Anna Kane hardly touched a volleyball before entering high school. Four years later, she’s one of the area’s top talents.
Countless nights in the Bel Air High School gym watching the girls volleyball team as a middle schooler drew Kane, a soccer player looking for a new adventure, to the sport. She spent hours practicing on her own to be like the girls she watched, hitting balls that pierced the air around her backyard to herself.
She dove across the grass until intolerable bugs appeared and the street lights came on, persisting even when her parents said she’d get sick of the sport if she spent too much time practicing.
Kane is now The Aegis’ girls volleyball Player of the Year after a stellar senior season for the Bobcats.
“I’ve definitely come a long way,” Kane said.
Bel Air coach David Simon was introduced to Kane by a neighbor, and family friend of Kane’s, who texted Simon he knew of an incoming freshman interested in playing volleyball. They met for a private workout where Simon taught Kane the basics — how to serve, set and hit, among other fundamentals of the game. Then Kane returned to the backyard to hone her new skills.
She opened her freshman season, her first time ever playing, on Bel Air’s junior varsity. She was with varsity by year’s end. Her teammates became the players who attracted her to volleyball in the first place.
“They really inspired me,” Kane said. “I just thought they looked so cool playing.”
Over the next three years yhe outside hitter developed a ferocious left arm. She became known for it across Harford County, both the velocity at which the balls travelled off her hands and the pinpoint accuracy she could place them. Kane’s left-handedness was also an advantage that few had. It positioned her to attack balls set to her at angles other can’t get to.
When defenses adjusted to Kane targeting the boundary, rotating to better cover that area, she could twist and poke a hit the other way.
“I was able to swing across on the outside really hard,” she said. “I definitely became known to hit the line, but also I would notice and was able to adjust. I could hit cross just as good. If they’re blocking my line, I would have to transition off the net more of an angle so that when I would come into swing, I would be able to go around their block on the left side instead of the right.”
Kane’s dominance reached a level this season where her teammates felt confident enough to make predictions when her next rocketing shot would find the hardwood. When a set was placed with precision to Kane as she leaped toward the net, Simon often heard other players yell “goodnight” from the court and bench.
If everything around Kane was perfect, she would be, too. Her rise, from someone with no volleyball experience to a feared player, was rapid.
“You just knew something good was going to happen when she touched it,” Simon said. “You could always trust her in the big moments.”
All-Aegis first team
Angela Kim, Patterson Mill, junior, libero
Kim was a reliable presence on the court for the Huskies with 537 digs and 28 assists.
Annalise Lewis, Bel Air, junior, middle blocker
Lewis posted 142 kills with a .400 hitting efficiency.
Maddie Duffalo, C. Milton Wright, senior, opposite hitter
Duffalo, one of the area’s top talents despite playing with a hearing aid, posted 172 kills and 135 digs.
Sophie Lopano, Patterson Mill, senior, outside hitter
Lopano’s 197 kills led the Huskies to a state semifinal appearance.
Ana Mioduski, C. Milton Wright, senior, outside hitter
The Mustangs’ captain logged 213 kills and 63 aces in a dominant season.
Sloane Mister, Fallston, sophomore, outside hitter
Mister led the Cougars to a regional final appearance.
Jenna Ritz, C. Milton Wright, senior, setter
Ritz’s 504 assists were one of the highest marks in all of Maryland this season.
Zoe Valan, Patterson Mill, senior, setter
Valan finished her career with nearly 2,000 assists and added 24 kills, 64 aces and 106 digs this season.
Second team:
Allison Cox, John Carroll, junior, defensive specialist
Emma Duvall, Bel Air, junior, setter
Winter Evans, Harford Tech, senior, middle blocker
Olivia Kobb, C. Milton Wright, senior, outside hitter
Jaliyah Lane, Aberdeen, senior, setter
Sofia Ortiz, Edgewood, senior, setter
Mary Pfaff, Fallston, junior, middle blocker
Brooke Taylor, Perryville, junior, outside hitter
Have a news tip? Contact Taylor Lyons at tlyons@baltsun.com, 410-332-6200 and x.com/TaylorJLyons.
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