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North's Mostue masters SOC volleyball domain By GREG STILES Ali Mostue isn't among the tallest volleyball hitters in the Southern Oregon Conference. She's not even among the biggest on the North Medford volleyball team. Factor in her jump-reach, however, and Mostue skies with the best of them. Multiply her precise execution and you have a whale of a player. The senior's skills were highly visible this fall as she ignited the Black Tornado to the SOC championship and was named player of the year by the SOC coaches. The 5-foot-9 outside hitter is North Medford's fifth player of the year since 1986. "Her ability to jump and hit the ball obviously catches the non-volleyball player's eye," says North coach Ron Beick, noting Mostue can touch 9 feet, 7 inches on the vertical leap chart. "Coupled with that, on defense, is her ability to go for the ball. That's something you can spend years working on and she is someone who naturally knows defense and goes to the floor." Mostue was one of six Tornado players to gain first- or second-team honors, while Beick was named coach of the year. North's Kristin Ferris and Lacey Dalton were joined on the first team by runner-up Roseburg's Allison Courter and Jordan Crossfield, Ashland's Loriana Berman and Chelsea Morgan, Klamath Union's Kristina Matchett and Jamie Caster. North's Mandie Horn and Anna Happel were second-team selections. Mostue, Crossfield, Morgan and Matchett were repeat first-team selections. Mostue notched 107 kills (3.69 per game), 73 digs and 12 stuff blocks in SOC play this season. She surpassed North's single-season kill record with 305, bettering Tosha Barnicoat's 296 mark in 1995 Mostue also topped Barnicoat's career record of 626 kills with 657. Mostue also bettered Jenn Cox's career digs mark of 313 with 590. Not only did Mostue put her signature on the school recordbook, but she was a positive influence in many ways, whether it was reviewing film or her work ethic in practice. "She was always willing to learn and always asking questions," Beick says. "I think she was the kind of player that would go home and look at tapes, do some self-critiquing on what she needed to do and learn from it. "She wouldn't wait for you to tell her she needed to work on arm swing, serving or any skills. She was already deciding where she needed to get better." For her part, Mostue humbly considers herself just one of many capable players on the North roster. "It was completely a team thing," Mostue says. "I didn't feel there were any standouts." Actually, it might have been a team of standouts. Mostue remembers watching some of North's premier players as a youngster. "The example has been set for many years," Mostue says. "You come into the program with a special feeling." Mostue remembers going to summer camp when former Tornado stars Shannon Offutt and Kari Guyer coached in the early 1990s. As a freshman, Mostue watched Tosha Barnicoat raise the performance bar. "The older players kind of become your heroes and your mentors," Mostue says. "You watch them and follow them." Mostue bridged the gap between an athletic group of seniors led by Brooke Carrigan and Jenn Cox two years ago and the present class that finished third in the state tournament and nearly made it to the finals. "She came in with a class where nine freshmen made the junior varsity, that was kind of unprecedented," Beick says. "Then as a sophomore she saw considerable varsity playing time." In Mostue's eyes, it was more than a swim or sink experience with older kids. It was a primer for things to come. Although North failed to make the state tournament that year, the Tornado was ranked in the top 10 and has been embedded among the state's best ever since. "Compared to the years before, we weren't on that roller-coaster ride," Mostue says. "We bonded really well. I think it definitely had to do with experience and maturity." Although NCAA Division I Denver and Portland State have offered her scholarships, Mostue would prefer the more cerebral setting of Wellesley, an all-women's Division III school in Massachusetts. "I think volleyball is fun and that playing Division I would become a job," Mostue says. "I would like to be well-rounded and have other things going on. I'm afraid if I were too tied down to volleyball, I wouldn't have a feel for everyday life and there are so many experiences out there." SOC Volleyball All-stars First Team HITTERS Player, School Hgt. Yr. Ali Mostue, North Medford................................5-9 Sr. Kristin Ferris, North Medford............................5-7 Sr. Allison Courter, Roseburg................................6-1 Sr. Kristina Matchett, Klamath Union....................5-10 Jr. Jamie Caster, Crater........................................6-0 Sr. Loriana Berman, Ashland................................5-10 Sr. Lacey Dalton, North Medford...........................5-10 Sr. SETTERS/DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS Jordan Crossfield, Roseburg 5-7 Sr. Chelsea Morgan, Ashland 5-8 Jr. Second Team HITTERS Player, School Hgt. Yr. Megan Robbins, Crater ...................................5-8 Sr. Amy Williams, Ashland.....................................5-10 Sr. Ali Piff, North Medford......................................5-9 Sr. Jill Cohen, Grants Pass...................................5-8 Sr. Crystal Stephens, Roseburg...........................6-1 Sr. Danielle Dobey, Klamath Union.....................5-11 Sr. SETTERS/DEFENSIVE SPECIALISTS Mandie Horn, North Medford 5-7 Sr. Rhonda Lamson, Crater 5-9 Sr. Honorable Mention Megan Morley, Roseburg, 5-10 So.; Anna Happel, North Medford, 6-0 Sr.; Nicole Munoz, South Medford, 5-9 Sr.; Gabby Rathburn, Grants Pass, 5-8, Jr.; Rachel Fish, Ashland, 5-6, Sr.; Megan Barry, South Medford, 5-8, Soph.; Alaina Corliss, Eagle Point, 5-3, Jr. PLAYER OF THE YEAR -- Ali Mostue, North Medford COACH OF THE YEAR -- Ron Beick, North Medford Players of the Year: 1998 -- Ali Mostue, North Medford; 1997 -- Sarah Wolf, Roseburg; 1996 -- Joslynn Gallop, Roseburg; 1995 -- Tosha Barnicoat, North Medford; 1994 -- Tristen Voget, Ashland; 1993 -- Shannon Offutt, North Medford; 1992 -- Bonni Ruggles, Ashland; 1991 -- Angie LeRoy, North Medford; 1990 -- Emily Coleman, Ashland; 1989 -- Erica Reins, Ashland; 1988 -- Leslie Jackson, Ashland and Khris Looney, Crater; 1987 -- Casie Harker, North Medford; 1986 -- Julie Grossen, Roseburg Today's Sports Index Mail Tribune Copyright� The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford,