2023 GJNC Preview: 18 Open – AJV 18 Adidas

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The club volleyball season is coming to an end for the players competing in the 18s age group and the final stop in this stage of their careers will take place at the 2022 USA Volleyball Girls 18s Junior National Championship, which will be held in Columbus, Ohio, from April 28-30.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Texas will have a huge representation in Ohio, with as many as 44 teams entered to compete across six different divisions and many of them will be real contenders at the National Championship.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We've already posted our Texas Previews for each of the 18 American, 18 Freedom, 18 Liberty, 18 National and 18 USA divisions and now we'll do things a little bit differently for the prestigious 18 Open division, presenting individual previews for the eight teams from the Lone Star State that will fight for the title in Columbus.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>AJV 18 Adidas</em> </strong>– [program_tooltip program_id='431061' first='Austin' last='Junior Volleyball'] (Austin)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Season Record (on AES):</strong> 11-11</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CpdO2kyOWD6/","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"instagram","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.instagram.com/p/CpdO2kyOWD6/ </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["301832"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"An outstanding offensive player, Murphy should be AJV 18 Adidas' main scoring option in Columbus at the outside hitter position. She's obviously very difficult to stop because of her impressive length, but her offense goes well beyond that as she typically makes an excellent shot selection and is also very effective from the right and the middle back, offering her setter an option no matter where she's at. Murphy is also very quick and coordinated for a player of her size and has made great progress with her backcourt skills, going from solid to significantly impactful on passing and defense in the last year or so.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa5e87"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15027080/63f166ab15f6020e00e9b89c' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa5ed6"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["122899"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Selected for our Prep Dig All-State First Team during the last high school season, Mattox has been among the top setters in the state in her age group for a while now. Very technical and with an incredibly high volleyball IQ, she's one of those setters that maximize the strength of her hitters, setting them exactly how they want and at the right moments of matches. She's also very reliable, playing quicker when in system, but adjusting her strategy when she's pushed away from the net. Mattox is a tall setter, who's certainly not a liability at the net, and also plays very good defense.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa5f31"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15134637/63e40e19bee177052cc5809f' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa5f51"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["176636"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"A state champion with Dripping Springs, Arnold stands out in AJV 18 Adidas' strong group of middles. Very strong on both sides of the ball and very intense on the court, she makes her presence felt in the middle every time she gets on the court. Arnold jumps well and is very good at seeing the block going up and sending the ball the other, hitting at a very high rate from the middle. She's also a very complete and versatile player, who has been used on the right on some occasions and who can help with her passing if needed.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa5fb8"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15078379/63eb336d3864cb0f10bfaf4d' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa5fd6"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["195832"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Lopez forms a very strong outside hitter duo with Murphy because her skills complement each other's very well. While her teammate is a force at the net, she is extremely competent with her ball control, mastering the backcourt skills - she typically covers half a court in serve-receive. Also an aggressive server, Lopez is very efficient at the net too, jumping very well and using her quick arm swing to beat blockers and score points. Besides really doing it all, she's also very calm and smart with her actions, contributing a lot to the team's success.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa6022"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/12990412/63f166aa15f6020e00e9b881' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa6040"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["301846"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Contreras has overcome the strong competition of [player_tooltip player_id='176664' first='Lola' last='Fernandez'] and has been AJV 18 Adidas' starting libero for the most part of the season. A player with excellent technical resources, she's been a digging machine for her team, finding great success in special when she lines up to stop opposing outside hitters when they swing line into her left back position. Contreras is very quick to get to the ball and shapes her body very well to absorb the impact of hard-driven swings and get them up right in the middle of the court. The libero is also a strong passer.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa608c"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13089728/63f5b6482349090a30cbe10f' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-643ff8faa60a9"} /-->