CZC: What I Liked On Sunday

In the two-day tournament known as the Central Zone Championships, I got the opportunity to watch some great ball from athletes that don’t get a lot of pub. Here are a few I liked. Circle City 16 Black The 16-2s at Circle made it to the finals and had a couple of match points in hand before falling to 15 Purple in the final. I was extremely impressed with  Rachel Williams Rachel Williams 5'7" | OH West Lafayette | 2023 State IN (’23, OH, 5-7), whose ball control and confident attacking got them to the final in the first place. Bottom line: she doesn’t make errors, which is exactly what you need from a six-rotation outside. Another kid that stood out to me was  Taryn Kennedy Taryn Kennedy 5'11" | MB Center Grove | 2023 State IN (’23, MB, 5-11), who just a few short months ago was an awkward player. She can now hit in front of and behind the setter, and made quite a few differences in the matches leading up to the final. Her rise has been meteoric, and I look forward to how she does during qualifier season. Circle City 15 Purple The champs from the weekend were led by  Emery Moore Emery Moore 5'9" | S North Central | 2024 State IN (’24, S, 5-9), who does everything well and has burst on the scene. Her ball placement, high-level defense and leadership was on display against bigger and older competition.  Sophia Mayo Sophia Mayo 6'0" | OH Perry Meridian | 2024 State IN (’24, OH, 6-1) was an unstoppable force who has strength and touch in her game and already attacks over 9-6. I also liked southpaw  Alexis Maesch Alexis Maesch 5'10" | RS Avon | 2024 State IN (’24, RS, 5-11), the younger sister of Georgia signee Abby. Alexis is capable of hitting from anywhere, and can even set in a pinch if the setter plays the first ball. Munciana 16 Vipers Although this particular team took some lumps this weekend, the Vipers have two clear standouts among them. Jayde Garrett (’24, MB, 6-0) was the only attacking force they had, and she still pounded a ton of balls. Her size and strength will carry her far in the recruiting game. Setting her those nectar balls was Camaya Murry (’23, S, 5-4), a soft-handed all-around volleyball talent who had to make up for some bad passing to get everyone involved in the offense.