FAST Pre Nationals – 17s – Setters

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Teams from the Houston, San Antonio and Austin areas had a great warm-up for the upcoming 2023 USAV Girls Junior National Championship, which will take place in Chicago, from June 28-July 6, this past weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Home of the popular [program_tooltip program_id='431166' first='Houston' last='Juniors'] Volleyball Club, the FAST Complex hosted the traditional FAST Pre Nationals tournament, which typically serves as the last step of preparation for teams that will make the trip to compete for the national title in just a few weeks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="https://prepdig.com/2023/06/fast-pre-nationals-17s-photo-gallery/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener"><strong>Check out the best photos of the FAST Pre Nationals</strong></a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Dig was following the action on Saturday, paying close attention to the 13 teams that competed in the power pools of 17s divisions and will now bring reports on the players that stood out and seem to be peaking in the most important moment of the season. These setters did some excellent job on the court:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["254089"],"_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":"Although she was playing one age group up with HJV 16 Elite, Merrell was among the most impressive setters on the day, leading her team to three victories with just one set dropped. She split the setting duties with Payton Stroud and did an excellent job when she was on the court. Always very calm, she thrived by her decision-making and consistency. Merrell was brilliant when in system, moving her hitters around very well and making very good calls in terms of who to set. When the pass was off the net, she helped her hitters with well-placed sets. Merrell also made a good impact on the backcourt, playing excellent defense and having some good serving runs.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e90824e89"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15377785/648539579680780468f4975d' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e90824ed9"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["198017"],"_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":"Davis was the starting setter of [program_tooltip program_id='431337' first='Texas' last='Tornados'] 17 Adidas, a role she shared with Taylor Hinds. Under her guidance, the team had a solid day on Saturday, picking up three wins in two matches. It was very clear that she developed excellent chemistry with her hitters during the season as she could set each of them in different locations and that variety was one of her team's offensive strengths. Davis was always very calm and focused on the match, which contributed to the consistent level of play she displayed during the entire day. She also did a very good job on defense, using her excellent positioning and outstanding ball control to make plays.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e90824f35"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":399740,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/06/IMG_7251.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-399740" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[program_tooltip program_id='431337' first='Texas' last='Tornados'] 17 Adidas vs. Katy United 17 Adidas</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["245844"],"_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":"Allison did a very good job playing a dual role with Roots 171 Green. The team got only one win in three matches on Saturday, but her play stood out in a variety of ways. Allison was very smooth with her setting, and displayed great precision when sending the ball to every position. She used her middles the most she could when in system, but also managed to keep her pin hitters involved on every occasion. Allison took over hitting duties when at the net and, despite not being extremely tall, was very productive, getting off the floor well and making good choices with her offense.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e90824f8c"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":399811,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/06/IMG_7544.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-399811" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Onyinyechi Ndee","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32561","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Kinkaid","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"[program_tooltip program_id='431166' first='Houston' last='Juniors']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Ndee was another setter that had great success as her team HJV 17 Premier had a strong day, winning all three matches. She split her playing time with [player_tooltip player_id='177531' first='Kinslee' last='Smith'] and the two proved to be a very good combination, complementing each other very well. Ndee used her physical tools very well to get on the ball and push it to the pin with ease and accuracy. She used all of her hitters well and was unpredictable when in system. She was also very active on the backcourt, getting a handful of digs from her right back position.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e9082502c"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/17160464/648581ce968078144456a060' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e9082504e"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["186263"],"_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":"Lee didn't have an easy day as her Impact - 171 team dropped all three matches, but she still did enough to stand out. She played only three rotations, splitting time with [player_tooltip player_id='201982' first='Victoria' last='Sanchez'], but was very productive when on the court. Lee was very cerebral and displayed great intelligence when deciding who to set on each play. She was also consistent with her locations, even when she had to work with passes off the net. The setter looked always very relaxed on the court and also made some good plays on defense.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6485e9082509e"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":399750,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/06/IMG_7353.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-399750" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Impact - 171 vs. TAV Houston 17 Adidas</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image -->