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At 13 years old, Riley Hoffman wrote a note to Michigan Volleyball Academy club director Mayme Vlietstra, informing her that one day, she would play for the club’s 18 Black National team.

“For a kid to give that to a club director as a 13-year-old is bold,” Vlietstra said. 

The note, which Vlietstra keeps to this day, was accurate. In her senior year of high school, Hoffman played for the team she planned to join a half-decade prior.

Now as a setter at Syracuse, Hoffman’s 402 assists rank second on the Orange. After playing defensive specialist and libero as a freshman, Hoffman returned to the position, where she’s already seen a statistical improvement, she said. After averaging 16.1 assists per match during nonconference play in 10 games, Hoffman has since averaged over 20 assists in 12 matches against Atlantic Coast Conference opponents.

Hoffman knew from an early age that she wanted to play high level volleyball, her mother, Kathy, said, and Vlietstra presented Hoffman a list of requirements she’d have to fulfill in order to do so.

“You’re the first one to practice, you’re the last one to leave, you’re the shagger of balls, you’re the carrier of water, you’re going to spend your summers traveling around to different camps,” Kathy said. “Anything Mayme told her to do, Riley did it and it worked out.”

Mayme Vlietstra helped Riley Hoffman earn a spot in a Division-I program by giving her a list of requirements to consistently fulfill. Contributed by Kathy Hoffman

Listed at 5-foot-5, Hoffman’s often the shortest player on the court. Vlietstra knew Hoffman would have to make up for her height through other areas of the game. That meant having impeccable technical skill.

Through extensive focus work and repetition, Hoffman worked to perfect her technical skills not only for setting, but also defending and serving, Vlietstra said. During her entire career with MVA, Vlietstra doesn’t recall Hoffman ever missing an extra training session.

But coaches told Hoffman that she’d only be able to play at D-II or D-III programs solely because of her height. 

“It pissed me off,” Hoffman said. 

Shelby Horne, Hoffman’s varsity high school coach at Forest Hills Eastern (Michigan), was struck by her drive and tenacity, saying it’s truly rare “to find someone that will literally do whatever it takes to earn what she wants.” 

“If you had told her to go run five miles, she’d have run five miles,” Horne said.

Hoffman knew she needed to be good with her hands because of her height. She built wrist strength by setting a basketball against a wall. She also worked on her footwork repeatedly, including at home outside of practice.

SU relies on the setter’s play to function offensively, which she considers the position’s biggest challenge and one of its greatest appeals. 

“You have to turn a bad pass into a good set for the hitters. If you’re not playing your best, no one else on your team can play well,” Hoffman said. “It’s a lot of pressure, but that’s why you do it — you like the pressure.”

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Horne said the most memorable moment of Hoffman’s high school career was a decision she made for a teammate.

Forest Hills Eastern entered a match against its biggest rival with both teams undefeated. FHE’s libero had previously attended the rival school, but left “because of some unfortunate circumstances,” making it “really emotional” for her, Horne said. 

After dropping the first two sets, Forest Hills Eastern came back and found itself with match point. On the last point, Riley decided to set the ball for the libero, who scored the game-winning kill.

“Hitting is rarely a libero’s strong suit, but [Hoffman] set up her teammate, who did get the final kill of the game, and [there were] lots of tears that night,” Horne said. 

Horne said that while setting up a libero instead of an outside hitter is not a strategically sound move, it was the “best decision [Hoffman] could have made as a leader and as a teammate.” 

On that same play, Hoffman set the school’s single-game record for assists with 54, beating the previous record of 53.

Published on November 2, 2022 at 12:35 am

Contact Spencer: spgoldst@syr.edu