You can’t have a high school career come full circle much better than Stagg senior Abbi Lujano.

When the feisty libero helped lead the host Chargers to a Class 4A regional win over Richards, it set up a challenging and exciting experience.

Stagg will play at 5 p.m. Thursday for the regional title against Mother McAuley.

Lujano played at McAuley as a freshman before transferring to Stagg for her sophomore year. Thursday will mark the first time she will be on the opposite side of the net.

“Yeah, it’s going to be special,” Lujano said. “I’m absolutely excited, and I’m ready for it.”

She didn’t miss a beat Tuesday night for the Chargers in a 25-10, 25-23 victory.

Katy Zumerchik tallied 10 kills for Stagg (12-18). Tylar Bumsted added eight kills, while Karolina Stonkus contributed four aces.

Mia Albon led Richards (15-13) with three aces. Emily Chavosky had five assists and two aces, while Kailey Moore made seven digs.

Lujano was a standout on defense for Stagg with five digs and 11 good serve receives. But she also contributed at the service line and provided seven points, including four aces.

“I feel like I have very consistent serves,” Lujano said. “They aren’t necessarily powerful, but I’m very good at aiming them. I feel that consistency wins games.”

Lujano didn’t just change schools when she transferred to Stagg. She also changed positions.

When she played on the freshman B team at McAuley, Lujano was an outside hitter.

A 5-foot-3 outside hitter.

“Yeah, I was pretty short, but I could get up there,” Lujano said, laughing. “I thought I was pretty good as an outside hitter.

“When I came here, I said, ‘Hey, maybe I should try to play back row. It seems pretty fun.’ So I did and I made varsity my first year.”

The decision to leave McAuley had nothing to do with unhappiness.

“It was a really fun experience at McAuley,” Lujano said. “It was just the closeness to Stagg. I have always lived by Stagg. It’s a two-minute drive from where I live.”

One of the first to greet her for the Chargers was another sophomore, Ella Debow.

“Abbi and I were the only two sophomores to make the varsity,” DeBow said. “So we kind of had that immediate bond with each other. It was really nice to have someone who was going through the same process.”

Lujano would also meet someone else who had been there and done that.

Stagg’s new varsity coach that season was Peggy Clemens, who herself was a former player at Mother McAuley.

“That was also nice, knowing the coach had experienced something similar,” Lujano said. “She knew where I went because she went there, too. Plus, it was our first year here for both of us.”

Clemens was more than happy with the new addition.

“I was definitely excited because that was my alma mater as well,” Clemens said. “I knew what their program (at McAuley) was all about. I was excited knowing Abbi would come in ready to work, and that’s exactly what she did.”

Lujano stepped up immediately as one of the team leaders on defense.

Her best match as a sophomore came in the last one against Shepard, when she made 11 digs.

“The whole thing was a real crazy experience,” Lujano said. “For one thing, I went from being at an all-girls school to being here. And I went from being on a freshman B team to being on the varsity. But I think I handled it well.”

This season, she has 159 digs as a stalwart on serve receive and defense, and she’s what Bumsted calls “our hype girl.”

“She means so much to this team,” Bumsted said. “She brings such a positive energy. We have our little ways of getting excited and she’s always hyping us up.”

And now at 5-4, she’s standing tall in the back row.

“I never wanted to play back row because I thought volleyball was all about hitting the ball and scoring the point,” Lujano said, smiling. “But then I found out how enjoyable it was defending the court.

“It’s so much more fun when someone’s hitting and you steal their highlight.”

Tony Baranek is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.