Eagle Invite Standouts
In this article:
The Eagle Invite did not disappoint when it comes to showcasing a lot of talented young athletes. They took the court in a packed gymnasium in Apple Valley to battle with a highly competitive collection of teams. Let’s take a look…
Access all of Prep Dig
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe Eagle Invite did not disappoint when it comes to showcasing a lot of talented young athletes. They took the court in a packed gymnasium in Apple Valley to battle with a highly competitive collection of teams.
Let’s take a look at some of the teams and players who caught my attention Friday night.
Lakeville North
North made a big run to the championship match and having lethal attackers from every position was a big part of that. Senior right side hitter, Sydney Carlson Sydney Carlson 5'11" | S Lakeville North | 2023 State MN , knew just where to place the ball and took a lot of really smart swings. Temple commit, Ava Blascziek Ava Blascziek 5'10" | S Lakeville North | 2023 State #198 Nation MN , ran the offense and made some crazy good saves with jump setting or smart timing on a setter dump. She really knows how to control her offense. Freshman, Rayna Christianson, is really fun to watch because she is a high-motor middle blocker who is always running an aggressive route and has a highly effective serve, making her ideal for international play where middles have to serve.
Bemidji commit, Sidney Wissbrod Sidney Wissbrod 5'6" | DS/L Lakeville North | 2023 State MN , was solid in serve-receive, giving Blascziek a ton of options. Wissbrod also has really nice fast-twitch reflexes when covering her hitters. Minnesota State Moorhead commit, Emily Ramsay Emily Ramsay 5'10" | OH Lakeville North | 2023 State MN , has a crazy tough cut shot from the left pin. I love her craftiness in her attack style. She definitely kept defenders on their toes.
Prior Lake
I enjoyed watching this group battle, especially knowing they have some young pins who might get battle-tested this year and be a force to reckon with next year. Elizabeth Coleman Elizabeth Coleman 5'8" | OH Southwest Christian | 2024 State MN can elevate and gets her whip going to find the split in the block or take an aggressive swing to find high hands. She’s also solid in serve-receive. Sophomore pin hitter, Elli Tufto Elli Tufto 6'0" | RS Prior Lake | 2025 State MN , is really long and has good court awareness to anticipate a setter attack. She has a super high contact point and can smoke the line.
From the service line, outside hitter, Kyla Ahlstrom Kyla Ahlstrom 5'8" | OH Prior Lake | 2024 State MN , can catch a lot of players hiding up by the net, as well as pounding the deep corners creating a lot of chaos for the receiving team. She also does a nice job finding hands with her swing for the kill. Freshman libero, Sidney Burley Sidney Burley 5'8" | DS/L Prior Lake | 2026 State MN , did a solid job holding her own against a relentless and powerful Wayzata attack. I was also impressed with sophomore middle blocker, Greta Tompkins Greta Tompkins 6'1" | MB Prior Lake | 2025 State MN , and how she got a lot of touches and put up a big block.
Wayzata
Friday didn’t quite go as they may have planned in Apple Valley on Friday night when they lost in a tight 3rd set 15-12 to a gritty Lakeville South squad. But they sure returned with a vengeance on Saturday and didn’t drop a single set to take a 5th place finish in this extremely competitive tournament. The Trojans had a very physical and quick middle in Katie Kelzenberg Katie Kelzenberg 6'2" | MB Wayzata | 2025 State MN who got a ton of big touches. Kelzenberg and Reilly Kurth Reilly Kurth 6'2" | MB Wayzata | 2025 State MN were both highly effective at working the angles and around the opposing block to be offensive threats. On the outside, Minnesota commit, Olivia Swenson Olivia Swenson 6'3" | OH Wayzata | 2024 State #98 Nation MN , could pound the sharp cross or line, as well as simply hit over most blockers.
