It’s pretty eye-opening to watch Lincoln-Way Central junior Mia Mattingly take an overpass and drive it straight to the floor.

She definitely digs it, even though the defense can’t.

“Oh, I love overpasses,” Mattingly said. “I love just slamming them down.”

It’s more entertaining, though, to watch her get creative with wayward sets to the middle.

Mattingly was at her improvisational best at one point in Wednesday’s 25-17, 25-16 nonconference victory over host Richards.

During one sequence in Game 2, Mattingly received a set that was well below the top of the net. She managed to knuckle the ball up and over.

After a return by Richards, she got the ball again. Only this time it was well above the net. Seemingly well above her 6-foot-1 frame.

Somehow, she reached the ball and tipped it to the floor for a kill.

“It’s just being aggressive and wanting the ball and wanting to score,” Mattingly said. “Working with sophomore setters is up and down. But we work super hard on connections every day with tons of sets.

“I’m really proud of them. They got pulled up, just like I did when I was young. It’s nerve-wracking but exciting, all at the same time.”

Mattingly had four kills for Lincoln-Way Central (11-8). Carli Udovich led with six kills, while Nicole Connolly added six digs and three aces and setters Kiera King and Alyssa Teske each had eight assists.

Tara Glynn landed six kills for Richards (8-11). Lizzie Hedderman contributed six aces, while Meghan Mallo had 10 assists.

Mattingly has clearly established herself as a force in the

middle this season for the Knights with 77 kills and 24 blocks.

Lincoln-Way Central coach Mary Brown was extremely happy to see Mattingly come through the school’s doors for her freshman year.

Or, as it happened, get out of a car.

“Her mom and dad had called and said that she was coming in as a freshman,” Brown said. “They said they wanted to come in and view the gym and take a look around the school. I said to myself, ‘Well, I’m kind of busy. But OK, I will, just to be nice.’

“Then when she got out of the car and I saw her height, I thought, ‘I’d be happy to take her around the school.’ ”

Mattingly, who spent most of her grammar school years in Chicago, was relatively new to the area.

“I didn’t know exactly where I was going to go to high school, between public and Catholic,” Mattingly said. “When I met her and we walked around and I went to summer camp for my incoming freshman year, I was really excited.

“Coach Brown is an awesome lady and this is an awesome program. When I walked in, I was like, ‘That’s where I want to be.’ ”

Mattingly played most of her freshman year on the sophomore team. She joined the varsity in the spring.

“Mia takes the sport very seriously,” Brown said. “She’s passionate about it. She works really hard, works out on her own. She’s terrific, that’s what I would say about her.”

Teske appreciates Mattingly’s versatility.

“It’s definitely crazy seeing her being able to work with everything,” Teske said. “She’s very active and moves a lot, so it’s easy to give her the ball. I know she’ll get there, get it up and get us the point.”

Teske, who along with King was brought up near the end of the spring season, has expanded her setting skills to include hitting.

In Wednesday’s match, she had four kills.

“Yeah, it’s very exciting to do that,” Teske said. “I get a lot of confidence from it because I know my teammates are putting their trust in me. It’s really nice to be that active on the court.”