Saint Louis Week 1 Ball Bouncers

<p><strong>With the season now in full swing, here are some of the top hitter performances. </strong></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="102445" first="Vanessa" last="Polk"]-Burroughs</strong></p> <p>The Pepperdine recruit started the 2021 season on fire. She helped her team win the Visitation tourney putting down 76 kills and 13 blocks to win the tourney.  Vanessa is a strong presence in the middle for Burroughs, but her movement and aggressive blocking are what I like about Polk. In the championship final against a good Parkway Central team, she hammered 20 kills and put up two blocks for the 2-1 win. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Mercedes Browder (2022) | Parkway Central</strong></p> <p>Mercedes started off her weekend with a 2^nd place finish to Burroughs at the Visitation tourney but not without making some noise of her own.  In the finals, she would hit .462% with 19 kills.  The outside hitter has a strong swing and looks to flatten the ball every time she gets the ball.   Already 13 kills away from topping last year’s kill total in a short season and looking to make the most of her last year. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="102452" first="Kennedy" last="Lane"]-St. Pius X (Festus)</strong></p> <p>It started like last year ended for Kennedy with 51 kills to start the season. 5’10 outside hitter for the Lancers once again will carry her team offensively.  The William Woods recruit has a season-high 17 kills in a 1-2 loss to Windsor. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Lexi Menne (2023) | Windsor</strong></p> <p>At 5’5, this undersized outside hitter gets the job done all over the court. This kid’s ability to score on bigger blocks is impressive to watch.  With a crafty roll shot and line shot, Lexi is looking to get the Owls back into the state playoffs in Class 4 after missing last year.  Season-high ten kills in a 2-1 win over St. Pius X.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="41802" first="Ella" last="Brinkmann"]-Borgia</strong></p> <p>Borgia goes as Brinkmann goes.  Borgia is looking to return to state for the 4th consecutive year, and beating a tough Cor Jesu team was a good start. In a rematch of last year’s Class 5 quarterfinal win, Brinkmann torched Cor Jesu with 20 kills and added 25 in a 3-1 win over St. Dominic.  At only  5’8, her jumping ability and her volleyball IQ are hard to match.   She can score at will with the ball going to her on the outside, middle, right side, or back row. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="150001" first="Anna" last="Sommer"]-Parkway South </strong></p> <p>The six rotation 6’0 middle for the Patriots is a bright spot for her team at the moment.  With her agility and the overall game, she leads the team with 67 kills, eight blocks, and 26 digs to start the season.  Not many middles play six rotations, but Sommer has the skill set to play defense and attach out of the back row. </p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="123474" first="Megan" last="Manaj"]-Lindbergh</strong></p> <p>Leading her team out of the gates with a 4-1-3 record Megan has put down 56 kills on the season. Megan can put the ball down from either pin with a whip of an arm but is a hard-hitting middle with great length and vertical.  Watch for her to be one of the top middles in Saint Louis.</p>