Houston Area HS Previews: 6A – District 21

<p>The USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championship (GJNC) has just ended and new national champions have just been crowned 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’re previewing some of the districts located in the Houston area, highlighting their teams and most promising prospects.</p> <p>Join us as we cover Division 6A – District 21:</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Atascocita</strong></p> <p>The Lady Eagles were the most successful team in district 21 last season, when they won 11 of their 12 matches to rank at the top of the standings. Two pillars of that team, outside hitters Anna Linskey and Amya Dubose have graduated, leaving big holes to be filled. Middle blocker will be a position of strength to the team, however, with the return of [player_tooltip player_id="176657" first="Layla" last="Smith"] and Ruthie Swain, while at the setter position Atascocita has a very talented player in Madai Suarez.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Beaumont United</strong></p> <p>The Timberwolves are a new team in the division after they spent the last two seasons in division 5A – district 21. Their last season wasn’t a prolific one as the team won just one of their nine matches to finish in sixth place. The team is hoping that a fresh start in a new division will take them to winning ways.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Humble</strong></p> <p>The Wildcats had a rough 2021-2022 season, failing to secure a single win to finish at the bottom of district 21 with 12 losses. The team’s best player in the last few years, middle blocker Shaela Mosby has graduated and Humble will start rebuilding with pieces like setter Tevai Haiola, libero Ariana Houston and outside hitter Djamila Ziani Price.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>King</strong></p> <p>The Lady Panthers were near the bottom of district 21 last season as their two victories against Humble were only good enough to secure them a sixth-place finish. The season was important, though, to consolidate outside hitters Aleria Lane and Sabria Davis and middle blocker Kristian Lewis as the player to lead the team through the 2022-2023 season.</p> <p><strong><br /> Kingwood</strong></p> <p>The Lady Mustangs ranked third in district 21 last season after they won nine of their 12 matches and even got to play in a couple of playoff matches before their campaign came to an end. They won’t look the same without star outside hitter Sophie Ocampo, who graduated, but still have more than enough talent to be confident in another good campaign, especially with their setter/right side duo of Hannah Smith and Abby Montes and their strong pin hitters Emma Montes (who’s Abby’s twin) and Ellie Ocampo (Sophie’s younger sister).</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>North Shore</strong></p> <p>Also nicknamed Lady Mustangs, the volleyball team of North Shore High School ranked fourth in district 21 last season with six wins and six losses obtained in their campaign. They will have a strong class of seniors to replace, most notably in right side Atria Dumas, middle blockers Alexis Bowen and Taylor Waters and outside hitter/defensive specialist Sydni Parrish, but also a handful of younger players ready to lead the team on outside hitter Briana Allen, setter Karissa Maldonado and libero Josiara Hernandez Torrado.</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Summer Creek</strong></p> <p>The only team to take a match off of district 21 winner Atascocita in 2021-2022, the Lady Bulldogs will be looking to improve from their 10-2 campaign and maybe finish at the top of the table this time. Starting outside hitters Kaitlyn Honora and Madelyn Troy have both graduated, but Summer Creek is bringing back its top scorer in right side [player_tooltip player_id="124151" first="Aspen" last="Maxwell"], a player that showed great improvement during the club season, defensive specialist Kennedy Gustafson, one of the most reliable backcourt players in the region, and promising middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id="198344" first="Taylor" last="Larkin"].</p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>West Brook</strong></p> <p>The Lady Bruins ranked fifth in the seven-team district 21 last season by beating the team that finished below them in the standings and losing to the ones that finished above, producing a 4-8 campaign. Outside hitter Brianna White and setter Ashlyn Neireiter will be key pieces in the team this season, especially after middle blocker Annalise Burbank and outside hitter Javan Doyle graduated.</p>