Tour of Texas Stop 1 – TAV 15 Black Jason – Top Performers

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the most anticipated tournaments at the beginning of each club season is the Tour of Texas because of all of the talent that will be competing.&nbsp; The first stop was held in Dallas, TX this weekend. &nbsp;I was able to attend this prestigious event and this next series will be about those players who stood out while I watched their matches in person.&nbsp; I spent most of my time watching the Invitational tournament, which was riddled with Open level talent.&nbsp; There were teams that traveled from Utah, Georgia, California, and Hawaii to compete with our Texas teams.&nbsp; Without further ado, let's see who stood out on each team.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>[program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball 15 Black Jason</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The tournament got off to a wonderful start on Saturday and finished Sunday evening.&nbsp; It was meant to end on Monday but the freeze halted the event and no one was able to finish the tournament.&nbsp; Even with no true champion crowned, we were all still able to see some awesome volleyball.&nbsp; TAV 15 Black was the number one seed going in and went 5-1 over the two days.&nbsp; The following players are who stood out to me when I watched them play.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='534291' first='Gentry' last='Barker']&nbsp;[2027] 5-10 Outside (HS: Lovejoy/Club:&nbsp;[program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":503193,"width":"169px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/01/Gentry-Barker-crop-5328x3498-1706054456.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-503193" style="width:169px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gentry is currently an unranked prospect in the 2027 class according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings, but that is only because they have not been released yet.&nbsp; She plays at Lovejoy High School and also the famed [program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball club.&nbsp; The only way to explain Miss Barker in a few words to people is “jaw-dropping”.&nbsp; While everyone who witnessed the 5A UIL State playoffs are already aware of the legend that is [player_tooltip player_id='534291' first='Gentry' last='Barker'], those who do not know who she is will soon see how amazing she is.&nbsp; What I witnessed on the court was very telling of just how dominant this young lady can be.&nbsp; She is the true definition of a six-rotation outside hitter.&nbsp; When you watch her in serve receive, you see how focused her eyes are on the task at hand.&nbsp; She is primed and ready to attack whether from the front or the back row.&nbsp; I loved seeing how fast her footwork is while transitioning to her outside touch point.&nbsp; But then I saw her take it to another gear in her approach to the ball.&nbsp; She really knows how to create and utilize momentum to gain more in her vertical.&nbsp; Then she unleashes a super violent swing on the ball that just punishes the defense with bombs.&nbsp; The most fun, though, was watching how she was able to toy with the defense and use an amazingly deceptive off-speed shot that landed right over the block to score.&nbsp; Miss Barker is just playing on a completely different level than everyone else in her grad class.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='532413' first='Brynn' last='Stephens']&nbsp;[2027] 6-2 Setter/Outside (HS: Rock Hill/Club:&nbsp;[program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":503194,"width":"108px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/01/Brynn-Stephens-e1706054542456.jpg?w=775" alt="" class="wp-image-503194" style="width:108px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Miss Stephens is currently an unranked prospect in the 2027 Class according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings, but that is only because we have not released them yet.&nbsp; She plays at Rock Hill High School and also for the famed [program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball club.&nbsp; Brynn is difficult to classify because of her all around game.&nbsp; Is she a high level setter?&nbsp; Yes.&nbsp; Is she a high level attacker?&nbsp; Yes.&nbsp; The only thing I do know about her is that she is one of the best volleyball players in the entire nation in her grad class.&nbsp; Not only does she have the size and physical prowess, but she has the attitude to match as well.&nbsp; She is a stone cold killer on the court and we love everything about it.&nbsp; With a vertical approach touch of over ten feet high, this young lady is a college coach's dream recruit.&nbsp; After already winning a National Championship in the Open division last season, you can see that this squad is ready to defend it and Brynn is a huge reason why.&nbsp; She is silky smooth in delivering the ball to her attackers.&nbsp; There is not a set that she cannot hit the bullseye over and over with.&nbsp; As an attacker, she can throttle the ball with authority on both pins.&nbsp; Having a player like her would give you so much flexibility with your lineups to create mismatches with opponents.&nbsp; If you have not heard of her by now, give it some time, you will soon.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='534307' first='Sophee' last='Peterson']&nbsp;[2027] 5-10 Setter (HS: Byron Nelson/Club:&nbsp;[program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":503195,"width":"119px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/01/Sophee-Peterson-e1706054676565.jpg?w=818" alt="" class="wp-image-503195" style="width:119px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophee is currently an unranked prospect in the 2027 Class according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings, but that is only because we have not released them yet.&nbsp; She plays at Byron Nelson High School and also for the famed [program_tooltip program_id='431308' first='Texas' last='Advantage'] Volleyball club.&nbsp; As a freshman on varsity, she played a huge role in helping their offense run by dishing out over 720 assists.&nbsp; While I watched her do this in person, I knew exactly why her hitters thrived.&nbsp; She has excellent placement of every location and the ball just floats perfectly to a tee for the hitter to hit off of.&nbsp; Miss Peterson is also a very gifted attacker who can score in a variety of ways from the pins or when a team brings her around for a second tempo set out of the middle.&nbsp; Her volleyball IQ is very high and you see it when she creates one on one opportunities for her hitters often.&nbsp; She will be ranked very high as a setter not only because of her assists, but also her ability to play defense out of the right back zone.&nbsp; I love everything about her play and she will be a top player for the foreseeable future in her grad class.&nbsp; Stay tuned for more on her as we will be following her progress very closely.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While I only wrote about three players extensively, there were some others who also did very well when I watched. &nbsp;Middles [player_tooltip player_id='534300' first='Nyla' last='Livings'] and Onita Davis were stellar while blocking at the net.&nbsp; They are very big targets who can ball with anyone.&nbsp; Liberos [player_tooltip player_id='534316' first='Ansley' last='Shafer'] and [player_tooltip player_id='433561' first='Karsyn' last='Evans'] were dialed in and delivering some pinpoint accurate passes out of serve receive.&nbsp; Both were playing at a high level in the match I watched.&nbsp; They are both quick on defense and can dig hard driven balls well.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='534308' first='Lexi' last='Martin'] was a huge contributor on offense for TAV.&nbsp; She is a long attacker who can score points in a hurry.&nbsp; This team is proving that they are one of the teams to beat this season just as they were last year.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:Michael@prepdig.com">Michael@prepdig.com</a>. &nbsp;&nbsp;Also don't forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends.&nbsp; Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Family!&nbsp; Don't be afraid to interact with us.&nbsp; We love the likes, shares, and quotes/comments.&nbsp; Keep them coming!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->