River Falls is Ready to Bring the Heat this Season
River Falls is set to have a big season. That is just a fact. They have a stacked roster with an insane amount of experience and talent on their team. They lost in a five-set thriller against Oconomowoc in the…
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Continue ReadingRiver Falls is set to have a big season. That is just a fact. They have a stacked roster with an insane amount of experience and talent on their team. They lost in a five-set thriller against Oconomowoc in the Division 1 state semi-finals last year and are looking to take this team all the way to the championship this year.
There is a lot of work to be done between now and November though. River falls competes in the Big Rivers Conference and will have to battle through schools such as Eau Claire North and Chippewa Falls to take their conference. They only lost two matches the entire season: to Arrowhead in the Eastbay Charger Rally; to Stillwater, out of Minnesota at the St. Michael Tournament; and the to Oconomowoc in the state semi-final.
Emily Banitt (Prep Dig Rank #6, Committed to Loyola Chicago) will be a senior outside hitter for the Wildcats this year and she will be tough to stop. She is powerful and places the ball very well. She reads the ball well on defense and is great on serve receive as well. She has 826 kills and a hitting percentage of 0.263 in her three years on varsity with 304 in the 2018 season alone. In 2018 she also contributed 41 aces, 307 digs, and 362 service receptions. Emily will only continue to grow throughout her senior season.
Halle Olson (Prep Dig Rank #11, Committed to Florida Atlantic) will also be a senior outside hitter on this team. Standing at 6’, Halle is a truly incredible athlete. She already has 1133 kills and a hitting percentage of 0.357 over her first three years on varsity and going into her senior season. Last season she contributed 250 digs, 66 aces, and 273 service receptions in addition to her 387 kills.
Next up is incoming junior Anna Wolf (Prep Dig Rank #3, Committed to Minnesota). She is a middle blocker for River Falls and is nearly unstoppable in the front row. In her first two years on varsity, she logged 114 blocks and almost 500 kills. But Anna doesn’t just excel in the front row, she is strong all the way around. She had 56 aces last season and dug almost 100 balls! Anna is a fierce competitor and her leadership will be very important this year.
Incoming senior setter Maddi Kealy (Prep Dig Rank #28, Committed to UM-Duluth) is the glue that holds this already incredibly talented team together. She works for every single ball and runs the court very well. She balances a very talented front row and is a true athlete. Maddi has fast hands and can push the ball from pin to pin seemingly effortlessly.
Coming up the pipeline, and a player to watch this season is incoming sophomore Haley Graetz (Prep Dig Rank #8). She will learn a lot in her second season as a middle hitter with River Falls, but will likely also contribute big time to the team’s success.
Looking at the 2019 season, River Falls is one of the teams to beat. They have the chemistry, talent, and leadership that makes up a championship team. I think we can look forward to some great matches from River Falls this season.