Waiting her turn wasn’t always easy for Roncalli volleyball player Elizabeth Origer.
A setter, Origer was fourth on the depth chart as a ninth-grader and third string as a sophomore before finally becoming part of coach Missy Marsh’s starting lineup last season.
Origer, whose family lives in Greenwood, passed 1,000 career assists and was honored for the accomplishment last month during the Rebels’ home win over Columbus North. She has 1,362 career assists entering Tuesday’s home match against Perry Meridian.
“It’s just timing,” said Marsh, who, like many of Origer’s teammates, refer to the senior as Eli. “She’s waited her turn and worked hard at whatever level she was at. As a junior, Eli was ready to excel and make it her team. She’s a pretty remarkable kid.”
Last season, Roncalli finished with a 30-7 record, making it to the title match of a Class 4A regional before losing in four sets to eventual state runner-up Avon. Origer completed the season with 17 matches of 30 or more assists. She twice exceeded 50, including a personal-best 56 in a five-set win over Brownsburg.
It’s doubtful she’ll post similar numbers this season. The emergence of Rebels freshman setter Faith Burch has changed the way the team uses Origer. Burch enters the lineup to set when Origer rotates to the back row, though the senior still has 65 percent of the team’s assists this season.
“I’ve totally adjusted,” Origer said. “Faith is a great teammate.”
Origer excels in the classroom with a 4.2 grade-point average. She is looking to possibly pursue something in the health sciences field once at college.
And though she might not be playing volleyball beyond high school, Origer is grateful of the lessons she learned playing for Roncalli, which had been a goal since elementary school.
“It was a very good base for me to build my volleyball confidence,” Origer said. “Being placed on varsity my junior year with no prior varsity experience, the coaching from my freshman and junior varsity seasons helped me adjust to the speed of the game.”
