Among Denny Falls’ volleyball to-do list over the next seven months:
-Try to lead his club team – the Frankfort-based Ultimate Volleyball Club- to a bid in the 18U division of the Junior Olympics this winter.
-Try to lead his high school team -Providence Catholic-to a state title in the spring.
-Try to lead Ultimate to the ultimate goal-a national championship in the Junior Olympics in Austin, Texas, in late June and early July.
Then, perhaps after a little down time after all of that, the Orland Park resident will part ways with his pals from the south suburbs and head into a new venture as a student athlete at Stanford University.
Not bad for a kid who said he hadn’t picked up a volleyball until he was at an 8th-grade tryout at Orland Parks Century Junior High School.
“All my friends were trying out, so I tried out for the team,” he said. “I didn’t really play much that year. I didn’t really know what I was doing. But it wasn’t as competitive.
But when I got to high school, they told me to try out for a club. I tried out for Ultimate my freshman year.”
And he dazzled the club coaches right away, right?
Well…
“I didn’t even know what position I was going to try out for,” he said. “I moved around at tryouts. They told me to run [a basic play] and I didn’t even know what it was.”
But Falls grew as a player. And he grew physically – to 6-foot-7.
The kid who didn’t know what he was doing four years ago is now being called “dynamic” by Stanford coach John Kosty.
Stanford showed most interest early and that has been Falls’ top choice all along.
“It’s a great fit for Denny because he’s a bright guy,” Ultimate 18 Gold coach Dave Deuser said. “I know the coach at Stanford pretty well. It’s been about 12 years since their last Final Four. They are in an incredible conference. Every single match for them is against a team in the top 10. UCLA, Pepperdine, BYU, Hawaii. It’s brutal. He will see the highest level of play on a nightly basis there. It’s really exciting for him.”
Falls played basketball earlier in his high school career, but volleyball won out as his top sport.
“It’s more of a mental game – you have to prepare yourself as much mentally as you do physically,” he said. “For all the hours you spend lifting or jump training, you have to be focused, too. I like when you have to perform under pressure.”
In 2008, when he a role player on the Providence varsity, the Celtics took fourth place in the state.
It was a completely new experience for me,” he said. “Looking back at it now, I didn’t appreciate how exciting and cool it was to be there.”
But he can return.
After the Celtics went through a few growing pains in 2009, they return a wealth of experience next spring and have hopes of another Final Four appearance.
“We have five seniors on the team who are probably going to be starting,” he said. “Then we have a junior and a sophomore who could be starters. I think we’re going to have a good year. Every team’s goal is a state championship. For sure, we are working for it this season.
“I have a completely different role. Before, I was filling an empty spot on the team. I tried to contribute where I could. Now I have a lot of pressure to perform and stand out. I’m expected to do more. I need to set an example for the rest of the team. I need to show them what’s necessary to do.”
Its just another item on his to-do list.
By Jeff Vorva
Triblocal.com reporter
