Florida Regional Qualifier: Top Standouts Pt. 2

<p>In the first part of this series, we took a look at a few of the many standout setters to come from the Florida Regional Qualifier at the end of April. In the second part, we will be taking a deep dive into four of the top tier libero prospects regardless of class. Although the libero position is a specialty position, these standout players showed why the position is so important to the game of volleyball and their team alike. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='455012' first='Alexa' last='Haley']: Gulfside 16U Prime (Class of 2025)</h2>   <p>Alexa is one of the most impressive libero prospects I was able to watch all season, not just this past qualifier. She has a calmness and ease to her game that is very enticing to watch. She makes very simple movements, while doing an excellent job of staying consistent with her posture. Alexa's passing technique in serve receive and on defense is exactly why she is such a high level player. Her consistency in serve receive starts with her recognition on the type, speed, and direction of the serve. She's able to get to the ball before the ball passes the net, giving her the time to hold her platform angle through her pass. On top of reading, her footwork and decision making on the type of passing technique she's going to use is impressive. On defense she uses the same reading and recognition ability to be able to take up a large amount of space while being in a great position. The best part of her defensive game is the amount of court she is able to cover on slower shots as well as be able to get hard driven balls up with the same level of consistency. She makes everything look easy, especially when called to set out of system. She makes her platform setting to her pins both by controlling height and precise location. Alexa's high IQ for the game on top of her elite technique is one of the few reasons she was a standout from Florida Regionals. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='444438' first='Ella' last='Julian']: Steel 17 Navy (Class of 2024)</h2>   <p>Having the opportunity to coach against Ella for a few years, she has always been on my radar as one of the top libero's in the state. Ella's best asset is her reading and recognition capabilities. She uses it to her advantage on the defensive end the most, where she's able to cover about a third of the court. Her team gives her the ability to read and roam the court based off of the hitters on the opposite side to put herself in the best position to dig the ball. When she has the opportunity to get the ball up, it rarely ever goes down. Ella makes quick and decisive movements to the ball allowing her to focus on her passing technique. Her passing technique is consistent in approach and simple in her angle, enabling her serve receive to be at a high level as well. Once her team gets out of system, it's as if they have a second setter on the court with Ella setting. She puts the ball in a consistent spot both with her platform and her hands on top of being able to control the tempo and height as well. One of the key aspects that helps her team win is her serving prowess, forcing the other teams out of system consistently whether she's serving hard spots or controlling tempo in front or behind the passer. When it comes to the overall athlete, Ella is an aggressive libero with a very consistent attitude and demeanor for the game. </p>   <p><a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2KwEPd" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://www.hudl.com/v/2KwEPd</a></p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Aleysa Sanchez: Hunter's 17U Black (Class of 2024)</h2>   <p>Aleysa is the epitome of consistency and leadership at the libero position. She puts her team into great positions by taking control on both the receiving and defensive end. Aleysa does a fantastic job with her footwork and posture when passing or digging. She stays balanced throughout her passes and only hits the ground when absolutely needed. She's always willing to call off her teammates to allow the hitters to transition to hit and the setter to run the offense efficiently. Aleysa's passing technique is at a very high level overall, but the best attribute I saw consistently in her game was the ability to shape her angle behind the ball. That allows her to take up more court on receiving and defense because of her ability to move to the ball on top of the technique to create angles outside of her body. Outside of passing, Aleysa does a fantastic job setting out of system to her team both using her hands and her platform. She has a level of calmness to the game and to her technique that forces teams to hit and serve away from her at any opportunity. Aleysa is the type of libero that coaches dream to coach and build into their team culture. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='455049' first='Aaliyah' last='Harlow']: USA South 16 Premier Purple (Class of 2025)</h2>   <p>I thankfully have had the opportunity to work with Aaliyah at UF summer camp a few years ago, and even back then I knew that she would be a force at the libero position. One of the aspects of her game that stands out to me the most is her athleticism in combination of the balance and flexibility in her movements. She's able to make quick moves to the ball while staying balanced throughout her movement while creating a consistent platform angle to target. Aaliyah is a very smart player and it shows when she makes the game look so easy even at the highest levels of play. As she was growing up she started as a setter and hitter, where she later moved over to the libero position. Having the versatility to play all of those positions gives her the ability to know what the other side of the court is trying to accomplish before the play happens. Aaliyah's footwork laterally and vertically is impressive as she's able to open her hip or run down balls all while keeping a consistent platform angle behind the ball. Overall Aaliyah is not just a fantastic libero but an overall great volleyball player and teammate.</p>   <p><a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2KyCyj" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">http://www.hudl.com/v/2KyCyj</a></p>   <p>In conclusion, it's easy to say that almost nothing gets past these four libero's, and they proved that at the regional qualifier. It was delightful to watch not only the high level of play but the competitive nature of their play throughout the tournament. These four will be making a huge impact on the club volleyball scene until they graduate and move on to play at the next level. </p>   <p></p>

In the first part of this series, we took a look at a few of the many standout setters to come from the Florida Regional Qualifier at the end of April. In the second part, we will be taking a deep dive into four of the top tier libero prospects regardless of class. Although the libero position is a specialty position, these standout players showed why the position is so important to the game of volleyball and their team alike.