Ten Setters Stepping it up in 2024

The high school season is winding down. The top teams have been identified. Many focus their print on the pin hitters accumulating the impressive stats. The reality exists that someone needs to feed the ball to them for those kills to occur. Some of the better teams in this area rely on one setter to ignite their offense. These ten teams fall into that category. Either they run a 5/1 or the setter stays in on the right side and contributes to the offense with her hitting. Together, these ten setters have a combined record of 133-9.    Many thought this would be a down year for Langley. They lost their top setter/right side Chloe Hokenson to graduation and an important left side [player_tooltip player_id='181307' first='Leni' last='Stanton-Parker'] departed for IMG Academy. However, as their 13-1 record attests the Saxons continue to thrive.   They have perhaps the top setter in the area in [player_tooltip player_id='238357' first='Claire' last='Mo']. She runs a 5/1 with precision, distributing her sets equitably early in the game then feeding the hitter who is hot at the later stages. This keeps all the players on the court ready to play and the hot hitter fresh to finish off the game.   Her sets are precise and accurate. She jump sets frequently, which keeps the defenses off balance. This is definitely someone you want to run your offense.   The only down side is that even at 5'10" she lacks a tremendous jump. With a block jump at around 9 feet do not expect a lot of blocking numbers from her. For travel ball she usually played a year up with Paramount.     For the last three or four years she has won the best setter award in her age group at the Capitol Hill Classic. Her frosh season with Chantilly she made the first team in her conference, getting Chantilly to the semi-finals in the Regionals before losing to eventual state champion Langley.   She transferred to Georgetown Day for her sophomore season. The Mighty Hoppers needed a setter after losing Gatorade Player of the Year Clara Yu. Caycee seems to have filled that role nicely. Georgetown Day has started the season 13-0, defeated Flint Hill for the first time in their history and have received some national accolades by garnering a top 25 ranking for the country by SI.   Despite her 5'7 height Caycee has been setting a 5/1 and orchestrating their offense to these heights. She also plays her position well defensively by ranking third on her team in digs. Finally, she leads the team in aces. While the blocking numbers remain low, she has been credited with seven blocking assists.    [player_tooltip player_id='235322' first='Avery' last='Prendergast'] (Bishop O'Connell/[program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last='']) - The last couple years she shared the setting duties with [player_tooltip player_id='221032' first='Wynn' last='Mendez Eaton'] at St. Johns. She made the bold move of transferring to Bishop O'Connell her senior year to replace Erin Debiec. Erin had set the Knights to two WCAC championships and was considered the top setter for her class. Tough shoes to fill for the senior setter.   She missed the first couple matches due to concussion protocol procedures. With her return the Knights continue to shine at 16-1. In the games she has set 12 of the 13 wins have been by sweeps. For her most recent match against number 20 ranked St. Johns she accumulated 51 assists in their 4 set win against them. This was a crucial WCAC matchup. O'Connell also swept Flint Hill in the semi-finals of the Flint Hill Invitational the previous weekend. During that week Avery earned MaxPrep player of the week honors. Not only does she lead her team in assists but she also contributes on defense (third in digs) and serving (second in aces).   Avery has improved at pushing the set out to her pin hitters. She also has great feel for the quick sets in the middle. Her middles, [player_tooltip player_id='238341' first='Teodora' last='Stamenkovic'] and [player_tooltip player_id='488812' first='Olivia' last='Boggs'] are hitting at a combined .415 hitting percentage.    Last year [player_tooltip player_id='206729' first='Megan' last='Phan'] shared the setting duties with [player_tooltip player_id='321677' first='Charis' last='Burge']. Charis transferred back to Urbana leaving the setting duties to Megan for the 2024 season. Things have worked well to date.   Bullis has started the season 15-1 with their only loss to Flint Hill in five sets. They had a 14-12 lead in that fifth set before losing it, so they are one point away from being undefeated. With her setting the Bulldogs rank number 6 by Prep Dig in the DMV and number four by the Washington Post.   Just like the other setters Megan does not win games just with her hands. She also plays a solid defense (second in digs) and serving (second in aces). Despite her 5'7" height she creates long arm extension that allows her to set up a good block. She has one solo block and three blocking assists in the stat ledger.     Not many teams are still undefeated this late in the season. The Gladiators stand out as one of those teams. They find themselves at 14-0 with 12 sweeps to their credit. Last year their main setter was Lindsay Kellley, while Jessica watched from the bench. This year it is her turn to take the spotlight.   While only a sophomore Jessica seems to have learned a lot from Lindsay. She carries the knowledge of a player much older. Like Lindsay she sets a 5/1, distributing her sets to all her hitters. She also leads the team in services aces and ranks second in digs.   It is quite an accomplishment for a young player like her to lead her team to 14 consecutive wins. Of course, watching her earn a top performer award at the Prep Dig Showcase makes it no surprise to see her success.     