Cross Court Classic: 16 Open – Outsides

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a busy weekend of club volleyball in Houston as the city hosted the 2024 edition of the Nike Cross Court Classic, one of the most anticipated and biggest tournaments of the season, from March 9-10.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Almost 700 teams took the courts at the George R. Brown Convention Center, in downtown, competing for two days in one of the 18 divisions of the tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://prepdig.com/2024/03/cross-court-classic-16-open-photos/">Cross Court Classic: 16 Open - Photos</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Dig was in attendance on Saturday, when we got to watch the pool play matches of the event. One of the divisions we covered was 16 Open, which featured 14 teams, coming from several different regions of Texas. Some players stood out to us for their performances and we're taking the week to report on them. Today, we'll know some of the outside hitters who made things happen on the court:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["254073"],"_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":"Koonsen was one of the players that pushed Houston Stellar 16 Elite to a strong performance that placed them as division winners with six victories and just one set dropped. She made great use of her length at the net and was arguably the team's main offensive weapon over the weekend, keeping her scoring form consistently. Koonsen displayed interesting tools to put the ball down and was very mature and smart with her shot selection. She also made an impact in the game with her blocking and was solid in serve-receive.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb55c0"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/17933627/65ef18983452a60820d70d7c' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb5671"} /--> <!-- 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":"Peyton LeJeune","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'9u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32564","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Gateway College Prep","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"Texas Fury","_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":"LeJeune and her team Texas Fury 16 Legacy recovered from an inconsistent first day to end the tournament in second place with three wins and three losses. The pin hitter was pivotal in the team's campaign, playing major roles on both sides of the ball. Very explosive with her offensive approach, LeJeune was extremely productive at the net, consistently beating blockers with her strong swings. She also displayed great technique and vision to hit around blockers and find open spots on the court to put the ball down. The outside hitter was a vital piece in the team's passing system too, covering a huge portion of the court and delivering the ball to the setter with great efficiency.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb5719"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":518330,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/IMG_3030.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-518330" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Texas Fury 16 Legacy vs. Alamo 16 Gold</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["514167"],"_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":"Hieber and her Texas Legacy 16 Elite team had a solid showing in Houston, securing a third-place finish with four wins and just one loss. The outside hitter's all-around game was extremely valuable for the team as she combined size, athleticism and technical skills in a very productive way on the court. Hieber took a central role in Legacy's serve-receive system and was also very active playing defense, getting several touches in the middle back position. The outside hitter used her length well offensively and was very difficult to stop when hitting a quick set at the pin.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb5775"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":518319,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/IMG_2967.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-518319" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Texas Legacy 16 Elite vs. Club South 16-1</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":"Caroline Cadenhead","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2026","_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":"32564","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"SA Saints","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"Alamo","_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":"Having Cadenhead as one of their offensive options, Alamo 16 Elite ranked seventh with two wins and three losses. The outside hitter was extremely important for the team, giving them excellent defensive balance and a viable point-scorer at the net. Cadenhead was extremely reliable with her passing and also made good moves on defense. When up at the net, the outside hitter impressed with her offensive variation and her ability to find difficult angles. Cadenhead also displayed good versatility, swinging at a good rate from the right and also when hit a quicker set closer to the middle.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb57fd"} /--> <!-- wp:image {"id":518295,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/IMG_2844.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-518295" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Alamo 16 Elite vs. United VBA 16 Purple</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["254239"],"_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":"Glover was impressively productive for her team MoCo Mavs 16 Red, helping them secure a seventh-place finish with two wins and three losses. The high-flying outside hitter didn't hold anything back against much taller blockers and was the team's go-to scoring option, responding with very strong performances over the weekend. Glover played very aggressively above the net and displayed interesting resources to put the ball down. She was set quite often by her setters and kept swinging hard and scoring with great efficiency, even in moments of high pressure.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb584f"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/20440431/65edc740a681601144953480' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65ef652cb586c"} /-->