SLC Showcase: Hot DS/Ls from Class of 2028

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I am so excited to start covering these young athletes from the class of 2028 who were at the SLC Showcase this weekend. Some of them just had my jaw dropping at their skills. Let's start by covering the DS/Ls and find out what makes them great. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='507405' first='Rachel' last='Nemee']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nemee is a 5'6" DS/L from St. Mary's in California. Nemee is calm, cool, and collected. She has the court figured out and dialed in. She can make quick adjustments when needed, does low to the ground to get a ball, and has great placement of the ball once she has it dug up. She is a smart athlete and seems to sense where the ball is going then gets there before it to do her job with style. Terrific athlete!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":529395,"width":"220px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"left"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/IMG_3549.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-529395" style="width:220px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Isabella Gornick</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gornick is a 5'3" DS/L from Holy Cross Jr. High in California. Gornick looks like she has spent some time setting the ball as well as playing the back row. She has great hands, a beautiful platform, and is a multi-use athlete. She seems to move very lightly and quickly on her feet and makes the most of her time and effort on the court. She is a very impactful player already and still has so much time to develop her talents in her high school career. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='531676' first='Kaitlyn' last='Barrera']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Barrera is a 5'2" DS/L from Saint Joseph High School in California. Barrera is quite impressive. I watched her play in drills all along the back row. No matter which position she was in, the ball went to the setter and ended up back in play. I did not see one of them careen out of play. She is meticulous about her feet and arms and has a beautiful platform. I already thought wow, this one is really good, and then realized she has an entire high school career to get that much better. Great job! </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Georgia Story</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Story is a 4'11" DS/L from Stillwater Junior High in Oklahoma. She is so low to the ground that it costs her no time to get to the ball and pop it up to her setter. She is super athletic and so quick. She is a good server and fast-moving around the court. She knows where to go and is under the ball at the right times. She has a high volleyball IQ and is well on her way to being a standout star at the next level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":529379,"width":"240px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"right"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/04/IMG_3565.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-529379" style="width:240px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Aaralyn Smith</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Smith is a 5'4" DS/L from Clear Springs in Texas. Smith is smooth, and athletic, has a great platform, and has really soft hands she can use to set hitters and dig up balls coming at her really fast on the court. She has no fear that I could see and has a great passion for performing well. She displayed a lot of drive and aggression on the court to not let the ball drop. She gave a great performance at the showcase. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='530004' first='Gentry' last='Coons']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Coons is a 5'4" DS/L from Washburn Rural High School in Kansas. Coons moves really fast and has great footwork when going after the ball. She is very agile and gets to the ball most of the time and positions it well for her setter. She works well with others and appears to enjoy playing the back row and going for every ball. She has a great platform and uses it well to position the ball. I see great things in her future and can't wait to see her in a couple more years to see how much she has grown. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->