First Impressions At The Early Bird, Part 2

Want a subscription to PrepDig? Use code Kyp30 for 30% off of your annual subscription! And don't forget to follow @KypPDIN on X for all of your Indiana high school and club volleyball news!   Part 2 of my first impressions of the Early Bird Shootout was supposed to be alphabetical, but I forgot one of the players in the early part, so here we are. These are seven more athletes from three different states that really caught my eye, one of which will be an absolute steal for someone in the fall of ‘28.    Easily one of the best pure middles on display on Sunday, Reagan is a high-flying, long and lean middle that does everything well. Highly competitive and never out of the play, Miss Baxter showed off her speed in transition and beat many blocks simply because of that speed. Terminal in her attack and her block, Morehead State has an absolute gem of a player coming to them this coming fall.     Attacking at close to (if not already at) ten feet, Molly's springy quickness shocks defenses and is infectious for her teammates. Constant energy and go-go mentality earns her available, terminal swings regularly. With high-end athleticism, a never-ending motor and a volleyball IQ that's off the charts for any position, let alone a middle, Molly will make the folks at Marist very happy next fall.     It pains me, but my rules are strict—-once a kid is committed to play at the next level, I have to move on to give coverage to those not yet committed. Miss Schembra, I have a feeling, will cause me to write about her regularly this spring. With two attackers out for months, Anabelle will have to make even more deceptive choices on the offense in order for her 17 Purple squad to earn a bid to GJNC's here in Indy. This past Sunday, she did just that, and is learning about her primary attackers and what her passers can and can't do. On Sunday, without fail, she was the vocal leader of her squad, and kept them in matches despite missing a good portion of the offense. With high hands (look at her profile pic!), solid decision-making and exceptional set placement, she's even better than she was in the fall, leading this author (and UCF, for that matter) to be even prouder of her continued excellence.     Already committed to Northern Illinois, Marley could have just rested on her laurels, coasted into an easy gig on a middling club team, and called it a day. Nope, not her. How about we learn how to attack in a fast offense as a pin attacker? And learn from scratch? This kid continues to amaze me in her athleticism, willingness to be coached into new adventures and her adaptation to constant improvement. Yes, it will take some time for her arm swing and approach to make a slight adjustment now that she's not in the middle any more. But if this Sunday is any indication of her future, she'll be fine. If anything, learning another position from scratch is SUPPOSED to be difficult, and she's learning on the fly, scoring points at an 18s open level and (almost) making it look natural. Not bad, kiddo.     Full disclosure—-this was the first time I've seen Addi play live. I've had a ton of video to pore over, but none of it was in-the-moment play. But, I lucked out on Sunday. Addi's an athletic setter, with length for days, that can get any ball passed anywhere and make the set not only hittable, but in tempo and located well. On defense, she's relentless, which is a nice departure from the average setter I see here in central Indiana. Behind the base line, she's calculated and tough, just like she is when she attacks on two as a front row setter. Addi's the complete package of setter, and will be a nice addition to UNC Wilmington's roster next fall.     It's not considered professional of me to place emojis in my articles. But if I was allowed to do so, it would be the face with the HUGE eyes. While watching Caroline play, I caught myself making that face, as her speed, jumping ability and attacking pace were off the charts in comparison to any other single attacker I saw Sunday. A lot of blocks looked irrelevant when she attacked, and it's not like they were small. Due to injury happening with a couple of her teammates, Miss Ward will be asked to do a bunch more attacking this spring, and she looked as if she were asking for seconds. Strong, powerful, athletic and tough, Caroline fits right in with SMU and the ACC.     The youngest listed in today's article, Ragan showed out at our recent Exposure Tour back in December. Yet, those are controlled drills with just a touch of pressure. Sunday was a true example of what she's capable of, and she held her own against solid 1s teams while being the M2 for Circle's 16-2. Her athleticism and jumping ability were on display, and helped her squad to an upset win over PHP's 16s in pool play. Yes, she's more than capable of playing any of the front row positions, but to see her play at an equal footing with more experienced middles proves that the hard work she's put in recently is starting to pay off. Prediction: Ragan will be an absolute steal for someone looking for athleticism in any attacking capacity in the fall of 2028.

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