2020 Rankings Flavored With East Coast Commits

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">College coaches from across the country flock to Minnesota to find some of the best players in the country.  Flashback to the 90s and even into the 2000s, top volleyball was always pulled from the West Coast, the beaches of California.  The Midwest features some of the top clubs and even high school programs that rival anyone else from the likes of California, Texas, and Florida.  For the Class of 2020, there is definitely an East Coast vibe with plenty heading out to play volleyball in all divisions. A hard working, high academic Midwest athlete who provides value far beyond volleyball to any team.  Here are some of the top athletes heading East for college. </span></p> <p><strong>Elizabeth Helmich - MN Select - Wayzata - Committed to James Madison</strong></p> <p><strong>Lily Emlong - MN Select - Wayzata - Committed to Elon </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This outside, middle combo from MN Select and Wayzata are heading to Virginia and North Carolina where they will actually be in the same conference in the Colonial Athletic Association.  Helmich will play for James Madison who was tied for first overall in 2018 in the CAA, but lost in the finals of the conference title game to Hofstra in five sets. Elon is finished with a record of 13-15 in 2018.  Before they head to college, they will look to bring home some hardware for Wayzata who will be a favorite in Class AAA. </span></p> <p><strong>Chudear Tut - Club 43 - Hopkins - Committed to Coppin State</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Tut is a 6’2 middle who can swing out of any position and even play a little backrow as well.  A Hopkins High School student and member of Club 43, she will be heading to play Division 1 volleyball at Coppin State which is located in Baltimore. Copping State competes in the Mid-East Atlantic Conference (MEAC) which as been dominated the past few years by Howard University out of Washington D.C. </span></p> <p><strong>Sophia Vogel - Northern Lights - Robbinsdale-Armstrong - Committed to College of Charleston </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Vogel is heading into her Senior year at Robbinsdale-Armstrong, who will be one to watch as an up and comer this year with Vogel, Ryley Frye, and St. Cloud State commit Kira Durant.  College of Charleston is located in Charleston, South Carolina and is a member of the CAA. Vogel will compete against Helmich and Emlong in the same conference. The Cougars were 24-12 and 11-5 in the conference in 2018. </span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Congrats to Yaiza Franco on her commitment to continue to play volleyball at La Salle University! <a href="https://t.co/WeeNgoKfSa">pic.x.com/WeeNgoKfSa</a></p> — Minnesota Select (@MNSelect) <a href="https://x.com/MNSelect/status/1150367912231940096?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 14, 2019</a></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><strong>Yaiza Franco - MN Select - North St. Paul - Committed to La Salle </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Franco had a major breakout club season playing for MN Select 17-2 which landed her in Philadelphia for college playing for La Salle which is part of the A-10 which has been dominated by Dayton and VCU.  In 2018, the Explorers finished with a record of 18-12 overall, Franco will be the only athlete from Minnesota on the roster, but the roster does include three athletes from Illinois for this season. </span></p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Incredibly blessed with this opportunity — excited to announce my commitment to play volleyball at Emory University! So thankful for my family, friends, coaches, and teammates for their continued love and support. Cannot wait for fall of 2020!! <a href="https://x.com/hashtag/emoryvolleyball?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#emoryvolleyball</a> <a href="https://x.com/EmoryVolleyball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@EmoryVolleyball</a> <a href="https://t.co/6ug2G9cvgk">pic.x.com/6ug2G9cvgk</a></p> — Sarah Luong (@SarahLuong8) <a href="https://x.com/SarahLuong8/status/1133207911130370050?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 28, 2019</a></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p><strong>Sarah Luong - M1 - Benilde-St. Margarets - Committed to Emory </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Luong will be heading to one of the top Division 3 academic and volleyball programs in the country in Atlanta.  With most students needing a 30 ACT to get accepted into the school, they also have an extremely strong volleyball program, winning the 2018 Division 3 national title.  Emory has a roster full of athletes from all over the country, competing in the University Athletic Association with the likes of Wash U in St. Louis, University of Chicago, Carnegie Mellon, and NYU. </span></p> <p><strong>Other Notables Heading Out of State: </strong></p> <p><strong>Serafina Rivera - Northern Lights - Nova Classical Academy - Committed to San Francisco</strong></p> <p><strong>Kate Neill - MN Select - Providence Academy - Committed to UT-Chattanooga</strong></p> <p><strong>Ally Peterson - MN Select - Kenyon-Wanamingo - Committed to Belmont (Nashville, TN) </strong></p> <p><strong>Arie Walker - Northern Lights - Cretin-Derham Hall - Committed to North Carolina A&amp;T</strong></p>