H-Town Showdown 16s Division Middles Who Stepped Up at the Net

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Countdown City Classic, held in San Antonio, was the biggest club volleyball tournament held in the state of Texas last weekend, but teams from the Houston area that did not make the trip to the Alamo City also had a lot to play for, with the first stop of the H-Town Showdown taking place.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The event had the [program_tooltip program_id='431337' first='Texas' last='Tornados'] facility as the hosting venue and reunited 36 teams in the 16s, 17s and 18s age groups for a full day of matches right at the start of the club season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><strong><a href="https://prepdig.com/2026/01/h-town-showdown-1-16s-division-photos/">H-Town Showdown #1: 16s Division Photos</a></strong></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/DTGLNMUjoVg/?img_index=1","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"instagram","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-instagram wp-block-embed-instagram"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.instagram.com/p/DTGLNMUjoVg/?img_index=1 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Dig Texas was in attendance, covering the teams in the 16s Division. Many players made a strong impression on us during the day, and we're getting to know them this week. Today, we look into the pin hitters:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["756603"],"_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-695c49af1e48a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Okwura played for the HJV 16 Elite team that had little competition during the day, ranking first after winning all three of their matches with no sets dropped. Arguably the most physical player in the division, Okwura gave them a huge presence at the net, making a big impact in their game. Making great use of her high contact point and hitting different sets in the middle, she was nearly unstoppable offensively, being one of the team's main scoring options. Okwura also offered significant defensive contributions, challenging opposing hitters with her big block and winning 50-50 balls up at the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:image {"id":930743,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/01/2J4A0113.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-930743" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["848502"],"_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-695c49af1e510"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Oestreich was with the HJV 16 Premier side that ended up in second place after securing three wins and a loss. The team used their middles fairly often offensively, and she responded well, delivering solid scoring production for them. A six-footer, Oestreich was very aggressive with her swings, making contact with the ball at a very high point and hitting it straight down. The middle also appeared well with her blocking, moving well at the net and efficiently handling overpasses.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["571932"],"_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-695c49af1e563"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Miller was part of the [program_tooltip program_id='431337' first='Texas' last='Tornados'] 16 Adidas team that finished fourth with two wins and a loss. A tall player with long arms, she demonstrated solid offensive potential, making great use of her offensive range to overcome opposing blockers. Miller also contributed defensively at the net, standing out with her reading of the game and blocking timing to challenge opponents. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:image {"id":930719,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/01/2J4A0036.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-930719" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- 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":"Julia Schuler","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2028","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"5'10u0022","_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":"Bridgeland","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"[program_tooltip program_id='431337' first='Texas' last='Tornados']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"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-695c49af1e63a"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Schuler helped [program_tooltip program_id='431337' first='Texas' last='Tornados'] 16 National complete the top five in fifth place with a campaign of two wins and one loss. The middle was very consistent offensively, making good use of her offensive range and displaying great vision and awareness to use tips to score points when fed with inaccurate sets. Schuler also had a solid blocking presence, moving well at the net to get to the pins.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- 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":"Olivia Zurek","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2028","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"6'1u0022","_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":"Memorial","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"[program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline']","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"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-695c49af1e6e6"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Zurek appeared for the [program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] 16 Gray team that ended up in sixth place with a win and two losses. There's still significant room for improvement in her game, but she managed to produce at a decent level with her current skillset, indicating she could develop into a solid middle in some time. Standing at 6'1", she showed good mobility on the court, peeling off the net and trying to save balls that fell in her zone. Zurek also managed to get in the way of opponents with her blocking when she managed to maintain her balance at the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block -->