Alief Taylor vs. Shadow Creek – Top Performers
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The high school volleyball season is underway in the state of Texas and we’ll try and be in as many matches as we can in order to bring the best coverage of the sport and all the info on the…
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Continue ReadingThe high school volleyball season is underway in the state of Texas and we’ll try and be in as many matches as we can in order to bring the best coverage of the sport and all the info on the most promising prospects of the Lone Star State to you every week.
The idea is to do things a little bit differently this year, so after every match I attend, I’ll be posting a quick article highlighting the players that stood out the most in that particular encounter.
On Tuesday, September 27, we headed to Sugarland to follow the duel between Alief Taylor and Shadow Creek. Despite playing on the road, the Sharks dominated the Lions to a 3-0 (25-12, 25-18, 25-16) victory that led them to improve to 18-16 for the season and 3-3 in the district. Alief Taylor now stand at 13-20-1 for the season and 0-4-1 in district play.
Top Performers
Kelly Kelsick
Kelly Kelsick
The dynamic outside hitter played a big role in Shadow Creek’s dominant performance as she was heavily involved with a lot of what the team did on the court. Kelsick was extremely solid on the backcourt, dealing well with the serves that went her way and producing some important digs. Her offense was also very sharp as she scored with ease from the left and the backcourt using her impressive combination of athleticism, technique and a high volleyball IQ. Kelsick had quite a few aces in the match and a long serving run she had helped the Sharks turn things around on set three.
One of the top middles in the state of Texas during the last club season, Collins played outside hitter with great success for Shadow Creek. She had no trouble scoring on Alief Taylor and used her length and impressive vertical to overpower opposing blockers, often hitting over their tops. Collins did a good job in switching gears with her offense, intelligently going from hard hits to tips. She seems to be adjusting well at the pin, but gave a sample of how dominating she is in the middle during the third set, when she hit a quick set with so much power that the ball went straight into the stands after an Alief Taylor defender couldn’t control it.
Shadow Creek’s freshman setter had somewhat of an easy shift as, due to Alief Taylor’s inconsistency, she had a lot of free balls to work with. Robinson made the most of it, running a fast-paced offense and making bold choices with her ball distribution. She did great in terms of keeping all her hitters involved and moving them around a lot, but also knew when to keep things simpler. Robinson also had good serving runs and was very smart with her own offense.
Highlights
Kelsea Dorsey
Kelsea Dorsey
Dorsey wasn’t set as often as Kelsick or Collins, but had great efficiency, converting most of her swings into points. Despite her limited frame, she showed great firepower and was able to put a lot of weight on the ball, making it very difficult for Alief Taylor’s defenders to control it.
Ashlynn Hawkins
Ashlynn Hawkins
Alief Taylor’s captain has a difficult start to the match, repeatedly shanking passes, but managed to find her game later. Hawkins was able to regain her confidence and stabilize her backcourt game and, from there on, became a much more productive player. She was probably the only player in her team to create problems for Shadow Creek from the service line (especially in the third set, when she had consecutive aces) and limited her offensive mistakes.