Former Missouri High School/Club Players Face Each Other in NCAA Tournament
It’s the most wonderful time of the year in volleyball : club is gearing up for its January start; in the college ranks, the NCAA Division 1 Tournament is set to kick off on December 5. There is a bevy of former Missouri High School and club players on tournament team rosters. Before we get to the more interesting match ups involving those players, here is a list of players set to take part in the Big Dance:
Creighton University
Annika Welty – Park Hill South – (KC Power)
Illinois State University
Allie Otten – St. Dominic (Rockwood Thunder)
Carley Nicholson – St. Pius X (Rockwood Thunder)
Sydney Holt – Eureka (Rockwood Thunder)
Iowa State University
Izzy Enna – Staley (KC Power)
Marquette University
Elizabeth Orf – Villa Duchesne (Rockwood Thunder)
Mizzou
Leketor Member-Meneh – Lutheran South (HPSTL)
Penn State University
Gabby Blossom – St. Joseph Academy (Rockwood Thunder)
Princeton University
Kara Steele – Kirkwood (Rockwood Thunder)
Purdue University
Jena Otec – St. Pius X (Festus) (Rockwood Thunder)
SEMO
Maggie Adams – Rockwood Summit (Rockwood Thunder)
Tara Beilsmith – St. Joseph’s Academy (HPSTL)
Mikayla Kulhmann – Mehlville (HPSTL)
Claire Ochs – St. Joseph’s Academy (HPSTL)
University of Central Florida
Kathryn Wesolich – Lafayette – (HPSTL)
University of Dayton
Livie Sandt – Lutheran South (Rockwood Thunder)
University of Georgia
Meghan Donovan – Villa Duchesne (Rockwood Thunder)
University of Minnesota
Alexis Hart – Truman HS – (KC Invasion)
University of Nebraska
Callie Schwarzenbach – Kearney (KC Power)
University of Oklahoma
Paige Johnson – Pleasant Hill (Performance Volleyball)
Rylie Gregston – Blue Springs South (KC Power)
University of South Carolina
Alicia Starr – Blue Springs High School (KC Invasion)
University of Texas
Orie Agbaji – Oak Park High School – (Club North – KC)
Should the University of Dayton & Purdue advance past their first round matches, Rockwood Thunder alumnae Livie Sandt and Jenna Otec would square off with a ticket to the Sweet 16 on the line. Otec is having a solid junior season for the Boilermakers with 387 digs in the regular season. She also leads Purdue in aces with 43. Otec played on the same club team in high school as Marquette player Elizabeth Orf, who faces Dayton in the first round. That team for the Rockwood Thunder featured Illinois State’s Sydney Holt, Penn State’s Gabby Blossom and Princeton’s Kara Steele, as well. Orf is averaging just over a kill per set for the Golden Eagles this season.
Penn State takes on Princeton in the opening round on Friday in College Park where Rockwood Thunder alumnae and teammates Gabby Blossom and Kara Steele square off against one another. Blossom is a sophomore for the Nittany Lions and has been exceptional from the setter position with 1159 assists in the regular season. Steele is a dual-sport athlete at Princeton, playing both volleyball and handling multiple events on the track and field team.
Iowa State and Creighton meet in the first round in Ames on Friday with two alum from KC Power in Izzy Enna and Annika Welty. In seven matches played, Welty averaged 1.5 kills per set in in sophomore campaign, including five kills the Big East Tournament semis against St. John. Enna – a junior – has 335 digs in 104 sets played for the Cyclones. She has started all 28 matches this season.
The road to a repeat trip to the National Championship match for Nebraska goes through Madison, Wisc. – a tall order for Callie Schwarzenbach and the Huskers since the Badgers have swept the Huskers twice this season. The KC Power alum from Kearney struggled in the first match against the Badgers, but broke through in match two with 11 kills and a block. Schwarzenbach will be a key in the Husker’s arsenal in the post-season.