There were times prior to this fall’s volleyball season when Lyman Memorial senior outside hitter Helen Megson wanted to grouse about how the COVID-19 pandemic was going to ruin things for her and her teammates.

Megson refused to do it, though. That’s not what leaders do.

“At first that’s all you wanted to do was complain about it,” Megson said. “‘Oh, we’re not getting anything that we’re supposed to.’ After a while, you kind of get sick of it and you just want to take what you have and make the best with what you have. That was kind of what my mindset was for the whole season.

“Yeah, I can sit here and complain about it all day, but let’s take what I have and make it a good season because it’s what I have.”

Megson’s value to Lyman Memorial had as much to do with wanting to be a positive leader as it had to do with her being one of the greatest players in program history. Both are why she’s The Day’s 2020 All-Area Volleyball Player of the Year.

“What I wanted to do was,” Megson said, “and I know this is kind of corny, kind of find a way to not complain and not take my season for granted because you never knew when it was going to shut down or when you weren’t going to be able to play again.

“One of my bigger goals was to be a role model on the court. I kind of wanted to be that person that someone always looks to to find guidance or get support. I always tried to reach out to people as much as I could."

Lyman head coach Amanda Nappi said: “I’m 31 and I’m not sure if I handled the season (well) as far as my own frustrations and I give the kids a lot of credit for being so mature and handling everything with such grace, even if inside they didn’t feel that way. But from the outside looking in, I think they really stepped up. Their maturity and ability to have a good attitude was tremendous.”

A three-time Connecticut High School Coaches' Association all-state recipient, Megson averaged 15 kills per match this year with 24 aces for the Bulldogs (9-0), who didn't lose a game. She also became the first player in program history to have 1,000-or-more career kills (1,017), even with a shortened senior season.

Megson has been a four-year starter for Lyman. She played as a middle hitter her freshman year and played alongside her older sister, Marina, then a senior and also a middle hitter ("It was a very cool experience," Helen Megson said). She moved to outside hitter as a sophomore and began playing the full rotation later that season. She also helped Lyman win CIAC Class S championships as a sophomore and junior and was the MVP of the 2019 state final.

“Helen has been a strong leader for Lyman for a number of years,” Waterford head coach Matt Maynard said. “You could tell even her sophomore year that she was something special. Last year and this year, additionally, she has really put it all together and is a complete player.”

Megson and her fellow seniors also helped the development of sophomore Kassidy LaTour, who became the starting setter after the graduation of Indigo Hevner.

“Her role with helping develop Kassidy as a young setter on the court is huge, supporting her, working with her, communicating back and forth (with her),” Nappi said. “She’s mild-mannered. Just a good kid, but I’d say this year she stepped up a little bit and took on the leadership role as a senior in a very weird year where we needed a lot of leadership, good role-modeling, from our upper classmen.

“Helen was important because, again, she’s such a talented player. She’s had so much recognition. She’s been so successful. For her to come in with an attitude that we’re not going to treat this season any different than any other season, we’re going to work hard every single day as if we’re still playing for a championship at the end, we’re going to try to improve, I’m going to be a great teammate, I’m going to create a good positive culture on the court, she made her teammates feel supported.”

n.griffen@theday.com