2023 GJNC Preview: 18 Open – Houston Skyline 18 Royal
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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…
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Continue ReadingThe 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.
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.
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.
H Skyline 18 Royal – Houston Skyline Juniors (Houston)
Season Record (on AES): 14-9
Players to Watch:
A new addition to the team this club season, George immediately became a key piece for Houston Skyline 18 Royal with her complete and intense game. A natural-born leader, she plays a big role in the team’s offense, mixing things up with her power and finesse to score at the pin. A very intelligent player, George often makes good decisions at the net and is not a player that will make consecutive errors. She’s also very solid on the backcourt, passing with consistency and making some strong plays on defense.
A middle with a strong presence at the net, Bull has been among the top players in her position in her age group in the state of Texas for a while now. Her blocking game is very well-developed and, although she’s very tall and long, Bull relies more on her movement and her reading of the game to get stops. She’s also a not-so-common case of a middle who can really carry her team’s offense at this level, being very difficult to stop when she gets into a rhythm. Besides swinging all middle sets with tremendous power, she can also right from the right with great efficiency.
Tuozzo had always been regarded as one of the top liberos in the Houston area, but she took her game to another level during her senior high school season with The Woodlands. It’s easy to feel how high her energy level is when she’s on the court while watching from the sidelines and she’s one of those liberos that will do whatever it takes to keep the ball off the floor. Tuozzo reads the game very well and is often capable of anticipating plays, but what makes of her a special defensive player is how quick and explosive she is when making plays on the backcourt.
An incredibly versatile player who can play anywhere at the net, Titley is being used mostly on the right this season for Houston Skyline 18 Royal. An excellent all-around player, she’s very confident on the court and that shows in how determined she is when making decisions, especially on offense. Titley has a good offensive range, being capable of scoring from anywhere, but is also very technical, putting the ball down with tips or by tooling the block. An excellent blocker too, she’s a solid passer and plays very good defense, delivering in basically every skill of the game.
Expect Houston Skyline 18 Royal to have one of the strongest middle duos in the division with Harrington pairing with Bull up there. An incredibly athletic and talented player, she dominates the middle with her game and her blocking is truly scary considering how high she gets up at the net and how aggressive she is with her arms, taking up a lot of space from opposing hitters. Harrington is a strong offensive player too, hitting a variety of different sets with great power and efficiency. She can also play on the right if needed.