Giorgia Civita was Wichita State’s centerpiece on the defensive side of the net last volleyball season. She recorded a career-high 42 digs against Tulsa a year ago, which is good enough for third most in program history for a five-set match. She also broke the 40-dig mark in the team’s second match against the Golden Hurricane.

Civita instantly became a star for Chris Lamb and his team. She also reached the 1,000 dig mark faster than anyone in school history.

The Italian superstar was set to be the centerpiece for the Shockers yet again this year on defense. But that was before a knee injury halted Civita’s junior campaign this summer, ending her season before she was even able to step foot onto the court for a match.

With the Shockers just 11 days away from their opening match against Holy Cross, the question arises: Who on the team is replacing Civita?

Kara Bown, senior

Bown started at libero for WSU during Saturday’s home exhibition match against Kansas. After the match, Lamb made a statement revealing that the starting lineup against the Jayhawks was the “probable” lineup that would be used going forward.

Against Kansas, Bown recorded 11 digs in the afternoon. She played just two sets as libero before moving to a regular back row position after freshman Arianna Arjomand took over as the defensive specialist.

In 2018, Bown appeared in 103 sets for WSU, recording 189 digs which was good for a .944 receiving percentage and third best on the team behind Civita and now-graduate Tabitha Brown. She had just 16 receiving errors all season.

Arianna Arjomand, freshman

Arjomand was the only other libero that saw playing time during the team’s lone exhibition match. She replaced Brown after two sets, playing the final three as libero.

Against the Jayhawks, Arjomand recorded a team-high 13 digs, and had one receiving error. From the lineups in the exhibition, Arjomand, at the moment, is the team’s backup moving forward.

The freshman from Florida helped her high school team to a state title in 2017, and was selected as team captain in 2018.

Other candidates

Lamb has two other options at libero, just in case the injury plague hits the team like it did a year ago, in Lily Liekweg and Shea Lauria.

Liekewg, a freshman from Iowa, played in three sets for WSU against KU. She recorded five digs with no errors.

Lauria, another freshman from Wisconsin, played just one set against the Jayhawks after struggling to find any rhythm. She didn’t record a dig and had one receiving error.