Ex-Illini satisfies craving

HANOVER PARK – For Sue Nucci, life after the University of Illinois didn't mean life without volleyball.

Upon completing her Illini career in 1994, Nucci was determined to remain active in the sport, even to the point of once traveling to Italy to try out for some professional teams. The 6-foot-2 outside hitter also eagerly fed her volleyball fix by playing for a Chicago-area team in USA Volleyball-sponsored tournaments.

"You crave the competition," explained Nucci, who plans to return to Huff Hall this weekend for the annual Networker Alumni Match.

The lofty caliber of competition that Nucci craved, however, proved elusive. Pursuing her master's degree in advertising took precedence over pursuit of that pro career in Europe.

And back in the States, her Chicago team has rolled to national titles in USA Volleyball's open division six of the past seven years.

"Competition is so hard to find after college," Nucci said.

It was, at least, until the Hanover Park native started reading about this professional indoor league that started in California several years ago. She learned that one of the league's co-founders decided to spin off the operation into the Midwest and mountain states. Learned, too, that this six-team National Volleyball Association planned to open for business in February 1997.

And that really piqued Nucci's interest.

"I heard they were having tryouts," she said, "and I went and made the team in St. Louis."

For Nucci, playing in the NVA didn't require quitting her job and pulling up stakes. There was only one match a week, usually on a Saturday, during the three-month season. She could leave on a Friday and be back home by Sunday night at the latest.

But that itinerary did work against developing a team into a cohesive unit, Nucci discovered. Even the one practice a week – on Fridays – wasn't always fully attended because work obligations sometimes interfered.

"That was the hardest part, not playing together as a team more than once a week," said Nucci, who works as a national sales coordinator for a billboard company based in Chicago. "It seemed that by the time we jelled together as a team, it was the end of the match."

But the caliber of talent was everything Nucci had hoped for, and perhaps more.

"I thought it was very good, very competitive," said Nucci, who played both outside hitter and middle blocker for the Spirits. "Each team had someone who had been on the (U.S.) Olympic team or someone who had played in the league when it first began."

Nucci's team included one of those Olympians. Lori Endicott, who helped the U.S. team to a bronze medal in 1992 and also played in the '96 Games, was the Spirits' setter. The two-time All-American from Nebraska has been the U.S. National Team's setter for the last eight years.

"You read about her in the magazines all the time," said Nucci, whose team also included former Parkland College setter Amy Cole. "Actually being able to meet her and play with her is exciting."

Exciting, also, for Nucci to revisit many of her college experiences. Road trips. Keeping track of where her team was in the standings. Playing in front of crowds that averaged about 1,000 at home and as much as 3,000 when the Spirits visited Omaha, Neb.

"It was a blast," Nucci said. "Being able to travel againand see the different players. Really, it's like a reunion because each team had someone you knew or played against in college."

About the only negative in Nucci's NVA experience was the Spirits' lack of success, St.Louis finishing last in thestandings at 2-6. But that hasn't dulled the former Illini's appetite for more of the pro game. She's already making plans to try out for the team in Madison, Wis., 1 of 2 expansion franchises scheduled to join the NVA in 1998.

"I'm looking forward to it," said Nucci, who still holds the UI record for aces in a game (8). "I want to get everyone excited that there is professional volleyball. I think it's going to last, just because volleyball has grown so much."

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