Houston Open Dominant Middles

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The high school volleyball season is starting to gain traction around the state of Texas, as public and private programs are now competing at full pace, with multiple matches and tournaments taking place every week in the Lone Star State.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last week, the Houston Open, one of the main tournaments involving private schools, took place at the [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] club, where varsity teams from 21 different schools competed between Friday and Saturday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://prepdig.com/2025/08/houston-open-2025-photos-part-1/"><strong>Houston Open 2025: Photos - Part</strong> <strong>1</strong></a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong><a href="https://prepdig.com/2025/08/houston-open-2025-photos-part-2/">Houston Open 2025: Photos - Part 2 </a></strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Dig Texas was in attendance on Friday, when we got to watch each of the 23 teams in action and follow the development of the first day of matches. We were able to identify several players with incredible potential during the day and are now featuring them. Today we'll look into the middles who owned the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- 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":"Brooke Toliver","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'11u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"FBCHA","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"MoCo Mavs","_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-68ae3727760e4"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Toliver was one of the standouts in the FBCHA team that finished at the top of the table with six victories and just one set lost. Her presence in the middle was of great value for the team, especially on the offensive side of the game. Extremely athletic, Toliver was a handful for opposing middles, getting off the floor very well and hitting the ball hard every time she was set. Besides benefiting from her physical tools to put the ball down, the junior also displayed a well-developed offensive game, hitting different sets in the middle and finding nice spots on the court with her swings. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:image {"id":879894,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/08/2J4A0191.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-879894" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["849241"],"_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-68ae372776156"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Wilson featured for the John Cooper team that tied for third in the event with a campaign of four wins and one loss. The tallest player on the team, she offered them a strong presence at the net and managed to make an impact on both sides of the ball. A freshman, Wilson used her high contact point to thrive on offense and was one of the most influential blockers in the entire tournament with her ability to take up space above the net and alter opponents' swings. The middle also showed a good level of attention and spatial awareness to deal with overpasses.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/27049447/68adc3286011eb4aed2750b1' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-68ae37277632e"} /--> <!-- 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":"Gabi James","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Fort Bend Christian Academy","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"[program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline']","_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-68ae3727763ce"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">James represented the Fort Bend Christian Academy team that got a fifth-place finish in the event after producing three wins and two losses. Very long and athletic, she was very intense at the net, constantly getting touches and playing a big part in the team's playing system. Because of her ability to get off the floor, the junior was a constant threat on offense, and she took it to an even higher level with her intelligent shot selections. James also appeared well with her blocking, going from pin to pin very quickly and playing aggressively with her hands above the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/23053455/68a9fba8211f8d6f4e06273e' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-68ae3727763f9"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["739256"],"_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-68ae372776445"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Bailey led her Kinkaid team to a fifth-place finish in the tournament, getting two wins and two losses. A very physical player, she made a difference for them at the net, using her big frame to stand out on both sides of the ball - she scored at a good rate by making use of her high contact point and also got some blocks, quickly getting off the floor to stop opposing hitters. The junior was a big asset from the service line, too, sending a tricky floater across the net to get aces and get opponents out of system. Bailey also appeared well on defense, displaying solid ball control to make plays on the backcourt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/19827094/68ab89ce1b2ae1e96d898737' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-68ae37277646a"} /--> <!-- 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":"Ava Bocock","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'11u0022","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"32924","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Incarnate Word","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_team":"","_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-68ae3727764f7"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Bobock was part of the Incarnate Word team that got one win in five matches, ranking 22nd. The middle showed interesting physical skills and got to impact the game at the net with her play. Also a basketball player, she gets off the floor well and has very good footwork to move at the net. Babock appeared very well with her blocking, going very high up at the net and showing good read of the game with her positioning when blocking on the right. Her offense was a little inconsistent, but she was very difficult to stop when she managed to make contact with the ball at the highest possible point.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->