Six years ago, Julia Murphy walked into a volleyball clinic before her freshman year at Canton High on the advice of her sister Olivia and Canton coach Pat Cawley, who was instantly drawn to Murphy’s height (she is now six feet tall).
“[She] came up to me and was like, ‘You’re really tall maybe you should try playing volleyball?’ and I thought why not,” said Murphy last week. “I ended up going to a clinic and I loved it instantly. I loved how it’s such team sport and it’s aggressive and everything.”
It may have been serendipity that brought Murphy to the sport, but it was talent and hard work that kept her on the court. Now, as a sophomore hitter at UMass Boston, she is earning regular accolades for her play (back-to-back Little East Offensive Player of the Week awards) and has helped the Beacons win 10 straight matches, including Tuesday’s conference opener against Rhode Island College.
“It’s a really nice award to get each week, but I definitely couldn’t have done it without the setters and the passers,” said Murphy. “It’s really a team award to me in the sense that if I do well offensively it’s because we have good passing, we have good setting, and everything is clicking.”
The Beacons are looking for their sixth Little East Conference title in a row and last year made it through regionals and to the NCAA Division III Elite Eight. Although she was joining a successful program, Murphy was inserted into the lineup right away and had 339 kills as a freshman.
She said, “Coming into the season, our coaches always talk about how there’s no set lineup…it’s whoever has proved themselves and whoever is working hard, doing what they’re asked, and whoever meshes well on the court.”
Murphy added that there was no fear of playing on the big stage and performing in the NCAA tournament because she had spent her high school career at Canton facing big challenges late in the tournament, including her senior season when the Bulldogs won the sectional title for the first time.
Having reached such a high level in her first year at UMass Boston has provided Murphy with extra motivation this fall in the team’s quest to bring home a national title.
“Being there it motivates you even more to keep going and going because you’re so close that this year we want to win the national championship,” she explained.
Unlike many of her teammates, Murphy did not start playing volleyball at the youth level. While this shows that she has a natural talent for the sport, it also provides her with constant motivation to keep working harder than other players to make up for the relative lack of experience.
She said, “All through high school, I knew that I wanted to play in college so all through high school I had to keep working harder and harder to compete with these girls that have been playing since they were in like first grade.”
The adjustment from the high school to college has appeared seamless for Murphy, but she noted that there are distinct differences, particularly in the speed of the game. She also added that the faster the team plays, the better it suits her position as the middle hitter.
“My coaches are always telling me that I’m ‘one-speed Julia’ and I’m always fast, fast, fast,” she joked. “The quick sets are a really big strength for me because the block may not be set up yet and it keeps the other team’s defense on its heels.”
Obviously, the speed of the game and the numerous plays that UMass Boston coach Terry Condon, who this week picked up her 400th win as head coach and earlier this season got her 200th win at the helm of the Beacons, has worked well for Murphy.
She had 49 kills in a four-game sweep of the inaugural UMass Boston Invitational that included 17 kills against Williams and a .684 hitting percentage and 13 kills against Middlebury College. That four-game performance earned her the second Offensive Player of the Week award. For the season, Murphy has 147 kills and is hitting at .319, which is a jump from her .298 as a freshman.
The Beacons lost four seniors from last season’s team and got off to a rocky start with just one win in the first four games. Since that point, the team has been rolling and is once again looking like the team to beat in the Little East. The expectations are high this season, but Murphy is clear that the ultimate goal remains a national title, but that the team is focused on the task at hand and looking no further than the next opponent.
“We like to take it one match at a time, one point at a time, one game at a time,” she said. “We’re finally getting into the swing of things and just trying to remain focused on our goals and trying to work together as a team and keep getting better and better.”
Murphy added, “I’m just looking forward to keeping on this high and no roller coasters, just keep focused and winning. It all starts with the day-to-day, working hard in practice, staying united and hopefully reaching that national championship.”
UMass Boston continues the Little East season on Thursday at Keene State.
Josh Perry can be contacted at [email protected] and followed on Twitter at @Josh_Perry10.