Clash of the Titans Standouts

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Alexandria City High School ran their annual Clash of the Titans tournament this past weekend. It was scheduled to be played earlier but severe weather forced the school to cancel that date. Three teams had to drop out of the rescheduled tournament so they had nine teams playing in three pools of three teams each. I could only stay for the morning part of the clash but that was enough time to watch some players from each team stand out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Oakton</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If I was to guess who won the tournament my first pick would be Oakton. No team had a pair of outsides who could hit like seniors <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='209789' first='Seliz' last='Aktuglu'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='209792' first='Jocelyn' last='Shortle']</strong>. Both players are listed at 5'9" but their athleticism allows them to play above the competition. If that was not enough junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='235291' first='Sadee' last='Gedse']</strong> was perhaps the top libero at the tournament. That led to good passing and strong defense. Another player who stood out was their senior middle <strong>Olivia Liebermann</strong>. At 5'11" she stands short for a middle but finds a way to put the ball away. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>West Potomac</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>They have a stand out frosh in right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='469197' first='Olivia' last='Garey']</strong>. She brings height to the position and hits the ball hard. The hitter they seem to rely on most to win rallies is junior middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='235290' first='Olivia' last='Hatcher']</strong>. She also put up a good block and completed a critical redirect kill to earn critical points. At left side junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='469201' first='Ava' last='Dushaw']</strong> brought a good back row attack as well as providing the traditional front row kills. The setter and captain of the group was senior setter <strong>Caroline Christensen</strong>. She played good defense, ran the 5/1 offense well and surprised the opposition with some well placed setter dumps. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["296486"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6524ad0d93b4d"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Wakefield</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>They had a few players missing because of college visits and SATs. One player they did have was frosh middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='296486' first='Taylor' last='Harrington']</strong>, the number one prospect in the class of 2027. Despite the team struggling to pass, making the middle set difficult to hit, Taylor played with the same intensity as she would with Paramount. When she did get the set it usually hit the floor for a Warrior point. Junior<strong> MacKenzie Williams</strong> played a strong right side and even buried some balls from the left side. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Washington Liberty</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Frosh setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='466569' first='Kathryn' last='Wagener']</strong> impressed with her defense. She appeared to dig everything hit her way. The Oakton dup of Aktuglu and Shortle hit a number of hard balls at her. She stood her ground popping up digs that floated to the three meter line. She also set a 5/1 and ran the offense like a veteran. Another frosh <strong>Evelyn Donavan </strong>played good defense in the back row. She also hit the ball well from the left side. The big hitter from the left side was senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='470558' first='Rachel' last='Lenz']</strong>. The six footer provided offensive fire power from the back row as well as the front row. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Alexandria City</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Repeating as Class 6 state champs may be tough. They got off to a slow start, losing eight of their first 10 games. Once Regional play began they won seven of ten and now sit in third place behind Woodson and West Springfield in the Patriot Region. Catching Woodson will be tough but they still have a shot at second in the Region. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 6'1" junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='464589' first='Julia' last='Kelly']</strong> has been hitting well from the pins. She combines with senior<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='233012' first='Bridie' last='Wendling']</strong> to give them offense at the pins. Junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='235297' first='Casey' last='Donahue']</strong> has taken over the libero role and kept the team in system with her passing and defense. Sophomore setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='374419' first='Alicia' last='Randall']</strong> appears to be getting more comfortable running the offense after taking over from two time state champion <strong>Chloe Wilmot</strong>. Senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='250614' first='Harper' last='Travis'] </strong>provides solid play and leadership at the middle position. They may not be able to repeat as state champions this year, but they can build the blocks to better themselves for next year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["183414"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6524ad0d93bbf"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>McLean</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Not a lot of wins in their season, but they get some good offense from junior left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='235298' first='Goldie' last='Woods']</strong>. She stands only 5'8" but she puts the ball away. In the sets I watched she only played three rotations in one set, but also was part of a two person serve receive while playing back row in another set. At 5'10" senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='183414' first='Adrienne' last='Long']</strong> gave the team some offense at the pins. She also contributed to a right side block. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Justice</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At 5'10" junior middle <strong>Piper Koury </strong>brought much of the offense to this team. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["397192"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6524ad0d93c3a"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>C.D. Hylton</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>CD Hylton appears to rely on three sophomores to lead their team. The first is libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='397192' first='Kadie' last='Cardozo']</strong>. She handled the position well starting the offense off with good passing. At 5'6" <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='444014' first='Harley' last='Barney']</strong> got credit for a block in the middle. She is listed as a defensive specialist/outside hitter but blocked a lot of middle in the sets I watched. The third sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='395523' first='Kylee' last='Cookson'] </strong>strung together some decent hits from the left side. They were playing Oakton in the set I watched and they got beaten badly.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Oxon Hill</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was a Maryland school that came down to play in the tournament. Their schedule showed them undefeated when they entered the tournament, but they are not undefeated anymore. Junior libero <strong>Kaylana Padre</strong> did a good job passing. Junior <strong>Ashley Fru</strong> set a 5/1. At 5'7" she stood a bit short when playing in the front row. Though she was a bit inconsistent, the big hitter on the team was their 5'10" senior left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='517929' first='Abena' last='Asomani']-Martin.</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Chick Chortles:</strong> Briar Woods got a second opportunity to beat Riverside but lost in four. Riverside remains undefeated at 15-0 and now has a two game lead over Briar Woods...In another top twenty match Holy Cross played in a tournament going against Flint Hill. Holy Cross, led by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='180288' first='Emerson' last='Sellman']</strong> won in three 25-23, 21-25 and 15-7. Holy Cross got a late start to their season, but they remain undefeated at 19-0. An updated DMV ranking will appear next week. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->