Phoenix Festival: Under-the-Radar Setters Who Delivered on Day 3

<a href="https://prepdig.com/subscribe/">More than 150 college coaches shared this article. Join PrepDig with 30% off using code "digdakotas30."</a>   <a href="https://www.instagram.com/prepdigdakotas/?hl=en">Follow on Instagram@prepdigdakotas</a>   By the third day of the Phoenix Festival, there are few places to get out of the way. The teams have found their rhythm, the level of competition continues to rise, and every match requires a high level of execution. That's when new names often emerge and players begin to stand out.   I found myself working my way through the courts, stopping to watch setters who were not necessarily the ones everyone was talking about before the tournament. They weren't trying to do too much; they just executed their offense well. They made good decisions, adjusted when plays broke down, and consistently put their hitters in position to succeed. Those are the kinds of performances that stick with you.   The setters below earned a spot in my notebook because of how they managed the game around them. They set the tempo, spread the field, and kept making good decisions against good competition. Sometimes the loudest isn't the biggest impact, and these setters showed that throughout Day 3.    Dalilah Carvajal had a good feel for the flow of the game, and it showed up in the way she ran her offense. I could see she wasn't in a rush to rush the next set. She let the play develop, saw where the block was leaning, and made the defense defend the whole width of the court. She settled things down with a quality touch when rallies got out of system a couple of times and instantly gave her hitters another chance to score. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas     [player_tooltip player_id='778835' first='Clara' last='Chandler'] did a nice job of keeping her offense on their toes all day long. There wasn't much guessing where the next ball was going, as she was always moving blockers and changing the point of attack. I liked that she continued to work to set up each hitter, instead of falling into the trap of setting the same option over and over. That balance made it tough for defenses to settle in. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas     One of the setters I kept catching myself watching was Aniston Stoll. She was running the offense, and it looked incredibly smooth. She played with a quiet assurance that brought everything into focus. What impressed me most was her ability to read defensive adjustments and respond quickly. If blockers started to cheat to one side, she immediately found another option. When the pass drifted off the net, she still found a way to put a ball in play. She didn't just distribute the volleyball; she ran the game. The hitters believed in her. The offense maintained its flow. Everything appeared to be in order. It's not an easy command to come by, and it was one of the stronger setter performances I saw all of Day 3. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas     [player_tooltip player_id='1000897' first='Gabriela' last='Coronado'] had a good sense of when to push an offense and when to give it some air. Some setters try to play every rally at the same speed. Gabriela adapted to what the match demanded. She gave hitters consistent clean looks, worked to stay in rhythm with her attackers, and did a nice job creating one-on-one opportunities at the net. That kind of flexibility made her offense hard to guard. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas     What I liked about [player_tooltip player_id='1000905' first='Delilah' last='Nielsen'] was that she was willing to trust every hitter on the floor. Even after a missed swing, she wasn't afraid to go right back to the same attacker. Good setters do that because confidence is contagious. She kept moving the ball around, kept blockers honest, and allowed her offense to stay balanced throughout the match. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas     Anabel Cho never seemed rushed, even when rallies became chaotic. There were a handful of out-of-system plays where she tracked down the second contact and still delivered a ball her hitters could attack. Those are the types of plays that don't always receive a lot of attention, but they often become momentum changers. I also liked how consistently she squared herself to the target before releasing the ball, giving her attackers a chance to stay aggressive. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas     [player_tooltip player_id='817338' first='Natalie' last='Johnson'] did a nice job of making the game easier for everybody around her She would never ask hitters to bail out tough sets, instead putting them in good situations. She spent the day looking for rhythm, looking for good matchups, and not being afraid to change it up when defenses started to make adjustments. The most striking thing at the end of the day was how connected her offense looked from rotation to rotation. ~Theresa@prepdigdakotas    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Thank you to all my readers for making this journey possible. My goal has always been simple: to shine a light on athletes at every level, from Division I to NAIA, and give them a platform to keep chasing their love for the game. Every player deserves a shot, and I'm honored to help tell their stories.</h2>   Please help us continue to grow this positive platform for players by spreading the word and encouraging your friends to subscribe at PrepDig.com. With your support, we can create unforgettable memories and experiences!   The village, athletes, coaches, families, and subscribers create this journey.   <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Thank you for making it all possible! ~ Theresa Hickman</h4>   <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Follow on Instagram@prepdigdakotas</h3>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">In Case You Missed It</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-image"><a href="https://prepdig.com/dakotas/"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/05/image_5b1fa1.png?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-987083" /></a></figure>

More than 150 college coaches shared this article. Join PrepDig with 30% off using code "digdakotas30."