Athletes With State Tourney Experience: Class 3A Edition

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Class 3A State Tournament is the next in line in a series of reports featuring athletes who played in state tournaments in 2024 and who will be looking to return to the grand stage in 2025.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After featuring athletes on defending champion teams, runner-up teams, and participating teams in the Class 4A-6A, here is a look at five prospects who want to make return trips to Hutchinson this fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='731819' first='Kelsi' last='Maier']</strong>, 510”, MB, Hoisington, ‘26</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cardinals finished third in the 2024 tournament and will have a returning roster loaded with weapons. Maier is one of the key attackers returning in 2025. She is ranked No. 98 overall by Prep Dig Kansas. Maier finished her junior season with 211 kills in 99 sets finishing second on the team in total kills. She recorded 60 blocks last fall and has a chance to reach 200 career blocks with a big senior season at the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='731824' first='Brooklyn' last='Newland'],</strong> 5'10”, MB, Neodesha, '26</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bluestreaks finished fourth in the 2024 tournament. Returning to the 3A tournament again in 2025 could be a challenge. Neodesha will lose two imposing attackers to graduation. Their top returning attacker will be Newland. She finished her junior campaign with 196 kills and 57 blocks in 100 sets. She was primarily a front-row-only athlete last fall. &nbsp;Newland is currently ranked No. 272 overall in the Kansas Class of 2026.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='518977' first='Landry' last='Litton']</strong>, 5'9”, OH, Beloit, '28 (Pictured Above)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Beloit will lose a talented senior class from back-to-back state tournament squads. They have four seniors committing to playing college ball next fall, but the cupboard is not quite bare for the Trojans. Litton is a quality multi-sport prospect who will be among the returning athletes. Her freshman season stat line included 111 digs, 97 kills, and 112 serve receptions. She was a complimentary piece as a freshman but will need to step into a leader's role in 2025. Litton is currently ranked No. 3 overall in the Kansas Class of 2028.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='748145' first='Dasno' last='Mills']</strong>, 5'11”, MB/OH, Royal Valley, ‘27</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Panthers have a couple of young athletes to build around. Mills finished third on the team last season in kills. She registered 181 kills as a sophomore after a freshman season with 133 kills. She also has a two-year total of 80 blocks for the Panthers. Mills has a dangerous serve which resulted in 94 aces over two seasons. She is currently an unranked prospect but is set to be added to the rankings during the next round of updates.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='492583' first='Lucy' last='Anderson']</strong>, 5'8”, OH/DS, Frontenac, ‘26</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Anderson led the Raiders in kills as a junior. She finished with 373 kills in 107 sets. She is a six-rotation talent who also recorded 396 digs and 309 serve receptions. She is ranked No. 27 overall in the Kansas Class of 2026. She has been working hard to improve her recruitment and has attended multiple Prep Dig Showcases. Anderson recorded 75 aces last season for the Raiders and Frontenac scored 251 points off her serve.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->