The High School All Frosh First Team

A number of frosh brought their skills to various high schools with most of those schools rewarded with successful seasons. One frosh even earned a Player of the Year award for her District. If you listen to some of the talk about the class of 2029 the possibility exists that this could be the best class for talent in at least a decade. With that in mind, below is my frosh first team from this wave of talent. Five of the players named below earned a top performer award at the DMV showcase this past summer.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Left Sides</h2>    Many of the Maryland Jrs. 14 team went to Annapolis Area Christian. Sierra went to play for Bishop McNamara in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) with her older sister [player_tooltip player_id='490021' first='Imani' last='Thomas'] also playing a pin. As a frosh the WCAC is a tough conference to begin your high school career.   Sierra displayed her skills well in the conference, despite having to wear a boot for a week or two because of a sprained ankle. This probably prevented her from leading the team in kills. It did not prevent her from making the first team. Sierra brings excellent athleticism to the court, sometimes appearing to strike balls over the block. She finished the season with the highest hitting percentage on the team.   One area of improvement for her is enhancing her back row play. She needs to find more consistency with her passing and defense. This would allow her to play back row more opening up three more rotations to exercise her offense.   Sierra was a top performer at the DMV showcase this past summer.     She was teammates with [player_tooltip player_id='748487' first='Sierra' last='Thomas'] playing for Maryland Juniors 14. There, she was used a little more as a setter/right side. When playing right side her hits were explosive. At times she was unstoppable.   For Annapolis Area Christian she moved to left side where she continued as an offensive force. The setting chores were handed off to others as she focused more on the offensive piece of her game. In some respects, this may have removed some pressure.   It appears she was the only frosh named to the IAAM all conference team. She may even have been its MVP after leading the Eagles in kills, serving aces and digs. She also showed an ability to serve receive, something she did not do when setting.    [player_tooltip player_id='762829' first='Angela' last='Zhang'] (Churchill) - I remember watching her play for MVSA, impressed with how well she hit the ball. That turned to awe when a parent told me she only just started playing club volleyball. There may have been some adjustment to playing varsity but she adapted well. In their big upset of two time defending champ Richard Montgomery she contributed 14 kills. Overall, she finished third on the team in kills. At 5'11 she has good height for a left side. Like many still new to the game she still needs some improvement on her back row play.    Elliot ranked in our top ten for the class of 2029. Once the season began she earned a spot on the Woodbridge varsity team. She led her team in kills resulting in her selection to the first team in the Cardinal District. She was one of three frosh who made the first team, including her setter [player_tooltip player_id='747031' first='Braylin' last='Coacher'].   In the games I watched she did not play any back row. If she can improve the back row portion of her game this would enhance her offensive potential.   It appears that Elliot will return to [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] this year. The team appears stacked with five players on their roster named on this list.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Setter</h2>    Prep Dig recently named the top young player rising from each state. [player_tooltip player_id='746506' first='Carolyn' last='Maria'] received the nomination from Virginia. She is one of two frosh voted to the WCAC first team.   Carolyn ranked second on the team in kills and assists while finishing third in blocks and service aces. After her thumb injury during the post season the Knights offense became severely restricted. They lost in the second round in both the semi-finals of the WCAC as well as the VISAA. That doubled the number of losses they experienced all year.   If there is anything she can improve on it is the consistency in the location of her sets. As you rise up the volleyball ranks the number of different sets you can offer in different locations increases substantially.   Carolyn will play for Metro 15 this year. Her thumb injury should heal before their first start of practice.     Braylin was one of four frosh that led Woodbridge to the Regional finals in Class 6A. Unfortunately, they lost in the first round to Mountain View. One of her favorite targets on the team was [player_tooltip player_id='747560' first='Elliot' last='Dorgan'], who also appears on this all frosh team.   Braylin started her high school season as our number 16 ranked player in the class of 2029. She also earned a top performer award at our DMV frosh showcase over the summer.   As a frosh Braylin became the primary setter on the Woodbridge team, setting a 5/1 while leading them to a second place finish in the Cardinal District. She is one of three frosh selected to the Cardinal District first team.   Besides finishing first on the team in assists, she also topped the team in service aces and was third on the team in blocks. Braylin will continue her development with [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''].     [player_tooltip player_id='749757' first='Dakota' last='Pentorn'] was the back row setting option for Annapolis. The junior finished as a first team selection in the IAAM. Brie was the front row option to the modified 5/1.   