Lewis’ Michael Sack committed while driving home from Tulsa, then went to Portillo’s to celebrate. ‘I have yet to regret it.’

Michael Sack wasn’t destined to play men’s volleyball at Lewis, but it was pretty close.

His parents both went to Lewis. His father, Mike, was a criminal justice major. His mother, Beth, played women’s basketball and majored in business administration.

But the 6-foot-9 Sack had some choices. The Oak Lawn native and St. Laurence graduate spent his share of time on the phone in 2018 during the recruiting process.

“I was fortunate to be talking to schools all around the country,” Sack said. “Whether it was schools out in California, the Midwest, the East Coast.”

The Midwest won out as his final three choices were Lewis, Ball State and Lindenwood.

Any influence from the parents?

“They wanted me to make my choice,” Michael said. “They definitely gave me their recommendations and what they thought. But at the end of the day, if I wanted to make a different choice, they still would have supported me 100%.”

It was Aug. 12, 2018, on his birthday, that he took a long drive home from a USA Volleyball training camp in Tulsa and made his final decision.

“I had to call the other coaches on the way home and that was tough,” Sack said. “Then when I came home, I gave (coach Dan Friend) the call and told him I was committing to Lewis.”

After getting home from the trip and making a few more phone calls, Sack recalled going to Portillo’s for a celebratory meal.

“That was a nice treat,” Sack said. “It was a tough decision but a very cool experience. And it was a special place in my mom’s heart, knowing her son was going to Lewis.

“At the end of the day, Lewis was my best choice and I have yet to regret it.”

Even though he redshirted in the 2020 season and played in just one match in 2021, the junior middle hitter has been on fire so far for the Flyers (6-5).

He has a hitting percentage of .435 with 41 kills on 69 attempts. Last season, he hit at a red-hot .373 clip with 102 kills in 27 matches.

However, Sack said he was never that accurate in high school when he played four years of varsity for St. Laurence.

“That’s a big no — I struggled a lot in high school,” he said. “I definitely didn’t have the same level of experience and confidence as I do now just as a person and as a player.”

Friend knew there would be some fine-tuning but had a hunch it would pay off in the long run.

“We knew we could bring Mike in and we could train him,” Friend said. “We don’t always know we’re going to redshirt a guy, but we planned on it for Mike.

“We knew he could make an impact with us for those two or three years, and that’s what he is doing.”

Lewis, an NCAA Division II school, plays on the Division I level in men’s volleyball. While the No. 14 Flyers are usually nationally ranked and considered to be a powerhouse, they have been up and down this season.

Lewis begins its Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association schedule Thursday with a road match against No. 8 Ball State, which reached the national semifinals in 2022.

Friend is counting on players such as Sack to get the Flyers back into a winning groove.

“He’s a South Side kid, and we’ve had some great ones in terms of those families and those kids,” Friend said of Sack. “And we know they have a good track record.”

Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.