Club Preview: Three Ohio Area 18U Contenders

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>NKYVC 18 Tsunami</em></strong><br>Led by the 2023 Kentucky player of the year and University of Washington commit <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='107399' first='Julia' last='Hunt']</strong>, this team has improved their roster strength from a season ago that saw them triple qualify for USAV nationals along with winning the prestigious Triple Crown invitational. Comprised of athletes from northern Kentucky and the Cincinnati area, other top prospects from Kentucky include 1st team all-Kentucky selections in outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='107423' first='Alivia' last='Skidmore'] (Western Kentucky commit) and middle [player_tooltip player_id='107434' first='Lilly' last='Hamburg']. They gain some big talent by adding 2nd team all-Kentucky selection [player_tooltip player_id='260892' first='Kiana' last='Dinn']. Dinn is an athletic and versatile athlete that helps create position depth in multiple areas. She will be heading to national power Pitt. The Ohio contingency is led by a pair of DI state champions as 1st team all-Ohio selection [player_tooltip player_id='114565' first='Sydney' last='Barrett'] (Dayton commit) and 1st team all-ECC setter [player_tooltip player_id='139272' first='Abby' last='Yoder'] helped lead Kings to the crown this past fall, the first public school to win the Ohio DI title in several years. [player_tooltip player_id='139273' first='Lilly' last='Gillespie'] (Cincinnati commit), another 1st team all-ECC along with an all-Ohio honorable mention selection, brings some of the best six-rotation skills and experience back with her strength being in her defense and ball control. Combined with returning libero [player_tooltip player_id='107422' first='Elizabeth' last='Tabeling'] (all-Kentucky honorable mention; Ball State commit), this team should once again compete very well on the defensive side to match their offensive strength. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>[program_tooltip program_id='430852' first='Tri-State' last='Elite'] 18 Blue</em></strong><br>Led by a pair from the Ohio DII state champions, this team has the tools to compete very well on the national stage. Outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='139276' first='Sophia' last='Adkins'] (Providence commit) and setter [player_tooltip player_id='114574' first='Maria' last='Drapp'] (Bradley commit) were both all-Ohio selections following their effort that helped Mercy McAuley prevail with a state title at the end of the fall high school season. Roger Bacon's [player_tooltip player_id='114590' first='Kelsey' last='Niesen'] (Xavier commit) had a fantastic high school career and returns to this team with her solid well-rounded skill set. [player_tooltip player_id='114578' first='Dakota' last='Henry'] (Rhode Island commit) and Alexis Woolf (Eastern Kentucky commit) combine with Niesen to provide one of the most effective backcourt trios in their serve receive and defense. Another big arm returning is all-Ohio 2nd team selection [player_tooltip player_id='114600' first='Faith' last='Young'] (Western Kentucky commit) who can bring big power and pace in the middle and at the pins if needed. St. Louis commit [player_tooltip player_id='114568' first='Addy' last='Brus'] gets off the floor well and should shoulder a fair share of the pin action given the absence of two key of arms from last season. The middle position will be occupied at times by both [player_tooltip player_id='114573' first='Molly' last='Dorger'] and [player_tooltip player_id='208852' first='Anna' last='Guard'] (Eastern Michigan commit; all-Kentucky honorable mention). This squad finished 5th in 17 Open at the 2023 AAU national tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Mintonette m.81</em></strong><br>A quartet of Division I all-Ohio selections are back for this team. Pin hitter [player_tooltip player_id='139282' first='Lily' last='Barron'] is a Houston commit and 1st team all-Ohio selection. She pairs with the big arm of [player_tooltip player_id='196346' first='Taylor' last='Bahnub'] as the Clemson commit and 2nd team all-Ohio honoree brings good length and quickness in the middle. The other all-Ohio prospects include the versatile [player_tooltip player_id='114571' first='Madison' last='Cugino'] (Gonzaga commit) who has great range defensively while also adding pin depth offensively. She was a third team selection as outside hitter <strong>AnaCate Loftus</strong> (South Carolina Aiken commit) was selected to the all-Ohio honorable mention squad. Setter [player_tooltip player_id='139283' first='Kaylee' last='Musick'] (*pictured) was a 1st team all-Ohio selection in Division II and is committed to Florida International. She is back to once again lead this team through her distribution for her final club season. Others to see include newcomer [player_tooltip player_id='494185' first='Brooke' last='Briscoe'], a DIII 2nd team all-Ohio selection, the versatile [player_tooltip player_id='223241' first='Lexi' last='Grissett'] (DIII 3rd team all-Ohio; Ohio University commit), and the 6'4 right side presence of Virginia commit [player_tooltip player_id='139286' first='Becca' last='Wight']. Middles [player_tooltip player_id='213214' first='Hattie' last='Welker'] (Eastern Michigan commit) and [player_tooltip player_id='139284' first='Grace' last='Thomas'] (Central Michigan commit) should both factor into their middle presence on both sides of the ball. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->