It's An Honor

Erin wandered onto the volleyball court at the age of three as Sarah began competing, played on her first team with fifth graders at Lions Juniors-1st Alliance Volleyball Club when she was in third grade #8 below and never looked back.


After playing at the beginning levels for a couple of years, the coaches assessed her skills and understanding of the game, and as a result of those evaluations determined her future as a setter, and she began her training for that position at the age of eleven.

Erin immediately fell in love with that role, as it afforded her the ability to be involved in every play on the court. She was incredibly competitive from the start, and this position allowed her to play a key role in determining the success of each play. For those of you who aren't as familiar with volleyball, the setter is much like the quarterback on a football team; the position that holds a key role in directing the offense of the team.


She continued as the team setter each year until the age of fifteen when she was diagnosed with cancer. Due to the hip/partial femur replacement surgery (click for history) as part of her treatment protocol, she was no longer able to play competitively, at which point in order to stay involved with the sport that was her passion, she began coaching.

Throughout the years, Erin trained and competed with many players. Among her FAMILY (more volleyball info) of talented athletes was Jill, another setter, with whom she played in Ft Lauderdale in July of 2006 at the High Performance Competition where this photo was taken.

Yesterday evening, Dave and I attended the team party and awards night for the 1st Alliance Club, where we were invited to present the

FIRST ANNUAL ERIN POTTS SETTERS AWARD

to this year's deserving recipient, the same ~

JILL PALUCH!

Our family is humbled by this incredible memorial honor that will be given each year to a deserving senior setter, and grateful to the Volleyball Club, to its owner Sue Keck & all of the coaches, and especially to Melissa pictured above (great with her first child now!) who was Erin's setting coach and also her team's 14's coach when they medaled in Salt Lake City in 2005.


Jill currently sets for the 18 Silver team and has earned many fine accolades through the years while setting for her Lions/1st Alliance teams and also for her Nazareth Academy High School team. She will continue her career next year at the University of Akron in Ohio, where she has earned her college scholarship.

How Awesome! CONGRATULATIONS JILL!
We wish you the best as you jump to the next level of your successful volleyball career.

Melissa, always a great motivator, gave Erin a copy of the below list of expectations, as she began to assume the responsibilities of her position. To this day, the words hang on her bedroom wall.

The Role of the Setter

Without a doubt, a team that is led by its setter will have the best chance of reaching its full potential as a TEAM. Your position as setter carries with it more responsibilities than any other position on the court, period.
Among them are the following:

~ Take responsibility and assume accountability for the success of your hitters.
~ Don’t demand a perfect pass in order to deliver a hittable set.
~ Do, however, stress the importance of an “in-system” pass. (“in-system” – within an area that allows you to set various hitters effectively)
~ Voice your desire to set various positions to keep your opponent off balance.
~ Know your hitters' strengths and highlight them.
~ Know your hitters' weaknesses and keep from setting a weakness when the game situation calls for high percentage opportunities.
~ Stay late or arrive early to work on your setting skills.
~ Offer to stay late or arrive early to work with hitters on strengthening the more challenging parts of their game.
~ Be clear on the goals and expectations of your coach, of you and the team.
~ Be vocal, the game commands communication.
~ Embrace your leadership role.

I'm a firm believer that many of the qualities learned as a team player in a sport translate in a broader aspect to help direct a person's life ~ the development of self-expectations, the ability to respect and relate to others in the many avenues of life, the stamina to push harder when things become challenging, the sustained focus on personally determined goals and the confidence to voice a strong-held opinion.

Erin took the above list of responsibilities very seriously in her role as setter, and many of those same basic attributes ultimately translated to and enabled her to LIVE with cancer for three years, where she chose to assume the leadership role.

In essence, just like the setter on a court must do ~ she took whatever was given to her - the on-the-mark passes & digs, and those that had her scrambling all over the court ~ and, fueled with well-developed tenacity, always did the best she could.