By Max Thompson

Is there anything Meredith Murphy can’t do?
“Yes,” she said, surprised at the question. “I’m not the greatest at blocking.”
The humility is no surprise, and if she really isn’t that great at blocking, well, that’s pretty much her only weakness.

Murphy can play any role on the volleyball court for Lake Travis, and has this season for first-year head coach Julie Green, who points to the senior as a reason the team has been so successful.
“There are a lot of games where we go as she goes,” Green said.
Murphy usually leads the Lady Cavs to wins, while scoring double digits in both kills and digs, collecting all-tournament team honors and then reluctantly posing for pictures with her trophy afterward.
How has she been so successful? She points to a lifelong love affair with the game.
“I’ve been playing since third grade,” she said. “I love it, and it’s always been my favorite thing to do.”
It’s been a lot more fun for her this season, as the Lady Cavaliers, ranked fourth in all of 4A, have mowed down opponents en route to 32 wins and just eight and a share of the District 25-4A title.  The core of the team is mostly unchanged from last year’s group, but a new attitude has Murphy and her teammates soaring.
“I think we’re a lot more competitive. I think working hard and consistently changed that,” Murphy said. “I’m probably more focused as I get older, too.”
Murphy points to Green as a big reason the team has been so successful, thanks to long, exhausting practices throughout the year.
“It’s good because I think we’re really competitive. We work really well, and we like the extra work,” she said. “I think we’re a lot more in shape, and I think it shows up in games. I felt like in the first Hutto game we had a lot of energy and they were tired.”
The Lady Cavaliers’ domination of then-second ranked Hutto was a clear sign they were for real, backing up the dominating performances they racked up at the end of the pre-district schedule.
Murphy deserves as much credit as anyone else for being the heart and soul of the team, picking up slack in areas where the Lady Cavs are struggling on any given night, and doing it well.
While she enjoys the leadership role, it’s not something she’s necessarily built for, at least according to her.
“I have to watch what I do and make sure I’m not putting off negative vibes,” she said. “I feel like I stay positive, but I feel like if I make a mistake and get upset, people think I’m upset with them or the team.”
It’s that competitive streak that makes her the perfect fit for the role she plays on the team. She’s the cheerleader, picking teammates up when they’re down, jumping in the middle of the huddle to celebrate a big point and carrying the pain of a loss on her shoulders.
But there has been very little pain this season, and more big moments worth celebrating.
“There’s nothing I love more than when we get a big block to the floor,” Murphy smiled. “It totally swings the momentum for us.”
It happens a lot.
“I think our blocking and defense is really good,” Murphy said. “But I think our team’s greatest strength is versatility. We have a lot of offensive weapons.”
What makes Murphy so important is her ability to be any weapon on any play.
One second she’s dropping a bomb from the outside of the net, the next she’s diving for a dig and then firing from the back row. She does all of this despite a frame (5′10″) that isn’t short by any means, but isn’t a towering presence at the net.
While she’s not easily rattled, there is something that frustrates her more than anything.
“I hate it when people correct me,” she said. “Because I usually know exactly what I did and how to fix it.”
Which is exactly why she should be one of the leaders of one of the best team’s in school history. She’s joined in the leadership role by senior Heather Leyva, and it’s rare that both players don’t end up in double digits in any given statistical category each night.
Now, they just have to make history. The 1995 volleyball team reached the 3A championship match before falling. This team may want more.
“I think we just have to stay focused and play our game down the stretch,” Murphy said. “If we do that, we’ll do well in the playoffs.”
She should know, staying focused and working with what she’s got has brought her a long way.