Middles Moving Their Recruiting Needle At The Exposure Tour

On average, the position we have the least amount of attendance of over the years of showcases has been in the middle. “Bigs” are everywhere, but most come to us as a three-rotation outside, a three-rotation right side, or someone trying to be the next Morgan Gaerte. Having honest middles, both from the M1 and M2 positions, was amazing to see in droves on Saturday, and helped move the drills and game play along quite nicely. Here are nine middles that really caught my eye at the Academy Volleyball Club on November 29.    A strong and powerful M2 for the next level, Audrey spent most of her day with us showing her upper body strength, the heavy ball she hits on zero-tempo sets, and her length when she defends from pin to pin. Playing for a Northview program that is consistently in the top ten in the state in their class, Audrey's ability to take over a match from the middle shows her physicality and volleyball acuity, and should be a nice pickup for a school looking for a plug-and-play M2 to enhance their stable of middles.     Springy, active and fun to watch, Paityn has been part of our showcases for a couple of years now, along with being part of the two-time defending 4A champs. She's adept both in front of and behind the setter, blocks well for her size and reads the game at an elite level. Her fitness is also off the charts—-the gameplay portion of the showcase Saturday had her as the only middle on her team, and she kept terminating and blocking as if it were a random Tuesday in practice. If this is what she's like at a showcase, imagine what her matches look like!     Opposing Paityn in the scrimmaging at the end of our Saturday was Arielle, who was step for step with Miss Lauck in every aspect. She's strong in her upper body, with the ability to take up a bunch of space on defense. Although she was also the only middle on her “team”, she stayed with every rep until the end, showing the work ethic and determination needed to be a middle at the next level.     Ragan was one of the more athletic kids we had at the Exposure Tour Saturday, showing out in all three front row positions. She'll be tasked with playing middle for her club squad, yet is more than capable of playing either pin because of her amazing jumping ability and high attack point. Easily the top attacker at Pike, I'm looking forward to her play this club season and how much her hard work and athleticism will be on display against tougher competition.     Long, lean, athletic and quick, Karleigh has the length that a lot of middles at the Exposure Tour lacked. Her defense was solid—-normally, lithe middles struggle to take up space on the block, Miss Smith was more than able to slow down multiple attacks on Saturday. As an attacker, I like her more as an M2, as she's always ready to swing with her quick transition. She knows the game, she's fast and athletic, and is north of 6' by a distinct margin. This is a next-level middle in the making, and should fit in just fine in open-level play for TI this spring.     One of the rare over-six-footers from Providence, Miss Manos hits the heaviest ball of the middles listed today. Her swing is terminal—-she can put any tempo of ball away in any situation and at any angle, which is a product of not only her training but her size as well. Both Union and Providence are lucky to have a gem in Isabella, as she adds much-needed size and athleticism to two highly skilled rosters.     From super-small Southern Wells, Abbie led the state in hitting percentage this past fall, and was the only non-senior in the top five. Efficiency is exactly what you get from Miss Powell—-she's up quick, finds her spot, and puts the ball away. There's no extraneous movement, no flashy play; she does her job with quickness and athleticism and transitions faster than any middle we've had at our showcases for some time. She's also skilled at both the M1 and M2 positions, and adjusted well to all types of setters on Saturday both in front of and behind.     From a high school I like to call Middle Senior High School, Ainsley is a long and lean middle from a stable of middles that play for the Eagles. Her spot on Circle's 15 Purple (read: 15-1) is well-earned; quick on the transition, length to play exceptional net defense and the ability to whip her attacking arm through the hitting zone to terminate. Freshman this long and lean in their freshman years are usually playing like newborn giraffes—-Ainsley is far from a newborn. She might still be growing, but that hasn't stopped her from terminating regularly from the middle on every team she's been a part of.     Making the trip down from Delta, in the Muncie area, Amira's ability to out-jump and out-athletic the middles she plays against will be her calling card for her foreseeable future. She appears to have more length than her 5'10” frame would suggest, and has springy feet and legs that get her to where she's going no matter where the set might be. She'll get a ton of opportunities on Circle's 15 White squad, and will surprise a ton of opponents because of her advanced athleticism.

On average, the position we have the least amount of attendance of over the years of showcases has been in the middle. “Bigs” are everywhere, but most come to us as a three-rotation outside, a three-rotation right side, or someone trying to be the next Morgan Gaerte. Having honest middles, both from the M1 and M2 positions, was amazing to see in droves on Saturday, and helped move the drills and game play along quite nicely. Here are nine middles that really caught my eye at the Academy Volleyball Club on November 29.