Jul 2, 2024 2 min read

Luke Bockius grew up wanting to play football.

His athleticism, however, works perfectly in volleyball.

During his junior season, Luke Bockius helped the Big Macs make program history by advancing to the WPIAL semifinals and PIAA quarterfinals in Class 3A.

Bockius’ outstanding play was enough to attract the attention of Division I coaches and he committed to Saint Francis University in Loretto last fall, prior to his senior season, but he had to step up in the leadership role for the Big Macs with right-side hitter Owen Ostrowsk, last year’s MVP, lost to graduation.

Bockius dominated play this year by recording 267 kills, 139 digs, 30 aces and 27 blocks and was named the Big Macs’ team MVP.

The outside hitter, who played in both the front and back row for coach Sheila Mitchell at Canon-McMillan, earned honorable mention all-state honors and was on the All-WPIAL first team and All-Section squad.

Bockius was a four-year starter for Canon-McMillan and played for the A-10 Club volleyball team.

With Bockius leading the way, the Big Macs won the Section 1 championship with a 10-0 record and defeated Central Catholic, 3-2, in the first round of the WPIAL playoffs before losing to North Allegheny in the quarterfinals to finish the season with a 14-3 record.

Bockius will play libero for the Red Flash, but he said when he announced his commitment in October that he could move to the outside if he can increase his vertical jump. He was also impressed with the family environment at Saint Francis and the honesty of the volleyball coach, who has the list of starters on the board in the locker room that allows the players to see where they stand in the depth chart.

Bockius plans to study civil or mechanical engineering in college.