The RoundHouse | 8/22/2024 8:58:00 AM

By Paul Suellentrop
 
Brooklyn Leggett came to Wichita State as a right-side hitter, a position where Sophia Rohling took almost all the swings last season. With Rohling gone, playing time opened.
 
"We thought that Brooklyn was going to be our right-side," setter Izzi Strand said. "That was everyone's thought going into the season."
 
That thought changed early in two-a-day practices this month. Coach Chris Lamb's stats say Leggett, a redshirt junior from Draper, Utah, is WSU's most consistent scorer on the left.
 
The Shockers play host to Kansas State in a public scrimmage at 4 p.m. Saturday.
 
Lamb saw Leggett as a right-side during practices and exhibition matches in Brazil last spring. When practices started in August, she played both pin positions and that experimentation paid off.  She came prepared to grab opportunities on the left opened by the departure of Brylee Kelly, now an assistant coach at Liberty, and Barbara Koehler, who transferred to Florida Gulf Coast.

"From day one in the fall, I knew that I was a (returner) now and I need to really make a difference and start leading," Leggett said. "I needed to go full-speed and never let up if we want to be successful."
 
Leggett's practice performance told Lamb she needed to be competing on the left. She consistently records kill percentages of 38 percent or higher.
 
"Once you start getting to 38 percent kills on the left side, you're really thinning the herd of who can do it and who can't," he said. "That's a magic number in our league. Not everybody's got it."
 
Strand learned that Leggett does damage with high sets because of her leaping ability.
 
"We found a good set that works for her, a higher set, because she jumps to the moon," Strand said. "She's whipping out amazing numbers. Her confidence has gone up."
 
Practice improving her hand contact on the ball to boost her accuracy and power. She credits last season's work against players such as Kelly and Rohling with forcing her to improve.
 
"I was playing against really good athletes and it helped me build my skill level," she said. "Last year, I wasn't very good at spinning the ball, which Lambo worked on a lot with me. This year, it's been so much better. Props to him for getting me there. It's made a whole lot of difference."
 
That difference shows up daily in Shocker practices. The next step begins Saturday against outside competition.
 
Paul Suellentrop writes about Wichita State athletics for university Strategic Communications. Story suggestion? Contact him at paul.suellentrop@wichita.edu.