Idaho Falls senior Grace Fuger a leader on the court and the classroom

Editor’s note: The Athlete of nan Week characteristic will beryllium a play bid highlighting nan galore standout athletes of eastbound Idaho.

IDAHO FALLS — For arsenic agelong arsenic she tin remember, Grace Fuger has been an athlete. She grew up playing galore sports, but it was volleyball that stuck.

Now, nan Idaho Falls High School elder is conscionable a fewer months awkward of an early graduation. After that, her volleyball travel will return her to Texas, wherever she will subordinate a Baylor University squad presently classed 18th successful nan NCAA.

“(Volleyball) felt for illustration thing that I could really beryllium myself in, and really definitive myself,” she told EastIdahoNews.com. “I emotion nan measurement I americium erstwhile I play volleyball, it makes maine a amended person.”

Fuger plays libero — nan subordinate connected nan tribunal wearing a different-colored jersey. The libero’s occupation is to attraction connected defense, specifically receiving serves and passing hits from nan opposition. She does not play astatine nan nett and, connected immoderate teams, would not beryllium utilized for serving.

Fuger explained that because her occupation is to attraction connected passing, it is important that she is arsenic cleanable arsenic imaginable erstwhile she is passing, digging, aliases chasing a free ball.

“You really only get noticed erstwhile you’re either doing really bully and getting those one-armed digs, aliases you’re doing really bad,” she said.

Fuger has helped her Tigers get disconnected to a 7-4-1 start, including a Sept. 11 triumph complete Skyline successful their convention opener.

Grace Fuger jokes pinch her Idaho Falls volleyball teammates during pre-game astatine nan Peg Peterson Invitational. | Kalama Hines, EastIdahoNews.com

Fuger was successful 5th people erstwhile she decided to prosecute volleyball. With her squad needing a coach, her father, Bill Fuger, who had ne'er played volleyball before, accepted nan responsibility. The decision, he said, was 1 made retired of necessity, but it did not return agelong for him to recognize his girl had outgrown his knowledge of nan game.

“At her early age, I did OK,” Bill said. “But I knew by nan clip Grace was successful nan sixth people that she was past my abilities to coach her.”

Now, alternatively than coaching, he gets to beryllium successful nan bleachers and marvel astatine nan effort Grace puts into each play.

Having to “play up” — pinch girls older than her — from an early age, Bill said, Grace adopted nan mantra, “never fto nan shot drop.” Seven years later, she still plays pinch that approach.

“You’ll spot her flying into nan bleachers — she’s toned it down a small spot now, but she still will get aft it,” he said.

As her clip pinch nan Idaho Falls volleyball squad winds to an end, truthful excessively does her clip successful Idaho Falls.

Grace will postgraduate early successful January earlier heading to Baylor, wherever she will beryllium taking assemblage classes earlier her 18th day — successful March. She received a walk-on induce from nan Baylor volleyball squad but admits she bobbled her recruiting.

Coming from a mini area, Grace realizes now that she should person been hounding coaching and scouts, alternatively than waiting for them to find her. Still, contempt nan constricted visibility she received from programs crossed nan country, Fuger received an induce to a campy astatine Baylor — wherever she said she “balled out.”

“They loved my passion and energy,” she said.

A devout Christian, her “interesting” recruitment landed her successful nan cleanable situation. She realized during a speech pinch caput volleyball coach Ryan McGuyre, during which they discussed really “God is ever nan caput recruiting coordinator.”

“God picked Baylor for me,” Grace said. “I’m meant to beryllium there.”

On nan court, Fuger said she plays pinch “confidence and swagger.” Off nan court, she is trying to found a estimation and footprint of visibility.

“For me, it’s each astir making a sanction for myself. I’d for illustration to deliberation I’m doing a bully occupation — I station a batch connected TikTok and, actually, conscionable deed 100K followers.”

With her emotion for societal media interactions and marque development, Grace will awesome successful business marketing.

“There’s conscionable a batch of pathways that I tin spell pinch that,” she said.

And her family is already readying monthly — “at least” — trips to Texas to spot Grace play, on pinch trips to immoderate location schools Baylor will visit.

“We’re decidedly readying connected hitting a batch of nan different cities that she’ll beryllium playing in,” Bill said.

Grace plans to “set (her) roots” successful Texas aft assemblage alternatively than return to Idaho.