Prep volleyball: Grussing shows up, Cards’ playoffs begin

Woody Allen’s contention that “80 percent of success is showing up” fits Riley Grussing to a T.
The Willmar High School senior setter could be playing the final games of her prep career this week, and what has defined that record-setting career is her willingness to show up, plan and prepare.
“She’s not scared to work and to take on the challenge to be a leader on the team,” said Willmar head coach Traci Grussing, whose No. 7-seeded Cardinals open the Section 2AAA playoffs hosting No. 10 New Prague at 7 p.m. today. “She has the personality for it. She’s not scared to be the one touching the ball all the time.”
Grussing has touched the ball a lot since becoming the Cardinals’ starting setter as an eighth-grader. She recently surpassed 3,000 career sets and long ago left behind the previous school career record of 1,763 set by 2004 WHS graduate Alyssa Dahl.
Grussing probably can’t remember of minute of life that didn’t include volleyball. Traci, who is her mother, was coach at Central Minnesota Christian School when Riley was growing up. She and other friends and area players, including CMCS star Lexi Scott, formed a Junior Olympic team as fifth-graders.
“I’ve always been around it,” Riley said. “When we started, our teams were pretty darn good. It was awesome. It all stuck. I was put at (setter) on our first team and I liked it. I don’t mind working hard and I knew I’d be supported along the way.”
Mom, a former outside hitter, and daughter would talk volleyball all the time. Traci could tell Riley had the mental makeup to excel at perhaps the game’s most demanding and important position.
“There’s a lot of pressure at that position,” Traci said, “and I knew she would put in a lot of time. That’s what it takes to be a good setter. It’s about the time put in more than anything. It’s all about how many reps you’re putting in and getting used to it.”
Riley took close note of Kresson Vreeman, who had 2,373 assists during her CMCS career and another 2,827 from 2007 to 2010 at NCAA Division I Denver University. When Riley moved into Willmar’s starting lineup, she played with Cardinals standouts like Katie Lippert and Emily Minnick. Now, she’s setting up big arms like Leah Ruter and Dani Rosen.
Adapting to the players around her is a strength.
“I like having that bond with people,” Riley said. “Most of the people I’ve played with have all been my friends and I’m close to everybody in our program, no matter if they’re seventh-graders or seniors. We have a lot of practices with the whole program. It’s not anything new.”
Setting can involve a mind-numbing array of variables. Hitters make the call, a setter has to listen and then make a decision about what’s right for the situation. Then they must physically execute the play, keeping in mind who is on the other end of the set and where.
“This year, we’ve got a 6-foot middle and a 5-foot-8 middle,” Traci Grussing said. “They have to be set differently, and our two outside hitters like different sets. (Riley) does a good job giving people what they’re going to be successful with. She’s just very good at getting the ball to the best hitter in each situation.”
Confident in volleyball, “in other aspects of my life, not as much,” Riley said. But that’s belied by her college choice. Traci said her daughter has been intrigued by boarding school life since the Harry Potter movies came out, and the eastern U.S. was a place where she wanted to attend college.
So St. Anselm College, an NCAA Division II school in Manchester, New Hampshire, has itself an accomplished prep recruit.
“They looked at my (recruiting) video a lot and asked if I would visit,” Riley said. “We visited the school and I loved it. It’s awesome. It felt like home.”
Before her new chapter begins, however, Riley and the Cardinals have a tough row to hoe in the section playoffs. The 2AAA field includes the state’s top-ranked team, Prior Lake, No. 8 Delano and the state’s No. 3-ranked team, Chaska, who the Cardinals would play Friday if they get by New Prague.
The 20-6 Cardinals finished 11-1, a game behind Rocori, in the Central Lakes Conference race. Riley is convinced the team can compete and her approach to the game could serve as their blueprint in a daunting section.
“Overall, we’re playing really well,” she said following the Card’s 3-1, third-place finish at the Pumpkin Classic over the weekend in Moorhead. “It was a bummer to lose (the CLC race) to Rocori but now we have to focus on sections. We’re doing really well but it’s definitely all mental. I’m 100-percent sure we can do it. We just have to show up.”