Brie brings athleticism to the setting position. At 5'7" she can provide more offense in the front row than many setters. When she played for Bay Area Volleyball Academy she set a 5/1.   Not yet clear what club Brie plans to play for this year but it would not surprise me if the top clubs in the area did not contact her. She has the promise to play at the highest level, especially if she achieves an inch or two of growth.   Brie was another top performer at our DMV frosh volleyball showcase over the summer.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Middle/Right Side</h2>   [player_tooltip player_id='750056' first='Kiera' last='Jordan'] right side (Annandale) - Not many frosh win player of the year for their conference. Kiera not only earned a first team selection but player of the year for the National District. She played left side, middle and right side for Annandale. At 6'1" she has the height to make a difference at either position. Last year the team went 8-14. This year the team finished second in their district at 13-8. They also relied on frosh setter [player_tooltip player_id='888520' first='Rachel' last='Bauer'] to run the offense. Kiera still needs some work on her back row play if she hopes to become a regular six rotation player.   [player_tooltip player_id='753073' first='Aniston' last='Williams'] middle (Holy Cross) - Aniston filled a critical role in the success of Holy Cross. They lost their top middle to graduation last year. Aniston led the team in blocks while also finishing fourth in kills. This contribution earned her a spot as honorable mention in the WCAC. She is also part of that Maryland Jrs 14 team that consists of four players on this all frosh team. At 6'0" she reminds me a lot of [player_tooltip player_id='437441' first='Hunter' last='Ross'], a UCLA commit, with her style of play. Improving her transition game will get her more involved in the offense.   [player_tooltip player_id='779106' first='Isabella' last='Jeantel'] middle/left side (Tuscarora) - I watched Isabella play club for Libero at the East Coast championships. The team was not playing in the highest division but Isabella was dominating her counterparts in the middle. I never saw her play in high school but talking to a coach he informed me that she was the real deal. She was actually converting to become a pin hitter. The team struggled at 1-14 however Isabella stood out for her play. Many of the top clubs were going after her. She ended up on the [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] roster and is listed as an outside/right side/middle. She will definitely be a player to watch.    North Hagerstown was all about [player_tooltip player_id='303701' first='Caydence' last='Doolan']. Her primary auxiliary support was [player_tooltip player_id='787919' first='Charlotte' last='Booth']. While Caydence provided most of the offense Charlotte still finished second on the team in kills as well as blocks. Unfortunately, the Hubs fell short of winning their fourth consecutive state championship.   Charlote will play on the same [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] team that also includes [player_tooltip player_id='779106' first='Isabella' last='Jeantel'], [player_tooltip player_id='747031' first='Braylin' last='Coacher'], [player_tooltip player_id='747560' first='Elliot' last='Dorgan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='747458' first='Angelie' last='Rose Carrasco']. That is almost a full team of All Stars playing on one club.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Liberos/Defensive Specialist</h2>    She first showed up at our showcase this past summer and impressed enough to earn a top performer award, as did four others on this list. It will be hard to find a player with more enthusiasm than Rose when on the court. Her fast actions in the back court also show that her game is much more than just enthusiasm.   Rose was one of three frosh voted to the first team in the Cardinal District. Colgan is now playing in the finals of the Virginia Class 6 state championship. That would be difficult without the exemplary back row play of their libero.   Rose leads the team in digs and serve receptions while also ranked number 9 in our class of 2029.     When I watch a libero I look for fast feet and a calm and quiet platform. Blake fits that criteria. While she did not play the libero position for Fairfax she still consistently covered the back row as a defensive specialist. For the club season Blake went unnoticed since she played for Metro 13 last year. When scouting players I stay at 14 or above.   Her quick feet allow her to get to her defensive base quickly while her calm platform provides her with consistent passing. Next year she should take over the libero position.     Harper becomes the fourth player from the Maryland Jrs 14 team to make the frosh all tournament team. Only the current [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] 15 team has more players. She is also the third player from Annapolis Area Christian to make the team.   Harper played libero for the Annapolis Area Christian school which won the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland (IAAM) conference A Bracket. Harper ranked second on the team in digs as well as second in serve receive.   She is another player who won top performer after her appearance at a Prep Dig showcase over the summer.

A number of frosh brought their skills to various high schools with most of those schools rewarded with successful seasons. One frosh even earned a Player of the Year award for her District. If you listen to some of the talk about the class of 2029 the possibility exists that this could be the best class for talent in at least a decade. With that in mind, below is my frosh first team from this wave of talent. Five of the players named below earned a top performer award at the DMV showcase this past summer.