Norwalk, St. Paul start season prep

NORWALK — The time has arrived. Though the Independence Day holiday was less than two weeks ago, Monday night was essentially the unofficial start to the 2025 high school volleyball season for both programs in the Maple City. St. Paul and Norwalk participated in the first session of a four-day joint camp Monday night at NHS. The camp is run by NCAA Division II Ashland University head coach Katie Kuhn. Kuhn enters her third season at AU with a 41-21 record in two seasons. "I think we all very much enjoy it so we can sit back and listen to a different voice and words to your team," Norwalk head coach Sarah Kipp said. "You never know what will resonate with a kid. Katie, Angie (Kalizewski), and I think a lot alike. "So it's fun to listen to how Katie describes things and how she teaches them. You never know what will click with maybe a little different verbiage given to a kid. That's the biggest benefit of learning and growing this week." Kalizewski is entering her second season as head coach at St. Paul, where she is a 2003 graduate and former standout player. She was also the head coach at Norwalk from 2010-17 before assisting Nancy Miller for four years before taking over for her former coach in 2024. The summer sessions with Norwalk and St. Paul started while she was coaching at Norwalk back in 2010. "We bounce things off each other, and it creates a competitive edge all the time," Kalizewski said. "That's why we started doing this all those years ago with the two schools. It's so beneficial. You get more out of the camp with a college coach, and the kids can be competitive the whole time they are in the gym. "That's the goal. You see and grow so much more than just seeing your same kids you see every day." St. Paul didn't do much in June as far as summer training because of basketball and other sports. That means this week is the first time the Lady Flyers got together to put some things on the floor and see how they work. Kalizewski's first season at her alma mater saw St. Paul win sectional, district, and regional championships. The 20-8 season earned the Flyers a spot in the Division VII state semifinals, their first state appearance in 15 years. "We're excited for it and are energetic to be back in the gym together and get some team bonding going on," Kalizewski said. "We're figuring out the new way with a new year. These two weeks, they're not official, but it's definitely our kickoff to get started. "We're just looking forward to seeing what we can do and then focusing on the start of the season like we do every year." Norwalk and St. Paul share identical summer schedules for the most part. After the camp with Kuhn ends on Thursday, both teams head to the Summer Spiketacular at Cedar Point Sports Center next week (July 21-2). Both teams then head to AU for a single-day tournament on July 26. The first official day of practice is on Aug. 1. St. Paul, which is replacing just one player, though it was an All-Ohio setter in Kristin Matlack, has a tough opening match on Aug. 19 at Western Reserve. "This week I want them to learn each other," Kalizewski said. "We have a new setter, which is always a big change, because that's your quarterback on the floor. Annie (Friend) has done a great job all offseason and summer, but she needs to get comfortable with them and vice versa. "Building that team around each other is important, and just kind of figuring out where we are and pushing forward from there." Meanwhile, Norwalk is coming off a 20-4 season in 2024. It finished with another SBC Lake Division championship, and were district runner-up in Div. III. All-Ohio stalwarts Lucy Schlotterer and Mac Wineman, along with Sammi Chappel, are gone to graduation from that team. So far this summer, Norwalk did some summer league play with Edison, Huron, and Monroeville, along with the usual weightlifting schedule. "This is always the unofficial start to the season," Kipp said. "It's also one of the things I love the most. It's just so competitive to see these girls from both schools come in and just compete with each other. It's fun to watch and listen to them. "A lot of them play club together, and we've coached kids from both teams in club as well, so they have relationships in that sense," she added. "But they come in, compete, shake hands at the end of it, and they go home and come back and do it all over again the next day." Norwalk visits Fremont Ross at 12 p.m. Aug. 16 in its season opener, followed by non-league matches with the aforementioned Edison (Aug. 19) and Huron (Aug. 26) at home. "My husband (Jarrod) always jokes that come July 1. 'I'll see you in November,'" Kipp said. "Which, he's not wrong. But this week feels like the start. "The first day of August is right around the corner, so we are putting in the work to get ready for another season." Norwalk and St. Paul are also scheduled to play a preview scrimmage against each other featuring all levels from junior high through varsity. The match is tentatively scheduled for Aug. 13 at St. Paul. "It's a great opportunity to be able to do this with both schools in Norwalk," Kipp said. "The mutual respect we have is that I can say something to one of Angie's players, and she can say something to my kids. "That's invaluable. Our staffs work very well together, so we're just so fortunate to have the relationship that we do."