New Additions to the 2027 Rankings

Always good to get some new blood to mix up the rankings. This is also the age group where players who do not make their high school varsity team forgo the club season. The greatest participation in age group for club is the 16 U age group. At the 17 level it is difficult to find a player that will debut in the top 100. Normally, I've scoured the Virginia/Maryland area to find those players who stand out. Or they find me through video or the Prep Dig showcases. However, Jeremy spotted one at the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships who really stood out.    Jeremy spotted Isabel at the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships this past weekend. She impressed with how well she put the ball away. Took a look at some video of her play and she can put the ball away. When playing Class 2 there is not much of a block, but the ball still took a good bounce after it hit the floor.   She made the All State first team for Clark County, which lost in the semi-finals to [player_tooltip player_id='720606' first='Maecy' last='Frizzelle'] (ranked 124 in the class of 2026 and a Bridgewater commit) and Fort Defiance in three. If she played for [program_tooltip program_id='494409' first='Blue' last='Ridge'] last year you think I would have noticed her since half a dozen players from that team are ranked. However, for her high school she plays both soccer and basketball so perhaps this is her first year playing club volleyball.   She also plays for [program_tooltip program_id='494409' first='Blue' last='Ridge'] beach and is AA rated. So perhaps this was one of those indoor exceptions, similar to a [player_tooltip player_id='511457' first='Breeze' last='Johnson'] indoor volleyball sighting.   According to the Winchester Star she finished the high school season with 428 kills, which would have put her 7th in the state of Virginia if Clarke County recorded their stats to MaxPreps.   Isabelle debuts at number 73 in our class of 2027 rankings. That is very unusual for this high of an age group. It could go higher if we see more of her. Unfortunately, their team fell short of earning a bid for junior nationals. They do play in the Big South Qualifier.     Amirah debuts at number 149 in our class of 2027. This as a result of her named a top performer at our Exposure tour in Richmond. She shows good speed to cover a lot of ground in the back row while also generating some nice passes on some bullet serves. Still have not seen her apply her skills while playing in a game.   Currently, she is balancing playing basketball for Episcopal while also playing club ball for Legacy.     At 6'0" Ella shows some good height for a middle or right side. She is at the point in her game where her ability to block far exceeds her offensive game. She still needs work on her arm swing in order to achieve greater velocity on her hits.   For McNamara she played middle and right side. She averaged about 1 kill per set with a hitting percentage of .199. When blocking she finished second on the team averaging about .6 blocks per set.   Ella debuts at 163. Still a little raw but full of potential.     Kyla plays middle/right side for [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] Allorie. At the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships they fell short of a bid. She participated in the Exposure Tour in Richmond. While she fell short of winning a top performer award, she did get noticed for her middle play.   Still a lot of rawness when she swings, especially when trying to run the quick tempo sets. What impresses is her height and her long wing span for hitting the ball. She can reach high over the net with an approach jump of 9'10", the highest on the [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] Allorie team.   Give her some time to see how she develops. In the meantime she debuts at 169 in our class of 2027.     Milla sets for Spalding. I watched Spalding during their second match of the season last year when O'Connell played them. Since it was early in their season they were still trying to figure out their offense. Milla set a 5/1 but the offense could only muster 12 kills in the three sets. For the most part it appears she set a 5/1 for them during the season but the reporting into Maxpreps is incomplete. They lost in the first round to Maryvale in five in the IAAM championships. This was the second year in a row they lost in five sets in the first round of the IAAM championships.   Milla now sets for Maryland Juniors where she shares the setting duties with [player_tooltip player_id='731013' first='Ella' last='Strain']. She shows good speed when moving to the ball with the ability to set all areas of the net.   Maryland Juniors came up a little short in the Chesapeake Regional Championship Bid. They finished in a tie for 7th which means they will need some help from a couple teams to earn higher bids in Qualifiers or snag one for themselves. Otherwise, playing in AAU is more likely.     Sadie was hitting left side for Go Volley. While she was a tad undersized at 5'8" she showed a good jump allowing her to put a number balls away from the left side. She also showed the quickness to play defense in the back row. Go Volley competes with [program_tooltip program_id='494409' first='Blue' last='Ridge'] for players, so it surprised me to see this upper level talent.   Unfortunately, Go Volley plays in the Open Division when they compete in the Qualifiers. From a talent perspective they lack the depth and skill to compete at that level. Perhaps playing in the USA or Liberty Division would make them more competitive.   