Tour of Texas Stop 1 Preview Vol 3

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the biggest early season tourneys is upon us this weekend.&nbsp; The Tour of Texas will bring the best teams in the state of Texas and six other states will also be represented in the competition.&nbsp; Almost every one of these teams in the invitational divisions will most certainly earn a coveted bid to USA Volleyball Junior Nationals later on this summer.&nbsp; We will be front and center this weekend to cover the event in person and will have some amazing stories on both individuals and teams to report back on next week.&nbsp; Here are some interesting things to look out for this weekend.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the 17 Invitational division, there are three power pools.&nbsp; Power Pool two and three have some serious studs that are looking to battle.&nbsp; [program_tooltip program_id='510733' first='Drive' last='Nation'] 17 Red just won their first north Texas bid tourney of the year after some hellacious matches.&nbsp; They went undefeated at 7-0 and have proven to be a tough out for anyone.&nbsp; They are led by the defensive leadership of [player_tooltip player_id='412438' first='Dakota' last='Huynh'], who is no stranger to high level competition.&nbsp; She is one of our highest ranked liberos for a reason and will give anyone fits who tries to send the ball her way.&nbsp; Middle [player_tooltip player_id='484396' first='Kherynton' last='Chinnis'] and strong attacker [player_tooltip player_id='534412' first='Kharley' last='Smith'] will be two players who you must know what routes they will run out of serve receive because they can hurt you.&nbsp; Six foot middle [player_tooltip player_id='534402' first='Mariah' last='Akinsola'] is a load to handle at the net for any opponent.&nbsp; Texas A&amp;M Corpus Christi commit and outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='694805' first='Landri' last='Trice'] knows how to score the rock with the best of them.&nbsp; This team is riding a high from proving themselves on the court and will look to continue to ride that wave this weekend.&nbsp; I will be very interested to watch them play together against this rigorous competition.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='510661' first='Houston' last='Skyline'] 17 Royal is one team who we feel is seeded way too low at third in power pool three.&nbsp; They have proven over the last few years that they are one of the best teams in this tourney.&nbsp; With players like University of Colorado commit [player_tooltip player_id='534319' first='Aspen' last='Brown'] who is a killer on the right side, Vandy commit and middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id='805228' first='Gracie' last='Hobin'], and superstar six foot setter [player_tooltip player_id='534332' first='Tinsley' last='Welker-Brown'] who is committed to the University of Arizona, this team is not afraid of anyone.&nbsp; We have watched them grow up right before our eyes and become a threat to win every tourney they have ever participated in.&nbsp; With a back row of [player_tooltip player_id='621373' first='Sarah' last='Troxel'], Caylee young, and [player_tooltip player_id='534335' first='Pearson' last='Noone'], they will definitely have the ball control to do so.&nbsp; The golden right arm of [player_tooltip player_id='534384' first='Jordan' last='Morrow'] has always proven to be hard to slow down.&nbsp; She scores in bunches and has power for days.&nbsp; They would be my sleeper team based only on where they are going in ranked, otherwise they could be listed as a favorite for the gold bracket.&nbsp; The road will be a little tough for them but I wouldn't count them out.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Stay tuned for the next volume that will cover more teams and other divisions.&nbsp; We will have some awesome articles covering as many matches as we can from this tournament.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:Michael@prepdig.com">Michael@prepdig.com</a>.&nbsp; Also don't forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends.&nbsp; Help us help them by simply reposting on X or Instagram or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following Prep Dig Family!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->