Last year as a sophomore Aubrey set Riverbend to their best record in history at 27-3. They were eventually eliminated by Riverside in the Class 4 Regional Playoffs.   This year Aubrey is setting for Courtland. While they had some success last year at 20-10 they have raced off to an 11-1 start to the 2024 season. To show the respect Aubrey gets from her coach, in her first year with the team she earned floor captain honors.   Aubrey sets a 5/1. Their only loss was to Langley in the finals of the Virginia Volleyball Showcase. They have beaten Colgan and Atlee, two strong teams.   Aubrey relies on her intelligence and leadership to know how to squeeze out victories. Those traits are cherished in setters. She also brings some height to the front row and can hold her own when blocking.       Last year the only match Riverside lost was in the finals of the Class 5 state championship. They ran a mixture of 6/2 and 5/1. When their second setter decided not to try out this year the Ram offense became Sydney's to run.   With the addition of [player_tooltip player_id='301696' first='Nadiya' last='Johnson'] the team has five solid hitters that Sydney can go to to generate offense. She keeps defenses guessing with quicks to the middle and uses the back row attack.   I did not think they would lose a game this year but they recently lost one to Independence, making them 17-1. Sydney follows in her older sister's footsteps, setting for the Rams and Virginia Juniors. Leading the Riverside Rams to the state championship is a goal her sister fell short of accomplishing. That is a goal for Sydney to achieve.     Anna won the setting job for the Spartans late in the season. Her one job is to get the ball to [player_tooltip player_id='181243' first='Evelyn' last='Jurden']. Evelyn ranks in the top five in kills in the state of Virginia. Front row or back row the predominant number of sets will go to her.   Like the other girls in this group. Anna is proficient on defense, second on the team in digs and first in aces. Her 5'10" height can do damage at the net, but she has yet to achieve a solo block. She has been involved in 14 shared blocks as well as contributed 21 kills.   At 18-1 the Spartans have already exceeded the number of wins they achieved last season. The goal is to get into the state championship bracket.     Genevieve is another player that caught my eye at the Prep Dig showcase this past August. She won a top performer award at the event. Her contribution at Severna Park high has also been going well. Unlike the other setters on this list Genevieve sets a 6/2. Instead of continuing as a setter in the front row she moves to the right side to hit.   At 5'10 she brings good height to the front row. This allows her to hit and block (third on the team in both categories). Last year as a sophomore those numbers were nonexistent. She also serves well (second) and plays a solid defense (third). Losses to Arundel and Broadneck drop them to sixth in their region.     Last year Briana shared in running a 6/2. The Warhawks got to the semi-finals of the state championship, beating the eventual state champions Langley three times. This year the second setter did not try out and the offense was given to her. Despite her 5'5 height the Warhawks have been running a 5/1 with tremendous success. At 9-1 and 5-0 in their conference they seem to be doing pretty well. They recently swept the two best teams, Chantilly and Westfield in their conference.   Briana also excels in defense as well. When running an offense it is ideal to have one setter that is consistent with where they place the ball. The hitters seem to feast on her sets and she distributes them to various parts of the court. Six different players on the team have 40 or more kills.    Honorable mentions   [player_tooltip player_id='181303' first='Isabelle' last='Bardin'] and [player_tooltip player_id='235748' first='Ema' last='Djordjevic'] are more offensive players that set. Isabelle leads Flint Hill in kills with 246. She drops to second on the team in assists with 162. She has committed to Purdue. At 6'3" she can play the pins or set. Ema achieved 600 kills and 600 assists this season for her high school career. She leads the team in kills with 107 but ranks second in assists at 100. The lefthander would fit in nice on the right side.   [player_tooltip player_id='221032' first='Wynn' last='Mendez Eaton'] sets a 5/1 for St. Johns. She leads the team in assists with 476. She also ranks third in digs and second in aces. St. Johns is 16-3 with losses to Holy Cross, Flint Hill and Bishop O'Connell. Wynn fell just short of making the list.   I have yet to see [player_tooltip player_id='698761' first='Imagine' last='Peltier'] set. She appears to set a 5/1 for Howard, who has started the season 12-0. The sophomore leads the team in assists while her two middles [player_tooltip player_id='506629' first='Dylann' last='Loggins'] (.487) and [player_tooltip player_id='402429' first='Kaleigh' last='Williams'] (.434) stand out with impressive hitting percentages. Imagine also ranks second on her team in blocks. Some impressive numbers for a second year player.

The high school season is winding down. The top teams have been identified. Many focus their print on the pin hitters accumulating the impressive stats. The reality exists that someone needs to feed the ball to them for those kills to occur. Some of the better teams in this area rely on one setter to ignite their offense. These ten teams fall into that category. Either they run a 5/1 or the setter stays in on the right side and contributes to the offense with her hitting. Together, these ten setters have a combined record of 133-9.