Bianca Nistor Bianca Nistor 5'9" | DS/L Wayzata | 2024 State MN got plenty of action as well and got to show off her powerful swing. On the right pin, we saw Kaitlyn Vogt Kaitlyn Vogt 5'10" | RS Wayzata | 2023 State MN receiving a lot of sets and, as a lefty, she worked the edges of the block really well while also being able to take a really aggressive approach and swing. Minnesota commit, Stella Swenson Stella Swenson 6'1" | S Wayzata | 2024 State #8 Nation MN , ran a 5-1 and she is a total game-changer when she puts up a ginormous block. She also takes a huge swing from the right side and makes an out-of-system attack just as lethal as being in-system. Cal commit, Sophia Johnson Sophia Johnson 5'9" | DS/L Wayzata | 2023 State MN , was really scrappy and covered a lot of court behind her big attackers.
Some other players who caught my eye:
- Addison Mattes Addison Mattes 6'3" | MB East Ridge | 2025 State MN – 2025 – 6’4 – Middle Blocker – East Ridge
- Alexa Dietz Alexa Dietz 5'11" | MB East Ridge | 2024 State MN – 2024 – 5’11 – Middle Blocker – East Ridge
- Ava Bertsch Ava Bertsch 5'9" | S Eagan | 2024 State MN – 2024 – Setter – Eagan ‘ last=”]’ last=”]’ last=”]
- Avery Rosenberg Avery Rosenberg 6'1" | MB Chaska | 2023 State MN – 2023 – 6’1 – Middle Blocker – Chaska
- Brielle Riess Brielle Riess 6'0" | MB Marshall | 2024 State MN – 2024 – 6’0 – Middle Blocker – Marshall
- Caitlyn Christenson Caitlyn Christenson 5'5" | DS/L Marshall | 2023 State MN – 2023 – 5’5 – Libero – Marshall
- Carly Gilk Carly Gilk 6'2" | RS Champlin Park | 2025 State #27 Nation MN – 2025 – 6’1 – Right Side Hitter – Champlin Park
- Ellie Egan Ellie Egan OH Lakeville South | 2023 MN – 2023 – Pin Hitter – Lakeville South
- Emily Moes Emily Moes 6'0" | OH Lakeville South | 2023 MN – 2023 – 6’0 – Outside Hitter – Lakeville South
- Hadley Burger Hadley Burger 6'0" | RS East Ridge | 2024 State MN – 2024 – 5’11 – Right Side Hitter – East Ridge
- Isabel Purrington Isabel Purrington 6'0" | OH Eagan | 2025 State MN – 2025 – Pin Hitter – Eagan ‘ last=”]’ last=”]’ last=”]
- Kaitlyn Sellner Kaitlyn Sellner 6'1" | MB Eagan | 2023 State MN – 2023 – 6’2 – Middle Blocker – Eagan ‘ last=”]’ last=”]’ last=”]
- Keira Schmidt Keira Schmidt 6'4" | MB Eagan | 2025 State #86 Nation MN – 2025 – 6’3 – Middle Blocker – Eagan ‘ last=”]’ last=”]’ last=”]
- Lauren Wherry Lauren Wherry 5'8" | S Marshall | 2023 State MN – 2023 – Setter – Marshall
- Leah Jones Leah Jones 6'2" | OH Marshall | 2023 State MN – 2023 – 6’2 – Outside Hitter – Marshall
- Lily Riese Lily Riese 5'11" | OH Champlin Park | 2024 State MN – 2024 – Middle Blocker – Champlin Park
- Marlie Hanson Marlie Hanson 5'11" | OH Champlin Park | 2023 State MN – 2023 – 5’11 – Outside Hitter – Champlin Park
- Mikayla McDougall Mikayla McDougall 6'0" | OH East Ridge | 2023 State MN – 2023 – 6’0 – Outside Hitter – East Ridge
- Paige Wagner Paige Wagner 6'3" | MB Lakeville South | 2024 State MN – 2024 – 6’3 – Middle Blocker – Lakeville South
- Rowan Carr Rowan Carr 5'9" | OH Lakeville South | 2025 State MN – 2025 – 5’9 – Outside Hitter – Lakeville South
- Sasha Bovard Sasha Bovard 5'9" | OH Chaska | 2024 State MN – 2024 – 5’8 – Outside Hitter – Chaska
- Sydney Jaynes Sydney Jaynes 6'0" | OH Northfield | 2023 State #48 Nation MN – 2023 – 6’0 – Outside Hitter – Northfield