Florida Regional Qualifier Top Standout Players

<p>The last qualifier tournament of the year happened for the Florida region in Orlando. It was the last opportunity for teams to earn bids to GJNC in Chicago, and it didn't disappoint. Top prospects on top teams really put on a show this past weekend as well as a few standouts on teams who weren't able to secure the bid. The level of competition on the last two days of tournament play showcased the talent that Florida has to offer to colleges at the next level. In this article I will highlight five of the biggest standout setters from this past weekend, regardless of class. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='203435' first='Ryan' last='Murphy']: JJVA 16 Teal (Class of 2025)</h2>   <p>One of the first things you notice about Ryan is her sheer size in combination with her ability to flow through her movements as a setter. She does an impeccable job of getting her feet to the ball early so she's able to jump set every ball. Her jump setting comes into play when she goes to the front row, as the block on the other side has to take her height over the net as if she were a hitter as well. On top of her footwork and jump setting skillset, her IQ for the game allows her to open up her hitters to single blocks. When you combine the ability to jump set at her height consistently on top of her high IQ it allows her to manipulate the flow of the game. Ryan does more than set, she plays great defense both on the net as a blocker and in the back-row defender. She reads the other side of the court very well which allows her to be in great position on defense as well as be able to leave to her setting spot early. Overall as a volleyball player Ryan shows what it takes to be a top setter not only in Florida but in her class as a whole. </p>   <p></p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Mollie VanDeusen: JJVA 15 Teal (Class of 2027)</h2>   <p>At such a young age, Mollie is one of the most impressive setters from a size and skill standpoint. Playing up an age group, you would've never guessed just from watching her play. Mollie does a great job keeping her hands high above her forehead on every set, which helps her hide the set she's going to make until the last second. She makes the simple plays consistently, yet pushes herself outside of her setting zone to still have the ability to run a quick tempo set to the middle. Her best sets come from when she sets her feet and jump sets into the ball, no matter who she is setting. When she jump sets, her hands stay even and follow through to the spot consistently. When the pass is off the net, she has the ability to close her feet to the ball and put up a hittable ball up to her pins whether she's cutting off her hips to face the left pin, or going over her shoulder as she closes parallel to the net. When the ball is tight to the net, Mollie has the height to be aggressive as an attacker. As a young setter coming up, she's only going to excel throughout her club and high school career. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Sydney Guerrier: Wildfire 15N Ore (Class of 2026)</h2>   <p>Sydney is a multi-skilled player who not only dominates in the back-row as a setter, but is a force to be reckoned with as a right-side in the front-row. Throughout the tournament play her skill was apparent, but the sheer power that Sydney possesses on top of it is a rare combination. As a setter she stays simple with her movements and her technique. She's not a very flashy or intricate setter yet, but the consistency her tempo and location is one of the hardest things to be exceptional at. Sydney does a great job not forcing an issue, she takes what the defense is going to give her or utilizes the strengths of her team. One of the most impressive things about Sydney's setting is truly her potential and what she can achieve as she keeps learning the position as well as the diversity of skills that she possesses. One of the most impressive parts of Sydney's game outside of setting is her blocking. When she is on the net, she is a huge force to be reckoned with. Not only does she do a great job of staying in front of her hitter, but her ability to see where the setter is going to set the ball early allows her to stay in great position even against a fast paced offense. Once she's in the air there's not much for the hitter to do as her hands are in great position back into the middle of the court and she takes up an enormous amounts of space. Sydney is one of the most impressive athletes from her class and it's going to be a treat to see her grow into not only her setting role but to dominate as a right side in the front row as well. </p>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KluHn0f2R_s </div></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='496471' first='Erica' last='Duffy']: Jax Skyline 16 Royal (Class of 2026)</h2>   <p>One of the top key traits I look for in a setter is leadership and being a great teammate; Erica exudes that throughout the time I watched her team play. She's able to run her offense with ease, and looks calm and collected no matter the type of pass. She does an amazing job of communicating to her hitters and staying aware of the defense she faces on the other side. That enables her to make quick decisions not only based off of her own teammates but based off of what the other team is trying to take away as well as what they're willing to give to the offense. The talent on her team just gives her an even bigger spotlight into how intricate of a piece she is to her team both running their offense as well as being a force on the defensive end as well. The thing that really impressed me about Erica was that her demeanor throughout the match didn't change whether they were winning or losing the previous point. It really showed me how mature of a player she is at still such a young age. Her skill set as a setter isn't just the outside things that coaches look for and dream over, her technique when setting the ball is impeccable on top of it. Her hands are consistently in the correct contact point because she does a fantastic job using her footwork to get to the ball. Once she's under the ball, her hands are strong yet smooth enough to get the ball to the spot at any tempo she needs to. Erica was one of my favorite watches of the tournament and can't wait to watch more. </p>   <p>The setters came to play and show out at the Florida Regional Championship. The best part about getting to cover the setter position is being able to watch their ability to control the game and change the flow of the offense. Every setter on this list not only showed off their own skills but made an impact on their teams both controlling the ball and controlling the team as a leader. </p>

The last qualifier tournament of the year happened for the Florida region in Orlando. It was the last opportunity for teams to earn bids to GJNC in Chicago, and it didn't disappoint. Top prospects on top teams really put on a show this past weekend as well as a few standouts on teams who weren't able to secure the bid. The level of competition on the last two days of tournament play showcased the talent that Florida has to offer to colleges at the next level. In this article I will highlight five of the biggest standout setters from this past weekend, regardless of class.