New Additions to the 2026 Rankings

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below is a summary of some of the new players in our rankings. If you look at the bio of one of the professional players for the Orlando Valkyries, <strong>M'Kaela White</strong>, in the Pro Volleyball Federation you will learn she did not touch a volleyball until she was 16 years old. Metro saw her 6'4" height and gave her an opportunity to play. After two years of club she went on to play for James Madison University, followed by some professional play in Italy. Her 6'4" height helped. But it is never too late, especially at this age to improve your game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I can also remember a couple years ago when <strong>Macaria Spears</strong> ranked number one on this list when the 2025's were finishing their frosh high school season. Not many were familiar with her from a national perspective until she broke out for Metro 16. Macaria eventually moved to Texas just after the club season ended. Now, many publications this year have voted her player of the year in Texas and perhaps top ten nationally for the class of 2025. Work hard and good results follow. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='490643' first='Bryah' last='Breaux'] outside (Garrison Forrest/Masters Academy) 16 - The U.S. National team invited her to their National Team Development Program (NTDP). Her 6'4" height and long wing spans certainly enhance her potential. Still a lot of rawness in her game. Once she gets her long levers working in synch with her growth spurts, she will be a handful to stop. Bryah plays in the Towson area so my only exposure to her to date has been video. Reminds me a lot of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='181300' first='Alexis' last='Ewing']</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["472234"],"_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-65921ee3c52f5"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='472234' first='Tessa' last='Fergusson'] middle (Georgetown Day/MOCO) 51 -Her play at the DMV Expo 250 got my attention. She hits the quicks well with her long reach and 6'1" height. This allows her to hit the higher sets other middles fail to reach. For Georgetown Day her .342 hitting percentage ranked first on the team. She also finished third in blocks but as she gains more experience that production should improve. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["452562"],"_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-65921ee3c5350"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='452562' first='Sophie' last='Taylor'] outside (Giles) 53 - Her outside play got Giles to the semifinals of the Class 1 Virginia State playoffs where they lost to the eventual champion Auburn. That loss did not prevent her from earning the state player of the year honors for Class 1. She also earned player of the year honors from the Mountain Empire District and the Regional 1C. Pretty high honors for a sophomore. In her first two years she has accumulated over 1,000 kills, 37 of those coming against Auburn in the semi-final loss. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["443558"],"_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-65921ee3c5392"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='443558' first='Emily' last='Kolas'] libero (Heritage/Virginia Elite) 55 - Heritage finished over .500 this year. That rates much better than their previous two seasons when their combined win total equaled their 2023 season. Much of their success can be attributed to the libero play of [player_tooltip player_id='443558' first='Emily' last='Kolas']. She shows good movement on the court which allows her to cover a lot of ground. She also creates a quiet platform for passing. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["346814"],"_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-65921ee3c53ce"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> [player_tooltip player_id='490462' first='Adyson' last='Seymour'] setter (Boonsboro) 61 - Adyson has the soft hands that can lay a ball up nicely to all areas of the court. She also brings the quickness to get to the ball. Lastly, her 5'8" height does not prevent her from producing kills at the net when playing the front row. It will be interesting to see how she develops. For many setters it takes some time to learn the court. At her current pace she appears to be ahead of the curve.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='495264' first='Ela' last='Shepherd'] setter (Christiansburg) 67 - Her play earned her a spot on the class 3 all-state team. They lost only six matches all season, but five of those were against Hidden Valley. At 5'10" she set and hit the Blue Demons to the semifinals of the Class 3 state championship, where they were eliminated after their fifth loss to Hidden Valley, the eventual state champions. Ela finished the season with over 200 kills and close to 400 assists. You have to like the tools she brings to the court. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484750' first='Ellyson' last='Miller'] outside (Bishop O'Connell/Virginia Elite) 71 - O'Connell started the season going 1-5 in a Florida tournament. Ellyson did not get a lot of playing time at that tournament. A decision was made to give her an opportunity to hit left side. After playing one match she earned a permanent spot in the lineup. She finished fifth on the team in kills, but third when you measure her kills per set. She still has some rawness hitting from the pins since middle had been her primary position, but with more repetitions and an improved arm swing she appears to have found another home. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484751' first='Riley' last='Erwin'] setter (Kellam) 77 - At 5'11" Riley teamed with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='245598' first='Martha' last='Boser']</strong> to run a 6/2 offense. She stayed in the front row for hitting where she finished fifth in kills. She also put up an effective block on the right side ranking second on the team in blocks. As a sophomore it would not surprise me to see her running a 5/1 for Kellam next year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484970' first='Sofia' last='Barnes'] outside (Kellam/Beach Elite) 80 - Another Knight sophomore new to our rankings. Sofia finished fourth on the team in kills. She powered the ball mainly from the right side and at 6'0" brings some length to the position. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='464563' first='Elizabeth' last='Robinson'] setter (Colgan) 82 - Elizabeth was one of two setters who took over for<strong> Alexis Scipione</strong> who had set the Sharks to two state championship finals, winning one and falling short in the other. While Elizabeth did not get the team to the finals Colgan still finished with a solid season. As she is only a sophomore Elizabeth could take over the Sharks setting responsibilities next year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484405' first='Brenna' last='Raymond'] libero (Massaponax) 87 - She earned a spot on the class 5d regional second team as well as the second team for the Commonwealth District. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["479659"],"_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-65921ee3c540a"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='490898' first='Eliza' last='Lowe'] middle (Walt Whitman) 89 - At 6'1" she presented some skills at the DMV Expo that shows she can impact the middle. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484971' first='McKenna' last='Calkins'] middle (Kellam) 91 - McKenna is the third sophomore for Kellam to appear on this list. Her 6'1" height allowed her to finish third on the team in blocks. These offensive numbers come despite her limited playing time, seeing only half the games as the two players ranked ahead of her. Her kill percentage of .360 bodes well for the future. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='485079' first='Grace' last='Davies-Hackenberg'] outside (First Colonial/Beach Elite) 93 - The Patriots won the Class 5 Virginia State Championship. Grace contributed to that quest hitting from the outside while taking over for an injured <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='249294' first='Teagan' last='Emdadi'] </strong>halfway through the season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below are other players making their debut on the 2026 rankings. In addition, there is a large group of watch list players in the rankings. These are players I have yet to see play whose names were submitted for ranking. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='479660' first='Rebecca' last='Thatch'] right side (Whitman) 101 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='455177' first='Briana' last='Vo'] setter (Madison) 109 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484407' first='Macy' last='Forrester'] middle (John Champe) 110 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='484412' first='Payton' last='Mandichak'] right side (Loudoun Country) 112 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='479662' first='Lilly' last='McGee'] right side (Leonardtown) 116 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='479656' first='Charlotte' last='Thatch'] setter (Whitman) 117 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='490811' first='Ella' last='Higday'] Libero/DS (Georgetown DayMOCO) 134 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='470565' first='Gabriela' last='Cid'] libero/DS (Langley) 138 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='495262' first='Imani' last='Thomas'] right side (Elizabeth Seton/[program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last='']) 146 </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->