2025’s Excelling Libero’s in Florida

The libero or defensive specialist position is one that many girls in this country play, and is one of the hardest to rank. Not only the amount of people who play the position, but the amount of talent is hard to keep up with. When recruiting this position the two biggest things I look for is overall technique and IQ. If the libero knows how to pass the ball with good footwork along with the ability to understand spacing; that libero will have a great chance to play at the next level. The hardest part of this position is the consistency that you need to bring on a few skills that is asked from that position. The 5 libero’s listed not only have the skills and the IQ to execute but they do it consistently at the highest level of play. When I was able to watch these prospects it was very impressive the level of discipline they all show in their technique as well as their positioning on the court depending on what type of defense their team plays.

Mattea Casale Mattea Casale 5'7" | DS/L Carrollwood Day School | 2025 State FL – No Name VBC (#16)

Mattea has one of if not the best reaction time to read the hitter on defense in the entire class. She does a fantastic job of breaking down the hitters approach and swing to put herself in good position. From that position, she really works to get her feet to the ball and hips under the ball to get the ball up high. Mattea is one of the quicker libero’s in the class as well, which is a great combination to have at the position. When you combine reaction time, IQ, and the ability to go for the ball quickly is deadly for opposing offenses to hit around. On the receiving end she is very disciplined with reading the server and staying balanced. One of the most underrated things that Mattea does really well is utilizing not only angles outside of her body but being able to get her body behind the ball to pass closer to her midline as well. Overall she is one of the best libero’s in this class and will be hard to catch up to her.

Lily Hayes Lily Hayes 5'9" | DS/L Berkeley Prep | 2025 State #19 Nation FL – OTVA (#19)

I’ve thankfully had the pleasure to work with Lily at a UF libero camp a few summers ago, and her skill and IQ were apparent from the start of drills. She’s become one of the most disciplined and consistent libero’s in the country. It’s hard to make every dig or serve receive ball to look the same off of her platform. The thing that really struck me hard when getting to coach her was her ability to learn things quickly and implement them into her game. From the beginning to the end of the camp you could see her using the techniques she learned and being proficient at them at the end. Being the backbone for her team being able to solidify passing on both offense and defense takes so much pressure off of the team. She has fantastic technique when it comes to both passing and digging while keeping her posture through passes. She’s one of the most intriguing and impressive prospects I have been able to watch and I can’t wait to see how she’s going to finish out this high school season for Berkeley.

Zoey Matias Zoey Matias 5'6" | DS/L Westminster Christian | 2025 State FL – Tribe VBC (#29)

Zoe is an instinctual player who uses her IQ and quickness to be able to play at such a high level. She brings the hustle and the attitude needed to win games for her team. She does a great job defensively putting her body on the line for the ball whether she needs to dive for it or even get hit off the shoulder to ensure the ball goes up. Technically speaking she’s the best when it comes to her receiving. In receive she does a good job of choosing a side to pass on early while staying nice and calm with her shoulders. Nothing in serve receive ever really feels forced, she tells the ball where to go rather than hoping the ball goes there. Her tenacious attitude and relentless pursuit of the ball no matter what situation she’s in is what impresses me the most about this athlete. She has the IQ and footwork to be able to take up a lot of court for her team and makes sure to better the ball in situations that the team may need a quicker or higher pass. She’s one of those libero’s that coaches love to have because of their willingness to get the ball up with the technique to make those passes good as well.

Aaliyah Harlow Aaliyah Harlow 5'4" | DS/L Cantebury | 2025 State FL – USA South (#33)

Like Lily, I’ve had the pleasure of being able to coach this athlete at the same UF libero camp. She was a lot like Lily in the best of ways, yet still finds ways to separate herself from her peers. The best part about this athlete for me is her unwavering determination to win volleyball games. It doesn’t matter what’s needed from her, she’ll be able to not only do it but do it at a high level. As she used to have to set and hit for prior teams, she’s had the opportunity to see the game from different perspectives. With this experience she takes those moments and situations she has been put in to her advantage to be in position earlier than most and to be able to cover more ground. She’s the type of libero that you can trust taking half the court not only because of her skills but the attitude and confidence she brings to her teammates. Aaliyah is technically sound when it comes to her platform and is quick enough to run through balls that technically aren’t hers but allows her hitters to transition earlier. Aaliyah is the type of prospect every coach looks for when looking at the libero position and I can’t wait to see how she does at the next level.

Jannelize Perez Jannelize Perez 5'3" | DS/L Lake Highland Preparatory School | 2025 State FL – OTVA (#38)

The first thing you notice about Jannelize is the calmness and confidence she brings to the position. Even when she’s diving for a ball on the opposite side of the court she makes it look so easy. Her fundamentals are fantastic and does an even better job adjusting her body posture and platform to create angles to target. She may get blown up or get caught too shallow on defense, but she makes up for it by understanding the positioning she’s in and what skills to use to better the ball that’s hit at her. She’s an impressive player to watch on film because the more I watch her the more you can see the potential she has to be one of if not the best libero in the state for her graduating class. One of the things I think will help her move up to the next level is being able to stay on her feet more when playing balls in front or multiple steps away from her. Once she consistently is getting to the ball with her feet, there’s almost nothing that’ll pass her. She has all of the tools to be a great libero at the next level.

Not only is recruiting this position hard, but having an understanding of how to rank these athletes might be even harder. There is a lot of similar skillsets that come with this position, but every prospect I wrote about had their own little thing that separated themselves from the pack. That may be their quickness to get to the ball or the ability to control more court. The more that the player in the libero position can do to help their offense run smoothly and for their defense to dig balls it only makes their team that much more dynamic. It wasn’t just impressive but I was delighted to see the amount of skill and IQ that these 5 prospects have achieved over the years.