Heavy Hitters: Ellinwood Loaded With Top-Hitting Prospects

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>During the first day of the Abilene Spiketacular Tournament I scouted two matches played by the Ellinwood Eagles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ellinwood knocked off Abilene and Sylvan-Lucas in two sets.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Eagles have talented hitting prospects, and the team's depth is incredible. This high school program should compete for state titles for the next several seasons.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here is a look at five prospects who performed well in the Eagles opening match against the Cowgirls.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='275626' first='Kennedy' last='Behnke']</strong>, 5'11”, MB, Ellinwood ‘25</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Behnke is currently ranked No. 59 overall by Prep Dig. She is a six-rotation talent coming off a hamstring injury. She had a dominant match against Abilene. She finished with five kills, six digs, and four serve receptions. I had seen Behnke play during the club season and it was nice to see the chemistry she has with her high school teammates.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='489348' first='Kyndal' last='Moore']</strong>, 6'0”, MB, Ellinwood, ‘26</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moore had the most impressive match of Day One in Abilene. She is currently ranked No. 45 overall in the class of 2026 by Prep Dig Kansas. Spoiler Alert, she won't be ranked that low when the rankings are updated in July! She will rise into the Top 20 if not the Top 10. Moore has “Spidey Arms,” and is the floor leader for the Eagles. She can set and hit. She has one of the most “herky-jerky” serve motions I have ever seen, but it's super effective. Moore recorded a match-high eight kills against Abilene and added two digs and three serve receptions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='557216' first='Addi' last='Stickney']</strong>, 5'7”, OH Ellinwood, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stickney was the surprise of the morning. She reminds me of Lansing's [player_tooltip player_id='222091' first='Avery' last='Sands']. She is not the tallest hitter on the Ellinwood team, but she can really rise. She is currently unranked by Prep Dig, but that will quickly be remedied. Her high school coach informed me that she has been putting in hard work in the weight room, and it shows. Dynamite comes in small packages and Stickney can explode on the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='483944' first='Bennett' last='Jacobs']</strong>, 5'5”, DS/L, Ellinwood, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jacobs is the No. 1 ranked libero in the 2027 class right now. Nothing in her game on Thursday showed that she is not deserving of that slot. Jacobs is ranked No. 32 overall by Prep Dig. She is light on her feet and has a quiet frame. She communicates well with teammates and makes consistent first passes. On a team loaded with hitting assassins, Jacobs is the quiet assassin and the glue for the lineup. She finished with five digs and nine serve receptions against Abilene.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='557245' first='Mette' last='Maxwell']</strong>, 5'7”, S/OH, Ellinwood, ‘28</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Maxwell is an incoming freshman who will be quickly added to the class of 2028 rankings. She can play six rotations, has strong fundamentals, and is confident way beyond her years. Witnesses of her game can quickly connect the dots and realize that she the daughter of a coach. She was all over the court in the two matches I watched. Teams were not wearing numbers during the event and it took me until the second match to figure out who was who between Maxwell and Stickney.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->