Like father, like daughter.
Scott Kowalkowski played linebacker for 12 seasons in the National Football League, two with the Philadelphia Eagles who drafted him in 1991 and the rest with the Detroit Lions.
A 1987 grad of Orchard Lake St. Mary’s, where he was a high school All-American, Kowalkowski earned the reputation of a no-holds-barred footballer by virtually throwing his body — an undersized 6-foot-2, 215 pounds by NFL linebacker standards — at opposing brutish runners.
His daughter, Emma, 5-foot-4 and about a hundred pounds lighter, also plays a kind of linebacker position on the Pontiac Notre Dame Prep volleyball team, shoring up the team’s defense in the back half of the court as a libero.
Before I go a word further, a “libero,” from the Italian meaning “free,” is a defensive specialist with quick reaction time and good passing skills who can substitute for any other back-row player on the court during each play and is responsible for receiving the opponent’s serve.
In Emma’s case, I’d expand the definition to a “free spirit.” The popular 16-year-old junior is easy to spot, not only because liberos must wear a contrasting jersey from her teammates (in the game I witnessed, she wore Fighting Irish green while her mates had on pink), but more so because she seems to be everywhere on the court at once.
“I try to cover a lot of ground. I don’t want the ball to touch the floor,” she says with a confidence that belies how hard she was on herself only a couple of years ago as a freshman, worrying about making mistakes.
Emma has earned a reputation of her own as one of the state’s most accomplished liberos. She leads all Class B schools in the state with 564 digs, and with six weeks of volleyball to play most certainly will surpass her total of 615 last year.
Time out for another definition: a dig is the passing of the ball to another player as part of the strategy to get the ball to one of the taller front line players, such as 6-foot senior attacker and a “Miss Volleyball” candidate, Katherine Carlson, who leads Class B schools with 674 kills.
However, there are those spectacular moments, when Emma, showing amazing flexibility and cat-like quickness, has to dive or roll or slide or do whatever it takes to keep the ball in play, on occasion just getting her hand under the ball before it hits the floor.
Coach Betty Wroubel points out another of Emma’s talents, “her dynamite serve. It’s very difficult to receive because the ball floats, kind of like a knuckle ball.” Notre Dame has scored 186 points off her service so far this season, including 63 aces, second to Carlson’s 78.
Notre Dame is the defending Catholic League champion and the state Class B champion, and Emma calls last fall’s drive for the title “one of the best times of my life.”
The challenge to repeat will be daunting. As of last weekend, the Fighting Irish are 43-3 and ranked second in Class B behind Chelsea, who beat Notre Dame 2-1 on Sept. 27. State tournament playoffs begin Nov. 3.
Bloomfield Hills Marian (No. 6 in Class A), whom the Irish beat for the CHSL crown last year, defeated Notre Dame 3-1 two weeks ago. The CHSL championships will be staged Oct. 27 at Madonna University.
“We definitely have a chance to win it all again,“ says Emma. “We just have to work harder.”
She’s the spark to light their fire.
Postscript: In the next column, we’ll discuss NFL football and concussions with Scott Kowalkowski. “I was knocked out cold three times in my career,” he says.
Don Horkey is a freelance writer. He may be reached at [email protected].
