“Commitment to Excellence:” Maya Sands’ journey to top SEC volleyball libero Story and photos | Grace Ainger

In high school, Missouri volleyball sophomore Maya Sands had 13-hour days.

Wednesday through Sunday, after spending six hours at school, she would leave school early and race to Sports Performance Volleyball Club an hour and a half away from her hometown of Rock Falls, Illinois. After a three-and-a-half hour practice, she’d take that same ride back home. On the weekends, there were all day tournaments far away from home.

For some, this schedule might be overwhelming. However, Sands wasn’t a part of that group.

“It was a lot to work with, but I loved it,” Sands said. “I love the grind.”

In her junior year, Sands switched from outside hitter to libero. The positions are almost complete opposites, with hitters being focused on scoring points and liberos setting up plays. It was then that the grind became required for her to reach her ultimate goal: Division I volleyball.

“I was a shorter outside, so I came up to [my coaches] and was like, ‘I want to switch to libero,’” Sands said. “They told me, ‘We’re gonna work with you every single day.’ They pushed you, and if you were lacking, they’d remind [you of] the goals you want to get to.”

Sports Performance was essential to her growth in the new position. The club is based in the Chicago suburb of Aurora. Since 1981, the various programs within SPVB have won 106 national championships and have sent over 1,200 players to college programs. Their goals are centered around individual players.

“One of our foundational principles has always been that we want to train athletes, meaning that we’re going to do everything we can for each individual player,” Troy Gilb, the owner of Sports Performance and Sands’ former coach said. “To improve their skills, their knowledge of the game, our whole focus is that we develop the individual athlete.”

If an athlete expresses a want to achieve the collegiate level, Sports Performance develops plans to give said athlete the clearest path to success. When Sands made the jump to libero in order to pursue her college dreams, she thought she would jump head-first into recruiting.

Then, Sands hit a wall, due to COVID-19.

“In my whole recruiting process, I was really lucky to land on University of Nevada, Las Vegas because when COVID hit, that was in the middle of when I was switching positions,” Sands said. “I didn’t have a ton of spotlight in [the libero] position. Coaches really couldn’t come watch us play.”

Sands spent her summers and asynchronous school days at Sports Performance, learning the foundational skills and traits needed to succeed as a libero. In the summer of 2021, semi-normal recruiting procedures returned, and Sands explored college options despite being considered late in the recruiting process. The summer before her senior year of high school, Sands committed to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and former head coach, Dawn Sullivan.

“I knew I wanted to play for Dawn just because of who she is,” Sands said. “It worked out for the better because I didn’t have a ton of options to choose from. I think that all happened for a reason, and I’m where I’m supposed to be now, so that was really special.”

During her time at UNLV, Sands was able to further her libero skills and grow her confidence in the position under the coaching of Sullivan. She also helped the Runnin’ Rebels secure a Mountain West Conference Championship in 2022. She achieved double-digit digs in 25 games and was named the Mountain West Player of the Week three times that season.

“That team gave me a ton of confidence,” Sands said. “I just felt not a lot of pressure even though I was a freshman. I think Dawn really tries to instill growing confident women.”

Despite her success at UNLV, Sands had her eyes set on one thing:

the SEC.

“It's always been my dream to play in a Power Five school,” Sands said. “I’d grown up watching Florida and a bunch of other teams that are in the SEC. I really wanted to be at that level that I’ve always watched.”

The decision to transfer was made even easier for Sands when Sullivan became the head coach for Missouri in December 2022.

“I came from a club like Sports Performance, [and] they were very intense, and I really like that intense energy. That’s what I really liked about Dawn,” Sands said. “If you really want to achieve something, she’s gonna get you to that point.”

Missouri has certainly felt Sullivan’s impact thus far. The Tigers have already surpassed their total wins from 2022, as they currently sit at 12-7. They have also earned four sweeps and are currently ranked No. 7 in the SEC.

“[Dawn]’s very driven,” Janet deMarrais, sophomore outside hitter, said. “[She] kind of has tunnel vision and with one goal in mind: to be the best. Dawn has done a really good job providing that to us. Her passion that she’s instilling in us, you can see it in the way that we’re carrying ourselves on the court and how our outcomes are happening.”

Sullivan’s coaching style has also contributed to Sands' successful season so far. Sands has racked up 342 digs in 19 games. Sands’ registered double-digit digs in every game, and she’s registered at least 20 in nine of them. Her 4.75 digs per set is No. 39 nationally. She achieved a career-best 30 digs against Ole Miss on Oct. 15. Sands is ranked No. 1 in the SEC in digs and earned SEC Defensive Player of the Week on Oct. 16. When serving, Sands racked up three aces in four individual games, including one in her Tiger debut against Illinois State on Aug. 25.

However, Sands doesn’t just look at statistics for defining her success.

“Stats are always something I look at, but it’s not my main thing,” Sands said. “I base [my performances] off of how hard I’m working. There’s some days where I feel like I could have worked harder. When I feel that energy, I know I’m playing to the best of my ability. When I do that consistently, that’s when I know I am growing.”

Centered in the back row, liberos are the defensive specialists of the team. Their central job is to pass the ball cleanly to the setter, helping them produce a successful set for the hitter. The libero is integral to the defensive strength of the team.

“[Sands] is one of the best defenders I’ve ever played with,” deMarrais said. “She’s very supportive and doesn’t really lead with her voice; she leads by example. Whether that’s diving or making insane plays that gets us hyped up for the game, she’s awesome.”

With a majority of Missouri’s personnel being new this year, relationships have flourished without fear of barriers. Sands feels that the team’s bond has been integral to its success on and off the court.

“I think relationships for a team [are] one of the most important things to be successful,” Sands said. “We pretty much had a whole new team come in, but it’s crazy just to think how close we are with the little amount of time we have had together.”

Sports Performance’s program-philosophy of a “Commitment to Excellence” is drilled into each and every player. For Sands, this philosophy shines through in the time and effort she put into volleyball practice, in turn leading her to a D1 career. Here at Missouri, it’s still a motto she keeps in the back of her mind.

“I feel like you have to be a certain individual to go play for Sports Performance and I feel like everybody who goes there has a mindset of you want to go to get better.I just tried to live in that every single day. I think it still has carried on throughout here because that motto doesn’t even only pertain to volleyball, it pertains to life in general. You want to be committed to excellence in your life, that’s how you’re going to be successful.”

Edited by Quentin Corpuel | qcorpuel@themaneater.com.

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