Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

SOLON – Elly Holubar has many of the traits required to be a great rebounder.

Quickness, toughness and leaping ability are all qualities that Holubar shares with plenty of players that lead their teams in rebounding.

The one most noticeable characteristic often associated with top rebounders – size – is the one that Holubar doesn’t possess.

Listed at 5-foot-7 Holubar doesn’t exact fit the description of what you expect from one of the best rebounders in Class 4A.

That lack of height only makes what Holubar has done more impressive.

The Solon senior has emerged as one of the best program history at tracking down missed shots and last week collected the 500^th rebounder of her career.

“There have only been six people to ever get 500 rebounds here and you are talking about one of the most storied programs in the whole state,” Solon coach Jamie Smith said. “She is in good company.”

Looking at the lineup for Solon Holubar doesn’t exactly stand out as the favorite to lead the team in rebounding.

At 5-7 she is the second shortest player in the Spartan’s starting lineup.

That lack of height hasn’t stopped Holubar from becoming one of the most prolific rebounders in program history.

“With my height it wasn’t something that came easily, as coach always tells us it’s just wanting to get the ball, it’s wanting to get the rebound,” Holubar said. “It’s a motto you live by every day that’s a desire to want the ball.”

After grabbing five rebounds in a win over Dyersville Beckman on Friday Holubar now has 505 rebounds in her career and is averaging 7.5 rebounds per game during her four-year varsity run.

Holubar has led Solon in rebounding each of the past three seasons and is averaging 8.6 rebounds per game over that span.

“She is very smart, she follows the ball better on the release than any high school player I have every had,” Smith said. “Probably more than anything at 5-foot-7 you have to want to do it and she wants to. She wants those rebounds and I think she has done a heck of a job rebounding the basketball.”

Despite a perceived lack of size Holubar honed in on rebounding early as her way to make a difference on the court.

Surrounded by talented offensive players Holubar found a role as a rebounder.

“After just a few high school games I realized I could be a good rebounder and we have a lot of people that can make offensive stuff happen,” Holubar said. “I just took that role and ran with it because that was my thing. I was proud of it and to me points didn’t matter as much as long as I got rebounds and I was satisfied with.”

Holubar didn’t just accept the role she ran with it.

She averaged 8.9 rebounds per game as a sophomore and saw that number jump to 9.4 rebounds per game last season as a junior.

This season Holubar is averaging 6.4 rebounds per game while helping Solon to a 7-5 start that includes a current four-game winning streak.

“I knew from the get-go that rebounds would probably be my thing because points didn’t come easily for me, that’s just how it was,” Holubar said. “I worked hard at it and realized what it takes. You have to have good position, you have to be able to jump but you have to just fight for it. It’s that mental toughness that you have to get the ball or you have to be tougher.”

Career rebound number 500 game in the first game of 2022 in a win over West Delaware.

It was a feeling of accomplishment,” Holubar said. “It was a great feeling to know what I’m doing matters to help our team.”

Holubar is also averaging 2.8 points per game on 42 percent shooting this season and has scored 305 career points.

“I don’t care who the kid is everyone wants to score more but she knows what her job is on the court and that’s rebound and do some of the dirty stuff and pin some girls when she knows that she isn’t going to get the ball and that’s hard to do,” Smith said. “That’s hard to do when you know you are only going to get a few points but she does it and she does it super well.”

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