Thrilling Three Setter on Day One of Triple Crown NIT

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the most anticipated tournaments at the beginning of each club season is the Triple Crown NIT because of all of the talent that will be under one roof.&nbsp; It is being held in Kansas City, MO this weekend, February 15-17^th.&nbsp; It brings together the toughest competition from all over the country.&nbsp; There are many storylines coming out of day one and we were front and center for one of them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One matchup that we were on hand to see was between Tstreet 16 Andy and [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] 16 Royal due to their style of play.&nbsp; Both of these teams have some serious stars and there were tons of college coaches on hand to witness this awesome battle.&nbsp; Both teams deploy an opposite led attack that is rarely seen at the Open level.&nbsp; Since Tstreet has moved six foot five [player_tooltip player_id='492164' first='Megan' last='Hodges'] over to the right side, she has wreaked havoc on opposing left sides at the net&nbsp; Not only does she provide a wall while blocking, but she puts so much pressure on the defense whether she is in the front row or the back row.&nbsp; The same can be said for [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] and their athletically gifted right side, [player_tooltip player_id='534319' first='Aspen' last='Brown'].&nbsp; The only difference is she is a lefty who can attack more naturally with the ball not having to cross over her shoulder in order to get a solid swing on the ball.&nbsp; Normally in the junior volleyball scene, most of the offensive attacks come from the left side of the court.&nbsp; However both of these teams have a stud on the right that plays all the way around in six rotations and use them early and often in their scheme.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Set one went to Tstreet as talented setter [player_tooltip player_id='468094' first='Royal' last='Banducci'] had her offense firing on all cylinders early and they never took their foot off of the gas pedal.&nbsp; Although both teams traded points very early, it was Tstreet, led by thunderous swings from outside hitter Ella Olsen and line drive serves from fellow outside [player_tooltip player_id='492745' first='Kate' last='Jackson'] who took control of set one and went on a run.&nbsp; Miss Jackson was masterful in keeping [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] out of system with her hyper-aggressive and low to the tape serves.&nbsp; Although Skyline had some great individual efforts in set one that scored and stopped a few runs, it was not enough to overcome the barrage of Tstreet as they took the first set 25-13.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] came out of the break between sets looking very serious and they were ready for a battle.&nbsp; Set two saw neither team go on long runs as both traded big swings with each other.&nbsp; Skyline's bouncy middle [player_tooltip player_id='762447' first='Gracie' last='Hobin'] had her motor revved up as she was on time for every fast tempo quick attack.&nbsp; It didn't matter if there was a double block or not as Miss Hobin turned on the ball in mid-air to throttle the ball to an open space.&nbsp; It almost felt as though her kills were worth multiple points as they seemed to give her squad more life and momentum.&nbsp; Timely blocking on the right side and stellar defense from libero Pearson Noon had [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] reeling off points to take a 13-8 lead midway through the set.&nbsp; Tstreet came back with solid attacks from middle [player_tooltip player_id='523224' first='Whitney' last='Port'] that scored against the block.&nbsp; After a [player_tooltip player_id='492164' first='Megan' last='Hodges'] kill down the line and an ace serve made it game point, it looked like they would win in two.&nbsp; [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] then said, “wait hold my water.”&nbsp; Big time players make big time plays in big time games and that is exactly what happened next.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='534384' first='Jordan' last='Morrow'] tied the game up at 24 all and then [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] took control.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='534319' first='Aspen' last='Brown'] had a key stuff block and a solid swing as she came around for a second tempo set out of the middle to give Skyline the lead for set point.&nbsp; She then ended the set with another kill as she tooled the block from the right side.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>All tied up at one set a piece, we entered the third set wondering who would step up to earn the match win.&nbsp; Set three started off at a blistering pace with both teams' left side hitters scoring down the line against the block.&nbsp; Both team also showed some amazing defense during long rallies with each other.&nbsp; After trading some missed serves and costly serve receive errors, we saw the score all tied up at 10.&nbsp; Then [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] forced a time out once they were up 13-10 with some stellar play.&nbsp; Another kill by [player_tooltip player_id='534319' first='Aspen' last='Brown'] eventually gave Skyline match point.&nbsp; At this point, Tstreet called their final time out of the set.&nbsp; Directly after the timeout, it was MVP of the match, [player_tooltip player_id='534319' first='Aspen' last='Brown'] who reeled off another kill to win the set 15-13.&nbsp; It was a thrilling match to say the least and we fully expect both teams to continue to flex their muscles throughout the tourney.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:Michael@prepdig.com">Michael@prepdig.com</a>.&nbsp; Also don't forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends.&nbsp; Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Family!&nbsp; 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