17 Elite Sky High Soared at AAU Nationals

I had the opportunity to watch Illinois's [program_tooltip program_id='432009' first='Sky' last='High'] 17 Elite group take care of business during their AUU Nationals tournament. They finished with a winning record, but most importantly, these girls played with such grit, which was fun to watch. This entire team had such genuine chemistry, which made it exciting to watch as they played in their flow state. Here are some of the key players that stood out to me:    Agnello, wearing jersey #7, had an explosive attack during this match. No matter where the set was placed, she took care of business and put the ball away by either powerfully swinging, tooling the block, or placing a perfect roll shot over the block. She played as an all-around outside, reading the offense so easily in her middle back base.     Inman, another outside hitter wearing jersey #16, ripped go's and gaps in the front row. Her ability to read and react to the block was pretty impressive. Her slow-to-fast approach is one to watch, as you never know where she is going to place the ball. I really liked watching her high contact and hearing her palm crisply snap on the ball.    <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/06/IMG_5146-e1782876520756.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1002230" /></figure>    Fleegle, jersey #8, was a FAST libero. She would run from one sideline to the other, hustling after every chase ball. She would then quickly run and cover her hitters so well that her hitters could trust not reaching back after their swing. What impressed me the most was how low she would get to the ground, yet comfortably explode into the next pancake attempt.     Setter #9, Olson, ran her offense with such precision. Her touch of the ball was so smooth. But what stood out the most was her ability to look at the blockers at the net and then decide where to set the ball. Behind the service line I watched her rack up 4 consecutive points from a mean float serve.    <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-style-default"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/06/image0-12-e1782876665185.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1002231" /></figure>    Cielinski, middle #20, impressed me with her slide routes. Her takeoff from the ground looks so natural yet aggressive. Almost every time they ran this slide, Cielinski put it down, resulting in a killer point. Similarly, her block was HUGE. She was sealing the net, not letting any attack get through it!     Scifres #44 was an unbelievably big block. Her timing when it came to the outside attacks was spot on. She also did a great job closing the block with her middle hitter. What I liked about her the most was her ability to transition quickly off the net and then turn the ball down the line or right over the block, earning her team an easy point every single set she was given.    This solid 17U group was super impressive to watch. Not only were they having a blast on the court, but you could see how competitive and supportive they were of one another. They truly understand the meaning of teamwork! Great job, ladies!

I had the opportunity to watch Illinois's Sky High 17 Elite group take care of business during their AUU Nationals tournament. They finished with a winning record, but most importantly, these girls played with such grit, which was fun to watch. This entire team had such genuine chemistry, which made it exciting to watch as they played in their flow state. Here are some of the key players that stood out to me: