Nine Performances This Club Season To Remember
I’ve made my way around the Midwest to say the least to cover club volleyball for Prep Dig states which include Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nebraska, and our new state, Missouri. I’ve seen players who will be playing on ESPN,…
Access all of Prep Dig
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingI’ve made my way around the Midwest to say the least to cover club volleyball for Prep Dig states which include Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Nebraska, and our new state, Missouri. I’ve seen players who will be playing on ESPN, Big Ten Network, and on that same court are players making an impact who will be big time contributors at the NAIA, D3, and D2 level. There is a place for everyone. With May being a bit of a slower month when it comes to competition, it’s a great time to look back at the season and think about some top performances by individuals and teams that really standout among others.
Hayden Kubik and CIS at Triple Crown
The stage was huge with Division 1 college coaches you typically see on the major networks there to watch CIS take the court against Skyline, one of the top programs in Texas. The underdogs out of Des Moines had already advanced higher than their seed and everything would be icing on the cake. They sure had a lot of icing making their way to the championship against Nebraska Premier 15 Gold. Kubik, the 6’1 outside hitter for CIS made a major statement to the country as one of the top Class of 2022 outside hitters with her ability to terminate, block, and serve receive among the best of them. Setter and Denver commit Lauren Carter was finding multiple mismatch where her hitters were absolutely on fire. This team has endured injury, sickness, and their batch of adversity to earn a 15 Open at-large bid to the USAV National Tournament in Indianapolis.
Hayden Kubik of @WDMValleyVB and @CISvolleyball is going to be a highly recruited Class of 2022 pin. Watch her turn this block in on the pin. pic.twitter.com/MEWGXM6UvX
— Chris Fitzgerald (@PrepDigChris) February 17, 2019
The Setters of Nebraska Elite
Abby Schomers of 15 Koa, Allison Gray 16 2.0, and Tria McClean 17 Frost all bring something a little different to the table. Schomers just quietly goes about her business, but is always in position to get her hands on the ball and her hitters in position to terminate. Gray, the Arizona State recruit is just a motor. She steps onto the court and it’s like she has complete command of everything that happens with how she plays with a fire and intensity that is infectious to her team. McClean makes some really difficult sets look easy being able to connect with a variety of hitters with multiple tempos. A perfect example of three different athletes being embraced by what they can do for their team with their own style.
Allison Gray of @NebraskaElite Running such an efficient offense. Lot of weapons on this team and they get the ball in the right spot every time. Money!!! pic.twitter.com/MGFU9GXhVl
— Chris Fitzgerald (@PrepDigChris) April 27, 2019
Aliyah Carter and Kacia Brown Take Control at MEQ
After nearly being knocked out of Gold contention on day one of MEQ, Eastern Iowa Xtreme had their backs to the wall. With Saturday being a huge day, they went on to win the matches they needed to and set themselves up with a quarterfinal match with Milwaukee Sting with the right to go to the final four. With Carter and Brown taking a bulk of the swings and Sydney Dennis the 2021 libero commit to Iowa passing to Rylee Fay everything was clicking. EIX went on to finish fourth, just outside of an Open bid, but that doesn’t take away from the show that Carter and Brown were able to do enroute to a final four finish in one of the top tournaments in the country.
Rockwood Thunder and Vanessa Polk celebrating a block.Back and forth battle between Sting and EIX. Carter scoring points to keep them in the first set. Sting 21-16 pic.twitter.com/X1Vak2P0Bv
— Chris Fitzgerald (@PrepDigChris) March 24, 2019
Vanessa Polk and Rockwood Thunder 15 Navy
Rockwood Thunder 15 Navy put on quite a show enroute to a Northern Lights 15 Open Championship. A well balanced attack, but seeing Vanessa Polk control the net like she did offensively and defensively was something special. This team always seems to be in system. They are solid, consistent, and play error free which usually begins with their presence at the net. Polk is extremely athletic with the ability to press over and really take an outside hitter out of their game. They will be a strong contender in 15 Open for USAV in Indianapolis this summer.
