Nebraska’s Stat-Stuffing Setters from Opening Week
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A star-studded group of setters was back to run the show on Nebraska’s prep scene. Time to find out who filled up the stat sheet to open the 2023 season. Throughout the high school season, we’ll be highlighting Nebraska’s top…
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Continue ReadingA star-studded group of setters was back to run the show on Nebraska’s prep scene. Time to find out who filled up the stat sheet to open the 2023 season.
Throughout the high school season, we’ll be highlighting Nebraska’s top individual performances from week to week. This approach allows us to cast a wide net and bring as much talent to the forefront as possible. No one is off-limits here.
So, we’re starting with setters. Here are a few big-time performances that caught our eye after Week 1.
Delaney Frahm
Delaney Frahm
Frahm has been running the show at Elmwood-Murdock for a while, so it’s no surprise to see the senior near the top of Nebraska’s assists leaderboard. The veteran setter has started the year with nearly ten assists per set and seven total kills, helping the Knights split their two matches on opening day. More stat-stuffing opportunities await Frahm this week with a Tuesday showdown against Auburn.
Donovan has now taken the reins of the Lincoln Lutheran offense, and she’s off to a great start. The junior has compiled a whopping 10.4 assists per set in the first several sets of the Warrior season. It’s a continuation of Donovan’s impressive 2023 club campaign with Nebraska ONE , so this statistical dominance isn’t coming out of nowhere.
Hope Baumert
Hope Baumert
Look out. There’s another Baumert in the Howells-Dodge pipeline. This latest Baumert iteration is one of our early 2027s to keep an eye on as we begin building our freshman database. Baumert has immediately seized the starting setter spot for the Jaguars and tallied over eight assists per set in her first high school action. It’s just the start of what will probably be a long stat-stuffing prep career.
Let’s trek all the way out to Chadron for this one. McCartney has been a prominent figure on the Cardinal varsity squad ever since she arrived as a freshman. The senior has clearly taken a feature role as Chadron’s top setter after racking up over ten assists per set en route to a 5-1 start. Moreover, McCartney’s ability to pile up digs in the backcourt will make her a can’t-miss setter among her 2024 peers.
We’re now heading to Utica to visit with another experienced setter on the small-town scene. Wambold assumed Centennial’s starting setter role as a sophomore last fall and put up impressive numbers throughout the season. 2023 could show us even more impressive numbers. Wambold has started her junior year by averaging about nine assists per set and over three digs per set. Centennial early-season results are highlighted by an impressive three-set win over Bishop Neumann, and Wambold had a steady hand in that triumph.
Hickey has been doing this for a long time. We’ve documented her stat-stuffing prowess since she claimed a starting role with Papio as a freshman in 2020. The savvy senior has been a mainstay atop Nebraska’s Class A hierarchy ever since, and there are no signs that she’s slowing down. Hickey is building on a career total in excess of 3,300 assists and could reach 4,000 before the year is over.
Gretna has a ton of players in different roles this year following the “split” with Gretna East this fall. This has allowed Fotoplos to assume the most prominent role of her prep career as the Dragons’ starting setter to open the 2023 season. She has responded nicely with some impressive assist totals against some of the state’s most formidable squads. After a few impactful years as a defensive specialist, Fotoplos is now revealing her extraordinary ball control repertoire at a completely new position.
Mary Howie
Mary Howie
Hastings gets a shoutout here with its senior setter having a strong early-season showing. Howie guided the Tigers to wins in its first two matches of the year against York and Wallace. Those victories were accompanied by about nine-and-a-half assists per set from Howie, who garnered valuable experience when she led the Hastings offense last year, too.
Booth’s first week of action becomes much more impressive when you consider the gauntlet that Elkhorn North has already faced. The UNI commit averaged ten assists per set while battling against top-tier Class A teams at the Bellevue West Invitational. No matter the venue, Booth is skilled enough to direct an efficient Wolves offense.
Denker gets a nod as a setter who is also capable of shouldering a frontcourt attacking role. Her 5.3 assists per set over four matches is complemented by over a kill per set to her credit. It’s also worth noting Denker’s physicality at the net, which has yielded a handful of blocks already. Keep an eye on how Denker’s multi-dimensional role could manifest in the stat sheet this year.