2023 Houston Area HS Previews: 6A – District 14

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The club volleyball season has come to an end in great style, with the best teams in the country battling at the 2023 USAV Girls Junior National Championship, in Chicago, between the end of June and the start of July.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The top talent in the state of Texas won't have much time off the court, however, as they are now gearing up to represent their high schools in the upcoming season, with the first non-district matches set to happen on August 4 and district play starting from August 22.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The state of Texas has one of the largest high school seasons in the entire country with the University Interscholastic League (UIL) managing a tournament for public schools that features six divisions, 192 districts and as many as 1,207 high school teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Dig will be following all the action, as usual, but until it starts, let's take some time to preview some of the districts located in the Houston area.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Division 6A - District 14</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Aldine</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's Aldine ranked seventh in the district last season, with three matches won in 14 encounters. Two influential seniors in the team's last campaign, outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='254256' first='Lauren' last='Brown'] and middle blocker Heaven Brooks have both graduated. The team's leading scorer in 2022, senior middle Tatiana Rodriguez will be a key piece for the Lady Mustangs this season alongside three other seniors - Veronica Calderon (setter), Elda Zuniga (libero) and Veronica Cantu (right side). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Benjamin Davis</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's Benjamin Davis were the third-best team in the district with ten victories and four losses. They lost their first playoff match, in the bi-district round, to The Woodlands. The Lady Falcons won't have four important players from their last campaign after setter Ariel Andrade, libero Alayna Vincent, outside hitter Ramiyah Drumgo and middle Nevaeh Richard graduated. Senior outside hitter Asia Davis will lead the team alongside middles Tailor Perkins (senior) and Diamond Bossier (junior). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Dekaney</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's Dekaney had a difficult season, finishing last in the district with 14 losses - they didn't win any of their 33 matches in the year. Setter La'kendria Lawrence and middle De'Ja Franks are the graduated seniors that will be most missed by the team. In 2023, the Lady Wildcats will build their game around their senior trio of middle Manuela Yawson, outside hitter Lia Bell and libero Takeyla Gibson.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/VB_Dekaney/status/1591146628303695873?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/VB_Dekaney/status/1591146628303695873?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Eisenhower</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With three wins in 14 matches, Houston's Eisenhower repeated their campaign from 2021 last season and ranked fifth in the district. With middle blocker Daisha Williams and setter Karisma Garcia being the only players the Lady Eagles will lose to graduation for the 2023 season, they should be able to build from what they did in 2022. Three seniors - setter Georgia Blue, libero Erin Ferguson and outside hitter Choyve Washington - and one junior - middle Melodi Paige - should be the team's top players this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MacArthur</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's MacArthur ranked fourth in the district last season after they won nine of their 14 matches. They had to endure a first-round exit in the playoffs, falling in the bi-district round. Two seniors from last year who will be missed are middle Natalie Gammage and setter Gabriela Ruiz. Juniors Jessika Martinez and Lashae Goffney will keep the General strong in the middle while senior Kayla Jones add some scoring punch at the pin, sophomore Marciela Hernandez take over the setting duties and senior Estefania Negrete continues as the team's libero. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/MacArthurVB/status/1673443959916355589?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/MacArthurVB/status/1673443959916355589?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Nimitz</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's Nimitz was the second-best team in the district with 11 victories in 14 matches - they lost in the bi-district round of the playoffs to Conroe. Two of the team's top players in their last campaign graduated in outside hitter Holly Richardson and setter Mia Briggs. Middle blocker T'Asia Green, now a senior, is a key returning piece for the Cougars alongside outside hitters Jalyn Gibson (junior) and Kamaya Knox (senior).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/Kamaya_Knox_/status/1669282463477297153?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/Kamaya_Knox_/status/1669282463477297153?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Spring</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Spring were very strong in the district play season, winning all their 14 matches and dropping just sets on their way to finish first. Their playoff run ended at the hands of College Park in the bi-district round. Their top scorer last season, middle blocker Allana Archie has graduated, as well as setter Ka'lisa Keller and outside hitter Bailee Henderson. Junior [player_tooltip player_id='212738' first='Kori' last='Sessions'], who can play on the left or the right, will be the team's leading scoring option this season - senior outside hitter Jaylah Lumar and senior setter/defensive Kyla Taylor could also play big roles for the Lady Lions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/shsladylions/status/1587629391571476481?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/shsladylions/status/1587629391571476481?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Westfield</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Houston's Westfield got close to securing a playoff spot last season, ranking fifth in the district with six wins and eight losses. The Lady Mustangs had a very young squad last season and will only miss one player to graduation - outside hitter Brandalyn Cloud. Middle NickyAnna Miles led the team's offense as a freshman and will probably do it again in her sophomore season while juniors Kaylanni Uriostegui and Julissa Velazquez play big roles at libero and setter, respectively.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->