Lone Star Regional Champ: Teams to Watch – TAV Houston 18 Black

<p>Several of the best 18’s club teams from Texas will head to the Houston area this weekend to compete at the Lone Star Regional Championship, which will take place at the FAST Complex and the Houston Skyline Volleyball facilities.</p> <p>Between Saturday and Sunday, 55 teams of the entire state will compete in the tournament, bringing some high-level volleyball to the area and there are some teams and players that are definitely worth a closer look.</p> <p><strong>Texas Advantage Houston 18 Black</strong></p> <p>TAV Houston has quickly developed into one of the top clubs in the area. The club started operating in 2015 and has had some significant success in preparing players for the collegiate level. Some of them will be seen this weekend with the 18 Black team, which ranks fifth in the region and 146^th at the national level according to the AES ranking, under the guidance of head coaches Keanne Burt and Everett Armstrong.</p> <p>Here are some of their key players:</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="87428" first="Megan" last="Wilson"] – Middle-Blocker/Outside Hitter – HS: Kingwood – 2021</strong></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="87428" first="Megan" last="Wilson"] is one of the exciting prospects in the state and ranks 39^th in our Prep Dig class of 2021 State Rankings. The 6’4” middle-blocker is a force at the net and has registered nearly 700 kills in the last two seasons of high school volleyball with Kingwood. Hitting over the top is just routine to Wilson and her offensive versatility, which makes her a threat at the pin, down the middle, or from the back row, makes her coach’s lives a lot easier. Next season she will start the next chapter of her career at the collegiate level with Oklahoma. If she can further improve her passing game, she’ll have what it takes to be among the elite.</p> <p><iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13189471/5e674bbbd45ff01bf4b6c17b" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="99548" first="Temi" last="Areola"] – Right Sider/Middle-Blocker – HS: Kingwood – 2021</strong></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="99548" first="Temi" last="Areola"] comes from the same path as Wilson as they were teammates at both Kingwood high school and TAV Houston. They also share a similar level of versatility as Areola is able to play at either her preferred right sider role or as a middle-blocker. In either position, she makes of her athleticism her main asset on the court. The 5’11” hitter is quicker than most and can jump ridiculously high, making of her really difficult to stop at the net. Her blocking game is really well-developed and her physical tools make her ceiling as a player higher than most athletes of her age. She ranks 95^th in our Prep Dig class of 2021 State Rankings and is still uncommitted.</p> <p><iframe style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&amp;href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2FTAVHoustonVB%2Fvideos%2F374590833498372%2F&amp;show_text=false&amp;width=560" width="560" height="314" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="99550" first="Julia" last="Neveu"] – Libero/Defensive Specialist – HS: Oak Ridge – 2021</strong></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="99550" first="Julia" last="Neveu"] is another uncommitted member of the TAV Houston 18 Black team, but unlike Areola, her main strengths as a player lay on the defensive side of the game. The 5’7” libero/defensive specialist is a joy to watch mostly because of her outstanding technique and her unwavering commitment to always perform the correct technical gestures. She’s also very quick and bold and is consistently seen diving all over the court to dig balls. She has registered nearly 1,500 digs in the last two years of her high school career with Oak Ridge and tallied north of 800 passes in the same period with an absurd efficiency rate. Neveu ranks 107^th in our Prep Dig State Rankings of the class of 2021.</p> <p><iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/12511761/5e890f11a019c10b8c89546e" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>