The volleyball-fueled friendship between Chris Due and Jess Giles has deep roots.
As a 13-year-old, Giles, née Jess Admire, starred as the left-handed outside hitter for the Circle City Volleyball Club coached by Due. She then played the first three seasons of her high school career for Due at Franklin.
Together, Due and Giles won a pair of Johnson County tournament titles before their respective lives took them in different directions.
If both have their way, they’ll be on opposite sidelines Thursday evening for the championship match of this week’s county tournament. Three opening-round matches will be played tonight, with the semifinals and final at Edinburgh on Thursday.
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As the top seed, Center Grove, led by third-year coach Due, got a bye into the semis. The Trojans will face the winner of tonight’s match between Greenwood Christian and Indian Creek.
Giles, 23, the first-year Grizzly Cubs coach, is trying to lead her alma mater back to claim the title it won in 2012 and 2013 — the days when Giles was Franklin’s best player and Due its coach.
Not long ago, and yet so, so long ago.
“When I first met (Due), I’m like, ‘Whoa, there’s a whole side to volleyball that I didn’t know about,’” said Giles, whose squad is at Edinburgh today for a first-round match. “The strategy that was involved and just this skill level that I hadn’t seen.
“He was my coach longer than anybody else, and was my coach when I was transitioning into having to learn more.”
Giles incorporates many of the things she learned from Due into practices and matches alike.
Earlier this season, Franklin hosted Center Grove, with the visiting Trojans rallying for a 23-25, 26-24, 25-19, 25-22 victory. It allowed Due, 41, to be able to briefly walk down memory lane with young ladies that remain special to him.
Not only is Giles the Franklin head coach, she’s assisted by former Grizzly Cub teammates Tara Parmer, Caroline Rogers and Aubrey Curry.
“I wouldn’t necessarily call it weird. It was nice to reconnect and relive old memories as a coach and player,” Due said. “Most of her coaching staff played for me, so it was kind of a reunion of the days of me coaching at Franklin.
“I was very impressed with her team. They were disciplined on the court and made some great in-game adjustments.”
If another Center Grove-Franklin matchup doesn’t materialize this week, the teams could also meet at the Class 4A Franklin Central Sectional in a couple of weeks.
Much as she appreciates the positive role Due has played in her life the past decade, Giles hopes her players get another chance to compete against Center Grove.
“It was a respectful level of competition,” Giles said of the earlier loss to the Trojans. “(Due) was a good mentor to me when I was young and is still a coaching mentor to me today. But do I want to beat him? Absolutely.”
With a laugh, Giles adds, “And you can underline that. He knows how competitive I am.”
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Johnson County tournament
Today
Franklin at Edinburgh, 5:30 p.m.
Whiteland at Greenwood, 5:30 p.m.
Greenwood Christian at Indian Creek, 5:30 p.m.
Thursday
At Edinburgh
Semifinals
Franklin/Edinburgh winner vs. Whiteland/Greenwood winner, 5:30 p.m.
GCA/Indian Creek winner vs. Center Grove, 5:30 p.m.
Championship, 7 p.m.
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