Coming From The East: '22 Available Setters Taking On NLQ

Things are starting to heat up (on the volleyball court, not outside) as Qualifier season starts to kick off with the 18s just finishing up the Girls Winter Championship in Indy while 17s and 18s will play the Northern Lights Qualifier in Omaha this weekend. Nebraska, Kansas, Missouri, and clubs from as far as Texas and Florida will be making the trip. I’ll stick to what I know and focus on the athletes primarily from Iowa, Wisconsin, and some from Minnesota and Illinois. The talent level will be high, athletes are hungry to compete, and coaches are anxious to see more athletes take the court to continue their covid style recruiting. Here are a few 2022 setters to have on the radar. Madelyn Converse - Northern Lights 17-1 (MN) 17 Open Watching Converse as a little Freshman play in big time matches in the state tournament, I knew she had the makings to be a big time player with how she handled herself on the big stage. She is fundamentally sound with training from Lights, but also a top high school program in Southern Minnesota in Kasson-Mantorville. She has a high powered offense that she will be dishing to which includes [player_tooltip player_id="31585" first="Kendal" last="Kemp"] (Auburn), [player_tooltip player_id="31583" first="Sienna" last="Ifill"] (Marquette), [player_tooltip player_id="31577" first="Julia" last="Hanson"] (Minnesota), and [player_tooltip player_id="72767" first="Britt" last="Carlson"] (Texas Tech). <img class=" wp-image-98718 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/06/thumb_DSC00038_1024.jpg" alt="" width="492" height="328" /> [player_tooltip player_id="72776" first="Elle" last="Cotton"] - MN Select 17-1 (MN) 17 Open Cotton is extremely dynamic. She is the type of player who will be able to do multiple things for this MN Select squad where she can set, but also step into attack from either pin. Just a fun athlete to watch and her versatility speaks volume. Minnesota athlete’s had an abbreviated high school season and then had a mini shutdown of gyms in December. Teams haven’t had much of a chance to get in the gym, but will be very hungry to compete in Omaha this weekend.   [player_tooltip player_id="57252" first="Emma" last="Baierl"]/[player_tooltip player_id="81273" first="Emma" last="Johnson"] - FC Elite 17 Navy (WI) 17 Open Baierl and Johnson both won state titles in separate divisions this past fall for Wisconsin, make that back to back state titles at Howards Grove and Luxemburg-Casco. This FC Elite 17 Navy team has plenty of options with what they can do with their setters as they can run a 5-1, 5-2, or 6-2. Both of these athletes can run a quick tempo, but are also tough from the backcourt with their defense as they are complete players.   [player_tooltip player_id="61661" first="Bianca" last="May"] - Adversity 17 Adidas (IL) 17 Open Extremely well trained, May is going to be able to run a really fast tempo offense that is going to include the likes of terminal outside in [player_tooltip player_id="61694" first="Rylen" last="Reid"] and middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id="61621" first="Ann" last="Marie Remmes"]. Another setter/outside combo on this team is Indiana commit [player_tooltip player_id="61622" first="Katie" last="Hurta"]. This team will have plenty of combinations they can use, but May might be a sleeper in the Class of 2022. High IQ who can run a fast offense would be welcome in plenty of gyms at the next level. <img class=" wp-image-119029 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/12/Ella-Caffery-2.jpg" alt="" width="408" height="272" /> [player_tooltip player_id="79247" first="Ella" last="Caffery"] - Iowa Select 17 Mizuno 17 USA Caffery is one of the better athletes in the Class of 2022 in Iowa where she is a multi-sport threat. She can also play any position on the court, but she is thriving running the show for Iowa Select 17 Mizuno who recently won a Tour of Iowa stop in Des Moines this past weekend and had a solid showing at the Ft. Wayne MLK Challenge. Caffery is always cool, calm, and collected and will be a key to her team’s success this weekend. <img class="aligncenter wp-image-127048 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/DSC04965-e1611686521834-300x278.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="278" /> [player_tooltip player_id="79246" first="Madison" last="Geise"] - IPVA 17 Black 17 USA Geise continues to rise on the list of Class of 2022 setters which is loaded in the state of Iowa. She is long, athletic, can hit from the pin and do whatever her team needs to win. IPVA 17 Black had a huge weekend at the Quad Cities Clash going 4-1 with their lone loss to Sky High 17 Adidas Black in three sets which will be in the 17 Open field at NLQ. <img class=" wp-image-127911 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/01/DSC04978.jpg" alt="" width="405" height="270" /> [player_tooltip player_id="79251" first="Elise" last="Mehaffy"] - Iowa Rockets 17-1 17 American Mehaffy is another setter who can hit from the right side as well. Mehaffy is consistent in all facets of her game. Great hands, plenty of athleticism, she needs to be on the radar of plenty of schools who can pick up a solid athlete, great character, and one who can help her side of the net in so many ways.   And Some 2023’s To Know Playing Up Cameron Berger - Vital 17-Gold (MN) 17 Open Vital is going to be a major sleeper who can sneak up on plenty of teams this upcoming weekend. They are a physically imposing team with plenty of attackers that include Iowa State commit [player_tooltip player_id="31616" first="Lilly" last="Wachholz"] and 6’3 middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id="31595" first="Kendall" last="Minta"]. Berger will be playing up an age level, but will be relied on to run the show with a high tempo and spreading the offense giving room to her teammates to terminate. [caption id="attachment_117124" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-117124" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/11/Ava-Schabes-e1611686320286-300x261.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="261" /> [player_tooltip player_id="61729" first="Ava" last="Schabes"], 2023, S.[/caption] [player_tooltip player_id="61729" first="Ava" last="Schabes"] - 1st Alliance 17 Silver (IL) 17 Open So smooth, her textbook footwork allows her to be in position to do anything with the ball while she’s in system. She has the speed and anticipation to get her hands to the ball in any situation. Schabes was at our Top 250 Showcase in Milwaukee and was one of the best setters in the gym. 1st Alliance always has a strong program and Schabes will be one to continue to thier legacy. Should be a fun combination to see these Chicago teams compete against some of the best West of them.