Kiley Lingenfelter
MUNCIE – As players advance through the ranks of Munciana, the only trend seems to be that there are no trends. Players come and go, and teammates are constantly changing. The higher the level, the more roster turnover as talented players from far-away cities flock to the program.
That’s why Kiley Lingenfelter and Quincy Gary are the rarest of breeds. Teammates — and more importantly, friends — since they were 8 years old when they began playing for Steve Shondell, they are nearing the end of their run together.
The duo plays for Munciana’s top squad, Samurai, which is an 18-under team. Both are graduating high school within the next week — Lingenfelter from New Castle and Gary from Pendleton Heights. While their paths don’t often cross during the high school season, the pair has become inseparable in club season.
The 5-foot-6 Lingenfelter is the team’s setter, a position she has held since she was 13. The 5-foot-8 Gary used to play on the outside, but now she primarily plays in the back row. Still, Lingenfelter loves to give her friend opportunities to swing.
“We’ve been playing together for so long, I could set her in a dark closet,” Lingenfelter said.
Given all of the time club teammates spend together — through the winter and spring, and then into the summer at tournaments, not to mention daily workouts at the team’s facility — how could she not after all these years?
“I really can’t explain it, we just have a connection,” Lingenfelter said. “We’re drawn to each other.”
Lingenfelter’s dad, Mike, coaches Samurai and has witnessed the relationship evolve up close.
“We gauge everything on wins and losses, championships and medals, but relationships are important. It’s a byproduct of this.
“It’s two kids who would have never met, but they’re going to be in each other’s weddings.”
Samurai won the 18-open division at the Asics Munciana Classic on Sunday morning on the campus of Ball State. In the championship match, Lingenfelter served the first 11 points of the match.
The pair only has a limited amount of time together as teammates as the club season finishes with the AAU National Championship in Orlando, Florida from June 16-19.
Gary has to report to the University of Alabama by the end of June to start her collegiate playing career, and Lingenfelter will embark on her own career at Fairfield University.
They’ll be about 1,100 miles apart, but they already have it figured out. New Year’s will be in New York, which isn’t too far south of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference school. Spring break will be a visit to down south to see Gary.
“It’ll be sad,” Gary said of the distance, “but we’ll still talk and then practice together in the summer.”
While coach Lingenfelter’s job is to win games, it’s been fulfilling for him to see something more come out of the club volleyball experience.
“They feed off each other; it’s the perfect relationship,” he said. “… They’re the epitome of the perfect relationship because they protect one another. I’ve watched them play all these years together, so it’s going to be tough to watch them go.
“So much of this job is judged by wins and championships, but I’ll call that (friendship) a title. That’s a championship without a medal. My daughter got out of here with something more than she came in with.”
Contact sports features writer Ryan O’Gara at (765) 213-5829. Follow him on Twitter @RyanOGaraTSP.