Legends Classic #1: Middles

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The club volleyball season is officially open in the state of Texas and the Legends Classic #1 was among the very first tournaments to be held in the Houston area, on Saturday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The event reunited eight teams from the region in each of the 17s and 18s divisions at the Open Court Sports Complex, in Katy, and some of the very top prospects from the Lone Star State were in action in the first weekend of the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="https://prepdig.com/2023/12/legends-classic-1-photo-gallery/"><strong>Legends Classic #1 - Photo Gallery</strong></a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are some of the middles who stood out in the event:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='519547' first='Rheanna' last='Deen-Jackson']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'1u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Atascocita","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"Houston Skyline","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Deen-Jackson was one of the most productive players of the last high school season in the area and kept the good form going into club, helping her team Houston Skyline 18 Royal win the 18s division. The athletic middle provided a strong blocking presence to her team, moving very well at the net and using her length to make stops. Deen-Jackson's tremendous footwork also facilitated her offense and she was incredibly productive when hitting the slide set.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-656e294462709"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":486455,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/12/IMG_6807.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-486455" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["209539"],"_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":"Tinnell emerged as one of the most promising middles in the region last season and, judging by her performance this past weekend with 17s division winners Houston Skyline 16 Royal, has only gotten better. Very physical and smart, she continues to be a force at the net on both sides of the ball, but at the Legends Classic #1 she got to display some nice improvement in her all-around game. Tinnell became more of a threat from the service line and got some good touches on defense, besides also passing at a good level when she was used as a right side during the day.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-656e294462779"} /--> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/grtorres/status/1730954098290123171?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/grtorres/status/1730954098290123171?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Ashlyn Willburn","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2025","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'10u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Lake Creek","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"The Woodlands Skyline","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"An unorthodox left-handed middle blocker, Willburn made a huge impact at the net for her team The Woodlands Skyline 17 Royal. Blocking was a big part of her game as Willburn got a lot of stops against Katy United 17 Fathom and helped her team win in three sets. Some of the keys to hear strong performance were her ability to read the game, jump well and be aggressive with her arms across the net. Being a lefty, she also benefited from her ability to hit different angles to score offensively.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-656e29446280c"} /--> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/grtorres/status/1730973551300166122?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/grtorres/status/1730973551300166122?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["187020"],"_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":"Pfefferkorn did a great job in the middle with Houston Skyline 17 Royal. Her length and the way she used it to dominate the net was game-changing and made of her a very important player in the team's playing system. She was very strong offensively, making contact with the ball at a very high point, and used her long arms to get to the ball and score on tips when the sets weren't so accurate. Pfefferkorn also produced well with her blocking, moving well at the net and taking up space from opposing hitters.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-656e29446289a"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":485712,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/12/IMG_6939.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-485712" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Houston Skyline 17 Royal vs. FRST Volleyball 18U Teal</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Carson Thiebaud","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'2u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"College Station","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"Houston Skyline","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Thiebaud's strong blocking presence at net played a big role for her team Houston Skyline 18 Black. She got to impact the game in a very strong way, getting stuffs and creating big challenges to those who wanted to score against them. Extremely mobile, she got off the floor very quickly and was also great at using her long arms to channel opponents into her defenders. She also had good moments offensively, swinging with power when she got into a rhythm.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-656e29446291b"} /-->