Eagle Invite Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Eagle Invite did not disappoint when it comes to showcasing a lot of talented young athletes.&nbsp;&nbsp;They took the court in a packed gymnasium in Apple Valley to battle with a highly competitive collection of teams.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Let's take a look at some of the teams and players who caught my attention Friday night.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Lakeville North</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>North made a big run to the championship match and having lethal attackers from every position was a big part of that.&nbsp;&nbsp;Senior right side hitter, [player_tooltip player_id='195120' first='Sydney' last='Carlson'], knew just where to place the ball and took a lot of really smart swings.&nbsp;&nbsp;Temple commit, [player_tooltip player_id='86644' first='Ava' last='Blascziek'], ran the offense and made some crazy good saves with jump setting or smart timing on a setter dump.&nbsp;&nbsp;She really knows how to control her offense.&nbsp;&nbsp;Freshman, [player_tooltip player_id='199395' first='Rayna' last='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.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":230293,"width":443,"height":295,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/09/LN-Rayna-Christianson.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-230293" width="443" height="295"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bemidji commit, [player_tooltip player_id='174729' first='Sidney' last='Wissbrod'], was solid in serve-receive, giving Blascziek a ton of options.&nbsp;&nbsp;Wissbrod also has really nice fast-twitch reflexes when covering her hitters.&nbsp;&nbsp;Minnesota State Moorhead commit, [player_tooltip player_id='174726' first='Emily' last='Ramsay'], has a crazy tough cut shot from the left pin.&nbsp;&nbsp;I love her craftiness in her attack style.&nbsp;&nbsp;She definitely kept defenders on their toes.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Prior Lake</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>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.  [player_tooltip player_id='180615' first='Elizabeth' last='Coleman'] 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, [player_tooltip player_id='229965' first='Elli' last='Tufto'], 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.  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>From the service line, outside hitter, [player_tooltip player_id='117638' first='Kyla' last='Ahlstrom'], 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.&nbsp;&nbsp;She also does a nice job finding hands with her swing for the kill.&nbsp;&nbsp;Freshman libero, [player_tooltip player_id='199393' first='Sidney' last='Burley'], did a solid job holding her own against a relentless and powerful Wayzata attack.&nbsp;&nbsp;I was also impressed with sophomore middle blocker, [player_tooltip player_id='229966' first='Greta' last='Tompkins'], and how she got a lot of touches and put up a big block.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Wayzata</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Friday didn't quite go as they may have planned in Apple Valley on Friday night when they lost in a tight 3^rd set 15-12 to a gritty [program_tooltip program_id='430430' first='Lakeville' last='South'] squad.  But they sure returned with a vengeance on Saturday and didn't drop a single set to take a 5^th place finish in this extremely competitive tournament.  The Trojans had a very physical and quick middle in [player_tooltip player_id='205530' first='Katie' last='Kelzenberg'] who got a ton of big touches.  Kelzenberg and [player_tooltip player_id='177434' first='Reilly' last='Kurth'] were both highly effective at working the angles and around the opposing block to be offensive threats.  On the outside, Minnesota commit, [player_tooltip player_id='107898' first='Olivia' last='Swenson'], could pound the sharp cross or line, as well as simply hit over most blockers.   </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed 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action as well and got to show off her powerful swing.  On the right pin, we saw [player_tooltip player_id='106358' first='Kaitlyn' last='Vogt'] 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, [player_tooltip player_id='107264' first='Stella' last='Swenson'], 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, [player_tooltip player_id='135295' first='Sophia' last='Johnson'], was really scrappy and covered a lot of court behind her big attackers. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3>Some other players who caught my eye: </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='117645' first='Addison' last='Mattes'] – 2025 – 6'4 – Middle Blocker – East Ridge </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='229973' first='Alexa' last='Dietz'] – 2024 – 5'11 – Middle Blocker – East Ridge </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='229971' first='Ava' last='Bertsch'] – 2024 – Setter - [program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432082' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430384' first='Eagan' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='86659' first='Avery' last='Rosenberg'] – 2023 – 6'1 – Middle Blocker – Chaska </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='168255' first='Brielle' last='Riess'] – 2024 – 6'0 – Middle Blocker - Marshall </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='166341' first='Caitlyn' last='Christenson'] – 2023 – 5'5 – Libero – Marshall </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='191402' first='Carly' last='Gilk'] – 2025 – 6'1 – Right Side Hitter – Champlin Park </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='229968' first='Ellie' last='Egan'] – 2023 – Pin Hitter – [program_tooltip program_id='430430' first='Lakeville' last='South'] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='73485' first='Emily' last='Moes'] – 2023 – 6'0 – Outside Hitter – [program_tooltip program_id='430430' first='Lakeville' last='South'] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='117644' first='Hadley' last='Burger'] – 2024 – 5'11 – Right Side Hitter – East Ridge </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='229970' first='Isy' last='Purrigton'] – 2025 – Pin Hitter – [program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432082' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430384' first='Eagan' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='73493' first='Kaitlyn' last='Sellner'] – 2023 – 6'2 – Middle Blocker – [program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432082' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430384' first='Eagan' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='177424' first='Keira' last='Schmidt'] – 2025 – 6'3 – Middle Blocker – [program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432165' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432082' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430384' first='Eagan' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='229972' first='Lauren' last='Wherry'] – 2023 – Setter - Marshall </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='86655' first='Leah' last='Jones'] – 2023 – 6'2 – Outside Hitter – Marshall </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='230237' first='Lily' last='Riese'] – 2024 – Middle Blocker – Champlin Park </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='106351' first='Marlie' last='Hanson'] – 2023 – 5'11 – Outside Hitter – Champlin Park </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='73481' first='Mikayla' last='McDougall'] – 2023 - 6'0 – Outside Hitter – East Ridge </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='135316' first='Paige' last='Wagner'] – 2024 – 6'3 – Middle Blocker – [program_tooltip program_id='430430' first='Lakeville' last='South'] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='191429' first='Rowan' last='Carr'] – 2025 – 5'9 – Outside Hitter – [program_tooltip program_id='430430' first='Lakeville' last='South'] </strong></li><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='229969' first='Sasha' last='Bovard'] – 2024 – 5'8 – Outside Hitter – Chaska </strong></li></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='73475' first='Sydney' last='Jaynes'] – 2023 – 6'0 – Outside Hitter - Northfield </strong></li></ul> <!-- /wp:list -->