FAST Pre Nationals – 16s – The Defensive Specialists
The club volleyball season is quickly approaching its end, with the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship (GJNC), the highlight of the year, set to happen from June 23-July 4 in Indiana. The FAST Pre Nationals tournament has established itself…
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Continue ReadingThe club volleyball season is quickly approaching its end, with the USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship (GJNC), the highlight of the year, set to happen from June 23-July 4 in Indiana.
The FAST Pre Nationals tournament has established itself as the final event in the Houston area ahead of the GJNC. This year, the tournament was held in three different venues this past weekend and offered a final opportunity for us to watch some of the best teams in the state before they had to Indiana to fight for the national title.
We were at the FAST Complex on Saturday afternoon watching the 16s and 17s Power Pools and this time will spend not one, but two weeks producing reports about the event. This week we’re focusing on the 16s division and in our final positional piece, we’ll list some of the most efficient defensive specialists who were in the tournament.
Kiersten Hay – Woodlands Revolution 16 Premier – HS: Klein – 2023
Kiersten Hay managed to substantially improve the defensive strength of her Woodlands Revolution 16 Premier team when she was on the court. The 5’5” prospect did an excellent job in handling her passing and defensive duties with the team thanks to her impressive reaction speed and her superior ball control. Hay also proved to be a productive server, having some good runs from the service line.
Adyson Perez – Alamo 16 Elite – HS: Reagan – 2024
Adyson ‘Ady’ Perez was able to cause an impact right from her first touch on the ball as the 5’5” defender is also an excellent server. Her defensive skills were also extremely helpful as she took care of the team’s backcourt, splitting the court with libero Carly Chavez Carly Chavez 5'7" | DS/L O'Connor | 2024 State TX . Perez is also an excellent passer and with Chavez and her on the court, the team hitters could focus entirely on the offensive side of their games.
Brooklin Frazier – TAV Houston 16 Adidas – HS: Brenham – 2024
Brooklin Frazier was returning from injury in the FAST Pre Nationals but given her high level of play, it was nearly impossible to say so. The 5’6” defender gave a lot of stability to her team, making several important defensive plays and playing very solid volleyball. Frazier is also an excellent server and got to help her team from the service line as well.
Sydney McKay Sydney McKay 5'8" | DS/L Bellville | 2025 State TX – HJV 15 Elite – HS: Belville – 2025
When Sydney McKay Sydney McKay 5'8" | DS/L Bellville | 2025 State TX is on the court, it’s fair to say her HJV 15 Elite team has the luxury of fielding two liberos at the same time. The 5’8” defensive specialist is as productive and reliable as any libero in her age group and does an excellent job in replacing one of the team’s outside hitters on the backcourt with her excellent ball control. McKay is also an excellent server and scored quite a few aces during the tournament.
Emma Gonzalez – Alamo 15 Premier – HS: Taylor Johnson – 2025
Also capable of playing as a setter, Emma Gonzalez offered some interesting flexibility to her coach with her ability to do different things on the court. The 5’4” prospect is excellent at keeping the ball up on the right side of the backcourt and also brought great value with her dangerous serve. Having Gonzalez on the court also assured Alamo 15 Premier would be able to have a solid set in transition even if the team’s starting setter made the first contact.