Class of 2023 All-State Nominees – Middles – Vol 1
The 2021 High School season has been amazing so far! Along with our readers, we have been on pins and needles watching teams battle all season long. There have been some amazing tournaments and great district battles. We have been…
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Continue ReadingThe 2021 High School season has been amazing so far! Along with our readers, we have been on pins and needles watching teams battle all season long. There have been some amazing tournaments and great district battles. We have been talking to coaches, reading tons of stats, and getting lots of video submissions from parents and players regarding how everyone has fared over the course of the season. As we are funneling into the end of district play and about to head into the playoffs, we will be discussing some players who are being nominated for our inaugural Prep Dig Texas All-State Awards. Our end-of-season awards are going to be different because we are going to consider all divisions/conferences/classes together and pick the best of the best. The 2023 middles we will be discussing have been tearing it up and proving themselves all season long with some amazing statistics. Let’s meet some of the nominees:
Stephanie Gutierrez Stephanie Gutierrez 6'1" | OH Boswell | 2023 State #157 Nation TX [2023] 6-1 Middle/Right Side (HS: Boswell/Club: Texas Advantage / Verbal: Uncommitted)
Stephanie is currently listed as the 5th best overall prospect in the 2023 Class according to our Prep Dig State Rankings. We have written about Stephanie a few times now and here is a refresher of what we have written, “She is a very polished middle blocker for her age that plays out of the North Texas area. She plays very big above the net and is a great defender and an even better attacker. We have her ranked pretty high on our rankings and believe she is the real deal. She hits every set on the middle spectrum and is able to score in a variety of ways with each. I love how strong her upper body is at such a young age. She has such a high ceiling within the position, which means she is going to get a lot better over the years. She reaches high when attacking and gives her setters a great target. I love how ready she is to attack on quick sets, but she excels in her slide the most. If she is this comfortable running the one foot take-off at an early age, the volleyball world better watch out because Stephanie is coming for ya. We are excited that we get to watch her grow in the sport for the next three years. Miss Gutierrez really stepped up and became a force for her Boswell high school program this season. She had 126 kills and 54 total blocks while hitting an astounding .283 as a sophomore. She was named District 3-6A Co-Blocker of the year. We are happy for her progress and are excited that we get to cover her for the next few years. Please congratulate her on moving up the rankings. This past year she played for Texas Advantage and we were able to watch her in action at the USA Junior Nationals in Vegas. Her power and natural athletic abilities are eye catching to every spectator in attendance. She is so smooth when patrolling the net to block her opponents. I loved watching her penetration on the net as she sealed it perfectly over and over to stifle opposing hitters. She very quickly has become one of the best middles in her age group and the scary part is I don’t think she has reached her potential yet. We think she is a BEAST middle and will love covering her over the next two years. Please help us congratulate her on being named a top five player in the entire Lone Star State.” We have been watching her very closely this season and she has been killing it during her junior season. She has 286 kills on a super impressive .401 hitting percentage. Stephanie also has 104 blocks and 28 aces. She is one of the big reasons why her varsity team has an overall record of 28-12 and have been murdering everyone in their district as they sit at 14-0. By proving herself on the court, she has etched her name as a candidate in the race for an All-State award. Please congratulate her on the achievement.
Kate Hansen Kate Hansen 6'3" | MB Weatherford | 2023 State #67 Nation TX [2023] 6-3 Middle (HS: Weatherford /Club: Texas Advantage /Verbal: Uncommitted)
Kate is currently listed as the 7th best overall prospect in the 2023 class according to our Prep Dig State Rankings. We have written about Miss Hansen a few times and we said the following, “While the 2023 class is young, players like Kate certainly have my attention. I’m sure she will have the attention of college coaches soon once volleyball resumes. She is a dominant force as a freshman middle in the Dallas area. The most notable aspect of her game will definitely be her power on her attacks. They will never go unnoticed. Myself, I am very intrigued more so by her footwork. It is beyond her years to be able to move like that in transition off the net and toward her setter. She has the ability to move up those rankings quite a bit with the future I see for her. Coaches take note of her now as she won’t be a secret long. I have been watching very closely and this past season she earned so many honors with her play on her Varsity squad. She was one of the main weapons on their team and helped them to a wonderful record of 23-2 overall and a 14-0 district record. She had 237 kills, hit a .342 efficiency, 86 blocks and 10 aces as a sophomore. Her local newspaper Star Telegram named her the Blocker of the Year. The Texas Sports Writers Association named her 6A All State 2ndteam. The accolades will not stop anytime soon. We are excited to watch as she and her TAV 17 Black team are killing it so far this club season. We are proud that she has moved up 5 spots due to her play on the court. She is now one of the top 4 middles in our large state. We are very proud of Kate and loved watching her play in person during Nationals. She showed why she is such a highly touted middle. We loved watching her patrol the net and also how strong her serve is. Please help us congratulate her on such a wonderful achievement of being on the USA 16 Open All-Tournament team.” She was stellar in both her offense and defense against the best competition that this nation has to offer. We were wowed over and over again at just how hard she plays the game in every aspect. Her Weatherford HS team is making some serious waves to start out the season and we are enjoying covering their season. Please help us congratulate her on being named as one of the top seven players in the entire state of Texas.” Kate is the model for consistency since she burst onto the scene as a freshman on varsity. She currently has 417 kills which is 3rd most in the entire state in her grad class. Kate also has a .273 hitting percentage, 140 blocks and 45 aces on the year. She has her squad at 12-2 in district and battling for a spot in the playoffs. They have been competitive all year long with a grueling schedule and are looking for a deep run in the UIL State title chase. Please congratulate her on being in the running for a Prep Dig All-State award.
Hannah Pfiffner Hannah Pfiffner 6'2" | RS Wakeland | 2023 State #78 Nation TX [2023] 6-2 Middle/Right Side (HS: Wakeland/Club: Texas Advantage Volleyball/Verbal: Uncommitted)
Hannah is currently listed as the 28th best overall prospect in the state. Hannah plays for Wakeland High School and also for Texas Advantage Volleyball out of the North Texas region. In an article earlier this year, we stated the following, “She is a fantastic middle/right side who is dominating with her club team this season. She LED her team in attempts and kills this past season with 533 attempts and 210 kills in just her sophomore season as a middle. She helped Wakeland be very competitive with an overall record of 12-8 and will be looked at for more offensive leadership during her junior season next year. What stands out the most is her crazy athleticism out of the middle position. I see a player who could be a standout player at any position on the net if given an opportunity. Her flow during transition is beautiful to watch and gives a volleyball purist goose bumps as they watch. If there is a young middle who needs to watch someone in order to see how the position should be played, I suggest she watches the footwork, speed and athleticism of Hannah. Oh yeah…this kid can bang also. She thumps the ball with authority and it brings joy to her team when it scores, which is often. We want to welcome her with open arms to our State Ranking List and can’t wait to watch her progress in the future.” Currently she has 375 kills for her Wakeland varsity team. She is one of the most efficient hitters on her team with a .369 hitting percentage. Hannah also has 77 blocks and 21 aces on the year. While her team is currently sitting at 12-6 in district and battling for a spot in the playoffs, we would like to congratulate her on proving that she belongs in the discussion for an All-State award due to her play on the court. Help us congratulate her on the achievement.
There are many more amazing players that will be nominated. Stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes to see who ends up with a chance at one of the prestigious awards. If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at nov8vb@yahoo.com. Also don’t forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends. Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook. Thanks for following Texas Family!