SHP's Victoria Garrick is Athlete of the Week

At the outset of her senior high school season though, as much as all the skills of her all-around game — and all the kills she’s racking up this season — Garrick’s mission is to be a team leader. And the secret to her success is in this respect, above all else, is to be loud.

“After passing, I think being loud is the most important thing,” Garrick said.

In the midst of being a loud vocal leader on the court, Garrick had quite a showing last week. Sacred Heart Prep extended its current winning streak to four games with victories over Sequoia and San Mateo.

Last Tuesday in a four-set win over Sequoia, Garrick racked up a season-high 22 kills while also tabbing 20 digs and 21 serve receives. Last Friday in a sweep of San Mateo, she scored 21 kills. Because of her outstanding back-to-back performances, Garrick has been named the San Mateo Daily Journal Athlete of the Week.

Sacred Heart Prep first-year head coach Allison Magner is new to the high school ranks. Magner previously served as head coach at the University of Alabama at Birmingham and also was an assistant coach at Western Carolina University. But she has gained a quick respect for her senior team captain, Garrick.

“Victoria is a coach’s dream,” Magner said. “She has all the physical tools … but she also has the intangibles.”

Those intangibles as a team leader loomed large last week. Sacred Heart Prep has five seniors on roster, all of whom are regular starters. With two starters unavailable to play last Friday against San Mateo though — including senior middle blocker Ara Peterson, who was out with a minor injury — Magner had to get creative.

Magner moved outside hitter Kendall Reich to middle blocker, and also gave junior Ma-ata Makoni her first varsity start. The formula paid off, as the Gators handed San Mateo just its second loss of the season. And one of the keys to wrestling together the new personnel was Garrick’s on-court leadership.

“She demanded every ball on every play,” Magner said. “She wanted her team to feel the comfort she was going to get the job done.”

As a third-year varsity starter for the Gators, leadership is something Garrick does not take for granted. In her sophomore season of 2012, Sacred Heart Prep boasted some dynamic seniors in Payton Smith and Ellie Shannon, both of whom are currently playing in the Ivy League. Along with senior Sonia Abuel-Saud, each of the senior trio tabbed over 300 kills to pilot the Gators to a Northern California championship.

Garrick was a serious threat from the outside as well, ranking fourth on the team with 299 kills. But the opportunity to play with such a class of players in her first year at Sacred Heart Prep, after transferring from St. Francis, was invaluable, according to Garrick.

“They were huge role models and we looked up to them a lot,” Garrick said. “I’m just hoping me and the other seniors this year can replicate the way they mentored us.”

She’s done precisely that, according to Magner.

“From Day 1, she was coming in and asking, ‘How can I be better? How can I help everybody else on the team?’ It’s been such a blessing as a coach,” Magner said.

With three underclassmen in the mix, including up-and-coming freshman Cate Desler — who Magner said brings a “crazy line shot” — Garrick is poised to pass her leadership traits on to the next generation. But Garrick also prides herself on being a hyper-competitive player and has her sights set on returning to the state-tourney prominence of two seasons ago.

“She’s been a dominant outside hitter at Sacred Heart Prep, and whatever she’s needed to do to help the team, she’s going to do that to the best of her ability,” Magner said. “She works to be the best.”

Off to a 6-2 start — including a big win over archrival Menlo School en route to a Blue Division title at Spikefest on Sept. 6 — Sacred Heart Prep is emerging through the infant stages of the season as a legit threat in its quest to be the best. And Garrick is determined to see the quest through.

“As a senior, I want to go out saying I gave my heart and soul to my school team as a senior,” Garrick said.