SSHS sophomore voted Prep Athlete of the Week

SEELEY LAKE – Seeley-Swan High School dual-athlete Sariah Maughan won the Athlete of the Week for the week of Oct. 27. She was nominated for leading the volleyball team in the five-set win against Clark Fork Oct. 24 followed by her fourth place finish leading the Lady Blackhawks to the Class C Cross Country State title.

Maughan and her three siblings were always very active when they were little. She started playing volleyball, basketball and track in fifth grade.

"My parents said that we needed to try at least one year of every sport and see if we liked them," said Maughan. "I enjoyed all of them so I continued playing."

Maughan said in addition to a natural athletic ability, she runs to stay in shape during the off-season and puts a lot of effort into practices when the seasons are going.

Volleyball is Maughan's favorite sport. This year the team had team dinners and got together before the season started.

"The practices were very enjoyable and playing with everyone was [always] fun," said Maughan who enjoyed the time they spent together off the court as well.

Maughan was one of the setters for the Lady Blackhawks. Not only did she get to touch the ball on most of the plays, if the ball wasn't set properly, it was a big deal for the team.

"I felt like the team was relying on me, Aspen [Conley] and Jordan [Johnson] who were our other setters to get the ball where they needed it," said Maughan.

The Missoulian's nomination for Athlete of the Week said, "Maughan was a dominant force in her volleyball team's five-set win at Clark Fork Oct. 24. The sophomore registered 16 kills, 15 assists and three aces."

Maughan said after the game Coach Tammy Lewis told her she led in three different stats. This was the most kills Maughan had all season.

"It was a really fun game," said Maughan.

One of the things Maughan really enjoyed about the game against Clark Fork was matching-up against sophomore Sorren Reese. Maughan said she and Reese are friendly competitors in volleyball, basketball and track.

The Missoulian nomination included Maughan's success finishing fourth individually and leading Seeley-Swan to a State C cross country title Saturday, Oct. 26.

Maughan said it was a challenging cross country season for her due to injury. She only competed in four cross country races this year, including the State meet.

However, two weeks before State, her mother Lisa designed her cross country workouts for her and she did them after volleyball practice.

"My mom has helped me a lot," said Maughan.

This was Maughan's first nomination for Athlete of the Week. While she didn't expect to be nominated or to win the popular vote she said, "It was pretty cool."

Each week, the Missoulian nominates four boys and four girls for the honor "Prep Athletes of the Week." Readers vote for one girl and one boy in polls that appear by noon Sunday through 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Missoulian.com. The winners are announced in the Missoulian's Thursday edition each week and appear in a special advertisement, sponsored by Republic Services, each Sunday.