Houston HS Previews: 6A – District 16 – Five Players to Watch

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After nine months of grinding for their club teams, volleyball prospects in the state of Texas are ready to turn their focus to the University Interscholastic League (UIL) high school season, which is set to start soon, with the first matches set for August 12.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It will definitely be an interesting season to follow after the realignment promoted by the UIL, which altered the scenario in several districts, as well as the new competition format, which will split the playoffs into two divisions, and Prep Dig will be following the action closely in the Houston area, providing weekly match reports and photos of the most exciting duels.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We've already previewed each of the 12 districts in the region, indicating what each team could expect in 2024, so now it's time we shortlist a few players in each of those districts that deserve your attention.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">District 16</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://prepdig.com/?p=556297">Team Previews</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Five Players to Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["187020"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838aa01"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">A middle with impressive length and superior mobility, Pfefferkorn is a factor at the net for Bridgeland. She's very strong defensively, moving well at the net and getting several touches with her blocking, making things easier for defenders working behind her. Pfefferkorn is also a well-versed offensive player, who makes the most of her length and has a very quick right arm. She's lethal hitting the slide set and has been expanding her offense, developing her ability to hit from the left and the right and opening new possibilities up for her team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/18015995/650ee8ecb3d2fc0420b99b91' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ab94"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["179890"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838abe1"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Porter is one of the cornerstones of her Cypress Ranch team. An outside hitter with excellent technical and physical skills, she is central in everything they do on the court. Porter, who's also capable of playing on the right, is an elite defensive player, taking a big responsibility in serve-receive and contributing a lot on defense. She's also among the best at the net, getting off the floor extremely well, showing impressive explosiveness to make contact with the ball and displaying an endless array of options in her swings. Porter is also a strong server, who often gets opponents out of system. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15464787/65252e252aa6d016606f2f34' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ac04"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["254075"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ac40"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Gittens joined Cypress Woods last season and helped elevate the level of the team with her strong play at the pins. She's a player who embraces the responsibility of leading her team on the court and that has been the case with the Wildcats. Gittens is a strong offensive player, who has impressive explosiveness but is also mature enough to mix things up to overcome blockers and defenders. Her passing has been consistently getting better and that's another area of her game in which she can contribute to the team's success.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/18946043/64e6bd06578dda0a9844abb0' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ac5f"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["212727"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ac96"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Taylor will be more important than ever to Langham Creek in her senior season. The towering middle has been a key piece for them since her freshman season, but in 2024 the team's offense will run a lot through her. Having a tremendous height advantage over almost every opposing blocker, Taylor has grown used to scoring on a high volume. It won't be any different in the upcoming season, when she'll undoubtedly be the team's top offensive option. Expect her to continue being dominant with her blocking too as she's been consistently improving her reading of the game and pairing that with her impressive length.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15377779/64d327cfbed70707c83ad854' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838acb4"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["269809"],"_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":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ace9"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Winfrey is the heart and soul of her Waller team. An undersized middle, she plays with incredible energy at the net and sets the tone for her teammates when it comes to battling opponents. Despite her limited size, she's incredibly athletic and goes neck to neck against anyone across the net. Winfrey is excellent at quickly getting to the pins when blocking and does a very good job of taking space up from opposing hitters. On offense, she hits a very quick set in the middle with a lot of power and can be difficult to stop.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16357819/65380f50ff028c15f03d8d61' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66902a838ad05"} /-->