Keely Deadrick soon may find herself in an interesting recruiting situation.
The Esko senior has been receiving letters from Division II colleges, most of which, presumably, would offer partial scholarships.
She's also received calls closer to home to attend a nonscholarship Division III school. Actually, they are from home. Her mother, Lynne, is head coach of the Wisconsin-Superior volleyball team.
"I wouldn't mind playing for my mom, it's always going to be an option for me, but I'll probably go on some college visits and figure out if there's any scholarships out there for me," the younger Deadrick said.
A four-year starter at setter, Deadrick has yet to narrow down her choices. Her mom isn't pushing her.
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"As a coach and a parent, I think, in this situation you need to be a parent. We, as parents, want what's best for Keely first," Lynne Deadrick said. "As much as I'd love to see her play for me, she's ultimately going to have to make her decision. ... I think it will depend on where she feels she will be best utilized and where it's the best fit for her."
The 18-year-old has keyed Esko's run to a 25-1 season and the top seed in the Section 7AA playoffs. The Eskomos meet Duluth Marshall in a quarterfinal at 6 p.m. today at Hermantown.
"As a coach, you'd love to have a setter of Keely's size and stature," coach Deadrick said. "And her knowledge of the game has increased tremendously over the past few years as well. It probably does help that she comes from a coaching family and understands what it takes to be a leader on the court."
Esko coach Desi DeLeon appreciates her setter's ability.
"You can always count on her to get the ball where the hitters want it," DeLeon said. "They don't get too many bad sets from Keely, so they trust her. She's a very good server, and she can make a good play even out of a bad pass."
That likely comes from virtually growing up on a court. Deadrick, whose mom coached her and older sister Kayla at the club level, always played up at least two age levels. Though she didn't always play setter, that's where she excelled.
"(My mom) didn't tell me, 'This is what you're going to do,'" she said, "but I found that setting was my strength, and that's what I stuck with."
Now Deadrick & Co. are three victories from the school's first state tournament since the Eskomos' debut in 2004.
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"That's been my goal for so long, and this year we have a great chance of accomplishing it," she said. "Our team has good chemistry and works well together. We all want the same goal and we've been working toward it the last few years."
