Basketball may be a calling for Pocatello’s Lusk, but her volleyball skills are a sight to behold

Senior outside hitter Abby Lusk scores a kill during the Pocatello Thunder’s victory over the Burley Bobcats Tuesday night. | Courtesy photo POCATELLO — Get to a Pocatello volleyball game in time to watch warmups, and you’ll see Abby Lusk rising high above the net to launch absolute rockets to the floor. It may be difficult, but avert your gaze from the 6-foot-2 senior to her opponents at the other end of the court, and you’ll see them snickering and turning away from Lusk to joke with each other. And when the game starts, those same girls, oftentimes, don’t seem all that confident in digging those same missiles from the Thunder’s All-State outside hitter. “She’ll hit it, and it’s literally to the player, but it has so much power that they flinch and it goes off of them, just because of the power and domination that she has,” Pocatello head volleyball coach Paige Leatham said after her team’s two-win Tuesday. The powerful and demonstrative warmups and Lusk’s nonchalant demeanor after scoring a thunderous kill are all part of a carefully crafted persona. As she admitted to EastIdahoSports.com Tuesday, she is out to intimidate. “One-hundred percent. One-hundred percent. … It’s 100% intimidation,” she said about her warm-up routine. Lusk is one of just two starters who return from a Pocatello team that went 1-2 at states last year. And while this team does not come with the same name recognition as last year’s squad, both Lusk and Leatham believe this team has all the requisite tools to earn Poky’s first volleyball banner since 1990. The Thunder started their season, like several other local teams, last weekend at the Peg Peterson Tournament — hosted by Highland High School. Lusk helped guide the young team to a 5-2 tournament finish, before driving them to wins over the Burley Bobcats and the reigning 5A state champion Twin Falls Bruins Tuesday night at The Pit inside Pocatello High School. RELATED | Pocatello bests Burley, reigning champ Twin Falls in home doubleheader Between the two matches, Lusk recorded 35 kills, five blocks and one serving ace, with 19 of those kills coming in a 3-2 scorcher over the Bruins. Things were a little tight in that first match, against a title contender, but they freed up a bit when Pocatello beat Burley 3-0. Lusk said that she and her teammates were able to loosen up and play for the fun of the game in the second match. And that, she said, is the key for a squad that will really on youth, including a pair of sophomore middle blockers. “It feels really good, to just get up there and swing, just have fun,” Lusk said about the freeness her team played with against the Bobcats. The leadership Lusk shows when she does things like encouraging her teammates to have some fun — even after pounding a spike off the face of a Burley player — is something Leatham is excited about seeing this year. Leatham has been coaching Lusk since she was in eighth grade. “I’ve gotten to see her from when she began and wasn’t really connecting, until now. She’s just a powerhouse athlete,” the coach said. Seeing the athleticism, personality and leadership qualities collide this season is something Leatham is happy to enjoy. While she can. “I love having her on the team,” Leatham said. “She’s just someone you can’t replicate.” Lusk has verbally committed to play basketball at Gonzaga University next year, and plans to officially sign her letter of intent in November. As she explained to EastIdahoSports.com following Tuesday’s matches, she was in conversations with schools regarding scholarship offers for both volleyball and basketball. But chose to be a Bulldog hooper, saying, “Basketball is my calling.” Still, she is one of the most overpowering volleyball players in the state. She has been for the past two years, earning All-State selections as a sophomore and junior, and will shine in Idaho’s gyms as such for a few more months.The post Basketball may be a calling for Pocatello’s Lusk, but her volleyball skills are a sight to behold appeared first on East Idaho News.
Source: eastidahonews.com