Sadie plays for John Handley, which carries both [player_tooltip player_id='320815' first='Tenley' last='Mattison'] and [player_tooltip player_id='511457' first='Breeze' last='Johnson'] on their roster. They lost to Millbrook in five in the Regional Quarterfinals of the Class 4 Virginia state championship. Sadie lists as an outside/middle hitter on their roster.     Desiree impressed playing for American in the first Chesapeke Open tournament. Another undersized left side at 5'8" who can put the ball away.   Her game seems to be moving on the upside. As a sophomore for Woodson she finished fifth on the team in kills. As a junior she moved to the top slot. She still needs to develop more consistency in her hitting.   Desiree debuts at number 184 in our rankings     [player_tooltip player_id='957909' first='Aryanna' last='Walters'] is another player Jeremy noticed at the Chesapeake Regional Bid tournament. She played for Liberty Elite. She was one of the taller players on the Liberty Elite team with a good vertical. Despite playing middle she did hit some balls from the three meter line.   Unfortunately, the only video I could find of her showed her hitting from the right side. Her arm swing did not show a complete follow through after she made contact with the ball so velocity was lacking. She may need to update those videos if her game has gotten more powerful.   Also, Hedgesville is a powerhouse school in West Virginia with [player_tooltip player_id='438086' first='Emmeri' last='Bishop'] and Gracie Brown on the outside while [player_tooltip player_id='325603' first='Parker' last='Sutherland'] fills up the middle. Aryanna is listed as a middle/right side. She only played in half their games averaging 0.5 kills per set. That would indicate either a part time player or an injury shortened her season   She debuts at 189 but could rise quickly when we see more.     [player_tooltip player_id='942702' first='Alivia' last='Jackson'] provides some good height in the middle. She came over from Columbia Volleyball Academy. She put together a couple of good blocks as well as a quick tempo set kill in a match against 540 Academy. However, when they played Metro Travel in the semi-finals of the gold bracket in an Open tournament she did not see any playing time. Because this was the first Open tournament of the year Metro National was still trying to figure out positions.   Metro finished tied for 7th with Maryland Juniors in the Chesapeake Regional Bid championships. That leaves them as a bit of a long shot to secure a bid to play in junior nationals.   For Reservoir Alivia is one of their starting middles. They ultimately lost to North Hagerstown in the semi-finals of the Maryland Class 3 state playoffs.   Alivia debuts at 192 in our class of 2027 rankings.     Another one of those [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] players who may not have super star potential but gets the job done. In a bit of an oddity, she plays field hockey for Bishop O'Connell in the Fall and not volleyball. Her frosh year she played volleyball on the JV and was used as a setter.   She does have the height and athleticism to make an impact at the pins. Her back row play is still a bit inconsistent and she normally plays just three rotations.   She debuts at #194 in our 2027 rankings.     For Immanuel Christian they list her position as a setter/right side. For American she buries balls from the left side, even generating serious velocity with her back row attacks.   She shows quickness in the back row allowing her to play six rotations. I have not seen her set but it does show her versatility. Because she does such a good job hitting in the front row it is possible she would be used in a 6/2.   Sydney debuted at number 200 in our class of 2027.     Jaeda impressed with her libero skills at the Exposure tour in Richmond. From a height stand point she was the shortest on the court, but she showed good speed and hustle to pop up some pretty tough spikes. She carried an intense attitude on the court, the kind of attitude that screams out that no ball will hit the floor if she was near it.   Jaeda debuts at # 204 in our class of 2027 rankings.     Ardella plays for Washington high school in West Virginia. It appears she sets a 5/1 for them. She shows the all around ability to shine at all skills, finishing second in digs, service aces and even blocks. Even with a block jump that falls short of 9 feet she still makes an effort and finds success.   Setting for Go Volley Ardella impressed with her quickness as well as her ability to consistently jump set. She used her left sides a lot, whether that was setting them in the back row or left side.   Ardella debuts at number 204 in our class of 2027.     Madelyn played right side for Libero 16, which earned a Freedom bid with their third place finish in the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championship. While she lists as a middle she played right side in the match I watched.   At 6'0" she has the ability to do both. Her kills from the right side are usually terminal. She plays a grade down for Libero 16.   Madelyn debuts at # 209 in our 2027 rankings

Always good to get some new blood to mix up the rankings. This is also the age group where players who do not make their high school varsity team forgo the club season. The greatest participation in age group for club is the 16 U age group. At the 17 level it is difficult to find a player that will debut in the top 100. Normally, I've scoured the Virginia/Maryland area to find those players who stand out. Or they find me through video or the Prep Dig showcases. However, Jeremy spotted one at the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships who really stood out.