Mount Vernon volleyball: ‘High ceiling,’ sky-high expectations

MOUNT VERNON — There’s no escaping it. May as well embrace it.

High expectations almost always surround the volleyball program at Mount Vernon High School. This year -- this team -- it’s a whole different level.

“This team probably has the highest ceiling of any team I’ve coached,” said Maggie Willems, who has taken 11 teams to state in her first 13 years as head coach, including a championship squad in 2019. “We have depth at every position.

“As far as expectations, we need to name it. If we’re not holding a gold trophy on the last day, how do we feel good about our season? It goes back to process and relationships.”

Without debate, the Mustangs have “gold-trophy” potential. They open the season ranked No. 1 in Class 3A and are tabbed as the best team in Iowa (any class) by MaxPreps.

Six starters are back from a squad that assembled a 35-5 record and reached the Class 3A championship match; the Mustangs dropped a four-set final to Western Christian.

Chloe Meester, a 6-foot-3 senior outside hitter with a lethal swing and a complete game, is the reigning 3A state player of the year. She has committed to play at the University of Louisville.

“She keeps getting better,” Willems said. “What she can continue to improve is her leadership. I’m going to do a lot to help her become a great leader.”

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Meester is all for it.

“I’m here to come into practice with 100-percent effort, make sure everybody’s here to get better, stay under control,” she said.

Four all-staters dot this roster. There’s Meester, of course. There’s senior setter Sydney Huber, who joined Meester on the 3A first team. Paige Schurbon, a senior middle hitter, was a third-team selection.

Sydney Maue, a right-side, left-handed leaper and another third-team pick, transferred to Mount Vernon from Center Point-Urbana shortly after last season.

She is the fourth high-profile transfer into the program in the past six years. Huber came from Cedar Rapids Xavier a year prior.

“I think we offer a product, a program here at Mount Vernon, that’s a whole lot more than volleyball,” Willems said. “It involves the growth of the whole person.”

Meester added, “It’s a matter of making them feel like they’re at home. They come from different schools, so when they come here, they can be tense and scared.

“Once they feel comfortable, they play better.”

These aren’t a bunch of volleyball-only specialists. Back-row specialist Eryn Jackson, for example, has been on seven state-qualifying teams (three in volleyball, two in golf, one in softball, one in basketball).

“It’s a long stretch from season to season, but every sport is fun in its own way,” Jackson said. “Volleyball is my favorite ... we’ve made some deep runs.”

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The Mustangs were 3A state quarterfinalists in 2021, semifinalists in 2022, runners-up in 2023. So there’s a progression there, with one step remaining.

“Everybody knows we want to win a state championship,” Schurbon said. “We talk about staying in the moment. When we get to high-level matches, if we’re prepared, it’s like muscle memory.

“We can relax, because we’ve practiced for that moment.”

There will be no shortness of pivotal moments this season. The first ones come right away.

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Mount Vernon will play in a quad Thursday at Pella, then continue westward for a stacked 15-team, two-day event at Bellevue (Neb.) West.

Then there’s the Wamac Conference grind, which includes an outdoor match at West Delaware on Sept. 17.

“That’s going to be a lot of fun,” Meester said. “I hope a lot of people are there, and I’m praying the weather is good.”

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Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com