TRUMAN – In his 20 years of coaching, Martin Luther/Granada-Huntley-East Chain/Truman Jaguars head volleyball coach Paul Steinhaus has had only two players reach 1,000 career digs. Senior libero Alexis Brummond is now a part of that group.

“I didn’t really know that was a thing, at first until Steinhaus told me and then I was like, ‘This is pretty cool,'” Brummond said.

For Brummond, reaching the milestone is especially a big accomplishment. Before her freshman year of high school, she didn’t want to play volleyball.

“At first it was hard for me. I did play volleyball when I was younger, but going to a higher level was scary at first,” she said. “But then after a few games my freshman year, I felt comfortable and got excited.”

By the end of her freshman year, Brummond became confident in her abilities as a libero and volleyball player, as a whole.

“Going from my freshman year to now, it’s like ‘wow.’ You did pretty good. You’re pretty impressive, Lex,” she laughed. “I feel confident now. I know how to pass the ball correctly and do it well.”

“It didn’t take long to upgrade her from seventh and eighth grade not-so-exciting, to get her involved with (the varsity team) because she’s a competitor,” Steinhaus added. “Being in a libero jersey, it helps us a ton because we can keep her out there for every rotation and it’s within her strengths.”

Brummond’s career milestone of 1,000 digs almost came on Oct. 6 when the Jaguars played Mankato Loyola at home in Truman, but Brummond fell two digs short. Senior setter Hannah Johanson could relate – earlier in the season, Johanson was one assist short of 1,000 at the end of a Jaguars’ home match. As a result, Johanson was able to assure Brummond that she would reach 1,000 digs soon.

“She (Johanson) was like, ‘Don’t worry about it. You’ll get it next game. It’s not a big deal to get it right away.’ She was pretty comforting since it happened to her and now it happened to me,” Brummond said.

On Oct. 8, the Jaguars played in the Blue Earth Area’s Invite, and Brummond notched her 1,000th dig in the Jaguars’ first match against Minnesota Valley Lutheran.

“It felt like a relief, like I accomplished something,” Brummond said. “That’s pretty cool to me.”

Like Johanson and the setter position in general – the libero – which Steinhaus refers to as “the second assist,” doesn’t always get as much notoriety as the hitters, but is certainly appreciated by teammates.

“There’s no way a hitter gets any kind of glory unless you get that pass. … I don’t think anybody overlooks what she brings to the table,” Steinhaus said. “She’s very appreciated.

“There’s a special gift set that comes with that (libero) jersey. It’s far more than the talent, it’s the intangibles that come with it: leadership and the ability to get your voice turned on and run the court.”

On and off the court, Brummond encourages her teammates and tries to keep them upbeat.

“On the court, I have to make sure my team doesn’t get down on themselves because it’s hard to get them back up,” Brummond said. “I try to say, ‘Let’s go, don’t worry about it.'”

Brummond is currently sitting at 1,187 career digs, with the Jaguars finishing the regular season with a 15-10-1 record and entering the playoffs as the No. 6 seed.

Although this is Brummond’s last year of playing high school volleyball, she is hoping to continue to play at the collegiate level. Her top choice is Minnesota State University in Mankato.