G’s Top Pin Hitters at Houston Top 250 Expo

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Some of the most talented prospects in the Houston area made their way to the [program_tooltip program_id='462263' first='TAV' last='Houston'] training facilities, in Spring, last Sunday, to join us at the stop of the Prep Dig Top 250 Expo in H-Town.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was a very fun morning, with plenty of talented and hard-working players giving their best on the court and nailing the drills. I was following the action closely and will report on the prospects that caught my eye for their strong play and competitive mindset. We begin with the outside hitters:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["254135"],"_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-674d13406ae7d"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Hyde is not a new face to me as I've been covering her for years at club and high school. It was interesting, however, to see her in more of a practice environment, where she was able to showcase skills that aren't always evident in matches. Hyde was a force at the net, using her athleticism and her shot selection to make big plays offensively. She also showed that her all-around game continues to improve, playing comfortably and confidently on the backcourt as she used her ball control to handle her passing and defensive duties smoothly. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Grier Nelson","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2028","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'10u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32564","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Kingwood","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"[program_tooltip program_id='462263' first='TAV' last='Houston']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-674d13406af3e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Nelson was easily one of the most explosive pin hitters in the event. She dominated the game offensively, immediately becoming the go-to scorer in her court and delivering strong and reliable production. She was a handful for blockers and defenders across the net, making contact with the ball at a very high point and hammering it to score. Because of her tremendous power, she was tooling opposing blockers at ease. Nelson also displayed solid ball control when she had to pass or play defense and had a solid blocking presence.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["704411"],"_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-674d13406af8e"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">A state champion with Providence Classical a few weeks ago, Goodwin is another player I was somewhat familiar with, but was pleased to have an opportunity of watching more closely. Although her offense was probably what stood out the most during the event, Goodwin is definitely an all-around player, who can do it all on a volleyball court. She's very long and uses every inch of her arms to make contact with the ball at the highest possible point and that gave her the edge, especially in out-of-system. Goodwin was very aggressive with her swings, but also very efficient and aware, keeping the vast majority of them inside the court.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["574238"],"_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-674d13406afd6"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Listed at 5'9", Huckaby looked much taller on the court because of her long arms. She showed great potential at the net, getting off the floor well, making contact with the ball at a very high point and making good choices with her swings. With a player of her profile, we tend to focus more on offense, but I was probably more impressed with what I saw from Huckaby on the backcourt. Besides displaying great ball control to perform digs, she also had a great hustle to chase shanked balls and recovered a handful of them by storming after them, showing great reaction speed and a very competitive mindset.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->