It's August 2023 and the volleyball net is set up and ready to go. The sharp slaps of spikes and the echoing pops of serves bounce off the gym walls at Solon High School.
For many, the start of volleyball season is a fresh start, but for Izzy Frees it was the prelude of a nine-month recovery process. Frees, a setter, leaped for a hit, landed with her left leg locked and heard a pop.
An MRI later revealed a tear in her left ACL. The season-ending setback forced her to start a new routine: two days a week in physical therapy that proved to be a challenge.
"It's a pretty brutal process and there were days that I did cry," Frees said. "It got a little bit dark sometimes and not a lot of people understand how surgery is and recovery after surgery."
For Frees, volleyball was out of the question. But softball, which started in April, was still very much in the mix. In addition to support from her family and friends, she found motivation in a podcast featuring Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson.
"He talked about how you have to remember the dark times to motivate yourself to be grateful for the good times," Frees said. "I still listen to that probably twice a week when I'm in the car or wherever I need to."
Frees used that podcast as her daily source of inspiration. It strengthened her mental game during a season in which she's gained more confidence on the field.
The Solon junior leads the team in hits (50) and has 34 runs and 19 RBIs while hitting .388/.444/.527 in 40 games. Her 18 stolen bases are ranked first on the team.
"You would not have known that she had knee surgery," said Solon coach Brad Holub. "I think there's a real feel of, 'I'm a better hitter than you are a pitcher, let's see.' So she steps into the batter's box; she has a little swagger."
Known as a versatile player, Frees − who was a utility player and pitcher last year − played center field for most of the season and then held down shortstop in the last few weeks. She earned first-team all-conference honors in the WaMaC East.
"The team is very unselfish ... (Izzy) went to shortstop because it was best for the team," Holub said. "She's one of those kids that's going to lead by example all the time and leave it all on the field."
A season turnaround
The Spartans didn't look like a state tournament team in the middle of the season. An injury bug trickled down the lineup, which included a season-ending injury to freshman star Maddyn Gates, who was off to a strong start in 14 games.
After a 12-3 loss to Benton on June 17, the Spartans dropped to 8-14 and endured a 10-game losing skid in the middle of the season.
But the team's confidence never wavered.
"Even though we were in a losing streak, we weren't really letting it affect us," Frees said. "It sucked, but at the same time we were just like, 'We're still a good team, it's where we end not where we start.'"
Similar to Frees' comeback from an ACL injury, the team battled to keep its season alive when it mattered most down the stretch.
"Me and Addie (Miller) told the team, 'Once regionals come, it's 0-0. Anybody can go to state, it doesn't matter what your record is,'" Frees said. "One of the big messages that we tried to get through to the younger girls is to don't take anything for granted, go 100% on every play.
"I think this season, more than any season, we've seen how easily you can get an injury and how easy you can be out for a whole season, so you never know when today is going to be your last play."
After dropping their last five games of the regular season, the team flipped the script in regional competition, beating Vinton-Shellsburg (12-27), West Liberty (21-11) and Center Point-Urbana (16-19) to clinch its first state berth since 2016.
The 8-seeded Spartans (18-24) will be the underdogs against 1-seed Benton (31-7) in the Class 3A state quarterfinals on Tuesday. The teams split a doubleheader in the regular season.
When asked what she's most excited about, Frees said she's looks forward to embracing the state tournament energy and taking the field with her teammates.
"Even though we've had a lot of things go on this season, I think our best accomplishment has been how close we've stayed together," Frees said. “I’ve never had a team with this chemistry."
Marc Ray is the high school sports reporter for the Iowa City Press-Citizen. He can be reached at MARay@gannett.com, and on X, formerly Twitter, at @themarcszn.
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