USA Volleyball GJNC Preview – Teams to Watch Vol 10

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the most difficult aspects of the club volleyball season is to earn the elusive bid to USA Volleyball's Girls Junior National Championship.&nbsp; This year, the prestigious event will be held at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas from June 25^th til July 3^rd.&nbsp; Prep Dig will be covering the event from start to finish.&nbsp; This article series will be highlighting those awesome squads who have earned their place for the chance to be crowned a national champion.&nbsp; Let's take a deep look at some of the individual stars for each of these teams.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='499169' first='MoCo' last='MAVS'] 16 Red</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Lone Star Texas Region is stacked in every division of Nationals.&nbsp; [program_tooltip program_id='499169' first='MoCo' last='MAVS'] 16 Red won their Liberty division bid at the Far Western National Qualifier where they had a solid run.&nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id='727264' first='Isabella' last='Adcock'] played some awesome defense out of middle back as she subbed in for [player_tooltip player_id='720751' first='Allison' last='Luke'] in the back row.&nbsp; The long arms of opposite [player_tooltip player_id='438284' first='Kelly' last='Wright'] and middle blocker Brooke Tolliver provided some high-level blocking at the net that caused a lot of opposing hitters to try their best to hit around them.&nbsp; One star of the show, for me, was setter [player_tooltip player_id='575000' first='Mariah' last='Brown'].&nbsp; I thought she did a masterful job of tracking down passes and moving the ball around to everyone.&nbsp; The other half of the 6-2 offense is run by setter Taylor Lathram.&nbsp; She uses great footwork and an awesome jump set to deliver consistently to each location.&nbsp; On the offensive end, if anyone watches this squad compete, they will be blown away by the athleticism and raw natural power of left side attacker [player_tooltip player_id='720751' first='Allison' last='Luke'].&nbsp; This young lady has a cannon for a right arm and unleashes it on everyone with each attempt.&nbsp; Another big fire-baller for this squad is Dayla Fields who loves to drop bombs any chance she gets.&nbsp; Strong serving from libero [player_tooltip player_id='579215' first='Violet' last='Lopez'] kept opposing serve receivers off-balance as she rifled lasers from the end line over and over.&nbsp; This team has some heat and can go on runs really easily.&nbsp; I love the passion they show when they are competing hard together.&nbsp; Look for them to make a good run in Dallas at Nationals in a few weeks.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>ProPlay 16 Amanda</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This Southern California Region squad earned their Liberty division bid at the Red Rock Rave Qualifier this season.&nbsp; They were absolutely fun to watch, especially the play of libero Lilly Hernandez.&nbsp; Miss Hernandez has everything you want in a feisty, “do whatever it takes” back row floor general that picks up absolutely everything.&nbsp; It doesn't matter what happens on the play because Lilly is ready for it all.&nbsp; Deflections off of the block, mis-hits, and other emergency situations are no match for the fast-twitch quick reflex muscles and effort that she brings to the table.&nbsp; Big swinging from [player_tooltip player_id='784269' first='Ximena' last='Martinez'] and Kaylyn Mills helps to propel this offense from both pins.&nbsp; Once you add the defense at the net from big middle Jasmine Williams, you have a squad who is dangerous against the field.&nbsp; Another weapon for them is left side attacker Eniko Barta.&nbsp; She adds a lot to an already explosive armory.&nbsp; When I watched them at the Red Rock Rave National Qualifier, I saw a team who did not back down even when the game was starting to slip away from them.&nbsp; They are not afraid to face a little bit of adversity in order to be victorious.&nbsp; We will be watching them closely in Dallas.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We are very proud of their efforts and are so elated that they accomplished one huge goal of theirs to earn the elusive bid to USA Nationals.&nbsp; There are many more amazing teams and players that will be written about.&nbsp; 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; You can also DM me on Instagram or X by searching @CoachMikeDZ.&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 reposting on X, Instagram or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following Prep Dig Family!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->