Bishop Manogue鈥檚 Harper is school鈥檚 first-ever Gatorade Nevada Volleyball Player of the Year
RENO, Nev. (BVM) 鈥� Bishop Manogue High School volleyball coach Jason Sterrett was unable to watch his team compete for the Northern 5A regional volleyball championship in April. The longtime coach was admitted to the hospital with a herniated disk in his neck two days before the title match and missed the entire three-day regional tournament.
Without their head coach and leader, the Miners squared off with a familiar foe to decide the 2021 regional championship: Reno. The Huskies had won the previous two regional volleyball titles, including in 2019 on Manogue鈥檚 court.
But thanks to some added motivation, a strong senior class and an elite overall group, the Miners took down Reno, 3-1 (25-22, 22-25, 25-22, 25-18), to claim the Northern 5A regional volleyball title.
鈥淭hey did all the little things right,鈥� Sterrett said. 鈥淭hey honed in on the little stuff we talked about and didn鈥檛 make a lot of mistakes. They were pretty passionate, excited and committed to taking this short season and making the best of it. I give them all the credit; they worked hard.鈥�
Manogue finished 7-1 and capped its season off with a regional championship despite a two-week shutdown mid-season due to COVID-19 and the absence of its head coach at the season鈥檚 most critical juncture. The Miners鈥� win over Reno was also a bit of payback, not only for 2019, but for a 3-1 loss to the Huskies on March 7.
Perhaps the biggest reason for Manogue鈥檚 on-court success this season is junior Tori Harper.
The 6-foot-3 outside hitter recorded a team-high 14 kills in the championship match and made the most of a shortened spring season. Harper compiled 116 kills, 13 blocks and a .421 hitting percentage on the way to earning first team All-Sierra League honors.
The accolades didn鈥檛 end there, as Harper was named the Gatorade Nevada Volleyball Player of the Year on May 6, the first to be chosen from Manogue.
鈥淭ori Harper is a dominant player at the net,鈥� Damonte Ranch High School head coach Nathan Hallett said in . 鈥淪he鈥檚 the biggest, highest, longest kid around, and she comes through at a great clip. There isn鈥檛 a ball that she can鈥檛 hit over you. The sky鈥檚 the limit for her.鈥�
While it鈥檚 Harper鈥檚 height and power that garners most of the attention, Sterrett believes that it鈥檚 her intangibles that set her apart and make her more than worthy of such a prestigious award.
鈥淔irst and foremost, her work ethic and leadership skills are some of the best we鈥檝e ever had there,鈥� Sterrett said. 鈥淪he鈥檚 a passionate player who wants to get better every single day. Leadership leads into production and everyone was really able to follow by example.
鈥淪he鈥檚 on time all the time, she鈥檚 willing to do the extra work and make the tough calls when she needs to make sure everybody is on the same page. Her intangibles are what make her special and then, of course, she鈥檚 6-foot-3 and a pretty darn good volleyball player.鈥�
Harper鈥檚 next challenge will take place at the University of Georgia, where she committed last summer to play volleyball. But first, Manogue鈥檚 first-ever Gatorade Nevada Volleyball Player of the Year has another season left at the high school level, one that comes with lofty expectations.
鈥淲e have a lot of returners and of course we have Tori back, so I think that they can make another run for it,鈥� Sterrett said. 鈥淭hey have the tools to do some great things, but you need a little bit of luck and some good timing. We can鈥檛 control that until the season, but as hard as they work together, I think the ceiling is still out there and we鈥檒l just have to see if we can climb a little higher.鈥