Chyla Jukes was thrown into the varsity fire a year ago as a freshman starting at middle blocker for Mother McAuley.
A natural outside hitter, she thrived out of position and made an immediate impact.
The scary part for opponents?
She was a little nervous last year. Not anymore though.
Jukes finished with four kills and a block on Sept. 15 as host Mother McAuley defeated St. Francis 25-12, 25-15 in a GCAC Red matchup.
“Having a year under my belt makes it easier,” Jukes said. “Playing, it’s easier for me to come out of my shell. I was only a freshman last year, so I’m more confident in my play, my team, everything.”
Also starring for the Mighty Macs (16-2, 3-0 heading into this week) were juniors Keira McQuillan (nine kills) and Ava Calle (11 digs) and seniors Jayce Prohaska (five kills, seven digs, two blocks), Peyton Heatherly (10 assists), Nora Dunn (10 assists) and Natalie DeMatteo (eight digs).
Jukes finished with 149 kills, third on the team, and a team-leading 63 blocks as a freshman.
Heatherly is a four-year starter at setter. She said she’s definitely seen a new and improved Jukes leading the way through the first month of the season.
“Everyone has grown with experience from last year,” Heatherly said. “Chyla channeled that, a ‘not letting anything affect me’ mentality. She’s been awesome. All her skills have definitely improved. She’s so confident in her skills. That confidence is such a big thing that she knows she can do that.”
Jukes started playing volleyball in second grade.
She also played basketball and was a dancer, focusing on contemporary and hip-hop dance, but ultimately stuck with volleyball.
She showed off that all-around athleticism late in the first set with an impressive spinning kill.
Off a dig behind her, Jukes was caught in between going up for the ball and still managed to swing around and fire the ball over for a kill.
Fundamental? Nope. Impressive? You bet.
“I haven’t danced in awhile, but the looseness of it, playing free, that helps,” Jukes said. “Being a dancer has definitely helped that. Sometimes I’ll go back and watch and think ‘What am I doing?!’ but we got the point!”
Jukes suffered a serious thumb injury over the offseason, undergoing surgery for a torn UCL in her right hand.
She missed two months this summer, but she’s healthy and raring to go for the rest of her sophomore season.
“I’m feeling good,” Jukes said. “I was so excited to come back for my sophomore year. You just don’t want to take anything for granted. High school really does go by fast. It sounds cliche, but it’s true, so have fun and enjoy every moment.”
Coach Jen DeJarld said she’s been impressed with her team’s depth and an ever-evolving lineup.
“We’re playing with a lot of different lineups,” DeJarld said. “When you have depth, we’re trying to find the right fit with everybody. It makes it trickier. It wasn’t cut and dry who it was going to be. We’ve gotten better with each match. We’re cleaning up unforced errors.”