ABBOTSFORD – As a timid freshman, Abbotsford senior setter Faith Sperl walked into the varsity tryout full of emotion and a burning desire to play.
She felt like an underdog competing with her peers of upperclassmen who already had their spots.
But after playing her way onto the floor as a freshman, she never left the court, becoming a fixture in the Falcons starting rotation where she has led the Falcons attack ever since. And while it’s been a rewarding road, it has also been taxing.
Though volleyball has always been her greatest tool of comfort which has transitioned to excellence on the floor.
“Consistency and always getting in the gym when I can, whether it’s lifting or setting up a net and getting in some extra reps,” Sperl said about her efforts of making the varsity team. “But then, not only that, mentally too, working on how strong I am mentally and what I can take and just learning myself and growing each day has been critical.
“I think those things pushed me to be the best player I could be that year, which then ultimately ended up with me starting as a freshman.”
Sperl’s on-court commands caught the attention of the Wisconsin Ice Premier Volleyball club, where she has played since she was a sophomore.
The addition of more volleyball – on a national scale – arrived as she needed it most. She was going through a tough time in her personal life and felt entrapped inside her blues.
But volleyball has always been her way out. A guiding light. The remedy that heals all wounds.
“Now, looking back on that experience, at the end of the day, I can wholeheartedly say that volleyball saved my life,” Sperl said. “When I had a bad day, or was just kind of lost, I was in the gym always asking coach to open it up for me.
“It was more of my escape. I could put everything aside and go touch the ball and I’ll be fine.”
Abbotsford coach John Kreeger said one of the first things he noticed about Sperl when he first got the chance to see her play in eighth grade was her drive.
By the time she was a freshman, she had already become an elite player, but what stood out most was her prowess on the defensive side of the ball.
“So her freshman year we had two juniors that were going to start,” Kreeger said. “One was an all conference setter that was coming back. One was another setter that I’d actually coached two years on varsity, and they were both setters that were suited to my style of play, which was going to be tempo based. We want to do everything fast.
“The biggest difference between Faith and the all conference setter was defense. She listened, understood what her team needed, and her goal wasn’t just to be good at one thing, it was to be the best volleyball player on the court.”
In her first opportunity to show what she could do at the high school level, she made an unmistakable impact.
“At our very first tournament, I actually hadn’t decided on who won the job yet,” Kreeger said. “I told them both that Faith was going to get the first start of her very first game, and that, depending on how she performed, would determine if the other setters even got a shot at it. But Faith never left the court after that.
As a junior last season, Sperl earned unanimous first-team all-conference honors in the Marawood North Conference, an honorable mention all-state and is just as strong in the classroom, earning all-academic honors.
On the floor, she’s closing in on 2,000 assists, 1,000 digs and 200 aces this season as a senior – all of which will be in the running for school records.
But despite all the lasting accolades Sperl will leave the Abbotsford program with, the thing that will stick with Kreeger the most when she’s gone is her genuine love for the game.
“She’s one of the kids I’ve coached over the years that might love volleyball the most,” Kreeger said. “I think it’s a big part of her life, she commits a lot to it and she works for it. She’s the kind of kid that you don’t have to tell to do extra. You don’t have to encourage her to be better or be more like she is, which is really self driven and self motivated.
“Which is why the varsity stage was never too big for her.”
Contact or send game stats/info to Sports Reporter Alfred Smith III at alfred.smith@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @AlfredS_III.
This article originally appeared on Marshfield News-Herald: ‘Volleyball saved my life’: Faith Sperl grows from timid freshman to history maker
Reporting by Alfred Smith III, Marshfield News-Herald / Marshfield News-Herald
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
