Red Rock Rave NQ 17 USA Champions – Dallas Skyline 17 Black

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tons of talent gathered together in Las Vegas over the weekend for the Red Rock Rave Week Two National Qualifier.&nbsp; This is one of the toughest Qualifiers to play in since it garners attention from two of the most talented states for indoor volleyball in Texas and California.&nbsp; Both states have dominated club volleyball for quite a while and this weekend was a testament to that.&nbsp; We have written about this team many times and there are quite a few reasons why.&nbsp; We are proud to announce that the Champions of the 17 USA Division of the Red Rock Rave National Qualifier is Dallas Skyline 17 Black.&nbsp; Let's take a closer look into this team and what I saw from them in this prestigious tournament.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sometimes things just come together for a perfect weekend and that is exactly how I can describe what took place this past weekend for Skyline 17 Black.&nbsp; They have played a tremendously tough schedule so far this year and have faced some amazing competition.&nbsp; Being battle tested this early in the year always makes for a great run at the end of the year if a team can stay healthy.&nbsp; They came into the tourney ranked 5^th overall and had only one thing on their mind…to better that seed and qualify for the USA Volleyball Junior Nationals.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Day one saw them not drop a single set as they went 3-0 in matches and 6-0 in sets.&nbsp; They took care of business ousting Legacy 17 Elite (25-18, 25-21).&nbsp; They then beat Bonnevile 17 Elite (25-22, 25-21).&nbsp; Their last match of the day was even easier as they turned up the heat a little and destroyed AZ EVJ 17 Elite (25-8, 25-17).&nbsp; Next was day two and this is where the real tournament starts as it puts all of the teams who got first or second in their day one pool in a top division.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This would put them up against two other Texas foes.&nbsp; They made quick work of Fieldhouse 17 Ikaika Annette (25-13, 25-10).&nbsp; Their next match was against Wolf Pack 17 Black and it went about the same as all of their other matches with Skyline coming out on top (25-21, 25-14).&nbsp; The final match of the second pool saw 17 Black be victorious against TX Legacy 17 Elite (25-20, 25-18).&nbsp; This team was feeling it and now on to the Gold Bracket for day three.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Gold bracket is always tough because it is one and done.&nbsp; If you lose once, you are out of contention.&nbsp; But when I watched Skyline play on day three, I knew there was nothing stopping them from destiny.&nbsp; This team played with amazing heart, determination, and tons of fire to win four more matches in a row to secure their Championship and bid to USA Volleyball Junior Nationals.&nbsp; Although every member of this team deserves to be honored for their contributions before and during the tourney to get this team to the level of what they showed, here are just a few stars who shined when I watched them play:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='179112' first='Lauren' last='Schneider'] [2024] 5-9 Outside (HS: Guyer/Club: Dallas Skyline/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lauren is currently ranked as the 115^th best overall prospect according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings.&nbsp; She plays at Guyer High School and also for the nationally recognized Dallas Skyline program.&nbsp; I have watched this young lady play for the past couple of years now and she always amazes me at how much fire and intensity she has.&nbsp; Watching her play just brings out a certain level of heart-racing and fist-pumping momentum in everyone.&nbsp; Being only five foot nine inches tall might sawy someone to believe that this youngster plays back row only, but if you think that, you would be sorely mistaken.&nbsp; She has some serious hops to her game and can soar above the net.&nbsp; Her legs have some definite power to them, but her upper body matches that same amount of power as she can bring the heat with her right arm.&nbsp; I loved watching her go shot for shot with everyone's best attacker.&nbsp; When I walked up on her court on Monday, I was witness to one of the biggest shut-down roofs I had ever seen.&nbsp; She blocked thi right side attacker and the ball hit the ground so fast and hard that it should have been worth three points.&nbsp; Her team, herself, and the entire crowd went WILD after it.&nbsp; The score was close and that created the momentum needed to win the match and secure their spot in the finals.&nbsp; She is a fun player to watch and so easy to root for.&nbsp; I strongly suggest that some school give her the looks that she is due because they will be getting a strong player and awesome young lady.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='197075' first='Caroline' last='Tredwell'] [2024] 6-2 Middle (HS: Flower Mound/Club: Dallas Skyline/Verbal: UTSA)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Caroline is currently ranked as the 103^rd best overall prospect according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings.&nbsp; She plays at Flower Mound High School and also for the nationally recognized Dallas Skyline program.&nbsp; While in Las Vegas Miss Tredwell decided it was a great time to host a block party and she had on the invitations that EVERYONE was invited.&nbsp; This was especially true in the Gold bracket matches as I saw her become a wall and if she didn't stuff block the ball, she at least touched a lot and slowed down the opponents attack so that her back row could pick it up.&nbsp; Caroline is already committed to the University of Texas at San Antonio and will be a huge help to their roster to shore up any defensive woes they may have.&nbsp; Her fundamentals in blocking are very strong and she presses very well on the net to seal it away from would-be attackers.&nbsp; Once the opposition saw how formidable of a block she created, it was apparent that she forced the hitters to alter their shots in order to try to score.&nbsp; From my perspective, she did her job very well and helped her team to a championship.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='217510' first='Sydney' last='Payne'] [2024] 5-9 Setter (HS: Argyle/Club: Dallas Skyline/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sydney is currently an unranked prospect according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings, but is on our watch list to hopefully be ranked soon.&nbsp; She plays at Argyle High School and also for the nationally recognized Dallas Skyline program.&nbsp; Her amazing setting in the 6-2 offense really helped her team stay fresh by moving the ball around to all of her hitters.&nbsp; By evenly distributing the ball so well, the defense didn't have a chance to cheat to one side or the other.&nbsp; I watched her communicate to all of her hitters very well on routes and she stayed very calm throughout the tight matches.&nbsp; This kind of leadership is key to winning squads.&nbsp; She jump set and saved many tight passes to the net that otherwise might have been detrimental to their success.&nbsp; She also used some extremely fast footwork to run down some errant passes and keep the rally alive.&nbsp; When the block started to slow down the opposition, they started to tip the ball, but Skyline was safe because of the defense of Miss Payne in right back.&nbsp; We are proud of the way she worked for her team to help lead them to a title and a bid.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here were some other key contributors to their run to the title.&nbsp; Middle [player_tooltip player_id='214338' first='Eryn' last='Peek'] was the other side of the two-headed monster of a wall that kept their opponents offense at bay.&nbsp; She was very instrumental in the championship defense that prevailed.&nbsp; Setter Rachel Rasband was the other setter in the 6-2 offense that won the championship.&nbsp; She did a fantastic job at distributing the ball to all of her hitters and served very tough also.&nbsp;&nbsp; Libero Sophia Song was brilliant in the back row holding down the fort.&nbsp; Her serve received helped to keep this squad in system so they could run their awesome offense.&nbsp; Outside hitter Payton Tompkins moved her offensive shot around when needed and was a solid scorer all weekend long.&nbsp; This team set out on a mission and accomplished it all together.&nbsp; Please congratulate them on a job well done.&nbsp; We will see you in Chicago this summer! Congrats ladies!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:nov8vb@yahoo.com">nov8vb@yahoo.com</a>.&nbsp; Also don't forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends.&nbsp; Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Family!&nbsp; Don't be afraid to interact with us.&nbsp; We love the likes, shares, and quotes/comments.&nbsp; Keep them coming!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->