Ethiopian American invents turbine serve to win Lighthouse game

By Michael Ashcraft --

RYE CANYON -- The turbine defeated Don Quijote de la Mancha. Turbines were used right on these grounds to ready wind tunnels to develop the SR-71 Blackbird spy plane to win the Cold War. And yesterday, Liyat Belay clinched her volleyball team's victory with an unusual serve Thursday.

We'll call it the turbine serve.

It's a never-before-seen volleyball serve. Players crank through a range of motion of 180 degrees to smash the ball at opponents.

Liyat -- who debuted forLighthouse Christian Academy of Santa Monica in its straight 3-set win against SCVi -- employed a serve that cranks around the circle for basically 360 degrees.

Think of the striking image of an MLB underhanded pitcher throwing submarine strikes. It's about the same sensation of seeing Liyat's serves.

"It's really weird, but I just tried to do something new," the freshman says about her serve.

Liyat's succession of serves sealed LCA's victory in the last of three sets at 25-17, 25-8 and 25-18.

SCVi's coach came over and complimented her after the game. "There's power in your serves," he said.

Liyat "invented" the serve as something of circus trick. Instead of tossing the ball up with one hand and striking it with the other, Liyat decided to do both with one hand.

Coach Jessica Young told her no, no, no. It is a waste of effort. It made poise harder and risks striking the ball awkwardly.

"She wants to toss the ball and hit with the same arm," Jessica says. "I have been fighting her on that to get her to toss it the traditional way."

Eventually, Liyat acquiesced. She now tosses with the left and cracked with the right.

But she had practiced the full circle motion for striking. That remained.

After her breakout success (it was her first game), nobody's grumbling.

All around, Liyat, the daughter of Ethiopian parents, had a great first game. She played well at the net and showed athleticism.

She's a new weapon in the Saints arsenal. Mainstays, Allie Scribner, Roxy Photenhauer, Clara Czer and Sarah Montez continued dominant Thursday. After a slow start in the first set, Lighthouse exercised its true power in game two.

Fully 12 points were earned by Allie's crushing serves. Roxy showed by her nickname is the Photon Cannon with 8 points from serves in the third set.

Allie was merciless in the second set when Santa Clarita Valley international popped the ball over and she pounced to spike immediately. Later, friend Roxy explained that Allie had waited two years through club volleyball to execute a decisive spike like that.

Genesis Mendez, who has never played sports before, got her first start Thursday and returned some balls. From hesitant and unsure of herself, she went to enjoying the game and wanting more.

But the day belonged to Liyat and her turbine serve.

The turbine is a powerful invention. Don Quijote, delusionally believing the windmill to be a dragon that he must slay, was badly injured.

Turbines fed the wind tunnels of Lockheed Martin's skunkworks operations in Rye Canyon that developed the SR-71 and the first stealth fighter. Before being razed, those research and development facilities stood on the same grounds where the Rye Canyon Business Park exists today with its volleyball gymnasium.

"Liyat rose to the challenge," Coach Jessica says. "It looks like she has the serving down. She's really strong. She loves it. She wants to play. Even against the hard teams, she doesn't care, she really wants to play."

Also read other LCA games:
Vs. SFVA Oct. 12.Vs. Westmark School Oct. 7
Vs Summit View Sept. 29
Vs. Ojai Valley School Sept. 28.
Vs. SCVi Sept. 23.
Vs. Newbury Park Adventist Academy Sept. 9
Vs. Hillcrest Christian Sept. 15.
Vs. Gorman Learning Center Sept 16.

Michael Ashcraft teaches journalism at the Lighthouse Christian Academy in Santa Monica.