feel like now it’s your turn to teach them. You remember what you learned from other seniors and how you want to lead them, if you want to be a sister to them or strictly a leader to them.
“It’s easy to be both. It’s not hard because you’re a family together. You can lead, but also feel close to these girls.”
That is a pattern exhibited by both stars and role players in a string of success that has produced 11 championship banners in Marian’s gymnasium over the past 15 years.
When Marian defeated Nativity for the District 11 Class A championship, several alumni sporting jackets noting the team’s 2014 achievements attended the match at Minersville.
One of those players, Lauren Nietz, has returned to Marian’s program as a late-season addition as assistant coach.
“It was really weird because I’m used to playing with them on the court,” McCall said of the alumni presence, “but it was great because a lot of them, when we were getting upset or couldn’t figure out what to do on the court, came down (to the bench) and calmed us down.”
Spillman indicated such support has been important, not only in volleyball, but as a life lesson.
“Definitely, it’s trust with each other. You have to trust people getting a ball. You also have to trust that, if you get that ball, somebody’s going to get that ball for you or hit that ball,” she said. “It’s all about trust and teamwork.”
That has extended for nearly a generation at Marian, where former players and coaches have injected themselves back into the successful development of volleyball players.
“I want to set an example for the younger girls, that when it’s their turn, they learned a lot from me,” Pilla said.
Spillman said one lesson she has learned over the past two PIAA Tournament appearances is something she wants her younger teammates to know as the Fillies return to state competition today.
“Definitely, whenever you go into states, the one thing you have to remember is, even before you get to the finals or semis or quarters, this could be your last game,” she said. “You have to play every game like it’s your last.”