Midseason Top Performers: 1A/1B Divisions

<p>We’re about a month into the long-waited and hugely-anticipated high school volleyball season in Washington. The moment we all have been waiting for is here and even though we haven’t been able to watch it in person, for the most part, several players are putting up some great performances out there.</p> <p>Some familiar faces are producing as much as expected while some new ones are exceeding expectations and performing a lot better than many would think. Starting this week, we’ll highlight the top performers in each of the six divisions in the state in a series of articles.</p> <p>We start with the 1A and 1B divisions.</p> <p><strong><u>1A</u></strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="97311" first="Cami" last="Young"] – Outside Hitter – King’s Way Christian – 2023</strong></p> <p>This young outside hitter started the season on fire leading King’s Way Christian to four wins in their first seven matches. The 5’9” outside hitter is the team’s top scorer with 92 kills, ahead of senior Brooke Mattila. Young has been doing well on the defensive side of the game too with 69 digs and 67 passes.  She scored in double digits in each of the seven matches of the season so far and produced a season-high 24 points against Castle Rock.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Alyssa Radke – Middle-Blocker – Connell – 2021</strong></p> <p>The 6’1” middle-blocker remains as a centerpiece in Connell’s game after being selected for the All-State Second Team in 2019. Radke started the season well and has been one of the most efficient hitters in the division so far, converting approximately half of her hitting attempts in points for the Lady Eagles. Her serving game has been on point too and she will certainly improve her blocking numbers as the season goes on.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Kate Piasecki – Setter/Right Sider – Charles Wright - 2022</strong></p> <p>Kate Piasecki has been Charles Wright’s most productive player in each of the last two seasons and it seems it will be no different this time. The six-foot setter is once again producing in a lot of different areas of the game as she leads the Tarriers in assists (123), kills (80) and aces (27) and ranks second in blocks (22) and digs (112).</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><u>1B</u></strong></p> <p><strong>Josie Schultheis – Outside Hitter – Colton – 2021</strong></p> <p>Josie Schultheis is making of her last season of high school volleyball a memorable one as the 5’7” outside hitter is again putting up outstanding numbers for Colton. Schultheis’ offense has been off-the-charts as she has already tallied 116 kills for the Wildcats and has been extremely efficient with an 85.3% positive rate at the net. She also leads her team in digs (83) and passes (147) and ranks second in aces (18) and third in blocks (nine).</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Areli Orozco – Setter – Touchet – 2021</strong></p> <p>Touchet has been one of the great stories of this unique season as the Indians remain undefeated after their first ten matches. Setter Oreli Orozco has played a big role in the team’s successful campaign so far as the 5’3” prospect has been wearing a lot of different hats for them. Orozco has been lights out on defense with a team-high 200 digs (and an absurd average of 20 per match) and ranks second in assists (89) and kills (48).</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Lily Richards - Setter – Three Rivers Christian – 2024</strong></p> <p>Lily Richards gave a spoiler of what a fantastic player she can become last season when she registered north of 500 assists for Three Rivers Christian as an eighth-grader. Her first matches as a freshman are proving that wasn’t a fluke as the 5’6” setter has been one of the strong pieces of the Lady Eagles’ roster with 222 assists, 51 kills, 67 passes, 33 digs, 33 aces and eight blocks for the team.</p>