H-Town Showdown #2 – 17s – Liberos
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The traditional club tournament H-Town Showdown had the second of its four scheduled stops of the year last weekend in Houston, with more than 100 teams competing in three age groups at three different venues in the region. I was…
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Continue ReadingThe traditional club tournament H-Town Showdown had the second of its four scheduled stops of the year last weekend in Houston, with more than 100 teams competing in three age groups at three different venues in the region.
I was at the FAST Complex on Saturday afternoon, following the 17s Division and got to watch the 16 best-seeded teams compete during the way and to see some of the finest volleyball talent in the state of Texas in action.
Several players stood out for their great level of play and I’m taking the week to feature some of them. Today we’ll focus on some of the liberos who were on fire on the backcourt on Saturday:
Cox was in impressive form leading the backcourt efforts of her HJV 17 Premier team on Saturday. She’s extremely agile and is always moving on the left side of the backcourt, always looking for the ball. Cox is very quick to react to tips and has excellent ball control to deal with hard-driven hits. Her positioning is another thing that makes her stand out as a defensive player as even if she’s not able to make the dig, she’s always around the ball. Cox also does a very good job of covering her hitters and is a very consistent passer.
Highlights
Rau was one of the pillars of her Houston Skyline BCS 17 Royal team at the H-Town Showdown #2. She has clearly established herself as the team’s floor general, organizing their backcourt efforts and making big plays. Rau reads the game extremely well, has incredible reflexes and is an excellent defender, who gets a lot of touches from her left position on the back. Always calm on the court, she’s also extremely efficient with her passing and delivered dimes all day.
Highlights
Schramm was a defensive force for her Woodlands Revolution 17 Premier team. Coming from a fantastic high school season with Lake Creek, she seems to be only getting better. Schramm works really hard for the ball on the backcourt and has tremendous ball control and great positioning. Her passing was always reliable too, although she covered a huge area on the court. Schramm has been improving in some other areas of her game too, such as setting in transition.
Highlights
Taylor Crain
Taylor Crain
One of the leaders of her Houston Stellar 17 Elite team, Crain impressed with her efficiency and consistency during the day. She has excellent technical skills and is very strong mentally too, not switching off regardless of the situation on the court – I’ve watched her team in good and bad moments and she was always steady. Crain covers a lot of ground with her passing and is incredibly precise with it. She also makes some great defensive plays (in part thanks to her outstanding positioning) and is a solid setter in transition.
Marimar Mendiburu
Marimar Mendiburu
The first thing that stands out about Mendiburu is how well she communicates with her teammates and how positive she is. The HJV 17 National libero is also very quick and technical and made several big plays for her team in the back. She covered half of the court in serve-receive and was flawless with her passing during the day. Another thing that makes Mendiburu stand out is her ability to track the ball and always be in a position to make a play. She also serves really tough.