Iola High’s Becca Sprague, a two-time all-conference performer on the volleyball court, will take her talents to Leavenworth to play for the University of St. Mary.
Sprague signed her letter of intent to play for the Spires in a room filled with friends and family.
On hand for the occasion were her parents, Joel and Stacy, and Amy Beall, St. Mary head volleyball coach.
“I like the volleyball program,” Sprague said. “It felt like a good fit. I like their class sizes.”
But her biggest draw to the Leavenworth campus was the school’s philosophy regarding academics and athletics.
“They put education before sports,” she noted. “I want to have the education, but also the ability to play at a four-year school.”
Her goal is to join the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) while at St. Mary and study nursing. Afterward, she is eyeing a military academy.
Sprague drew praise from Beall as well as Amanda Holman, her coach at IHS.
“She has tons of strengths, from her personality to her work ethic, to her pure ability,” Beall said.
As an aside, Beall’s familiarity with the Sprague family extends beyond Becca’s college choice.
Stacy Sprague was Beall’s middle school and high school volleyball coach when she was a student at Lebo High School.
Nevertheless, Becca would have been a perfect fit at St. Mary, even without Beall previously knowing her parents, the St. Mary coach quickly added.
But it does make it more special.
“They’ll always be Mr. Sprague and Mrs. Sprague,” she chuckled.
Sprague will likely be counted on to play as an outside hitter, where she excelled for the Fillies as a three-year starter. “We’re expecting her to be on the court right away,” Beall said. “We’ll also be working on her setting to see how she develops. We don’t necessarily need that her freshman year.”
