Missouri Baptist lands 2 Lady Tigers

Two of the top players from Greenfield’s standout 2007 volleyball team have signed national letters of intent to play volleyball at the collegiate level.

Jessica Bowman and Lindsay Gruen have both committed to attend and play volleyball at Missouri Baptist in St. Louis.

“We’re extremely pleased that Lindsay and Jessica have chosen to continue their volleyball careers in college,” said Greenfield volleyball coach Julie Williams. “They were both great leaders in high school and I can’t wait to see what they do in college.”

Bowman, a senior middle hitter, posted 301 kills, 258 blocks, 154 service points and 50 aces during the 2007 regular season. She also had a team-high 42 blocks.

Bowman broke the Greenfield school record for most blocks in a season and most blocks in a career, and ranks second on the all-time kills list at Greenfield.

After the season, she was named the school’s Most Valuable Player and Best Offensive Player. She was recently named the Journal-Courier Volleyball Player of the Year. “Obviously, Jessica was our leader in kills and she was our emotional leader, and girls would look to her because of her fiery personality,” Williams said.

Gruen, a senior setter, had 658 assists and 221 service points during the regular season. She had 37 aces, 164 digs and 43 kills.

Gruen broke Greenfield school records for most assists in a match, most assists in a season and most assists in a career. She also set a school record for serving percentage at 98 percent.

After the season, Gruen was given the team’s Hustle Award.

“Lindsay Gruen did an excellent job as our setter the last two years,” Williams said. “We ran a 5-1 both years, so I put a lot of pressure on her.”

Greenfield posted a record of 27-6 this season, and advanced to the Class 1A super-sectionals before losing to Edwards County.