Club Breakdown: FaR Out 18 Gold

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is another top notch club team coming out of the FaR Out cannon. Coming in hot, 18 Gold should be a very respectable team come summer time with this strong roster.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last year, saw 18 Gold place in the top ten at nationals. Unlike 18 Black however, none of this squad returns anyone from that same team. But much like Black, this squad has a nice mix of seniors and juniors, both parties bringing some high level experience from last year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:table --> <figure class="wp-block-table"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Aubree Garcia</strong></td><td>5'10 OH</td><td>Mount Pleasant (Wayne State)</td><td>[player_tooltip player_id='173626' first='Paige' last='Williamson']</td><td>5'9 OH</td><td>Caledonia (Albion)</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='110278' first='Caroline' last='Baker']</td><td>5'8 S</td><td>Byron Center</td><td>[player_tooltip player_id='110334' first='Ava' last='Wilcox']</td><td>5'9 OH</td><td>Lansing Catholic</td></tr><tr><td>[player_tooltip player_id='176598' first='Jenna' last='Southland']</td><td>6'0 MB</td><td>Three Rivers</td><td>[player_tooltip player_id='140475' first='Taylor' last='Stephens']</td><td>5'11 OH</td><td>Okemos (Kalamazoo College)</td></tr><tr><td><strong>Lydia Uganski </strong></td><td>5'11 MB</td><td>Jenison</td><td>[player_tooltip player_id='173622' first='Alli' last='Pickard']</td><td>5'7 L</td><td>Lakewood (Cornerstone)</td></tr></tbody></table></figure> <!-- /wp:table --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Breakdown</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like I said, this 18 Gold crew comes with quite a bit of experience. It's early in the season, but this team looks destined for a great 2023 season. A bulk of this roster is made up of last year's 17 Black and 16 Black squads, both of which did VERY well during the summer national tournaments. Both squads finished 9th in 17 Premier and 16 Open at AAU Nationals, respectively.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Say no more, let's check out this team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":228463,"width":235,"height":154,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2022/09/LW-7-Alli-Pickard-scaled-crop-2210x1452-1663774015.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-228463" width="235" height="154" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='173622' first='Alli' last='Pickard']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4>Seniors</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Looking at the seniors on this team, they all come to this squad with a lot of experience and a lot of talent. Of the seniors on this squad, the likes of L [player_tooltip player_id='173622' first='Alli' last='Pickard'] and OH [player_tooltip player_id='140475' first='Taylor' last='Stephens'] come in after huge fall seasons. Pickard has been a crucial cog in the Lakewood machine for the last several years and have plenty of championship experiences to deliver in big moments. Stephens saw her star shine so bright with Okemos. In a career performance in the Regional Semifinals versus Ann Arbor Skyline, Stephens popped off with 28 kills to advance to the Finals. It's winning ways like these that could take Gold a long way.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rounding out the senior crew includes OH <strong>Aubree Garcia </strong>and OH/DS [player_tooltip player_id='173626' first='Paige' last='Williamson']. Garcia comes way of Attack Volleyball last season, she's coming off of a nice senior season at Mount Pleasant and provides great depth to this squad. Williamson is a returner from last year's 17 Black team. Another great addition for depth and brings a steadiness to the back court. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4>Juniors</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moving on to the junior side of this squad, the 2024s bring a lot of talent and balance to this team. Pacing the offense comes way of last year's 16 Black setter, [player_tooltip player_id='110278' first='Caroline' last='Baker']. Baker is another small, but dynamic setter out of this club and will be tasked with running the whole show this year. A position she'll surely thrive in. [player_tooltip player_id='110334' first='Ava' last='Wilcox'] rounds out the roster of pins for 18 Gold. Wilcox is a junior from Lansing Catholic, coming off of a big fall, she is a great addition.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Where the middles at? Look no further than [player_tooltip player_id='176598' first='Jenna' last='Southland'] and <strong>Lydia Uganski</strong>. Southland comes way from 16 Black last season. A roster stacked with middles, Southland found her way on the court often and knows how to make an impact. Opposite her, Uganski is getting a big call up from 16 Red last season. A squad that went the distance and just narrowly lost in the 16 Classic championship at AAUs, Uganski was a huge proponent to their runner-up finish.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->