USA Jr Nationals Pre-Tourney Showcase Players to Watch Vol 8

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We are a month away from the culmination of the club season…USA Jr Nationals, which will be held in Chicago at the end of June and early July.&nbsp; Prep Dig has once again renewed our partnership with USA Volleyball to run the Pre-Tournament Showcase the day before the tourney starts.&nbsp; It will be held at the McCormick Place Convention Center where the tourney is being held.&nbsp; We are going to be previewing some of the players who have signed up to participate.&nbsp; The one aspect that sets our showcases apart from every other one in the country is how we offer coverage, before, during, and after it is completed.&nbsp; Without further ado, here are a few players who you should be watching at the showcase.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='433715' first='Kathryn' last='Wulff-Smith'] [2027] 5-7 Libero (HS: Garces Memorial/Club: Bakersfield VBC/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kathryn is currently an unranked prospect in the 2027 Class according to our Prep Dig California State Rankings, but that is only because we have not released them yet.&nbsp; She plays volleyball at Garces Memorial and also plays club for [program_tooltip program_id='429333' first='Bakersfield' last='Volleyball Club']. When I discuss liberos, I often talk about defensive range.&nbsp; This means how far away a libero can extend to touch a ball and keep it alive for her team.&nbsp; Kathryn might be one of the best at this in her age group.&nbsp; She takes a very quick first step to the ball and then still pushes off with both feet to propel her even further.&nbsp; Always keeping her eyes focused on the ball, she is able to sprawl out at the last second and keep her team in the rally.&nbsp; Liberos are such a joy to watch as they have no regard for their personal safety when they are in pursuit of the ball and that is the epitome of who Miss Wulff-Smith is.&nbsp; She is not afraid to get down and dirty to save a ball from hitting the floor.&nbsp; Her emergency techniques are at an elite level at a very young age and that says a lot for her potential for the future.&nbsp; I cannot wait to see her in action in both the individual positional drills and also during the scrimmage drills at the showcase.&nbsp; Keep your eye on this one as she is special.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='195182' first='Rubi' last='Harrington']&nbsp;[2025] 5-11 Middle (HS: Marlborough/Club: Actyve/Verbal: Uncommitted)&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rubi is currently ranked as the 41^st best overall prospect in the 2025 Class according to our Prep Dig California State Rankings. &nbsp;She plays volleyball at Marlborough High School and club for the Actyve volleyball program. &nbsp;Miss Harrington is a very fast middle with a super high motor.&nbsp; She does a great job of closing out the block from pin to pin with quick footwork.&nbsp; I also love how she uses her arms to close the seam of the block when the pace of the ball dictates her to.&nbsp; It shows a great understanding of blocking strategy from her coach.&nbsp; Offensively Rubi generates a lot of power from her fast arm swing.&nbsp; The speed of her down swing adds so much power to her attack.&nbsp; Her bread and butter route is a slide as she generates a lot of power from her torque.&nbsp; When it comes to routes out of the middle, she is able to run all of them that are on the middle route tree.&nbsp; Her middle attack is set from a little higher tempo than most, but she is able to time it perfectly in order to deliver some pop on the ball.&nbsp; I think she is able to play multiple positions along the net and am intrigued to see her in action against the top competition.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215465' first='Reagan' last='Hanfelt']&nbsp;[2025] 6-0 Middle (HS: Ankeny/Club: Powerplex/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":263468,"width":148,"height":122,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2022/12/49-Reagan-Hanfelt.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-263468" width="148" height="122" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Reagan is currently ranked as the 49^th best overall prospect in the 2025 class according to our Prep Dig Iowa State Rankings.&nbsp; She plays volleyball at Ankeny High School and club for Powerplex.&nbsp; Miss Hanfelt is the real deal out of the middle and we are super excited to watch her dominate on the courts at the showcase for Nationals.&nbsp; She has a hammer like Thor that can bring the thunder from many different angles.&nbsp; I almost feel sorry for the ball as it has to take the pounding from her violent down swing.&nbsp; As an attacker out of the middle, it is very important to hit the ball with extremely sharp angles so they can move the ball around the block and Reagan is a master at this.&nbsp; She is a very dangerous attacker who must be accounted for at all times during serve receive rotations and free ball situations.&nbsp; As a blocker, she times her swing footwork very well and is able to press on the net when the blocker is making contact with the ball.&nbsp; This young lady needs to be on the short list of all schools who are still in need of a dynamic middle on their roster in a few years.&nbsp; Give her a look and you will not be disappointed.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes that will be attending the showcase.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:Michael@prepdig.com">Michael@prepdig.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 Prep Dig Family!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->