JEFFERSON TWP — Skye Burkett is sometimes obscured in the long shadows of her all-state volleyball teammates at Knoch, Kennedy Christy and Hannah Rowe.

But Burkett has proven to be a star and a formidable force in her own right.

The senior, who splits her time on the court for the Knights between hitting and setting, showed just how impactful she can be when Christy and Rowe both went down with injuries in October.

Knoch continued to play well and won its third consecutive WPIAL championship.

Burkett was at the center of that surge.

“She's been solid for us,” said Knoch coach Diane Geist. “She gets overlooked a little bit, but she's one of the big hitters who kept us going when (Christy and Rowe) were out. We relied on her a lot.”

Burkett didn't shy away from the challenge.

Two years ago, Burkett was a complementary piece on Knoch's state championship team.

Last season, she had a breakout campaign with 194 kills, 356 digs and 61 aces — thanks to a potent and powerful jump serve.

In 2019, Burkett has raised her game higher.

“It's not easy being a setter and a hitter,” Geist said. “You have two jobs and two totally different responsibilities, but she's done both very well.”

Burkett enjoys her versatility on the court and what that means to her team.

Keeps things interesting, she said.

“I love it,” she said. “I know from playing at each position where they want it. I know where the pin-hitters want to hit it from. I know what's a good set, so I want to give it to them the best I can. It's exciting. If I'm off setting one day, I'm like, 'OK, I can make it up with my hitting.' When I become a setter, I'm a setter. When I'm at the front row, I'm like, 'Let's slam it.'”

Burkett has been quite adept at putting the ball on the floor, either at the net or with her serve.

She said her mood has a lot to do with whether she is “feeling it” during a match.

“When I'm excited and happy, that's when I do my best,” Burkett said. “When I'm like,” she paused to growl, “I don't play as well. I'm in my head a lot.”

That is particularly true when it comes to her complicated serve.

Burkett tosses the ball high in the air, jumps, and hits a sinking ball that confounds the best of opponents when it's on.

She's been working on a different spin on her high-risk, high-reward serve to prepare for the next level.

“I went to a college once and they said (my jump serve) isn't really used at the next level,” Burkett said. “They kind of said to use a jump-float.”

The only difference between Burkett's current serve and a jump-float is in the spin on the toss up and the way the serve reacts when screaming over the net. A jump-float serve moves from side to side as well as sinking.

“They said the toss serve is too predictable because all it does is go down,” Burkett said. “But when I'm on, I can get it to go down and sideways.”

To make sure she is on more than she's not, Burkett stays after practice to work on it.

“I'll crank 20 to see if I still have it in me,” Burkett said.

She hopes she and her teammates have another state championship run in them.

Last year, Knoch was 24-0 and on a 48-match winning streak when Warren beat them in the PIAA semifinal at Clarion High School.

“It was an awakening for us,” Burkett said. “Against Warren, that was crazy. The ceilings were so low and the whole gym was Warren fans. It messed with us. It was overwhelming for us. I think we have the mental capacity to handle it this year. We definitely learned a lot. I hate to say it, but I think we needed to lose to understand where we're at as a team. Since we had everyone back this year, it was a good realization for us.”

And now, with Christy and Rowe back and Burkett shining herself, Knoch has designs on another state title.

“I'm so proud of us as a team,” Burkett said. “Everyone has picked it up so much. It's been a very big team effort this year.”