Alex Johnson had to think about the question for a few seconds — and not because she didn't know the answer. Truthfully, it seemed as if Johnson was trying to decide how her answer might be perceived by others before she spoke.

She was asked to help describe the shot that has made her one of the state's top volleyball players and helped her Leon High team to today's Region 1-5A title game at Gainesville Eastside. Johnson, a 6-foot tall outside hitter, has perfected the art of looking one way while she's hitting the ball the other way.

It's the volleyball equivalent of a no-look pass — and it's something that has college recruiters from the SEC, ACC and Division I schools all over the country following Johnson.

"They call it a 'D-I shot,'" Johnson said, trying to hold back a smile.

And it is one of many shots that has made Johnson one of the best volleyball players in Tallahassee history.

Johnson, a first-team All-Big Bend selection as a sophomore, leads the Lions in kills. She attacks the ball each night by digging into what Leon coach Joy Becker calls a "bag of tricks." And, somehow, Johnson always seems to find a way to get the key points that have pushed Leon one step away from another trip to the state finals.

On a team that has plenty of big hitters, Johnson said she knows there are times when her teammates look to her to deliver. That's when Johnson is at her best.

"You just know," Johnson said. "You can feel it and you get that adrenaline rush."

One of those moments came last Tuesday against Niceville in the regional semifinals. In the first set, the Niceville setter snuck a dink shot over Johnson for a point. Twice more that night, the setter tried the same shot. And Johnson smothered both efforts by somehow reaching back — in mid-air — with her left hand and smacking the ball just inside the line for Leon points.

"It's like she said, 'You're not doing that again,'" Becker said. "That's the fire she's got running inside of her. It's amazing to watch."

Johnson's best hits aren't confined to the Leon gym. She's a three-time member of Team Florida and has tried out the past two years for age-specific U.S. junior national teams. Becker thinks Johnson has a shot at making the 16-under team this year.

Strip away all the big kills — there have been more than 400 of them this season — and Becker says there is something even more dynamic to Johnson's all-around game.

"She's a great player. She's big-time," Becker said. "But yet she gives energy to every other kid out there. She'll be the first one to pop a kid on the butt for a good play. She'll pop up the other players and you'll hear her say, 'great pass, great shot,' and things like that.

"When you have your top player like that giving energy to everyone else, it's special."

By Jim Lamar • DEMOCRAT SPORTS EDITOR • November 15, 2008