By: John Fryman
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
john@thevillagereporter.com
STRYKER – Stryker volleyball senior Abby Oberlin achieved a special milestone in a recent non-conference match against Edon.
The 5-4 outside hitter and defensive specialist for the Lady Panthers recorded her 1,000th career dig and joined three other former Stryker volleyball standouts in the same category.
She joins Brittany Haines (2018 graduate), Sage Woolace (2022 graduate) and Emma Fulk (2024 graduate) who have surpassed the 1,000 dig mark.
“That is so crazy to be able to like know that I’m in with a select few,” Oberlin said. “Sage (Woolace) and Emma (Fulk) were such good influences on me.
“Sage definitely taught composure. She was always lighthearted about everything and just went with it. Emma was always there for me whatever I needed, and she had my back.”
Woolace is the present all-time leader with over 2,000 digs in her career. “It was so exciting,” admitted Oberlin. “That’s been a big goal for a while now and it was just really fulfilling to do it.”
Needing just 19 digs going into the Edon match to reach 1,000 digs, Oberlin would eventually register 38 digs in the four-set victory.
“She (Oberlin) has dreamed about it since she was little,” said her head coach Allye Meade. “We talked about it, and it actually happened. It was very exciting for her and to achieve it in the first week of volleyball was just a big statement for her.”
Oberlin is even more focused to lead the team to a Buckeye Border Conference title for the first time since 2019. “I think that we all kind of push each other a lot,” said Oberlin. “We are really a close-knit team.”
As a junior, Oberlin was named first team in the Buckeye Border Conference and District 7 Volleyball Coaches Association where she recorded 203 kills, 48 aces and 463 digs.
She credits her head coach as a big influence throughout her career. “She (Meade) has influenced me, and I also had a ton of other coaches who have done big measures as well,” said Oberlin.
“She likes to focus more on like my mental reaction to things, instead of skill based and just being able to fix mistakes easier.”
The leadership qualities which Oberlin brings to the volleyball court have been important. “She’s very vocal on the floor and she’s very helpful with all the underclassmen, making sure they are understanding of our defense and other things, so he is very crucial”.
The support in which Oberlin has received throughout her volleyball career begins at home after she finally reached the special milestone.
“They were so excited for me and also love watching sports,” she said of her parents, Mandy and Brook Oberlin. “There was so much emotion from them after I had achieved it.”
Growing up in the Stryker volleyball program, Oberlin’s maturity really showed beginning on junior varsity as a freshman and elevated to varsity into a full rotation as a sophomore.
“It was a big jump for sure, but I wanted it so much and I would have fought for it,” admitted the senior standout.
Meade commented it has been awesome to watch Oberlin progress through the program. “She’s has been very crucial the past three years on varsity,” said Meade. “Just watching her both grow on and off the court has been really awesome to see.”
This fall, she was elected co-captain for the Lady Panthers. “That speaks volumes for her character as well and she just portrays that on and off the court, that the girls trust her enough to lead them,” said Meade.
Two nights later, her teammate Reiss Creighton became the first player in program history to reach 1,000 career assists against Montpelier.
In addition, she is also on the basketball and track teams and has a perfect 4.0 GPA in the classroom. She is currently undecided about her future plans.
“She’s awesome and is involved in multiple sports, she is involved in different clubs at school and keeps up with her grades and is a great student,” said Meade.
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