MVP PROFILE
The number says it all: 569. That was the amount of kills Nature Coast junior Courtney Liddle posted this season.
Some other numbers stand out, as well, such as 24-5, the Lady Sharks’ record, or 4A-II, as in the classification and region in which they reached the final for the first time in program history.
In what resulted in one of the most successful years Hernando County volleyball has seen, the team that won the most matches and went the deepest in the playoffs also featured the biggest standout.
The 5-foot-11 Liddle, an outside hitter and now three-time All-County selection, was an easy pick by the Hernando Today staff and county coaches as Player of the Year.
“The kid earned my respect,” Springstead Head Coach Darcy Hinton said. “She put that team on her back and carried them all that way.”
“She’s such a leader on the court and can beat you a number of different ways,” Central Head Coach Anthony DiSciascio said. “She’s all-around the best player in the county, and probably one of the top five in Florida, too.”
Accolade finally comes
For the past two seasons, Liddle has hardly sold herself short. As a freshman in 2008, she posted 235 kills, 111 aces and 424 digs. She followed with 353 kills, 127 aces and 293 digs in 2009.
However, teammate Alex Livengood garnered the Player of the Year selection the past three years, teaming with Liddle the last two to form a dominant hitting combination. But Livengood graduated last spring.
“That’s so exciting,” Liddle said of being named POY. “I’ve been wanting this since my freshman year and I finally got it. It’s like a dream come true.
“… I think this year went great. Everyone expected us to be an underdog and didn’t expect us to go as far as we did. We proved to everyone that we’re still a force to be reckoned with.”
Without Livengood, the onus fell largely on Liddle to maintain the level of excellence the Lady Sharks had established in winning two district titles the three previous seasons and reaching regionals six straight years.
Considering that Nature Coast repeated as Class 4A, District 8 champs and advanced beyond where it ever had in regional play, she was obviously up to the task.
“I had a lot more pressure on me,” Liddle said. “I was hitting out of the back row a lot more. But my team helps me a lot. It’s not just me. I know I can count on them.”
While Liddle’s number of kills certainly catches the eye, the 16-year-old from Spring Hill did have 109 aces, a 91.5 serving percentage, 338 digs, 205 serves received and 30 blocks.
She did this while playing for a new head coach in Emily Gore. Last season Gore coached against Liddle at Central, giving her a unique perspective of her top player from both sides of the net.
“She’s the type of player that makes so many great plays, when she does make little mistakes you’re shocked,” Gore said. “She had over 1,000 (1,102) attack attempts. If you look at her kills per game, 6.1, that’s a number that really jumps out at you.
“Something that sets her apart from most volleyball players in the county is how hard she works. I’ve probably never coached a kid that determined. It’s just incredible how driven she is to be great.”
Offseason work
Liddle’s dedication on the volleyball court makes perfect sense considering her offseason regimen. She joked that the two weeks following the end of the prep season is her only real vacation.
She’ll spend the next few months with her club team out of Clearwater, the Pinellas Heat. Then she’ll shift to beach volleyball. Last summer she participated in the USA Volleyball Beach High Performance program.
“I love doing it. It’s definitely a passion,” said Liddle, noting that she has a net set up at her house and often hits balls with her father, Doug. “My whole family is involved, so I have a lot of support.”
At some point next year, she’ll likely parlay that passion into a college scholarship. She’s early in the decision-making process at the moment.
Still, she has one more season to try and lead the Lady Sharks as far as she possibly can. They have moved on one extra round each year of her prep career, leaving the state finals at The Lakeland Center as the next step.
“I definitely want to go to Lakeland,” Liddle said. “We worked so hard this year and we just missed it. Since we’ll mostly have the same team coming back next year, we’ll be stronger. So we’re looking to go to states and I think that’s definitely possible.”
BY THE NUMBERS: COURTNEY LIDDLE
Kills: 569
Aces: 109
Serving %: 91.5
Blocks: 30
Digs: 338
Serves Received: 205
