Deep Diggers: Class of 2023

<p>Playing solid defense in volleyball won’t always get you noticed, by the average set of eyes. However, coaches, scouts, and recruiters notice unselfish players who work hard on defense.</p> <p>Here is a look at five players from the Class of 2023 who specialize in making the tough digs and serve receptions for their teams.</p> <p><strong>L, [player_tooltip player_id="120019" first="Lizzy" last="Cisneros"], 5’1”, Liberal (’23 Ranked No. 23) </strong>– Cisneros is proof that dynamite can come in small packages and still be explosive. Cisneros led Liberal in digs during the 2020 high school season with 481 digs. She also has a nice serve finishing with 31 aces in her sophomore season.</p> <p><strong>L, [player_tooltip player_id="120020" first="Ellee" last="Krien"], 5’6”, St. Francis (’23 Ranked No. 24)</strong> – Krien unofficially finished second in the state in digs during the 2020 season. At five-foot-six she is a decent-sized Libero and is very athletic.</p> <p><strong>DS, [player_tooltip player_id="122202" first="Alyana" last="Pearson"], 5’6”</strong>, <strong>Blue Valley Northwest (’23 Ranked No. 27) </strong> – Pearson is quick and a great floor communicator. She finished the 2020 season with 315 digs and 190 serve receptions. She will be leaned on to be a leader for the Huskies moving forward.</p> <p><strong>OH, [player_tooltip player_id="120041" first="Talexa" last="Weeter"], 5’11”</strong>, <strong>Goodland (Ranked No. 13)</strong>– Weeter is a solid two-way player and the first non-libero or defensive specialist on this list. She finished her sophomore season with 298 digs and she leads this list with 342 kills. She will be a player to watch her game evolve over the next two high school seasons.</p> <p><strong>OH, [player_tooltip player_id="122207" first="Maliyah" last="Johnson"], 5’8”, Hutchinson (Ranked No. 38)</strong> – Johnson is a player from a similar model compared to Weeter. She can play OH and MB, but because of her defensive skills she never needs to leave the floor. Johnson finished her sophomore high school campaign with 278 digs and 254 kills.</p>