Iden ‘Heart Of The Team’ For James Wood Volleyball

Posted: November 21, 2014
By KEVIN TRUDGEON
The Winchester Star

WINCHESTER — When James Wood volleyball coach Jill Couturiaux asks her JV players who inspires them, the overwhelming answer may surprise some people.

Although the obvious choice would seem to be Notre Dame-bound outside hitter Katie Houser or multi-skilled setter/outside hitter Ashley Hillyard, the name that comes to mind more often than not is that of a player who can go entire matches without ever swinging or setting a ball.

“A lot of them say Ally Iden,” Couturiaux said. “They like how enthusiastic she is, how encouraging she is with her teammates and how driven she is. And I tell them, ‘Good, now go play like her.’”

Easier said than done.

Although diminutive in size when lining up next to front-line players like senior opposite Lindsey Painter and sophomore middle blocker Taylor Heishman, the 5-foot-5 Iden may be the biggest reason why the Colonels are on the doorstep of history.

When James Wood (26-4) travels down to Virginia Commonwealth University’s Siegel Center at 5 p.m. Saturday to take on Loudoun County (28-2) in the Group 4A state finals, it will be looking to win the first state championship in program history.

And a big reason why the Colonels and their fans should feel good about their chances is the fact that they have Iden, a ball of energy on the back line appropriately nicknamed “Smiley.”

“She’s the heart of the team,” said Couturiaux, who has coached Iden since she started coming to James Wood’s Blue & Gold Camps as a 12-year-old. “When you watch Ally Iden play, she makes you love the game of volleyball just through her excitement and her enthusiasm.”

On a team with plenty of loud screamers, Iden’s voice always seems to carry above the rest when she’s cheering on the latest kill or ace by a teammate.

But her biggest contribution comes not from her enjoyment of others’ success, but in her ability to lay the groundwork for that success.

Because while the kill that scores the point usually receives the biggest cheers, it is oftentimes the dig or pass that act as the catalyst for the entire offensive attack.

“I think libero is one of the most rewarding positions on the court because you do things that set everyone else up,” Iden said. “Without a good pass, it’s kind of a pointless game. And I know my teammates are always happy when we get good digs, because that gets everyone going.”

It’s a position that involves almost exclusive defensive work — the libero can never rotate to the front and rarely leaves the court — and requires skills that are usually only appreciated by teammates and knowledgeable fans.

“It’s extremely important, it’s pretty much the driving force of the team,” said former Colonel libero Kelby Jackson, who now plays for Division 1 Radford University and was a big influence on Iden during her time at James Wood.

“First contact is pretty much the most important thing, whether it’s in serve receive or with digging, because it sets the team up to get a point. And Ally does a great job with that. She’s taken that role and run with it.”

Jackson, who was a two-time All-Northwestern District first team selection and All-Region as a senior, said she always knew Iden was a good leader and very enthusiastic on the court, and that the position of libero was in good hands when she graduated from James Wood.

“I don’t think there could have been a better person to fill that role,” Jackson said.

Originally a setter when she first picked up the game of volleyball in the sixth grade, Iden switched to libero at the urging of Couturiaux two years later during her club volleyball season.

The move wasn’t exactly what Iden wanted at first, but she quickly took to her new position and the results speak for themselves.

After playing JV as a freshman and serving as a defensive specialist next to Jackson as a sophomore, Iden has been the Colonels’ starting libero for the past two seasons and has flourished.

She finished with an area-best 457 kills and was named to the All-Northwestern District first team as a junior, and has surpassed that total this season.

Along with earning a second straight All-District selection, landing on the All-Conference 21 second team and totaling 479 digs, Iden broke the school record for career digs in a win over Fluvanna in the 4A North Region quarterfinals, and currently sits at 1,083 and counting.

“I wasn’t really happy at first [about moving to libero] because I like playing setter, but now I can’t imagine playing any other position,” said Iden, who has been at her best when it’s been needed the most this postseason with back-to-back 30-dig nights in the region semifinals and finals.

Her small stature helps her to get low to the ground to dig up balls that normally would go for points, and her quick reflexes allow her to cover more ground than seems humanly possible at times.

Most James Wood matches aren’t complete without Iden lunging for a one-handed dig or hurling her body after a ball that she has no business getting to, but her best plays are usually the ones that she makes look routine.

“She has incredible ball control, she’s really intelligent and she’s great at reading the attack,” said Couturiaux, who noted that Iden is constantly banged up from diving on the floor time after time. “She doesn’t guess on defense, she knows where to go and she’s going to get there.”

Saturday’s state championship match will be the last time Iden puts on her Colonel uniform and, though she will play club volleyball this year, she plans on focusing on her academics in college, where she hopes to attend the University of Virginia and study biology.

Despite Couturiaux’s directive to her younger players, she knows that filling Iden’s shoes next season will be difficult. But she hopes that there is another player waiting in the wings — much like Iden was when Jackson left — ready to carry on the tradition of superb libero play at James Wood.

“You learn from watching and the younger girls have had, in my opinion, the best libero in the area to learn from the last two years,” Couturiaux said. “You can’t replace a girl like Ally, she’s the heart of the team. But whoever comes in next year will have had the opportunity to watch some great players come before them, and Ally is one of them. She’s left her mark on this team and this program.”

— Contact Kevin Trudgeon at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Follow on Twitter @WinStarSports