2024 Michigan Freshman Showcase Player Evaluations (Part 3)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2024 Michigan Freshman Showcase brought out a lot of promising talent to Pontiac this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Each had their own strengths that they brought to the court.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's a handful of player evaluations from the event, done in numerical order by what they were assigned at the showcase.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='569772' first='Lauren' last='Sheldon'], OH/MH Stoney Creek/Legacy</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sheldon was definitely one of the shining stars of this showcase. It was impossible not to notice her play, as she was dominant on both sides of the net. The 6-footer is able to play well above the net and come down hard over the top of the ball. Her finishes were powerful and explosive. However, she wasn't overly aggressive with her swing. She had smooth technique that she repeated over and over.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='574175' first='Payton' last='Woodruff'], S Country Day/Legacy</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":585353,"width":"165px","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/5/2024/08/17-Payton-Woodruff.jpg?w=876" alt="" class="wp-image-585353" style="width:165px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='574175' first='Payton' last='Woodruff']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Woodruff looked like a polished setter and played with a lot of composure and maturity during the showcase. She communicated really well with her hitters and was able to play a smooth ball with relative ease. She also did a good job of being deceptive in her decision-making and execution. That allowed her to turn on the ball a few times and put down an emphatic kill or crafty dump. Defensively, Woodruff brought a lot of good energy to the court as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='553151' first='Ashlyn' last='Pelon'], DS/L Marian/Legacy</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pelon is another promising defender that will be going through the Marian program. She's an agile player that puts together a solid all-around defensive game. She stays light on her feet and doesn't let herself get caught flat-footed. As the showcase went on, you saw her get a little more aggressive in her play and take command more often. She also has a nice, but subtle, jump serve that led to a lot of problems for opponents.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='583927' first='Kailyn' last='Spolsky'], MH Orchard Lake St. Mary's/L2</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Spolsky stands close to 6-feet. While she may not be able to climb the ladder quite as high as some of her peers, her timing is really strong. She has a good feel for when to strike and was putting down some strong kills through her awareness. She battles hard at the net as well, making her a real force defensively. Spolsky was also one of the most vocal players in terms of support. She gave many of her peers a nice shot of energy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Hope Purwadihardja, DS/L Plymouth/Michigan Elite</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":585356,"width":"158px","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/5/2024/08/20-Hope-Purwadihardja.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-585356" style="width:158px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Hope Purwadihardja</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If there was an effort award on Sunday, Purwadihardja likely would have gotten it. There was no question that she was leaving it all on the floor with every rep. Her work ethic and determination allowed her to make some really challenging digs and keep her teams in rallies for longer than they should have been. There's still room for her to grow in her technique, but there's no question that Purwadihardja is going to put in the work to get better.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Kendall Sierzputowski, S TC West/Northshore</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This Northern Michigan setter looked polished in her technique. She had consistent accuracy in her sets and adjusted well to different hitters to get them good swings. A lot of players should have been thanking her on Sunday, because they got to look stronger because of her play. Defensively. Sierzputowski was just as polished. She looked the ball in on serve receive and passed at a high rate.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='560553' first='Macaire' last='Kudary'], OH TC Central/Northshore</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another Northern Michigan prospect, Kudary has the makings of a player that could be a breakout candidate in the years ahead. The talent is definitely there, as she put on some electric swings. Her swing is athletic and fast as well. Kudary just needs to improve on the finer details to get her consistency a little higher. As her consistency improves, she's going to be able to get on a lot of hot streaks from the pin.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->