SPORTS

All Daily Record volleyball: Savite continued to grow as West Morris’ leader

Jane Havsy
@dailyrecordspts

During the Morris County Tournament final, West Morris senior Gabriella Savite occasionally heard a familiar voice. It was her older brother, Charles Savite, shouting, “Feed the beast.”

That so-called beast was his youngest sister, the Wolfpack’s outside hitter and the heart of the offense.

Gabriella Savite brought home every bit of hardware available during her four-year varsity career. West Morris won or shared four straight NJAC-National titles. She was selected as the MCT MVP twice, as a freshman and a senior, as the Wolfpack won three times. As a sophomore, Savite was part of the NJSIAA Group III championship team.

Now, Savite is the 2014 All Daily Record Volleyball Player of the Year.

When asked her biggest strength on the volleyball court, Savite didn’t mention her big crosscourt kills or willingness to dive into the stands to dig up a ball. Instead, she described herself as “a source of energy ... a motivator, a communicator.” And her personal highlight isn’t personal at all.

“We definitely upheld the winning tradition and passed it on,” said Savite, who is planning to go to DeSales and hopes to go into early childhood education or physical therapy.

“We made so many connections with the younger class, they feel as though it’s a family. They feel accepted and comfortable and want to do the same thing.”

Volleyball has been a family tradition for Savite as well. Her sister, Samantha Savite, five years older, began playing at West Morris as a freshman. Gabriella remembers going to her tournaments, “and steal a ball and play in a corner by myself” when she was about 10 years old. She tried out for Atlantic Valley that year, and was asked to play up with the 12-year-olds.

“Little Gabby would come in and we’d start doing work on technical stuff, some passing and some hitting,” said Hunterdon Central coach Steve Fenton, who led the youth team. “After I’d give her some feedback, Gabby kept coming up and questioning me. ‘Can you show me that again? What am I supposed to do with my arms? Should my hands go this way?’ When it was time to work, the special ones are different, and I knew right away Gabby was one of those kids.”

That dedication was obvious when Savite finally got to West Morris. Head coach Jim Balella noticed her right away during summer open gyms before her freshman year — and Savite “stepped right in and was a go-to player.” Her role didn’t change much over the four years. If the Wolfpack needed to get a point, chances are the setter would find a way to get the ball to Savite — and she’d put it down.

She had 223 kills, 17 blocks, 217 digs and 44 aces as West Morris went 23-5 this fall.

Yet Savite never showed any pressure to perform. In fact, she obviously gloried in flinging her body all over the gym. Her ball control and accuracy improved. Even though she’d been leading by example since the beginning, as Savite matured on the court, she became more willing to be a vocal leader for West Morris as well.

But Savite was just as focused on academics — her favorite subject is Spanish — eating too much at Enzo’s Pizzeria, and spending summer weekends at her family’s house in Wildwood.

“She had the ability. She had the skill. She had the mindset,” Balella said. “She wanted to get better and better. She worked hard at it. She put the time in, it wasn’t all natural. ... She would be somebody I hope my children would grow up to be like. She’s special that way.”

Staff Writer Jane Havsy: 973-428-6682; jhavsy@dailyrecord.com; www.dailyrecord.com/writerjane/