Tour of Texas #2: 15 Invitational – Liberos
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One of the most traditional and competitive club volleyball tournaments in the Lone Star State, the Tour of Texas had its second stop of the season this past weekend in Houston, bringing the top talent of the region to H-Town…
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Continue ReadingOne of the most traditional and competitive club volleyball tournaments in the Lone Star State, the Tour of Texas had its second stop of the season this past weekend in Houston, bringing the top talent of the region to H-Town for two days of action.
It was a great opportunity to see the elite of the sport in Texas battling it out and Prep Dig was at the Katy United facility on Sunday, where we got to watch all 20 teams that competed in the 15 Invitational division in action. There’s a serious level of talent in this group and we’ll now feature the prospects that stood out during the day.
Nothing was touching the floor around these liberos:
Huynh was very solid for Dallas Skyline 15 Royal and helped the team rank third in the event with five wins and just one loss. Her ball control was excellent and she was extremely precise on defense, be it when dealing with hard-driven swings or with tips or deflected shots. Huynh’s quickness on the backcourt is truly impressive and she always keeps her eyes on the ball, at times anticipating plays and switching directions to get to it. The libero was also a big part of the team’s serve-receive system, covering a lot of ground and delivering accurate passes to her setter.
Highlights
Pearson Noone Pearson Noone 5'6" | DS/L Cy Fair | 2027 State TX
Pearson Noone Pearson Noone 5'6" | DS/L Cy Fair | 2027 State TX
Noone was one of the liberos of the Houston Skyline 15 Royal team that finished in third place with four victories and two losses. She was extremely productive playing defense at the left back position and had an interesting approach to it, starting plays almost in the center of the court and then moving around as they developed. Noone is very technical and quick and showed she can send the ball to her setter in any situation, be it a tough serve or a well-placed tip. She was also very disciplined from a tactical standpoint and recovered several balls while covering her hitters.
Ebert led her team Madfrog 15’s N Green to a campaign of two wins and three losses, which placed them in fifth in the event. A tall libero, she covered a lot of ground defensively and stood out with her ability to control hard-driven swings, generating transition opportunities for her side. Ebert also took a huge responsibility in serve-receive and thrived at it, using her great technique to deliver precise passes to her setter. The libero also stepped up to set in transition plays when the setter got the first contact and did a good job with it.
Presley St. Clair
Presley St. Clair
St. Clair was one of the liberos of the Madfrog 15’s N Black team that finished fifth with two victories and three upsets. She played with tremendous energy on the backcourt and gave the team a lot of stability with her game. Her passing was solid for most of the time and helped the team use their middles on offense quite frequently. When playing defense, St. Clair stood out with her impressive quickness, which allowed her to get to balls that seemed out of range for her. The libero also did other things well, such as serving, covering her hitters and setting in transition.
Dakota Hart
Dakota Hart
Hart played libero for the STVA 15 Mizuno team that got five wins and just one loss to finish ninth in the division. She was very active in serve-receive and kept the team in system with her accurate passing. Hart, who also plays on the sand, displayed great defensive instincts, excellent reflexes and even better ball control, standing out with some impressive one-handed digs at the left back position. She was very stable during the day and also had good efficiency from the service line, often getting opponents out of system.
With Blumoff at libero, Austin Skyline 15 Royal was the 11th-best team in the division, with three wins and three losses. She was electric on the backcourt and was among the best pure defenders of the event. Besides being very quick with her movement, Blumoff also displayed excellent ball control – she made multiple one-handed digs when getting tips behind the block at the left back position and delivered them perfectly to the setter. The libero kept a high level in serve-receive, playing with great confidence and consistently passing the ball to the target.
Highlights
Jenna Tello
Jenna Tello
Tello played libero for the AP 15 Adidas team that dropped all of their five matches to rank 15th. Despite their campaign, the libero still managed to stand out, having good moments in their backcourt. Tello was playing one age group up but it didn’t look like it, considering how she stepped up to take charge of the team’s serve-receive efforts, covering a lot of ground and delivering precise passes. The libero also got several touches on defense and had some good serving runs during the day.