IHSAA Opening Day: Under the Radar Players To Watch Down South

It's hard to believe that high school volleyball season is officially here in Indiana! With opening day being this weekend, there was plenty of excitement and lots of talent to watch. South of Indianapolis there is a hotbed of players just waiting to be discovered at all levels and it's my job to make YOU aware of them. Here are five players who are very important to their varsity rosters and who could very well be important parts of college rosters in the future.    Sullivan is one of those players that needs to be playing at the next level. She would be an outstanding pickup for many programs because of her size, athleticism and joyful demeanor. Kenli is a 6 rotation OH/OPP who has great leaping ability and power when she hits. From both the right & left side she can swing line, seam, sharp angle AND tool the block - this young lady has every tool in the tool box and knows when to use which one. What I really love is that her offensive game doesn't drop off on either side of the court; she is lethal from all along the net. All collegiate coaches love a pin who is well versed at passing & swinging to hit with ease and in rhythm, and Kenlee does this very efficiently - she is almost more effective when she passes in serve receive and swings to hit. Lastly, her blocking is just as good as her hitting. Sullivan has clearly been trained well and knows how to set up a solid block on both the left & right sides. This is a player that should not be under the radar anymore!     Gratzer brings some serious D1 potential to the BNL program this year. At 6'1" on the outside and playing 6 rotations, she is the kind of player who can come out of nowhere and end up on at a division 1 roster in a couple of years. She brings a lot of length at the net blocking and should give opponents MBs and OPPs a ton of trouble when they are trying to attack. Sammie has a whippy arm that can bring a ton of pace and also makes her difficult to read on defense. Lastly, she is versatile too - having played MB in the past, BNL can run her all over the net making her difficult for other teams to defend     Allen will be a huge changemaker for a new BNL coaching staff this year and should bring a lot of quality volleyball experience to the Lady Stars. Jenna most recently played for Circle City on 15 Black, giving her plenty of high level, competitive experience, which should translate well to high school season this fall. She is a 6-rotation player with a fantastic arm swing for such a young OH. She reads well on defense and brings a never say die attitude to the court. Look for Jenna to be an on court mental leader too, as she brings an overall sense of joy & happiness to the game, which she pairs beautifully with being coachable and hard working.     Lanie is the leader of a solid 1A program in North Daviess and brings an imposing presence for her team at the net. She is able to hit a wide range of sets along the net including 2s, 3s, 9s and off of one foot. What struck me most about her as a MB was her ability to adjust to wherever the set was with her last two approach steps. This allowed her to be effective in both serve receive and transition, even if the passes were not right up to the setter, because she could still get a powerful swing off of almost anything. I LOVE her long arms on her approach, which you don't often see with middles, that allows her to reach high and swing hard. She did not get blocked one time in the match I watched because of her ability to see the block and swing around it. Any college program that is looking for a powerful, confident, imposing player with a great work ethic & attitude (per her coach), should definitely give Lanie a look.     Starting opposite in the rotation from Lanie for North Daviess, Alexis completes the one-two punch for this high school squad. While Cornelius is imposing and powerful, Tolbert is long, crafty and very hard to defend. When you combine Alexis' long reach, tall frame and whip of an arm, you present a real challenge to the opposing defense. She can hit either direction from the middle and does a stellar job of avoiding the block as just a sophomore. What I loved the most about her as a young middle was how hard she worked to get off the net in transition. On a couple of occasions, I even saw her transition to hit behind the setter when the setter was pulled all the way over to the left side. That kind of skill is usually innate, or you don't see it until much further down the road. If Tolbert really focuses on getting stronger and becoming more comfortable hitting a variety of sets, she is going to have a very bright volleyball future. I look forward to watching her over the next few years!

It's hard to believe that high school volleyball season is officially here in Indiana! With opening day being this weekend, there was plenty of excitement and lots of talent to watch. South of Indianapolis there is a hotbed of players just waiting to be discovered at all levels and it's my job to make YOU aware of them. Here are five players who are very important to their varsity rosters and who could very well be important parts of college rosters in the future.