GJNC Previews: TAV Houston 17 Black

<p>The most important moment of the season is just around the corner for teams from the 15s, 16s and 17s age group from around the country as the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship will take place at the Las Vegas Convention Center from June 26-July 5.</p> <p>As many as 728 teams are expected to compete in the 15 divisions for these three age groups and the state of Texas will, of course, be well-represented in the tournament with more than 50 teams expected to make the trip to Nevada.</p> <p>During the next few weeks, we’ll use this space to present the Lone Star state representatives in the tournament, recapping their performances during the club season and highlighting some of their top prospects.</p> <p><strong>TAV Houston 17 Black</strong></p> <p>Representing the traditional TAV Houston club, 17 Black will one of the contenders in the 17 National division in Las Vegas. The team that has head coach Branden Smeltzer at the helm enters the tournament with a respectable win record of 38-18 in 2021. The strong numbers reflected in the team’s campaign in the club season with a victory at the Lone Star Regionals, a second-place finish at the Tour of Texas /TCS Stop 2 and a third at the FAST Warm Up.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CO82oW7s8p1/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CO82oW7s8p1/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by TAV Houston (@tavhouston)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><script async src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script></p> <p><strong>Players to Watch</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="99515" first="Mallorie" last="Garner"] – Outside Hitter – HS: Bridgeland – 2022</strong></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="99515" first="Mallorie" last="Garner"] has the size and the skills to excel as an outside hitter. A 6’1” player, she’s a handful to deal with at the net because of her solid combination of power and technique. She’s the centerpiece of her high school team Bridgeland’s offense and plays a similar role for TAV Houston 17 Black. Ranked 81^st on our 2022 Prep Dig State Rankings, Garner is also a capable defender and registered 193 kills and 140 digs in her last high school campaign.</p> <p><iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/11341971/5fac8c7602b1880928be199c" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="99520" first="Carlie" last="McCutchen"] – Setter – HS: Grand Oaks – 2022</strong></p> <p>Good teams start with good setters and TAV Houston 17 Black follows that recipe with [player_tooltip player_id="99520" first="Carlie" last="McCutchen"]. The 5’6” setter masters two of the most important things for a setter as she uses all her options, including back row hitters, very well and does whatever it takes to put her hitter in the best possible spot. She’s a hard worker when it comes to chasing out-of-system passes and that mindset helps to improve her defense too. That’s why she had 797 assists and 433 digs in two high school seasons with Grand Oaks and ranks 106^th on our 2022 Prep Dig State Rankings.</p> <p><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/x9V8lW9klbk" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="99525" first="Jackie" last="Velzis"] – Middle Blocker/Right Sider – HS: Cypress Woods – 2022</strong></p> <p>[player_tooltip player_id="99525" first="Jackie" last="Velzis"]’ offensive versatility allows her to play anywhere at the net. She’s normally used as an outside hitter on her high school team Cypress Woods, where she tallied 418 kills in two season, but switches to middle blocker or right sider with TAV Houston 17 Black. That ability to play multiple positions (and excel in all of them) and her 6’1” frame should open a lot of possibilities for her in the future. Velzis has a very high contact point and hits the ball with a lot of confidence, making it difficult for opponents to get her out of rhythm – she’s very reliable and consistent. She ranks 122^nd on our 2022 Prep Dig State Rankings.</p> <p><iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13013079/5e704eb0c119de04d82c53dd" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>