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North Putnam's Nauert leads All-County team
ROACHDALE -- Putnam County volleyball players have a better idea than most when it comes to playing against North Putnam's Taylor Nauert.
Nauert led the county in both aces and blocks and her kills as well has her hitting percentage are both tops in the Western Indiana Conference. Nauert tenacity on the floor as well as her leadership abilities have earned the senior 2015 Banner Graphic Player of the Year honors.
The Player of the Year is selected as the player making the most valuable contribution to his team's image and success and having the highest character both on and off the court.
Nauert was a fierce attacker and a threat at both the offensive and defensive end. The 6-foot-2 middle hitter needed only a decent assist and she could hammer down onto her opponents.
Nauert is a two-time Indiana Elite all-star and is also recognized as the ICGSA 1A/2A South senior All-Star, so even when she is not playing for the Cougars she is making waves. The senior also ran with the Crossroads of America club volleyball team and earned fifth in the nation.
However Nauert isn't being honored strictly for her club sport, she led the WIC in kills with 545, which was third in 2A and sixth in the state. It was also a North Putnam High School record. Her hitting percentage of .95 was 10th in the state and fifth in 2A.
She led Putnam County athletes with 76 aces and with 132 blocks.
It isn't just about stats when it comes to Nauert. After falling to Greencastle in the Putnam County Tournament, the Cougars took back the paddle later in the season and then went on to defeat Monrovia and Cloverdale to earn the team's frist sectional title since 1989.
"It was crazy, but very fun, Nauert said. "Winning in nine straight sets, it was nice to know that we had a clean sweep of our sectional."
Nauert is a team-oriented athlete as she is quick to praise her teammates and credits her fellow Cougars for her successes on the floor.
"My teammates they definitely bring me up," Nauert said. "They will bring me up are always supporting me. They always have my back even when I'm not doing so well."
Nauert has played under Cougar coach Brandy Dickson for five years including her eigth-grade year and the senior said she has love every minute of it.
"She's my coach but she's like my best friend, too," Nauert said. "I always go to her if something is wrong. She's always my back-up if I need help on anything. My class especially we were all so close to her that we could just go up and talk to her about anything. I think we all trust her and listen to her. It helped in our bonds with each other.
Nauert said her ankle feels fine after the mild sprain she suffered in the Putnam County Basketball Tournament and she has started her club volleyball season this week. She said a few colleges are looking at her to play next season and many Cougar fans will hope she enjoys her time on a college court as much as she did in high school.
"The thing I liked most about playing with my team is we were always hard working," Nauert said. "We were determined. Even if the outcome didn't turn out in the way we wanted we would still try to win no matter what the scenario was."
Joiner her Cougar teammate on the All-County squad is senior Reagan Bowling who also was named All-WIC.
Bowling was tops in the county when it came to digging the ball with 411. The Libero was named an ICGSA Academic All-State Honorable Mention for volleyball 2015. Her 36 aces were ninth in Putnam County.
North Putnam was able to stuff the ballot box this season with candidates for the All-County team and Lyndi Parent is also recognized as an All-County member. The junior led the county and was second in the WIC with 686 set assists. Indeed it was the set assisting of Parent that allowed Nauert to terrorize opposing defenses all season. Parent was third in the County with 52 aces.
Earning the final spot for the sectional champions is Haley Abdon. The junior was a terrific asset for the Cougars at outside hitter earning a spot on the Indiana Elite All-Star team of 2015. She was fourth in the county with 50 aces, sixth in the county with 111 kills and seventh in the county with 228 digs.
Lydia Trout was the only Tiger Cub elected to the All-Conference team and she earned her spot with her excellent assisting. The junior setter earned 612 assists and 230 digs. She also put up 30 aces and 23 kills for Greencastle.
Reaping the benefits of many of those set assists was Trout's teammate Allison White who racked up 255 kills for the Tiger Cubs. The senior outside hitter was the main weapon for GHS which used the combination to earn the Putnam County title.
Of course no offense is complete without a good defense and on the GHS defensive end it was sophomore Maggie Meyer, whose 378 digs were second in the county. Meyer makes the GHS team complete as the Tiger Cubs needed some key digs to earn the win in the county tourney.
On the Cloverdale side it was Kimmy Winders as the lone Clover on the All-WIC team. The senior was a leader on the Clover team and recorded 298 receptions and 230 digs. She was 19th in the WIC with 39 aces and she also netted 70 kills to help her earn 117 points on the season.
Cloverdale will also have senior Savannah Jones on the All-County due to her versatile skills. The setter was 10th in the WIC with 294 set assists and she picked up 63 aces placing her eighth in the conference. She was also good defensively with 154 digs, making Jones a valuable asset to have on the Clover floor.
Lastly from the Cloverdale court will be Lindsey Davis who was eighth in the WIC with her .193 hitting percentage and whose 202 kills were 12th in the WIC.
At South Putnam it was Katie Hewitt as to only Eagle to make to All-Conference team. The senior did much more on the court than her stat line of 65 kills, 10 aces and 71 digs will show. Hewitt was the glue that held the team together during a rough season for South Putnam.