Valencia’s latest Ker lives up to the hype

Jamey Ker knows how to have a good time. Anyone who has seen the Valencia outside hitter’s infectious smile or clicked on his MySpace page realizes there’s more to Ker than his reputation as one of the state’s top volleyball players.

“Jamey is a really fun guy to hang around with,” said Valencia teammate Jim Baughman, who’s known Ker since preschool. “But there’s also a serious side to him when he’s out on the court.”

Unfortunately, for those on the other side of the net, they’ve been subjected to the serious version of Ker – the one looking to lead the Vikings to their fourth Southern Section-Toyota Division II title in six years.

Valencia (31-2) entered the season ranked as the nation’s top team by StudentSportsVolleyball.com, and Ker, who is headed to UCLA this fall, is expected to play a prominent role in helping the top-seeded Vikings return to the division championship game.

Valencia won its first-round match Thursday, sweeping Irvine. Ker had 11 consecutive point-earning serves against the Vaqueros. On Tuesday, the Vikings play host to Villa Park at 7 p.m. in a second-round game.

Ker has averaged slightly more than 11 kills and eight digs this season, and his on-court leadership has helped senior teammates Jake Piva (UC Santa Barbara) and Baughman (Long Beach State) develop into top players.

“He’s obviously one of the best players in the nation and a great team leader,” Baughman said. “He’s really competitive and he has the ability to make everybody play even harder.”

Ker says it’s not easy accepting that he’s the standout player on a roster filled with standout players, but he hasn’t let the pressure bother him. After all, he’s a member of a family that has volleyball running through its veins.

Ker is the youngest of three brothers who have played at Valencia, and his siblings have gone on to become standouts at UCLA. His oldest brother, Tony, is a three-time collegiate All-American libero and Kevin is the starting setter for the Bruins.

Each of the older Ker brothers won two divisional championships while at Valencia and Tony was a member of the Bruins’ 2006 national championship squad.

Their father, Walt, started the men’s volleyball program at Cal State Northridge, where he coached the men’s team from 1976-84 and the women’s team from 1977-1993. Their mother, Cathy, was an All-American for the Matadors in the late 1970s with her future husband as her coach.

Ker said he admires the accomplishments of his brothers and parents, but adds he doesn’t feel as if he has to prove he’s better than anyone.

“I just try to have fun and play my game,” he said.

As a result, Walt Ker, who is currently a volunteer assistant to Coach Al Scates at UCLA, believes his youngest son has developed an unmatched passion for the sport, adding that Jamey “loves” volleyball while his other sons merely “like” it.

“Of the three, I think he’s the one who’s been the most willing to do the most work,” said Walt, who is also coach of Jamey’s Santa Clarita Synergy club team. “Each one has his own approach to the game, but Jamey is always talking about it and he loves competing… . It’s his life.”

Kevin echoes his father’s assessment of Jamey’s approach to the sport.

“He definitely is more into it than we are,” Kevin said. “I get pumped up and excited, but only in the really big matches. Jamey gets excited for every match, no matter who they’re playing.”

Walt says further proof of Jamey’s passion for volleyball came when he was told last year by UCLA coaches he should improve his grade-point average in order to enhance his chances for admission. Though he had other scholarship offers and had scored well on his college entrance exams, Ker wasn’t going to let his grades keep him from playing for the Bruins.

He earned a 3.0 in the first half of his senior year and is expecting another 3.0 or higher when grades are posted at the end of this semester.

“I had to get it done,” he said. “I just told myself, ‘You got to do it, you got to do it,’ and, thankfully, I got it taken care of.”

Ker understands the challenges of school, volleyball and life aren’t going away.

UCLA wants him to play libero, though he has little experience at the position. If he improves on his kill and block averages, perhaps the Bruins will give the 6-foot-2 Ker a chance up front. He also knows schoolwork isn’t going to be any easier at UCLA.

But all of that can wait. For now, Ker is focused on helping Valencia to another team title.

“He brings a lot of experience and he exceeds our expectations,” said Valencia Coach Mark Knudsen, a former UCLA volleyball player who has guided the Vikings to 72 consecutive Foothill League victories and eight league titles in a row.

“I, as well as all of his teammates, have a lot more confidence when he’s on the court.”

 austin.knoblauch@latimes.com