Houston Area HS Previews: 5A – District 18

<p>The USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship (GJNC) has ended less than 24 hours ago and new national champions have just been crowned this past weekend in Indianapolis, but the prep volleyball community is already looking ahead to the start of the high school season.</p> <p>Over the next four months, prospects will store their club team uniforms in their closets and will represent their high schools with the goal of getting to the end of the year as the new state champions.</p> <p>The state of Texas has one of the largest high school seasons in the entire country with the University Interscholastic League (UIL) managing a tournament for public schools that features six divisions, 192 districts and as many as 1,207 high school teams.</p> <p>The start date for the 2022-2023 season is August 8 and between now and then, we’ll be previewing some of the districts located in the Houston area, highlighting their teams and most promising prospects.</p> <p>We start today with Division 5A – District 18:</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Angleton</strong></p> <p>The Ladycats were sixth in district 24 last season with six wins and nine losses and could be in a position to produce a better campaign this time since they maintained most of their core. Dynamic outside hitters Sydney Moseley and Ahmasia Brown, setter Chelsey Owens, middle blocker Lee’Andra Foston and libero Isabel Avalos will all be key players for Angleton.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Friendswood</strong></p> <p>The Mustangs were a force on district 22 last season, dropping just three of their 16 matches, and have the quality to be just as dominant in 2022-2023. Although the team lost its two main scorers in graduated Sarah Sitton (middle) and Kate Bueche (outside), Friendswood have players with tremendous talent in outside hitter/libero Cierra Pesak, setter/right side [player_tooltip player_id="177541" first="Meghan" last="Donoughue"] and middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id="124149" first="Isabella" last="Thompson"], who are ready to step up and be even more productive.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Galveston Ball</strong></p> <p>The Tornadoes from the Galveston area ranked fifth on district 22 last season after they won six and lost ten matches. The team lost two key contributors who graduated in outside hitter Maggie Farmer and libero Sara Gabriel and will have a hard time replacing them, but there’s hope that players who had important roles last season, such as setter Chloe Stein, middle blocker Kate Lindamood, outside hitter Charli Dean and libero Sunny Higgins, could give the next step in their development.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>La Porte</strong></p> <p>The Lady Dawgs also join from district 22, where they ranked sixth with a campaign of six wins and ten losses. Graduated outside hitter Jada Greenidge and middle blocker Payton Babineaux will be missed, but with the team’s top blocker and best defender returning in middle Chloe Paul and libero Madison Guidry respectively, La Porte has some interesting building blocks to start with.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Manvel</strong></p> <p>The Mavericks were among the best teams in the entire state last season, when they cruised on district 22 with an undefeated record of 16 wins and made a trip to the State Championship. Mary Katherine ‘MK’ Preston’s presence in the middle will be missed but with a core that has a cerebral setter in [player_tooltip player_id="179904" first="Kenedy" last="Massie"], explosive and versatile hitters in [player_tooltip player_id="87551" first="Devyn" last="Lewis"] and [player_tooltip player_id="195821" first="Lyric" last="Jordan"] and the extraordinary defensive talent of libero Bea Angeles, Manvel will be just fine again.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Santa Fe</strong></p> <p>The Indians will almost start from scratch after a 2021-2022 season that saw them rank third on district 22 with 13 wins and just three losses. Gone are several seniors who were among the team’s most important players, most notably star offensive player Kenzie Smith and defensive stud Emily Hardee. Outside hitter Andee Stamper and middle blocker Kadee Frantz will need to be the team’s centerpieces on offense while libero Breanna Montemayor will likely have more ground to cover on the backcourt.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Texas City</strong></p> <p>The Lady Stings were seventh on district 22 last season with five wins and 11 losses and will be looking to do better in 2022-2023. A very complete player, outside hitter Bella Waggoner will be hard to replace but Texas City has a duo of talented, up-and-coming prospects in middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id="188442" first="Makenzie" last="Briles"], who can be a force at the net, and setter Jayla Diaz-Medina, who’s also an excellent defensive player.</p>