2023 State Ranking Stock Risers – Vol 3

We are proud of our third update to the 2023 Class as we have now grown to 140 of the best athletes that this state has to offer and the following players have made some serious moves on the list. It is through their play during this past season that has helped us decide who should be where on the rankings. We always say that it is not an exact science, however proving it on the court in their position always helps solidify the analysis. We will be profiling players who were previously ranked in the state, but through great play, they made some serious moves up the rankings. Without further ado, here are a few players who moved up:   [player_tooltip player_id="87548" first="Arissa" last="Smith"] [2023] 6-2 Middle (HS: Ridge Point/Club: Houston Juniors/Verbal: Uncommitted) We are proud to announce that Arissa is now currently the 11th ranked prospect in the 2023 class according to the Prep Dig State Rankings list. We have written a few articles on her previously and here is a little from them, “The uncommitted long middle blocker from Houston is a sight to see. She has extremely long arms which stifle every opponent she goes up against. She patrols the net with ease due to her frame and excels in closing the block and sealing the net. She contacts extremely high on quick attacks and is almost unstoppable on offense. She has a very hard wrist snap which allows her to have added pop on her attacks. Arissa hits the ball with a ferocity out of the middle that is not seen in younger players. We have her ranked here due to her extremely high ceiling that she has. She plays for a great program in Houston Juniors who are no strangers to playing against the best competition in the nation. They will keep her progressing and we can’t wait to see her and her Ridge Point teammates dominate in their high school season which is about to be underway. Keep your eyes on this stud as she progresses throughout the years. She was super busy this club season with her Houston Juniors squad as they are on a mission to prove just how good they are. They are double qualified in the Open Division of USA Volleyball. We will be watching in person in Vegas as they look to solidify themselves as one of the best in the age group. Arissa also made a huge leap in her high school career as they asked her to be a big part of their offense this past year. She helped Ridge Point to a 15-8 overall record and a 13-1 district record. Arissa improved in every category of her stats as she tallied 78 kills on 233 attempts and also added 65 blocks and 67 digs. She is just getting started as she will be a huge part of Ridge Point’s game plan for her junior season.” Ridge Point has a 19-9 overall record so far this year and is picked to be one of the contenders for state. She has 58 kills on the young season and also has contributed on the defensive end with 27 blocks. They are about to start district play and she will be a key factor in their continued dominance at the net. We watched her this summer at GJNC in Vegas and she was her usual athletic self. The college coaches I spoke with about her were very impressed and have her on their short list. All you have to do is watch her play for a few seconds and you will see why. Please congratulate her on moving up the rankings.   [player_tooltip player_id="141133" first="Callie" last="Kieffer"] [2023] 5-10 Setter (HS: Prosper/Club: TAV/Verbal: Uncommitted) Callie has made a hug splash in the 2023 Prep Dig State Rankings. She has moved up and we now have her listed as the 24th best prospect in the state. Callie plays for Propsper High School and also for the nationally known Texas Advantage Volleyball out of the North Texas region. We profiled her recently and here is a little of what we said, “She is a very skilled setter who has made varsity since she was a freshman. Last season she was asked to do so much more than her freshman season at Prosper and she rose to the occasion dishing out 419 assists and tallying 109 digs and 18 aces. She and her TAV squad are one of the best teams in the nation right now in the USA Volleyball junior circuit. They are qualified for Junior Nationals in the Open division and will battle it out to determine the medals this summer. We want to welcome her with open arms to our State Ranking List and can’t wait to watch her progress in the future.” She was a huge reason why her TAV team won the Open Division National Championship this summer. We were present to watch and were in awe of how poised she is on the court in tense moments. This young lady proved on the court against some of the best competition in the nation that she is a force in the setting position. It is due to what we saw in person why we decided to move her up 24 spots in the rankings. She has her high school squad balling so far in this young season and they are in the running for a deep run in the playoffs again this year. Please congratulate her on moving up the rankings in this update.   [player_tooltip player_id="87563" first="Crystal" last="Creek"] [2023] 5-11 Middle/Right Side (HS: Bastrop/Club: Austin Skyline/Verbal: Uncommitted) Crystal was originally ranked 47th but we have moved her up to the 31st best overall prospect in the 2023 class according to our Prep Dig Rankings due to some stellar growth in her position. We have written about her a few times and here is a refresher on what we wrote, “She earned district 18-5A newcomer of the year honors last season at Bastrop High as a freshman on varsity. I haven’t seen a middle load up this much in a while and it is extremely refreshing to see. She truly understands the importance of loading and driving her legs into her approach. This creates so much momentum for her to unleash her power on the attack. And boy does she have some power. She is gifted as she also plays on the pins too. She has no problem with timing the higher tempo set. She excels on all three positions on the net. As a coach we try to teach players to use a big swooping upswing in order to gain momentum and gain extra elevation in their vertical. Miss Creek does this extremely well and very naturally. I would love to show all of our younger players her sweet mechanical movements in her approach. She has such a high ceiling when it comes to getting better at volleyball. In two years on Varsity she has been a leader on the court. She has amassed 478 kills, 394 digs, 89 aces and 74 total blocks. Most sophomores are lucky to make the Varsity team, but Miss Creek stars for hers. Every statistical category improved from her freshman season to her varsity season.” We have just watched her grow again from last season. She has already surpassed last year’s kill mark and they haven’t even started district play yet. It is fun to watch a player develop over the years and Miss Creek is on the correct path to super stardom. She is leading her team in kills and they have been competitive against some stiff competition. She is also on pace to decimate her digging stats as well. This growth is why we have moved her up. Please congratulate her on moving up the rankings in this update.     Stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes. If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at nov8vb@yahoo.com. Also don’t forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends. Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook. Thanks for following Texas Family!