Tour of Texas #2: 17 Invitational – Setters

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>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 earlier this month in Houston, bringing the top talent of the region to H-Town for two days of action.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://prepdig.com/2024/02/tour-of-texas-2-17-invitational-photos/">Tour of Texas #2: 17 Invitational - Photos</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a great opportunity to see the elite of the sport in Texas battling it out and Prep Dig was at the FAST Complex on Saturday, where we got to watch all 20 teams that competed in the 17 Invitational division in action. There was a serious level of talent in this group and we'll now feature the prospects that stood out during the day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>First, the setters:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["179888"],"_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":"O'Brien steered [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] 17 Royal to first place in the event with a campaign of seven wins and just one set dropped. Even without one of her main offensive weapons in middle [player_tooltip player_id='179893' first='Bayleigh' last='Minor'], the setter kept the team's offense well-balanced and effective with her smart distribution. O'Brien was very smooth with her playmaking and remained that way even when she had to work with passes off the net. A talented player who just continues to improve over the years, she also played excellent defense and had a big leadership role with her team.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce680974d8"} /--> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/grtorres/status/1756335538187981302","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/1756335538187981302 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["180178"],"_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":"Cook had a strong weekend with Dallas Skyline 17 Royal, helping the team get five wins in seven matches to finish second in Houston. She had a very diverse group of hitters and it was interesting how she connected to each of them and kept putting them in good positions to score points. Extremely mobile and technical, Cook makes great use of her athleticism and is capable of making plays not many others would. She's also very solid on the backcourt, contributing with her serving and when playing defense.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce68097544"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16296701/65cb256ebed745181045a4d9' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce680975d6"} /--> <!-- 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":"Brooklyn Myers","_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":"32561","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Johnson","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"Austin Performance","_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":"With Myers at setter, AP 17 Adidas got a solid third-place finish in the event with three wins and three losses. Her calm presence on the court was one of the things that kept her team stable as they knew exactly what to expect from their playmaker. Myers' offense is fairly straightforward, as she connects really well with the team's main hitters, but also extremely efficient, as her team is able to maintain a consistent rhythm during an entire day of matches. Myers had a strong presence at the net with her blocking, but also got the job done on the backcourt with tremendous defensive work.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce68097677"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15373251/65cc369990eebd0544addd5a' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce68097699"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["180167"],"_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":"Beauford's [program_tooltip program_id='510733' first='Drive' last='Nation'] 17 - Red team had four wins and just one upset, ending the weekend in fifth place. Few setters in the state have her combination of physical and technical tools and that's what makes of her a special talent in the position. Her athleticism helps her remain precise with her locations as she is very quick to get to the ball and has the arm power to send it to the pin from anywhere on the court. Beauford was also very aggressive with her setter dumps and she had quite a few different ways to put the ball down on the second contact.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce680976e8"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":509185,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/02/IMG_0708.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-509185" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[program_tooltip program_id='510733' first='Drive' last='Nation'] 17 - Red vs. TAV 17 Black Haroun</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["212733"],"_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":"Thiele and her Alamo 17 Premier team had two wins and four losses over the weekend in Houston, ending the event in ninth place. Her game is all about reliability as she's a setter who is very consistent with what she does regardless of the situation. Thiele does a very good of sharing the ball among her hitters and manages to remain accurate even when she has to track passes way off the net. She's also a very strong defensive player, who gets a lot of digs out of her right back position.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce68097739"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/17306941/65cc871f68900a0a7887b02c' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce68097755"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["179900"],"_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":"Orton played a major role as her new team Austin Skyline 17 Royal got a ninth-place finish with three wins and three losses. A tall setter, she used her high contact point to play as fast as she could when in system and also stood out with some interesting combination plays, displaying great creativity with her ball distribution. Because of her size, Orton also had good performances at the net with her blocking and setter dumps. She's a very talented setter who has a strong group of hitters to work with and will certainly only get better over the next few weeks as their chemistry grows.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce680977a1"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/21560566/65c9e10dbd746e097cfde3aa' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65cce680977bc"} /-->