Setting the tone: Mia Beckler returns to pilot Brunswick volleyball's offense

When opportunity knocked as a freshman, Mia Beckler answered the door and made herself right at home with the Brunswick volleyball team. No one would have guessed that she wouldn't appear in another varsity match for 22 months. Now a senior, Beckler is making up for lost time and ready to take the Blue Devils' explosive offense to the next level. "I'm very excited about this season because I think I can be a leader — both as a senior and as a setter — for our team," the tri-captain said. "It's awesome to be part of this group because we have so many good hitters and I'm going to do my best to make sure we take advantage of all of them. "With everything that's going on right now, I've learned to make the most of every chance I get to step on the court because you never know if it will be the last time you'll be able to play volleyball." Beckler ranked second in Medina County with 534 assists as a junior in what was a rare rebuilding year for the program. She earned All-Gazette honorable mention status and established herself as one of the better players in the Greater Cleveland Conference. The 5-foot-7 floor general peaked in the postseason with a phenomenal 43 assists, nine kills, 12 digs and zero errors in a four-set victory over North Royalton in the Brunswick Division I Sectional semifinals. Beckler could put up similar flashy numbers on a nightly basis this fall with leading hitters Emily Richardson, Madison Lindsey and Morgan Beckler joined by touted freshmen Sara Krizsa and Julia Jozefov. "Mia really turned it around last year after lapsing as a sophomore," Brunswick coach Mande Luttner said. "It wasn't anything we did, it was all her regaining her desire to play. She came up big for us in a number of key matches and grew alongside her hitters, which can only help the team this season. "The key for Mia is getting her to have fun on the court. The more she smiles, the better she plays, and I know she really enjoys playing with these girls." Beckler was thrust into the varsity lineup midway through her freshman season when a series of injuries befell the Blue Devils' experienced setters. She joked that she "didn't have time to get nervous" before lining up with future NCAA D-I talents Rachael Crucis and Kirsten Badowski but never performed like a timid rookie. Brunswick became the only team in county history to have five players finish among the top 13 in assists in 2017, with Beckler placing ninth with an average of 3.30 per set. When the older setters in the program returned to good health the next fall, she slid back down the depth chart through little fault of her own. "Honestly, I got discouraged because there were so many setters in front of me when I was a sophomore," she said. "It was rough because I knew things were going to be very different and I wouldn't have that chance again." As a result, Luttner and Beckler agree that she fell out of love with volleyball, which kept her on the junior varsity squad for the entire year. On the eve of her junior season, Beckler's passion for the sport returned and kicked her all-around skills into overdrive. In addition to leading the team in assists and posting 179 digs and 27 blocks, she ranked fourth in the county with 290 service attempts and was ninth with a .948 serve percentage. "Mia worked really hard on becoming a very good setter, which was pretty awesome because it gave us our first chance to play together," said Morgan Beckler, a junior outside hitter. "We're really close as sisters, so we have a lot of fun on the court." Beckler's pure athleticism, coupled with her past experience as a hitter, gives Brunswick even more options offensively. Junior Emma Williams has logged extensive time setting during the preseason, affording Luttner the ability to swing Beckler to the outside or have her block in the middle. All the ingredients are there for the Blue Devils to have a bounce-back season and for Beckler to be the catalyst to make it happen. "Once you get the opportunity to play more, you gain more confidence," she said. "All of us had that opportunity last year and we're ready to build on it now." Contact Brian Dulik at brisports@hotmail.com. Follow him @BrianDulik on Twitter.