Freedom Elite Volleyball Academy 17, 15 Elite Team Overviews

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This club came together and the fall and started play this spring as another option for players in middle Tennessee and southern Kentucky. The two Elite teams have enjoyed great success in the inaugural season. Both teams are comprised mainly of Portland players. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Club Director Taylor Meadows is the Portland head coach. Meadows played for former longtime Portland head coach Ginger Lesemann, who guided the Panthers to consecutive Division I-AA state championships in 2017 and 2018 then a I-AA state runner-up finish in 2019.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>17 Elite</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Matthew Pearson is the head coach of the team that has won two tournaments and has put together a sound 28-11 season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The team has three juniors in Portland right side/setter [player_tooltip player_id='806628' first='Mallory' last='Allen'], middle/right side hitter [player_tooltip player_id='813129' first='Emily' last='Hester'] and Westmoreland pin hitter [player_tooltip player_id='844360' first='Sarah' last='Norman']. There are two Portland freshmen on the team in defensive specialist/outside hitter Lillian Angel and setter/defensive specialist [player_tooltip player_id='967184' first='Kari' last='Martin']. Martin also plays on the 15 Elite.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Trousdale County sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='792738' first='Callie' last='Griffin'] is the libero with Portland sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='791895' first='Aubrey' last='Henning'] also playing defensive specialist. Portland sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='836375' first='Mya' last='Petty'] plays defensive specialist and outside hitter with Portland sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='810586' first='Alexis' last='Donica'] taking swings from the outside and middle. Franklin-Simpson sophomore Natayla McCutchen is another outside option with Portland sophomore teammate [player_tooltip player_id='842804' first='Isabelle' last='Woods'] and Trousdale County sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='968814' first='Mileigh' last='Potts'] swinging from the pins.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The next tournament is the Indy Cup on May 16 and 17. This team plays in the 17/18 Club Division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>15 Elite</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Franklin-Simpson head coach Jamie Pennington has helped guide this team to a 27-12 record on the season with a 15 Club Championship in the Music City Meltdown in February.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gallatin freshman right side hitter [player_tooltip player_id='958627' first='Maddux' last='Barlow'] takes solid swings and also sets with Portland eighth grader Ella Rose Rogers and Martin also running the 6-2 offense. Rogers also plays outside hitter. Portland freshmen Joey Newland and [player_tooltip player_id='985180' first='Arianna' last='Weatherford'] play defensive specialist roles with Portland freshman Ayla Reecer playing defensive specialist and outside hitter roles. Portland freshman Kendall Gregory takes swings from the pins with Macon County freshman [player_tooltip player_id='985178' first='Anne' last='Gammons'] and Portland freshman Abby Miller giving the team options in the middle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The team also plays in the Indy Cup on May 16 and 17 in the 15 Girls Blue Division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Players to Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["958627"],"_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-69fcea26a2158"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Barlow (pictured) is a sound hitter, using her size to develop tough hitting angles. She gets on top of balls and takes big swings. She tips balls to the middle if defensive specialists are playing back enough trying to take away those hard shots. Barlow's setting has come a long way. She has good touches on those second touches, consistently putting hitters in position to put balls down.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["836375"],"_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-69fcf0973862f"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Petty has turned into a dynamic hitter for the Panthers. Petty takes good rips from the pins and back row. Petty makes sound in-air adjustments shoving balls into gaps on the other side. Petty does a good job mixing in tips, catching opponents off-guard. Petty makes the most of out of system balls and uses her momentum to hit balls to the side of blocks. Petty has a bright future with her work ethic.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["844360"],"_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-69fcf28b546bc"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Norman goes up and does not rush things on her swings. She records sound crosses and does a good job angling balls off blockers for big points. Norman delivers consistency for the Eagles. Norman sees the floor well then attacks gaps with precision. A good next step for Norman is a quicker arm swing to add to a nice variety of shots.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["985178"],"_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-69fcf7b5999cb"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Gammons makes things happen when balls come to her at the net. She goes up on ones and hits to different parts of the court. Gammons takes nice gap swings and angles balls off blockers for big points. She has sound form on her blocks and smacks down overpassed balls.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Note from the Writer</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mike Graham has been writing for Prep Dig for two years and has enjoyed getting to know the volleyball scenes in Kentucky, Ohio and Tennessee. If you liked the story, please copy and paste to X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook. You may also follow us at @prepdigkentucky or @prepdigoh on Instagram in addition to @PrepDigKy or @PrepDigOH on X. If you feel someone in Kentucky or Ohio needs coverage or even have feedback on the Kentucky rankings, please email Mike at michaelgraham@prepdig.com. You may also follow him on X @GMCgrah or Instagram @g.michaelgraham. Subscriptions give you access to exclusive content. For a 30% discount on yearly subscriptions, enter code graham30 at checkout.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->