Iowa Players I Can't Wait to See at Nebraska Top 250!

There are so many recognizable, and some not very recognizable yet, players from Iowa coming to Prep Dig Nebraska Top 250 next weekend. I have seen a bunch of these players compete all over Omaha or Southwest Iowa in the last seven years and I want to share some information about the players I look forward to seeing next week. [caption id="attachment_112182" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-112182" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/10/Lauren_Williams_hitting_d100820-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Lauren Williams, 2022. MH/RS, St. Albert.[/caption] Lauren Williams (2022, MH/RS) Lauren plays middle or right side for St. Albert High School in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Her team finished in the state semi-finals this year after starting with many losses as they worked out the kinks at the beginning of the season. Lauren is monstrous on the right with her well-placed and really hard hits. She is a killing machine on the right. In the middle, she is a blocking beast. I really admire her ability to be a perfectionist and still work well with her high school teammates of all different skill levels. About halfway through the season this fall she started playing all the way around the court and it really paid off. Lauren really can do it all and I look for her to be a major leader for her team next school season. This winter she will be playing club season with Southwest Iowa Third Degree on the 17 Black team. Looking forward to seeing her development after she adds club volleyball into her training mix. [caption id="attachment_102271" align="alignright" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-102271" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/07/thumb_DSC01335_1024-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> [player_tooltip player_id="79251" first="Elise" last="Mehaffy"], 2022, S.[/caption] [player_tooltip player_id="79251" first="Elise" last="Mehaffy"] (2022, S) Elise is a 5’9" setter for Marion High School. She had 4.7 APS, 2.2 KPS, 23 total blocks, 2.0 DPS, 24 aces with a 94.7% serve efficiency. This girl plays ball. She is all over the court and does whatever needs to be done for her team to succeed. I look forward to seeing her in action next weekend. [caption id="attachment_101516" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-101516" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/07/Molly-Romano-rotated-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Molly Romano, class of 2024, Setter, Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln, jersey #10.[/caption] Molly Romano (2024, S) Molly was a freshman this past school season, was the setter for Abraham Lincoln High School in Council Bluffs, and wow! She had 6.7 APS, 1.2 KPS, 36 total blocks, 2.2 DPS, and a team-high 31 aces with a 92.4% serve efficiency. This kid’s skill set is really loaded and has been on our radar since the Summer Bash in Omaha last July. I am really looking forward to seeing what she has going on now that the school season is over and the club season is about to begin. [caption id="attachment_101518" align="alignright" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-101518" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/07/Baylie-Girres-rotated-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Baylie Girres, class of 2022, OH, Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln, jersey #11.[/caption] Baylie Girres (2022, OH) Baylie has been on my radar at least since the fall of 2019. She has really been developing all of this time and is so vital to her high school team’s success. She played middle at Abraham Lincoln in Council Bluffs her sophomore year and had the second-highest blocks at 97 in that role for her team. This year she is playing as an OH and is a true 6-rotation player. She had 2.7 KPS, 3.5 DPS, 44 total blocks, 16 aces with a 92.3% serve efficiency this year. She looked very impressive and so athletic. She is an impressive force on the court and I cannot wait to see what she brings next weekend. [caption id="attachment_112183" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-112183" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/10/Elizabeth_Elkins_hitting_d100820-e1602655239870-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> [player_tooltip player_id="93045" first="Elizabeth" last="Elkins"], 2021, OH/MH, St. Albert, hitting from the outside against Red Oak.[/caption] [player_tooltip player_id="93045" first="Elizabeth" last="Elkins"] (2021, OH/MH) Elizabeth transferred schools after the 2019 school volleyball season to St. Albert in Council Bluffs. Her team had a rough start to the season this year, despite having so many talented attackers and quick, really athletic defenders. Once they moved Elizabeth to the middle they improved and finished the season as semi-finalists at the Iowa State Volleyball Tournament. Elizabeth’s team was down 7 points to the number 1 seed, Janesville, in the fourth set, up 2-1, but about to be forced to a 5th set to 15 when they came back 7 points straight and tied at 24, Elizabeth got a kill on the outside for the 25th point and then Lauren Williams got the final point. Elizabeth, as an OH her junior season, had 18 assists, 2.4 KPS, 2.2 DPS, 19 total blocks, 46 aces with an 81.5% serve efficiency. During her senior season as a MB, she had 1.1 KPS, 33 total blocks, .6 DPS, and 22 aces with an 84.8% serve efficiency. I hope to see more of her skills on display next weekend doing some things she couldn’t do in her position during her senior season. She is set to play the club season beginning soon with the 18 Black team for Southwest Iowa Third Degree Volleyball Club. Alivia Wolf (2022, DS) Alivia is a really good DS for Sergeant Bluff-Luton. She had 2.3 DPS and 43 aces with a team-high 94.5% serve efficiency. She does her job really well and should bring it next weekend at the Prep Dig Top 250. Maddie Hinkel (2022, S) Maddie is the setter for Sergeant Bluff-Luton. During her junior season, she had 6.3 APS, 1.5 KPS, 2.2 DPS, 36 total blocks, and 16 aces with 91.6% serve efficiency. She is really athletic and always on the move making great saves. I look forward to seeing her athleticism on display next weekend.