Setters with Breakout Potential in 2026

Get 30% off your first billing cycle with code: howe30 in the coupon code area   Life comes at you fast. So does volleyball.   As we hit the middle of June, high school teams are conducting open gyms. The start of training camps are a month and a half away. No time like the present to look ahead at what we might go down in the fall.   Many recognizable names will be back on courts around the state. Others will emerge. That's our focus for this series. It's a rundown of student-athletes with breakout potential in the prep ranks for 2026. We'll split the players up by position.   Let's start with setters:   [player_tooltip player_id='762921' first='Taylor' last='Kriegel'], 2029, Marion/CIA   I've scouted Kriegel in person quite a few times during the last two seasons, maybe longer than that. It is for that reason that I am supremely confident in picking this breakout. Kriegel is a likely replacement at setter for the graduated Grace Whalen, who helped guide Marion to the state tournament last year to wrap up an excellent career. Her successor has that type of upside to be an impactful second touch in the system for the Wolves' next three campaigns. Kriegel stands out for a high volleyball IQ and being technically sound. She makes very few mistakes but does make those around her better.   [player_tooltip player_id='785394' first='Hannah' last='Buhman'], 2029, Sumner-Fredericksburg/Six Pack   It's a fair point If you want to categorize a Buhman breakout as being too late. She led Sumner-Fredericksburg with 375 kills last season on its way to the regional finals. The breakout being called for in this space will come at the setter position this fall, however. It's been where she's shined for the Six Pack club team during the last few seasons. As a high school freshman, her older sister, Alexa Buhman occupied the spot. Alexa has graduated opening up the quarterback position for Hannah. Tall with long arms and skills, expect her to make a seamless transition to dominance there.   [player_tooltip player_id='758163' first='Jaya' last='Morrow'], 2028, Dowling Catholic/United   Morrow flashed upside while sharing the setter position with a senior in a 6-2 for a Dowling outfit that reached the state tournament last year. She has a good chance of securing the full-time gig this fall. I was super impressed with her play in 2025, and the Dowling junior has taken her game up a notch with her performance for United 16 Timmerman during the club campaign. Morrow is a tactician with the second touch, finding the right attacker and putting the ball where it's preferred. She sees the court really well, anticipating the moves of the opposition and using that knowledge to her advantage.   [player_tooltip player_id='946877' first='Natalie' last='DePoorter'], 2029, Assumption/Select   DePoorter was a backup setter to a Division I signee last season as Assumption took home the Class 3A state championship. The freshman grew from the experience based on what she's displayed running the show for a Select 16 Mizuno squad that qualified for the USAV Nationals in the National Division later this month. DePoorter packs a ton of potential in a frame that's already almost six feet tall with long arms and athleticism. She can defend at the net and is improving in serve-receive. Her length and leaping ability aid her in ending points. The Knights will provide weapons for her to feed in the fall, and a breakout is a good bet.   [player_tooltip player_id='763901' first='Berkley' last='Weiland'], 2028, Southeast Polk/PowerPlex   Like Morrow, Weiland shared the setting role with a senior in a 6-2 as a Southeast Polk sophomore in 2025. One of Iowa's 2028 prospects with the highest ceiling, it will be interesting to see if the Rams use her exclusively at setter this fall or continue to have her share the job, like she's doing as a standout for a PowerPlex 16 Nelson team that qualified in the American Division at this month's national tournament in Indianapolis. No matter how it unfolds, expect Weiland to gain the recognition she deserves as a prospect packed with tremendous potential. And with that, she makes Southeast Polk a sleeper team this season.

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