Garfield volleyball senior standout Madeline Shirkey is a four-year letterwinner and hit the 1,500 career assists milestone earlier this season.
Ben Coll/Special to Portage Sports

By Tom Nader

Publisher and Editor

Garfield senior volleyball standout Madeline Shirkey has hit assists milestones this season, both figuratively and literally.

And it is quite fitting.

In her four years as a starter for the G-Men, Shirkey has grown into the team leader by always putting the team first, building up the confidence of the players around her and by working harder than anyone else in the gym.

Figuratively, all act as characteristics that have been integral assists to Garfield’s overall success with a 14-4 overall record and 12-1 in the Mahoning Valley Athletic Conference.

Literally speaking, Shirkey’s assists surpassed a career milestone when she totaled her 1,500th assist of her career on Sept. 20 in a triumph at home against Campbell Memorial.

Shirkey’s assists total has ballooned to 1,645 in the weeks following the milestone.

And some of her other career numbers are impressive, as well, including 744 career digs, 155 career aces, 119 career blocks and holding the team-best in serve percentage the last two seasons.

Garfield senior volleyball standout Madeline Shirkey has been a starter since her freshman season, but she calls the 2022 G-Men the favorite high-school team she has played on.
Ben Coll/Special to Portage Sports

Garfield head coach Ali Korosec finds herself at the most perfect intersection she could ask for: Personality mixed with skill combined with leadership.

A formula that gives you The Shirkey Way.

“Madeline has been such a positive impact on our team,” Korosec said. “Since her freshman year, she has been a player who has worked hard at every practice and always sets a good example for her teammates. Madeline is not a player that is only concerned for herself. She is a very unselfish person and wants to help her teammates succeed on the court.”

It is a role that Shirkey has grown into over the last four seasons.

Admittedly, her freshman season was intimidating.

She played well and was repeatedly selected as a starter, but being the youngest starter on a team filled with seniors can create a difficult dynamic for a young player.

For Shirkey, it shook her confidence back and forth.

In addition to her setting ability, Madeline Shirkey has had the top serve percentage for the G-Men during the last two seasons.
Ben Coll/Special to Portage Sports

“The one thing that I think most people would tell you that’s different about me from my freshman year to now is my confidence level,” said Shirkey, who first started playing volleyball as a fifth-grader. “My freshman year, I was kind of thrown into themix with a bunch of seniors that had played together for years, which was really intimidating. I was always scared to make a mistake and didn’t always believe in myself — even though the people around me did. Since I was forced into a leadership role as an underclassmen, I have continued to grow as a leader on the court.”

Not only is Shirkey more relaxed and confident as a player, she also is the emotional balance for the G-Men.

She understands more than anyone what it feels like to be the underclassmen playing to not make a mistake, so she has worked hard to create a positive environment to eliminate any additional stress.

“I think being an underclassmen on varsity really helped shape me into the leader I am today, because I am able to understand the emotions some of the younger girls are going through,” Shirkey said, while also calling this year’s G-Men her “favorite team because everyone is genuinely happy for each other.”

“I try my best to assure them that it’s OK to make mistakes, because no one is perfect and no one expects them to be,” Shirkey said. I treat my teammates how I wish I would have been treated as a younger player and try my best to keep a positive attitude, which is so important because volleyball is such a mental game.”

And Shirkey has perfected the mental game.

Korosec has a front-row seat for every game to witness it.

“Madeline is so good at reading the court and communicating to her teammates a strategy that she may have,” Korosec said.

Consider it another assist for Shirkey.

And Korosec has one for her, too.

“I am so very proud of her. She is deserving of all the recognition she gets. She didn’t reach 1,500 assists by luck. She works very hard and earns all of her achievements,” Korosec said.

Madeline Shirkey (center) stands with her teammates after collecting career assist No. 1,500 during a victory over Campbell Memorial on Sept. 20.
Special to Portage Sports