USAV All-Star Recruiting Feature: North Texas Youth

We've got a lot of notes and observations to cover after spending a week in Tulsa.   The USAV All-Star Championships in Tulsa, Oklahoma, was a chance for regions across the United States to form "super teams" and compete for one more title to wrap up the 2022 club season. It was a privilege to cover this event, and it was especially exciting to see teams comprised of athletes who had spent much of the season competing against one another. That's how you add some intrigue.   As we start to generate some recruiting features from this event, it's only fair to start with the Youth division champs. Here's an overview of the North Texas all-star team that took gold in Tulsa.     Already Committed!   This is a recruiting feature, but a few players on the North Texas Youth roster have already made their college plans known.   The former [program_tooltip program_id='431200' first='Madfrog' last=''] duo of [player_tooltip player_id='124144' first='Lainee' last='Pyles'] and [player_tooltip player_id='142203' first='Carson' last='Eickenloff'] quickly made college commitments after securing a GJNC 16 Open championship in early July. Pyles, the GJNC MVP, announced her commitment to LSU after having a dominant pin-hitting performance in Indianapolis. She will see plenty from Eickenloff at the next level, too, as the talented setter gave her pledge to LSU's conference rival, Ole Miss. The North Texas Youth team gave Eickenloff and Pyles one more chance to show off their brilliant setter-hitter connection before Eickenloff makes the move to Drive Nation for next year's club season.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1549789363634114560?s=20&t=_0IOIVZZmQAFbEDOmede7g </div></figure>   LSU gets another 2024 commit from the North Texas roster in middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id='178685' first='Jessica' last='Jones']. This versatile attacker dazzled us with her slide attacks at GJNC and was frontcourt leader for Frisco Flyers throughout the 2022 season. Keep shuffling the Texas club deck, though, because Jones will team up with Eickenloff next season and add another impressive middle attacker to the Pingdom.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1550910148700508160?s=20&t=_0IOIVZZmQAFbEDOmede7g </div></figure>     Top-Tier 2024s   The uncommitted 2024s on the North Texas Youth roster are among the nation's best.   Lauryn "Lolo" Lambert, another future Drive Nation representative, showed her full volleyball repertoire with the NT all-stars. Her six-rotation skills captured our attention when she competed with Dallas Skyline this year, and that certainly didn't change in Tulsa. Terminal swings on the left pin were frequent. That wasn't the only highlight from Lambert, though, as she got to don the libero jersey several times and demonstrated her willingness to lock down the backcourt. What a fun lineup variation from North Texas.   We saw similar contributions from [player_tooltip player_id='142201' first='Jadyn' last='Livings']. Like Lambert, Livings was a six-rotation mainstay during the club season and had a breakout week at GJNC. TAV 16 Black thrived off the leadership of this outside hitter, and North Texas was happy to do the same en route to a championship.   Livings' TAV teammate, [player_tooltip player_id='142220' first='Favor' last='Anyanwu'], locked things down in the middle throughout the event. That's nothing new. Her hard-hitting style has made her a fan favorite in the North Texas Region, and Anyanwu can also excel at opposite whenever needed.   With this wealth of frontcourt options, Drive Nation setter [player_tooltip player_id='307449' first='Sophia' last='Wilson'] had a big opportunity to showcase her talent in Tulsa. She distributed the ball well and was particularly effective at getting the back row involved in the offense. Floor defense is another strength for Wilson, and that's a good skill to have with a North Texas team full of out-of-system scorers.     Next in Line: Class of 2025   North Texas Youth did not shy away from featuring some 2025s who are poised to take over the Texas prep scene.   [player_tooltip player_id='180469' first='Suli' last='Davis'] generated a lot of buzz this year while playing up on Drive Nation's top 16s team. Just like her stint on 16 Red, Davis' presence on the North Texas all-star team made it easy to forget that she's just 2025. She got plenty of passing reps in Tulsa and wielded the same attacking dominance that we saw during the club season. As we work on our 2025 national rankings, this is one name you'll want to keep in mind.   Dallas Skyline can also stake a claim on one of Texas' best left-side attackers in the 2025 class. [player_tooltip player_id='180179' first='Alex' last='Richter'] had standout performances at a variety of qualifier events this year, and her progress as a six-rotation hitter took another step forward with North Texas Youth. Her impressive length already makes her a must-see athlete. Now, Richter's well-rounded game is turning heads, too.   Our tour of Texas' top 2025 hitter continues with [program_tooltip program_id='431200' first='Madfrog' last='']. 15 National Green teammates [player_tooltip player_id='212729' first='Anna' last='Barr'] and [player_tooltip player_id='212734' first='Naya' last='Salfiti'] were both chosen to compete with North Texas Youth, and this unstoppable duo produced once again. Barr has the physicality and power to compete on either pin, and she proved that once again at the All-Star Championships. She's the kind of hitter you want in the L1 spot. Salfiti, meanwhile, has a fluid lefty swing that makes her natural choice at opposite. What a dangerous combo to bring to 15s competition.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1549801682992865281?s=20&t=_0IOIVZZmQAFbEDOmede7g </div></figure>   While we're on the topic of multi-talented athletes, [player_tooltip player_id='184252' first='Jordyn' last='Moore']'s pedigree as a setter and an opposite landed her a spot on the North Texas roster. She represented her Excel club well with her presence at both positions, and it's a testament to just how deep the North Texas club scene really is.   And, of course, we can't leave liberos out of this discussion. While North Texas frequently gave its pin hitters some time in the libero jersey, [player_tooltip player_id='254289' first='Piper' last='Mickenheim'] was the "true" defensive specialist on the team's roster. Like Moore, Mickenheim's excellent ball control helped put Excel's 15s team on the map this season. Major props are due to North Texas for putting their trust in a 2025 libero who had no problem stepping up in this big moment.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1550982882075807744?s=20&t=_0IOIVZZmQAFbEDOmede7g </div></figure>

We've got a lot of notes and observations to cover after spending a week in Tulsa.