AVCA Phenom Program changes

<p>The AVCA Phenom Showcase is usually held in conjunction with the NCAA Women’s Final Four in the host city in December of that year’s championship. This being the wonderful and crazy world of a pandemic, we are accustomed to change and the Phenom Program is no exception. The Phenom Showcase is a part of the AVCA Phenom College Preparatory Program, which is attended by over 200 college coaches. According to the AVCA Phenom website (https://avcaphenom.com/phenom-program/) This year’s event will take place April 24th, 2021, in Omaha, Nebraska. 2020 Phenom participants will receive or participate in:</p> <ul> <li> Talent Showcase, where athletes will demonstrate their skills in front of the 200+ college coaches in attendance in person and online. <ul> <li><strong>New for 2020: the Phenom College Prep Showcase will be streamed online, further increasing the levels of exposure for participating athletes! Streaming will be available to all AVCA Member coaches, which consist of 85% of all collegiate coaches at all levels and 90% of all Division 1 coaches!</strong></li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKfBmt1wziE">Volleyball Performance Index (VPI)</a>: a specific measurement of physical potential.  <ul> <li>Curious about avcaVPI™ Testing? Watch an <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKfBmt1wziE">explanation here</a>! Accurate metrics are more important than ever in this new world of digital recruiting. </li> </ul> </li> <li>Athlete Behavioral Profile (ABP): a unique profile of your learning style</li> <li>Educational sessions regarding recruiting, life as a college athlete, nutrition, mental health training, and more!</li> <li>Parent-specific educational sessions with college coaches from all divisions and the NCSA, about recruiting rules and what to expect during the process </li> <li>Comparative VPI metrics, ABP assessments, and a list of college coaches who attended or viewed the Talent Showcase provided after the event. </li> <li>Results entered into a database that is searchable by event, class, position, and physical metrics.  This allows a player to assess where she measures up against other Phenoms, and allows AVCA college coaches to search for specific traits/positions.</li> </ul> <p><img class="size-medium wp-image-126788 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/IMG_1513-300x225.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="225" />The event is an invitation-only event for <strong>uncommitted</strong> seniors on the Under Armour Watch List and <strong>uncommitted</strong> underclassmen on the AVCA Phenom List.  "Athletes recognized on the Phenom List have been identified by the AVCA as elite rising high school volleyball student-athletes. These athletes are underclassmen who have received some form of recognition for their outstanding play (All-State, Prep Volleyball, USAV High Performance Team, etc.). The athletes are nominated through the AVCA Nomination form which is then evaluated by the AVCA. Additionally, the athlete’s high school coach, club coach, or club director must be an active AVCA Member udonder the High School/Interscholastic, Club Coach, or Club Director AVCA membership categories in order to be placed on the Phenom List and receive an invitation to the Phenom College Prep Program" according to the AVCA Phenom website. Many of these athletes move on to play with some of the premier college programs at all levels. </p> <p>Of the over 2000 athletes nominated, Virginia has 39 athletes on the watchlist. PrepDig will cover as many of these <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/IMG_1506-crop-3226x2118-1611083297.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-126918 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/IMG_1506-crop-3226x2118-1611083297-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a>athletes as we can with analysis of each player. Analysis is done in coordination with local club coaches, high school coaches, recruiters and PrepDig’ s recruiting experts. The regions will be separated into three sections based on nominations: Northern region, Western region and the Central/Eastern region. The northern region has 19 nominees, the west 11 and central/east has 9 nominees. The northern region will be split into two parts to allow for adequate coverage of the group. We will kick off the coverage of the players with the Central/Eastern regions. </p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="111446" first="Kya" last="Otis"]  6’4 Middle Blocker [player_tooltip player_id="111446" first="Kya" last="Otis"] from Virginia Venom Volleyball Club and Jamestown High School. At 6’4, Kya is a dominant force at the net. She has a good three step close and covers a lot of area with that basic blocking move. She is aggressive with her hands, reaching into angles based on her read. On tight sets, she’s very aggressive and clasps over the ball to prevent any offensive options from the trapped hitter. Offensively, she has a good arm but needs to work on swing and torque fundamentals to generate more power and range. She can get more depth in her transition approach to increase her momentum and generate boost power. She can definitely be a blocker at the Division 1 level and can become an impact attacker with more development. She is a class of 2022 graduate. </p> <p>Amelia Matson is someone our readers are very familiar with after her dominating performances all Fall for the Stonebridge Cavaliers. She established herself as one of the top players in the state this Fall, stepping in for the state powerhouse. At 5’8, the freshman Outside Hitter hits with good power and great range. She sees the court well and moves efficiently to the ball. As she ages, she will get stronger and improve her power and vertical which can improve her prospect status, especially if she grows to that 5’10 or taller range. Amelia is just a freshman so she is a rising star within the Tidewater region and the commonwealth. </p> <p><img class="size-medium wp-image-126914 alignleft" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/IMG_1193-300x225.png" alt="" width="300" height="225" /></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="111443" first="Kaitlyn" last="McNeel"] is an elite prospect in Central Virginia. The 6’3 Pin Hitter for Richmond Volleyball Club and Mills Godwin High School is a 6 rotation player who is dominant in every aspect of the game. She generates great torque and attacks with great range. She’s an accomplished blocker and defender. She is strong in serve reception with great footwork and platform awareness. She’s a great student of the game with an outstanding work ethic. The stellar outside hitter recently announced her commitment to University of Dayton.</p> <p>[player_tooltip pla<img class="alignright" src="https://s3.amazonaws.com/rms-rmfiles-production/client_photos/athlete_3053398_profile.jpg" alt="[player_tooltip player_id=" width="115" height="192" /><span style="font-size: 1rem;">yer_id="111464" first="Audrey" last="Muth"] is a strong prospect from Peninsula Catholic High and</span><span style="font-size: 1rem;"> Coastal Hampton Roads Volleyball Club. At 6’1, the dynamic utility player can play multiple positions along the net, with extensive experience at Middle Hitter and Outside Hitter. Audrey has a strong swing and hits with good range. As she adds strength, she will add vertical and power to an already impressive offensive arsenal. She has a great platform and good feet on serve receive. Defensively, she is good defender and is solid at reading. She has a quick first step and controls hard hits well. </span></p>