GJNC Recap – 17 USA Champions – Actyve 17 Black
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USA Jr Nationals, were be held in Chicago a few weeks ago and we were lucky enough to watch in person. Nationals is the ultimate test to the end of the season as it brings together all of the teams…
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Continue ReadingUSA Jr Nationals, were be held in Chicago a few weeks ago and we were lucky enough to watch in person. Nationals is the ultimate test to the end of the season as it brings together all of the teams who have earned a bid to participate. These wonderful teams have proven themselves through a very long and grueling club season and will compete against other top notch teams who have earned the right to play in this prestigious tourney. We will be highlighting teams and individual players that showed up and showed out! Let’s take a look at a few teams and players.
Actyve 17 Black competed in the USA Division of USA Jr Nationals. They are from the Southern California Region and went undefeated during the whole tourney en-route to winning the National Championship. They had a very tough road and played their best when it truly mattered against the best of the best. Here are just a few of the names to know from their talented squad who played very well when I watched them in the championship match.
Jade Fritzinger Jade Fritzinger 5'8" | DS/L Chaminade College Preparatory | 2024 CA [2024] 5-9 Outside (HS: Chaminade College Prep/Club: Actyve/Verbal: Uncommitted)
Jade is currently an unranked prospect in the 2024 class according to our Prep Dig California State Rankings. She plays for Chaminade College Prep and plays club for the Actyve volleyball club program. Miss Fritzinger was amazing as she helped lead her team to a national championship in the USA division of the Girls Junior National Championship. She found so many ways to score from the left side when her team needed it. She tooled the block at will and it was a joy to watch. It is not something that just happens when she attacks. You can clearly see that she has worked on this special skill as she turns on the ball in mid-air to aim for the outside hand of the blocker. Jade was so fast transitioning from block to attack so that she could run any route with pace that the opponent was not ready for it. I love how she was able to attack the ball and move it to any location she wanted to. This ultimate ball control is why she was able to earn All tournament honors from USA Volleyball.
Tate Drageset [2025] 5-11 Outside (HS: Buckley/Club: Actyve/Verbal: Uncommitted)
Tate is currently an unranked prospect in the 2025 class according to our Prep Dig California State Rankings, but that will change once I update them next month from what I saw in person at nationals. She plays at Buckley High School and also club for the awesome Actyve volleyball club program. Miss Drageset earned Most Valuable Player honors from USA Volleyball because of her amazing point scoring abilities for her squad. She played all the way around and dug hard driven balls over and over. She also had a severely aggressive serve that stifled opposing serve receivers. Offensively she was a genius hitting from both the front row and the back row when her team needed her. I loved how athletic she was when she took off from the ground to attack. Tate played her best against the best and what made it even more awesome was that she did it when her back was against the wall in the championship match. Stay tuned for more on Miss Drageset as we will be watching her journey very closely this year.
Emma Rowell Emma Rowell 5'10" | S South Torrance | 2025 State CA [2025] 5-10 Setter/Right Side (HS: South Torrance/Club: Actyve/Verbal: Uncommitted)
Emma is currently ranked as the 47th best overall prospect in the 2025 class according to our Prep Dig California State Rankings. She plays at South Torrance High School and also for the Actyve Volleyball club. Miss Rowell was phenomenal playing al the way around for her squad. She battled at the net really well on the defensive end to stifle the opposing attackers and was a lethal weapon on the offensive end. What I loved about her play was the she was laser focused as a setter calling out the plays and routes to her attackers. The ball came out of her hands so smoothly as she moved it around to all of her hitters. Her offensive scheme allowed great balance in the attack as she went from pin to pin to keep the defense off-balance. Even during out of system plays Emma was able to deliver hittable balls to her pins to keep the aggression towards the opposition. She was able to earn All Tournament honors from USA Volleyball because of her play.
Other notable players for this star-studded roster are libero Gemma Larbalestier who played amazing. She was a beast during both serve receive and defense. I loved how she was able to cover so much area so fast with awesome footwork. Middle Rubi Harrington Rubi Harrington 6'0" | MB Marlborough | 2025 State CA was also a menace to opposing attackers. She routinely touched a lot of balls and forced a lot of attackers to change their shots.
As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes. If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at Michael@prepdig.com. Also don’t forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends. Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook. Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Cali Family! Don’t be afraid to interact with us. We love the likes, shares, and quotes/comments. Keep them coming!