Legacy 18 Elite
This team is special. Its like watching a team out of the Big Ten right in front of you. With six athletes on their roster committing to Big Ten schools, they are a blend of physicality, athleticism, and fundamentals. When they are on top of their game it’s like watching a well orchestrated dance with everyone in the right place at the right time that allows them to click on all cylinders. After going 6 for 6 in major tournaments and qualifiers this season, they have one more chance to win a national title at AAUs in Orlando over Memorial Day weekend. They really have left quite the “Legacy” in the state of Michigan assembling one of the top club teams the state may have ever seen.
Ashlynn Kuhn of Six Pack 16-1 vs. FC Elite 16 Navy
This may have been one of the best matches I had seen all year. Two really high caliber teams trading points back and forth whole match. FC Elite out of Appleton, Wisconsin had a really solid crew with great team chemistry with two talented setters in Minnesota State-Mankato recruit, Brooke Bolwerk and rising 2021 prospect Kiersten Kraus. They also have one of the top outsides in Wisconsin in Cora Behnke and Class of 2023 Wisconsin commit at libero Saige Damrow. All of that didn’t matter to Jaz Yamilkoski and Ashlynn Kuhn. Kuhn is a 6’0 middle blocker from the Class of 2021 where she always seems to find the open court while avoiding the block. With a tight third set, Yamilkoski found Kuhn on a slide, on a quick tempo in front, and there was no stopping her. She did it while keeping the same face, not getting too high or too low, just accomplishing the task at hand.
MI Elite 16 Mizuno vs. FaR Out 16 Black
These two teams are so evenly matched and to watch them play at the Mizuno Motor City Madness was a real treat. Julia Bishop of Michigan Elite is one of the top prospects out of Michigan in the Class of 2021 right with Michigan State recruit, Aubrey O’Gorman. Bishop can make something out of nothing and even when she is pulled off the net she is still finding the window for her hitters to terminate. O’Gorman is joined by her sister Maradith O’Gorman out of the Class of 2022 and will be heading to Michigan State as well. However, one breakout player from this match who has a cannon for an arm is outside Jenna Reitsma for FaR Out 16 Black. She is definitely one to keep tabs on from the Class of 2021.
Sting Gold Gains 16 Open Bid at MEQ
There is no easy match MEQ, each one is a grind. For Milwaukee Sting 16 Gold, they fought off multiple three set battles on Day 3 in the Gold Pool where multiple players were able to contribute to their third place finish and their ticket punched to the Open field at USAV Nationals in Indianpolis. Mckenna Wucherer the 2022 Minnesota commit is always the go-to eraser for Sting, however players such as Mariah Grunze, Alexis Boling, Kaitlyn Riley, Lizzie Binder, Katie Winkler, and libero Anna Holland came up in big situations. When Wucherer went out with an injury in the semifinal match against TAV the team could have very easily packed up and said, “Great Tournament”, but instead regrouped to win the third place match in three sets against CVC to punch their ticket.
Ifill and Hansen Lead Northern Lights In Key Day 1 Victories at NLQ
Julia Hansen has always been a go to pin hitter for Northern Lights and was consistently scoring points all weekend when Northern Lights earned their 15 Open bid at the Mizuno Northern Lights Qualifier. However, Sienna Ifill, the 6’3 right side from Northern Lights came up big in some really crucial moments. In their first two matches, Lights survived two three set matches that went into extra points by defeating FC Elite in the third 16-14 and Nebraska Elite 15 Koa in the third 20-18.
Sienna Ifill with authority. Big time plays by the lefty in crunch time. @nlightsvball #PrepDigNLQ pic.twitter.com/nyZGcwAcYt
— Chris Fitzgerald (@PrepDigChris) April 19, 2019