Setter, to many people, is considered the most important position on a volleyball team. Class 5A fans this year can judge just how vital setters are to success.

Cindy Bathelt of Pine Creek, Vanessa Gemignani of Doherty, Natalie Laband of Lewis-Palmer and Lauren Van Orden of Grandview are some of the best setters in 5A. They share one other distinction as well: All four teams had their best hitters from last season graduate.

Those accomplished setters can do impressive things with a volleyball, but do they have enough setting alchemy to transform modest replacement hitters into championship material?

Jim Miret is someone who realizes the importance of talent at the setting position. As head coach of the Front Range Volleyball Club, Miret is known for taking setters and training them to their full potential.

Miret used a scale illustrating how great setters can turn an awful pass into a hittable ball, a good pass into a great set and a great pass into a gold-plated opportunity to score a point.

But Miret said that's a limited test for a great setter, and that there are more demanding elements.

"Running the serve-receive play is one skill," he said. "The real difference between a good setter and a great one comes in transition. I want a setter to come flying out of that right back position, bust her butt to get to the net and take a quick pass, knowing where everyone is, and set the ball to the (ideal) spot."

Bathelt, a 5-foot-9 standout who is expected to sign soon with Florida, might be wondering where the ideal set will go this season.

Anne Fredell and Kelsi Klikus had some good moments for Pine Creek, but the Eagles suffered an unexpected blow to their offense when Rachael Cunningham, a freshman starter at right-side hitter, moved out of state.

"We're not going to be the dominating team we were last year," Bathelt said. "I think we have really good potential. All of our emotions and hearts are in it. I think we're going to be that scrub team that comes out of the blue."

Gemignani, a junior, is the youngster of this senior-dominated group. She did help take her team to state last year, just like the other three. The Spartans relied on now-graduated Emily Frick to provide hitting prowess.

Gemignani, who started as a freshman, believes Doherty has undiscovered capability.

"Indy Miller, she is hitting on the outside and has been playing great," Gemignani said. "She will pull our team together as far as the left side goes. In practice, we have been running a very quick offense with outsides and right sides. That will give us an advantage."

Laband, who has committed to North Texas, hasn't been overwhelmed with advantages. At 5-foot-7, she wasn't blessed with the family trait of exceptional height. Her oldest sister, Lindsey, was a 6-foot All- American setter at Georgia Tech. Middle sister Stephanie is a 5-11 outside hitter at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs.

"I'm the runt of the family," Natalie said. "But I think (my sisters) helped me more than anything. There are times I call them in the middle of the night."

Laband and Lewis-Palmer lost two Division I hitters but still have Minnesota- bound middle Ariana Filho.

Of the four top-flight players, Van Orden is the only one with a state title. The San Diego State recruit also is likely to play right- side hitter, a return to the starting spot she had as a freshman on the Grandview varsity.

The development of another setter, Theresa Read, has helped Grandview coach Patty Childress decide to run a 6-2 offense this year. But Van Orden's hitting made it easier to switch. One college coach said Van Orden delivers one of the best cut shots (a highly angled hit) she's ever seen.

In Van Orden's assessment of the Wolves, her leadership is apparent.

"The thing that gets me excited is that every one of these girls is committed to getting better. All the experience and skill might not be there, but the willingness to learn is going to make a difference."

NOTEBOOK

• Preseason national rankings have been posted by PrepVolleyball.com, and two Colorado teams made the list of 100. Defending Class 5A champion Eaglecrest is ranked No. 36, down quite a bit from the No. 4 spot the Raptors finished at last year.

Cherry Creek is No. 85. The Bruins finished last season ranked No. 340 in the country, which tells how seriously PrepVolleyball.com founder John Tawa regards rankings. The nation's top team is Assumption, a perennial power from Louisville, Ky.

• Several other local squads made the list of teams on the bubble, which means they might jump into the top 100 with a strong start. Those bubble teams are: Chaparral, Columbine, Grandview, Lewis-Palmer, Mountain View and Mountain Vista. All except Mountain View are 5A schools, but the Mountain Lions are ranked No. 1 in Class 4A by the Rocky Mountain News.

• Eaglecrest coach Tanya Bond said middle blocker Courtney Karst is going to play all the way around the court this season. The Raptors do need some help on defense after graduating All-Colorado libero Sheila Olaechea, but Bond said Karst is getting the shot at back row because she has demonstrated the necessary skills, not because of a digging and passing vacuum.

"She is a year better," Bond said. "She got to play all the way around in club and that helped her. She's actually going to be one of our strong defensive players."

Karst, a first-team all-state player the past two seasons, has committed to the University of Arizona. The fact that she will get a shot in the back row also means she is eligible to be picked to the Rocky's All-Colorado team, the top six players in the state, plus a libero. Only full-rotation players are considered for the All-Colorado team, except for the libero.

• Who is the most exciting player to watch in the state? It might be Cherry Creek's Gabi Dewberry, a high-altitude 5-foot-7 setter and right-side hitter. The dynamic Dewberry does have aching knees, though, which caused her to sit out the Bruins summer camp.

That absence started the rumor mill grinding, but Bruins coach Sally Moos said Dewberry is receiving physical therapy and didn't have surgery. Dewberry is taking it slow in fall practices, though.

• Plenty of programs are welcoming new coaches this season. Northglenn is led by Brooke Weed, who replaces longtime Norse coach Marc Vidulich, and Lisa McDanel has taken over the Poudre program. Keith Barnett takes over Rampart from Dawn Ray, who moved to Tennessee. At Chatfield, Stephanie Schick gets the reins from Tom Paszko, who resigned to concentrate on running the Juggernaut club program.

• The transfer scene seemed fairly inactive in 5A during the offseason. The biggest change occurred at Columbine, where middle blocker Ellen Miks, a 5-11 junior outside hitter, came over from Chatfield and will play for her mother, Rebels head coach Kathy Miks.

• College commitments keep taking place earlier, and the state has some high-profile players who already have made their choices. Smoky Hill's Amanda Arterburn, who plays outside hitter for the Buffaloes, is going to Northern Colorado, where she will be a defensive specialist. Columbine middle blocker Meagan O'Leary is headed to the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, and Heritage middle Ann Dylla is a future Georgia Bulldog.

Dylla, by the way, switched to volleyball from a promising career in basketball. She will join her brother Mark, a champion swimmer, in Athens, Ga.

The rule change with the biggest impact this season is that liberos will be allowed to serve. In the past, those players were restricted to "defensive" activities such as passing and digging (but not blocking), while "offensive" activities such as hitting (in front of the 10-foot line) and serving were prohibited.

pearcea@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5352

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