Prairie Ridge found its groove in October and stayed in the hunt for a Fox Valley Conference championship, only to finish two wins behind first-time FVC champ Hampshire.

The Wolves, however, had bigger plans.

An injury to junior hitter Maizy Agnello, a Missouri commit who set the program record with 483 kills as a sophomore, that kept her out the last five weeks didn’t derail the Wolves’ goals of reaching the Class 3A state tournament after placing third in 2024.

Prairie Ridge, with a lineup constantly changing to find the perfect fit, took off in the postseason. Under first-year coach Leah Groat, the Wolves won their fourth straight regional and second straight sectional titles, then rallied to defeat St. Viator 21-25, 25-20, 25-22 to take the Class 3A Streamwood Supersectional and return to state.

Prairie Ridge finished fourth at the state tournament, bringing home the program’s fifth state trophy, and went 32-9 for the Wolves’ most wins since finishing 42-1 in 2005.

“Only 16 teams got to come here this weekend, and that’s a really big deal,” Groat said after a season-ending, three-set loss to Providence in the Class 3A state third-place match at Illinois State University’s CEFCU Arena. “These girls have a lot to be proud of for the season they had and everything they accomplished.”

For leading the Wolves back to Normal, Groat is the 2025 Northwest Herald Girls Volleyball Coach of the Year, as selected by the sports staff with input from area coaches. Hampshire’s Omar Cortez, Dundee-Crown’s Patty Langanis and Richmond-Burton’s Inger Freund also were considered.

Groat answered a few questions from the Northwest Herald about her first year as head coach, her favorite memories and more.

Is there a particular match or moment from this season you will remember most vividly?

Groat: I think the supersectional win was just so much fun, and I was so proud of the girls and so excited for them. I will absolutely always remember that. I think it was just so cool to see not just the girls on the court, but also the girls on the bench, so genuinely excited about what was happening. It was really special.

What was the biggest challenge this season?

Groat: I think the biggest challenge was how often our lineup changed with injuries, illnesses, wisdom tooth surgeries, everything. We felt like we made a new lineup every other match. And while it was definitely a challenge, I think it made us a more well-rounded team. Probably something that was actually a blessing in disguise.

What are some of your favorite hobbies?

Groat: I love to travel, and I love to read. Although that took a backseat during volleyball season.

What was last really good book you’ve read?

Groat: Dawn Staley has a book called “Uncommon Favor,” and I liked that just to get a female coach’s perspective on life and things.

What sports moment was so huge that you’ll always remember it?

Groat: The Cubs winning the (2016) World Series. My family are diehard Cubs fans, and we’ve had season tickets forever, so we’ve seen a lot of bad Cubs games, but we were lucky enough to be able to go to all three World Series games (at Wrigley Field).

What got you interested in coaching?

Groat: I always knew that I wanted to be a teacher and I wanted to work with kids, but I also always played sports and had really good experiences with my coaches. So I think knowing that I had really good mentors and people who impacted me positively, I wanted to try and do that for other kids. I’ve just always enjoyed being around sports, and I can’t imagine not having sports in my life.

Who are some of your coaching influences?

Groat: There’s so many. I’ve been lucky to have really awesome coaches as an athlete, but also to work with them. I think I worked with [Crystal Lake South volleyball coach] Jori Fontana for so long; there’s so many things that I learned from her. She’s absolutely influenced the way I coach. I think [boys soccer coach] Brian Allen at Crystal Lake South and [girls basketball coach] Tim Taege at Prairie Ridge, they’re just people that I’ve always kind of turned to for coaching advice, even when I was just coaching sophomore volleyball. I really think they do things the right way, and I try to mimic that as much as possible.

I’ve also always loved Duke, so Mike Krzyzewski, I’ve always admired him and how he ran his program.

Which player on your team made you laugh the most?

Groat: I think it kind of depends on the situation. I would say (junior) Tegan [Vrbancic] or (senior) Kaylin Bacak. If we just needed like a silly moment in practice, day to day, the Smith twins (Addi and Abby). And (junior) Sonora Bekere is like the most casually funny person on the team. She’ll just say hilarious things in the hall and walk right past me.

Who on the team is the unsung hero?

Groat: I think (senior) Abby Smith, really the second half of the season just turned everything up like 10 notches. She’s always been a great player, but she really became such a huge blocking presence for us on the right side, and I don’t know if she always got the recognition that some other players got or that maybe she deserved. I don’t think there’s a chance we would have gotten to where we got to without her this season.

What’s the coolest place you’ve ever visited?

Groat: I have gone to Patagonia in Argentina. I just went last winter break. We saw penguins and the sea lions, and were closer to Antarctica than we were to, really, like any other major city. That was probably the most unique and cool place.

What is something most people don’t know about you?

Groat: Probably that I used to take ballet classes. I was a big dancer for a long time.

If you could have dinner with three people from any time in history, who would they be?

Groat: I’m a Spanish teacher, so Selena Quintanilla, Ida B. Wells and Princess Diana.

What will you remember most about the season?

Groat: Our seniors were amazing. They really set the tone for how we were going to work in practice every day, and how we were going to compete in matches. The seven that we had are great volleyball players, and they’re unbelievable people. Of course, I’ll remember the postseason and all the success. Going back to state was incredible, and mostly as a group overall, I will just remember how resilient they were. Because there were things that happened throughout the year ... and every time there was a disappointment or setback or barrier, the next day we came into the gym, and they worked hard and moved past it. They were very resilient.