This week's award winner is an underclass spiking sophomore for nationally-ranked squad.

By Harold Abend, Special to CalHiSports.com 

Note: Remember, we are looking for those student-athletes who had a standout performance in their sport from the previous week, but we also are looking for a balance between athletic achievement, academic work in the classroom, community service or overcoming adversity. Send nominations to mark@studentsports.com.

When she was a 6-foot-1 14-year-old and had just graduated from middle school, and after being named to the USA Select Gold Team, Krista Vansant was already being compared to former Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach) star, and current Stanford All-American sophomore, Alex Klineman.

Now, she's a 15-year-old high school sophomore at Redlands East Valley, 6-foot-2 and still growing, and one of the nation's top volleyball recruiting prospects.

	Krista Vansant

"She may still grow another inch or two according to the doctors, her mother and coach, Tricia Vansant, told CalHisports.com about her sprouting young daughter.

"Part of the reason for Krista's success is she's been around the sport since she was a baby, says Tricia, a fourth-grade teacher in Redlands, who's in her eighth year coaching the Wildcat girls' volleyball team.

"She's always paid attention and absorbs so much, and she truly loves the game, said the 6-2 Tricia, a basketball and volleyball player in high school at La Mirada, and a basketball player in college at Loyola Marymount.

"Krista is really smart on the court and picks up opponent's weaknesses quickly, continued Tricia, who last year led Redlands East Valley to the CIF Southern Section Div. IIA title before a first-round loss to Carlsbad in the Southern California Regionals.

This year, the Wildcats are off to a 26-1 start thanks to the excellent play of Krista and teammates, including Victoria Brummett, a 6-4 senior middle hitter, Casey Tidwell, a 6-2 senior middle blocker, and 5-11 junior setter Johnna Fouch.

The Wildcats certainly are not lacking in height.

They're not lacking in stats, either, with Krista leading the overall charge.

First off as a team, currently rank No. 19 in the ESPN RISE FAB 50 and No. 6 in the state, and since the only loss is to No. 14 national and California No. 4 Long Beach Wilson, the girls have won 10 straight matches.

During that period, and coming into an Oct. 23 Citrus Belt League match against Rialto, their game record is 21-0.

Last weekend, the team won its own Wildcat Classic tournament, with Krista earning a place on the all-tournament team in a tourney where no MVP is named.

Krista's totals for the seven matches of the tournament (some of which were only one game and none were more than two) were 43 kills on 64 attempts for a 67 percent kill ratio; a couple of aces on a limited number of serves; four blocks; 14 digs; and only one error in 33 serves received.

For the season, her excellent overall numbers include a team-high 240 kills with a match-high of 19 in a 3-2 win over Torrey Pines of San Diego. That translates into a 58 percent kill and 48.1 percent hitting ratio.

Krista has also recorded 143 digs with a high of 20 in the same match with Torrey Pines, 29 aces with a match-high of eight against Carter of Rialto, 19 blocks, and she's received 188 serves with only 19 errors.

With that type of overall game, and her height, it's no wonder Krista's idol is former Mitty (San Jose), Stanford All-American, and two-times Beach Volleyball Olympic Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh.

"College is of course a big thing, and my dream is maybe play pro overseas, but mostly I want to follow in Kerri Walsh's footsteps and play in the Olympics, said Krista, who admitted to ESPNRISE CalHiSports.com that when told she was named State Girls Athlete of the Week she "screamed it out at school when I heard I'd won.

"Kerri Walsh proved she can do everything and that's who I'm modeling myself after, Krista continued.

There's still a lot of high school volleyball left in her career, but Krista is thinking seriously about college with UCLA and Arizona at the top of the list.

Although she's a nationally known talent and has been getting letters from colleges since she was in the seventh grade, Krista still wanted to give a lot of credit to her teammates and her family that supports her.

Brummett, who is committed to Colorado State, is second to Krista on the team in kills with 186, but leads the team with 60.2 kill and 51.8 hitting percentages. She also has 47 blocks and 35 aces.

Tidwell, who is getting looks from several schools including Boise State, has 117 kills and 27 blocks.

Fouch, the floor general and sister of former REV quarterback Ronnie Fouch (now at Washington), has 633 assists, a team-high 57 aces, 97 digs and 35 kills.

Sports is a big part of the Vansant household with Krista following in mom's footsteps by having also played basketball for two years and soccer for a year before concentrating solely on volleyball.

Krista's 10-year-old brother, Brett, is following is their dad's footsteps by taking to baseball.

Father Robert, an elementary school English teacher in Redlands, played baseball and basketball at Fontana High, and had a short stint with the High Desert Mavericks, a semi-pro baseball team.

The bitter taste of the first-round loss to Carlsbad is fresh on Krista, and the rest of the team including Tricia's, minds. Moving much further into the Southern Regionals is a definite goal even if the initial playoff competition is different now that the Wildcats have moved up to Div. IIAA in the CIFSS.

And with that the 6:45 am interview ended with Krista as polite and thoughtful as she had been the entire time we talked.

"Thank you so much. I can't tell you what it felt like when I heard I'd won. I'm so honored.

Somehow we think there are a few more awards and rewards in her future. Maybe even a piece or two of heavy metal like her idol Kerri Walsh is wearing around her neck.