Penn's volleyball team is off to an 11-2 start this season. You don't do that well without strong leadership.
Senior Becca Lira brings that and more to her squad.
“Two-time state championship, you can’t really beat that,” said Lira.
Lira has been a starter each of those years. And now, as Penn tries for a three-peat, she steps into an even bigger role as a team captain.
“Our captains last year and everything, and the year before that, we had some strong leaders,” said Lira. “And it’s a big job to fill their shoes, and I’m trying my best to do that.”
She’s doing it well.
“The last two years, she’s been on two teams that haven’t lost more than one game each season,” said Penn volleyball coach Sarah Hendricks. “So, it’s good to have a captain that doesn’t like to lose and doesn’t know the feeling, really, of losing. That’s hard to come by, that kind of leader at the top that’s had the experience she’s had, because she was, I believe, pulled up on varsity as a freshman. So, she’s groomed to take over a leadership role.”
What’s different about a leadership role at Penn is that it isn’t just any team. The Kingsmen are ranked in the top 20 in the entire country.
“It feels really good to know that my team puts that much faith in me,” said Lira.
“She’s extremely athletic,” Hendricks said. “I can tell her to go to the outside, we’re going to throw up a ball and you’re going to hit it, and because she’s so athletic, she’d probably do a good job at it.”
Her multi-faceted skill set continues off the court where she’s earned a 3.88 GPA as well as a college scholarship to the University of Indianapolis. Of course, she’s got another memory to make first.
“It’d be great to end my high school career on another state championship.”
