High School Report – Teams to Watch Vol 8

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Texas High School season is well underway and there have been some teams that are separating themselves from the rest of the pack this season.&nbsp; This series will be highlighting a few of them as everyone marches through their district schedule.&nbsp; Let's take a closer look at who is standing out for these teams on the rise.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Southlake Carroll</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the coolest mascots to grace the state of Texas in my opinion, The Dragons, are shooting up the state rankings fast.&nbsp; They are currently 19-12 overall and undefeated in district 4-6A.&nbsp; This squad's offense is extremely balanced between four outstanding ballers.&nbsp; Stud sophomore outside attacker [player_tooltip player_id='318202' first='Layla' last='Austin'] can bounce the ball with the best of them.&nbsp; She currently leads the team in kills and kills per set.&nbsp; Senior outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='519522' first='Taryn' last='Barnes'] can fly and is difficult to slow down for opposing blockers.&nbsp; Standing tall is Sophomore middle [player_tooltip player_id='295124' first='Kinsley' last='Young'] who is six foot three and takes up a lot of space defensively.&nbsp; Offensively the Dragons are using her early and often and it is working to keep the opposition off-balanced.&nbsp; She is one of the scoring leaders when it comes to hitting efficiency in the state.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='180165' first='Mary' last='Beth Morse'] has been stellar for Southlake Carrol for the past few years and this season is no different.&nbsp; She has a very powerful right arm that she unleashes from many different locations around the court.&nbsp; Setters Parker Tuttle and [player_tooltip player_id='254136' first='Cat' last='Millsap'] run a solid 6-2 offensive system.&nbsp; They are both moving it around very well to all attackers to keep the defense guessing on where the ball will come from.&nbsp; This is one big reason why they have been so competitive against everyone.&nbsp; Libero Abbey Pace steadies the ship from the back row to help keep the ball in system.&nbsp; Look for this team to make some noise for the rest of the season.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Canyon Cougars</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>New Braunfels Canyon have been a team that has been in the state rankings for the past couple of years.&nbsp; It doesn't matter who graduates as they always have players who are going to step up year in and year out to keep this school super competitive in this wonderful sport of ours.&nbsp; They are currently 29-9 overall and 4-1 in district 26-5A.&nbsp; Stud sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='445918' first='Marlee' last='Lightsey'] has been unstoppable this season from the pins.&nbsp; I love how she is getting back deep for her touchpoint and taking a big sweeping four step approach to gain some momentum for a big attack.&nbsp; Senior middle [player_tooltip player_id='211667' first='Josslyn' last='Abel'] is getting some huge production out of the middle zone.&nbsp; She is a blocking machine and scoring at a very high rate for the Cougars.&nbsp; Senior setter/right side hitter [player_tooltip player_id='142200' first='Megan' last='Hawkins'] is proving just how valuable she is in both positions.&nbsp; Her and freshman [player_tooltip player_id='480386' first='Logan' last='Sanders'] are moving the ball around to everyone in this high powered offense.&nbsp; Junior Libero Sala Nuu is digging everything that is coming over the net for this awesome squad.&nbsp; She is leading the team in digs and provides some amazing ball control out of serve receive.&nbsp; Junior outside hitter Quinn Cross is also scoring well for the Cougars.&nbsp; Look for this team to continue to catch fire for the remainder of the season and into the playoffs.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Columbus Cardinals</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Columbus Cardinals are dominant again this year in the 3A division.&nbsp; There is a big reason for their continued dominance and her name is [player_tooltip player_id='307447' first='Ally' last='Tribe'].&nbsp; We have covered this young lady for the past few years and she has been nothing but spectacular in every sense of the word.&nbsp; There is no doubt in my mind that she should be recognized by the school's hall of fame committee if they had one.&nbsp; Her offensive output is almost triple that of the next best attacker on the team.&nbsp; They are feeding her early and often in the offense and I cannot blame them.&nbsp; Her ability to score is legendary as she is hitting at a whopping .354 hitting percentage, which is super efficient.&nbsp; Senior middle Ember Mandola has stepped up and is providing some complementary offense for the Cards.&nbsp; Sophomore Gracie Schobel is a tall right side attacker who is playing at a very high level.&nbsp; She is looking like the next great attacker once Tribe graduates.&nbsp; Junior Taylor Morrow is also a stud outside hitter for this team.&nbsp; Senior setter Sage Thomas knows exactly how to get the ball to her go to hitters when she needs to.&nbsp; The two sport star runs a solid 5-1 offense and is a natural leader of young women.&nbsp; Super sophomore libero Caylie Neiser has been phenomenal at digging everything in the back row.&nbsp; She is a fireball of effort and will lead the charge defensively for this team as it gets ready for a long playoff run.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:Michael@prepdig.com">Michael@prepdig.com</a>.&nbsp; Also don't forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends.&nbsp; Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Texas Family!&nbsp; Don't be afraid to interact with us.&nbsp; We love the likes, shares, and quotes/comments.&nbsp; Keep them coming!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->