Freshman Showcase 2024: Liberos to Watch for in High School Pt 1

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>You would be hard pressed to find many defensive specialists, who come in as freshman, ready to rock the different colored jersey right off the bat. But the class of 2028 has quite of few of them who could be poised to come in and see playing time right away. These are the players who competed hard, brought the hustle, and had the skills to match, at the Indiana Freshman Showcase this year. This is Part 1 of 3 in this series of DS/L's to watch for this year at the high school level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='449491' first='Anna' last='Mitz'], Evansville Memorial H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Anna struck me first with her communication on the court, despite being young and not having played with most of the other players before. She was always cheering others on and talking about the play in an effective manner (not just talking to talk). Mitz played with a calm presence and demeanor which carried over to her defense. She was balanced on contact and able to read &amp; react in the back row.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Reagan Futa, Cathedral H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Futa stood out because of her skills; her ball control was well beyond that of most incoming freshman. She played both middle back and left back well, digging both hard driven shots and off speeds with control. On defense, she was stopped and low every time - she didn't go through the motions or take a rep off. I love her quiet intensity and focus, which are skills that can oftentimes take a long time to train into young players. This young lady is on her way to becoming a great DS/L at a great volleyball school.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='567359' first='Kendal' last='Hatcher'], Hamilton Southeastern H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hatcher was one of the best teammates that I saw during the showcase. She stepped right in and started encouraging the other DS's right away during digging drills and serve receive work. I love that she took charge in serve receive by being aggressive in the seams passing and by playing balls with her hands. Last thing that will give Kendal a leg up over other DS's is her ability to attack from the back row and hit the corners well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Brooklyn Peck, Fishers H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Peck made some great reads on defense during the 6v6 playing portion of the showcase. She was stopped on contact in the back row allowing her to use that reading ability to run down a wide range of shots. You can tell that she is very focused and disciplined for being a young player, which will really help her to continue improving throughout high school to bring her passing game up to where her defensive play is right now.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='572576' first='Emery' last='Tarvin'], Franklin Central H.S.</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One thing I love to look for in young players, and especially defensive players, is what they are doing AWAY from the ball. Emery stood out for me in this area for multiple reasons. In serve receive she would always open up if the pass was away from her; not once did she stand and just watch - she would talk about where the serve was going and move appropriately. While I was watching 6v6, she covered her hitters every single time, while communicating to others to do the same. Lastly, Tarvin has a solid &amp; quiet passing platform foundation to continue to build her skills upon.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->