High School Pre-Season Spotlight: New Braunfels

Photo: Kate Zora

Mallori Howington

July 25, 2022 @ 01:22 PM

The Central Texas Region is being highlighted today with the New Braunfels Unicorn volleyball program. The Unicorns are in a good position rolling into the season in a new district alignment. They move from an 8-team district to a 6-team district, but many district opponents stayed the same. They are under new leadership this season with head coach Kate Zora. They also return a cast of juniors and seniors who are ready to lead the way into the post-season.   Riley Scott returns for New Braunfels as a senior right side hitter. Last year, she had 301 kills and 42 blocks for the Unicorns. The other piece on the right side is senior setter [player_tooltip player_id="200650" first="Randi" last="Rush"]. Randi had a great year, grabbing over 600 assists. Riley and Randi will be the core of the senior leadership on the team. With a new coach and a new district, these seniors will be ready to leave their mark on the program.   New Braunfels is stacked with a load of juniors, all of whom are very talented. Junior setter/right side Blaise House will look to make an immediate impact. Although Blaise didnot make a huge contribution her sophomore year, she played for a really good United Volleyball 16 Purple team last spring. Sophia Bendele could come in as a huge defensive specialist this year for the Unicorns. She has had a productive club season for United Volleyball. Her speed to the ball and communication has improved as well as her left back defense. Another great passing option for the Unicorns is junior Evyn Clark. Evyn had over 500 digs last season and almost 700 receptions. Just by looking at her stats, you can tell she is aggressive and wants the ball. Rounding out our junior class mentions is middle blocker Maddie O’Gorman. Standing at 6’0, Maddie is a great blocker. She is long, fast, and plays with a a lot of passion. Don’t limit her to just the middle position. She also hits great from each PIN.   New Braunfels looks really good this fall for a post-season run. New head coach Kate Zora, who has state tournament experience, will head up this new team. She will also rely on her juniors and seniors for leadership and to set the culture for future generations of Unicorns. They will join in a district that looks a little different this year, but with players like Riley Scott and Maddie O’Gorman, they will be just fine.

The Central Texas Region is being highlighted today with the New Braunfels Unicorn volleyball program. The Unicorns are in a good position rolling into the season in a new district alignment. They move from an 8-team district to a 6-team district, but many district opponents stayed the same. They are under new leadership this season with head coach Kate Zora. They also return a cast of juniors and seniors who are ready to lead the way into the post-season.