'A generational talent': Family, teammates drive Dublin Scioto volleyball star Alec Rothe
Even with some time remaining in her senior season — about six weeks if Dublin Scioto makes the Division I state tournament — Alec Rothe fights back tears when she reflects on her high school volleyball career.
Coach Jackie Wilson does the same when thinking about Rothe's accomplishments and what she means to the Irish.
In Wilson's words, Rothe is “a generational talent” as an athlete and as a leader. Rothe has committed to Florida and already has U.S. national team experience, but when she plays for Scioto, her focus always is on the team.
“I’m going to miss my family that I have here at Scioto,” Rothe said. “Our program is really close as you can tell since I’m crying. Every single year I’ve been here — when I played with my sisters (Ashleigh and Karleigh), it was actual family, and with everyone else on the team, we got really close. Through the good times and the hard times, we stuck together. You don’t mess with Scioto volleyball because we’re a family.”
As the leader of that family when it takes the court, Rothe hopes to help Scioto win its first state championship. The Irish (17-0, 10-0 OCC-Capital) are pursuing their fifth consecutive league title and are ranked seventh in the Ohio High School Volleyball Coaches Association Division I state poll.
“I’d love to add a state championship,” Rothe said as she pointed to the girls volleyball banner hanging in the gymnasium. “It’s possible.”
A 6-foot-3 middle hitter, Rothe is Scioto's career leader in kills and blocks, with 1,160 and 236, respectively, entering Thursday's match against Canal Winchester. Last season, she was named OCC-Capital Player of the Year, first-team all-district and second-team all-state.
“Athletically, she’s super talented,” Wilson said. “(She’s) a generational talent. I don’t expect to have another Alec Rothe come through the gym, but it’s the leadership. She talks about culture. I’d like to take credit for some of that, but it’s really about kids like her setting the tone in practice and setting expectations for kids.”
For Rothe, those principles started with her family.
She began her prep career as a three-sport athlete, also playing basketball and lacrosse for Scioto, but left the girls lacrosse program after her sophomore season.
During her freshman year, she was able to play on the same volleyball, basketball and lacrosse teams with her twin sisters, Ashleigh and Karleigh, who were seniors at the time.
“The girls are super athletic,” Wilson said. “I love multisport athletes, but also just really great people. They’re fun to be around. They’re always in the gym. They’re just everything you’d want in a student-athlete and more.”
Ashleigh and Karleigh are in their junior years as lacrosse players at Grand Valley State in Allendale, Michigan.
“It’s fun to see her successful and see her put the work in,” Karleigh said of Alec. “We all have different work ethics, but all of us are very competitive with each other. We drive to be the best of the best. From our family standpoint and our standpoint, we want to be a good human being, a good player and a good teammate.”
“I always brag about her whenever I can,” Ashleigh said. “I’m thrilled for every success she has. I’m so excited to see her play at Florida. I hope I had a little impact on her journey. I can’t say I take any or all credit, but I hope I had a little.”
The sisters credit their parents, Eugen and Darcee, for their success in athletics and in the classroom. Alec has a 4.23 GPA and will graduate in December so she can get a jump on her freshman season at Florida.
She also has been selected to compete in the 2024 Under Armour All-America girls volleyball game Jan. 2 in Orlando, Florida.
“If it weren’t for my parents, none of this would have ever happened,” Alec Rothe said. “They are so hardworking for my sisters and I and they’ve sacrificed so much, and they’ve poured so much love and energy and support into my sisters and I.”
Rothe’s success in volleyball has given her the opportunity to compete at the international level. She played for the U.S. in the International Volleyball Federation Women's U21 World Championship, which was held Aug. 17-26 in Mexico, but saw limited time after spraining her right ankle. The U.S. went on to finish sixth.
Her ultimate goal is to represent the U.S. in the Olympics.
“The national team has definitely helped me elevate as a player,” she said. “Being in that environment and playing at that level, you can’t replicate that anywhere else. Going through experiences, whether I had great success or great failure, it has helped me expedite my growing process. I still have a lot of room to grow.
“I think about the Olympics all the time. I want to go to the earliest one possible. I’m not picky about when I go to the Olympics. I just want to be there someday. That’s definitely the goal.”
Since she is graduating early, Rothe will have a limited girls basketball season for Scioto. Her final game will be Dec. 22 against Franklin Heights.
Last winter, she was first-team all-league and honorable mention all-district.
“She has a lot of influence on all the student-athletes in the building,” basketball coach Jermaine Hester said. “Her presence makes a huge difference for our basketball team just being there in practice. She’s such a student of the game. (She) will help our younger kids (until) ... she enrolls at Florida.”
When Rothe discusses the Gators, it sounds like she’s talking about her family or her Scioto teammates.
“Florida just felt right,” she said. “The biggest thing for me when I was in the recruiting process was having a good coaching staff, a good culture, a good environment. Obviously, I want to win and do all those big things, but I want to be around good people. (Florida coach) Mary Wise and her coaching staff and the players that she recruits are the epitome of good people.”
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio high school volleyball star Alec Rothe is 'generational talent'
