Prospect Spotlight: More From The Class of 2027

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After four reports featuring the leaders in kills, assists, digs, and blocks from Kansas athletes from the Class of 2027, and going to feature a handful of 2027 athletes to watch moving forward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Athletes in this group were not included in any of the previous four reports, but each is a prospect in their own right and has a whole lot of volleyball action ahead of them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='483952' first='Jaela' last='Thompson'], </strong>5'9”, OH/MH, McPherson, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thompson has a big reach and swing. She finished with 142 assists in 84 sets played. She is a very athletic player that the Bullpups can build around moving forward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='524706' first='Bella' last='Ascanio'], </strong>5'9”, OH, St. Mary's Colgan, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ascanio is a physical hitter and can finish off plays. She finished her freshman season with 142 kills and 23 total blocks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Emery Shinliver, </strong>5'5”, DS/OH, Medicine Lodge, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Shinliver filled up her stat sheet in 2023. She finished with 318 serve receptions, 212 digs, and 134 kills. She can play six rotations and is also a quality combo guard for the Medicine Lodge Indians.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='524700' first='Anniston' last='Clark']</strong>, 5'10”, OH/MH, Free State, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clark is a dangerous hitter at the net. She finished her freshman campaign with 126 kills and 43 total blocks. She can hit a very dangerous cross-court attack.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='530318' first='Emmy' last='Gerdes'], </strong>5'5”, S, Medicine Lodge, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gerdes is the setter who fed the ball to Shinliver for the Indians in 2023. The freshman setter finished with 259 assists and also racked up 189 digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Micha Gillespie, </strong>5'8”, S/RS, Goddard, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gillespie is a solid athlete for the Lions and posted impressive numbers in just 70 sets of varsity actions. She finished with 218 assists, 155 digs, and 87 kills.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='548922' first='Paige' last='Hofer'], </strong>5'7”, MH, Basehor-Linwood, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A freshman for the Bobcats showed glimpses of a solid game in 2023. She finished with 159 assists in just 50 sets played at the varsity level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='516253' first='Brianna' last='Paul']</strong>, 5'3”, L/DS, Circle, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Paul is a young libero who played for a state tournament qualifying team. She finished her freshman season with 197 digs. She will have a chance to gain a ton of experience by playing for the Thunderbirds and [program_tooltip program_id='515463' first='Air' last='Capital Aces'] during club season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='524703' first='Addy' last='Pladson']</strong>, 5'6”, OH/OPP, Clay Center, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pladson is a leader in the making for the Tigers. She finished with 121 kills, 144 digs, and 35 total blocks in the 2023 season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->