Denise Wilbur

By Aaron Coe

Herald Writer

GRANITE FALLS — For Granite Falls volleyball player Denise Wilbur, the view to a kill is from a slightly lower vantage point than your typical middle hitter.

Despite being just shy of 5 feet, 8 inches tall, Wilbur pounded 374 kills while leading the Tigers to a seventh-place finish at the Class 2A state tournament.

She regularly embarrassed rival middle hitters — a position often filled by girls 6 feet or even taller — and established herself as the area’s most dominant player. That’s why Wilbur has been named The Herald’s All-Area Player of the Year for girls volleyball.

For Wilbur, looking up at the competition and then beating them is a good feeling.

"It gives you a lot of confidence and momentum," said Wilbur, who lettered all four years in volleyball. "You hit it one time and you know you can do it every time."

Though it has been rare for athletes from 2A schools to win Player of the Year honors over the years, the standout play displayed by Wilbur at every match moved her ahead of a strong group of 3A and 4A players.

Wilbur helped the Tigers finish in a tie for second place (6-2) in a North Cascades Conference that is generally owned by the Whatcom County schools. Area schools have rarely made it out of pool play in the state tournament, but Granite Falls went 2-1 to emerge from its pool. The Tigers lost to Woodland and North Cascades rival Lynden Christian in match play, then beat Grandview to finish seventh.

Some players are spectacular one evening, then struggle the next against a quality opponent. Wilbur was solid in virtually every game she played.

Any time a player records 15 kills in one match, it is considered a dominant night. Wilbur averaged 15.6 kills in Granite Falls’ 24 matches during her senior season.

"Most people have their off nights, but this year Denise rarely ever had one," said Tigers outside hitter Megan Wright. "If she wasn’t hitting well, she would tip it or find a way. She was very consistent."

It wasn’t always a case of leaping and smashing the ball over the net. Wilbur got many of her kills by using her court sense to tap the ball around a blocker and toward a vacant space on the floor.

"She makes very few hitting errors," Granite Falls coach Kathy Brumley said. "She won’t hit it out of bounds or into the net. She just puts the ball down. She’s a dominant player. We wanted to get the ball to Denise."

There was much more to Wilbur’s game than the spiking of innocent volleyballs. Wilbur’s service percentage was 90 percent, and Brumley says Wilbur was an outstanding defensive player. But, it was her ability to put the ball away that made her this year’s best.

Wilbur said the reason she can do that is because she had to wait for a ride. During her freshman year, setter Ashley Quinn and Wilbur had a half hour to kill (literally) while waiting for Wilbur’s mother to leave work and pick them up after practice.

Rather than sit around, the girls made use of the time. The duo, Wilbur said, hit "bucket after bucket" of balls after practice was over to refine their skills.

Wilbur credits much of her success to Quinn, whose job it was to set the ball in the place where Wilbur could finish it off. They played together for six years and were a spectacular 1-2 punch as seniors.

"I couldn’t have done it without Ashley," said Wilbur, who is a starter on the Granite Falls basketball team. "She’s an awesome setter. It’s been a lot of fun."

Though her small stature may keep her from playing at a four-year college right away, several area community colleges are interested in Wilbur, who is currently attending Everett Community College in the Running Start program.

Wilbur, who is a lifeguard and swimming instructor at the Everett YMCA, plans to earn a two-year degree and move on to a four-year school. She loves working with children and is considering a career as a child psychologist.

Maybe then she could help heal the emotional scars she inflicted on all those taller players she beat this season.