Pallotti Prep's Johnson Turns to Volleyball

Basketball would have made the most sense, since she is a 6-foot-1 athlete who played several years in youth leagues.

But for Victoria Johnson, volleyball will end up being the sport she plays for four years at Pallotti Prep.

Johnson, a senior outside hitter for the Panthers, played youth basketball and during her freshman year at Pallotti, the private school in downtown Laurel.

"I played basketball at first. But my mom wanted me to try volleyball," said Johnson, a co-captain who lives in Beltsville.

So she played volleyball for the first time in the fall of her freshman year at Pallotti. Johnson also played basketball as a freshman for the Panthers but after that winter decided to give up hoops for volleyball.

"It was a lot more interesting," she said of volleyball. "I just stood around and got rebounds" as a basketball player.

She moved up to varsity volleyball as a sophomore in 2009 under Scott Fifield, then a first-year head coach for Pallotti Prep. Johnson played middle hitter as a sophomore, played mostly middle last year and is now on the outside.

Johnson has been one of the key reasons Pallotti Prep began the season with five wins in six matches.

"She has figured out how to use her power and when to do more subtle things" as a hitter, Fifield said. "We had her in the middle the past two years. She has become a good passer. That was another key to things falling into place. She has always been a good hitter. She is also a more disciplined server."

Johnson did not gain all-league honors last year, though Fifield felt she was worthy of strong consideration.

The Panthers fell to 5-2 overall with a 3-1 loss on Wednesday to St. Paul's, though Johnson had 16 kills while teammate Judy Onyegbado had 10 and junior co-captain Carissa Hill had a season-high 23 digs.

"We are 100 percent better. We have a lot of club players," said Johnson, who plays in the winter for the Maryland Juniors. Hill has played club ball for Kinetic, based in Bowie, while Valen Johnson, the younger sister of Victoria, also plays club volleyball.

Valen Johnson, a freshman outside hitter and starter, joined her older sister on the Pallotti Prep varsity this season. "It is fantastic," said Victoria Johnson, who had never been teammates with her sister.

Victoria Johnson is also active off the court. She is a treasurer for the Student Government Association and is involved in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes.

Johnson is interested in business or the culinary arts as a possible field of study in college. "I like baking at home," said Johnson, who is not sure if she wants to play volleyball in college.

Pallotti Prep plays in the tough A league of the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland (IAAM). "I think we can get third or fourth," Johnson said. Pallotti was 9-13 overall and 1-9 in the IAAM last year.

Prep notes: After losing several key seniors, the Laurel High boys soccer team is rebuilding this season.

"We are young," said Eric Ferguson, a veteran head coach for the Spartans.

Three of his former players are now on the roster at Howard Community College as freshmen: Junior Blanco, Adam Block and Niklaas Kamukukuenjandje ... Laurel High grad Brandon Harvey has 20 tackles in the first two games for the Delaware State football team. He is a senior linebacker.

Delaware State plays Saturday at Delaware, which advanced to the Division I-AA national title game last season. Former Laurel resident Darryl Jones was a senior defensive back for Delaware last year.