A Dozen Hitters Who Went from Who to Wow at Junior Nationals

It all comes down to getting that exposure. That old saying that if a tree falls and no one is around does it still make a sound. Not a lot known about the players below before Junior Nationals but they certainly made some noise at the Junior Nationals. As expected, the younger players surprised the most.   Also, two teams MOCO Menace and [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] took fifth place each in AAUs. The summary below.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">14s</h2>    Leyal first came on the radar towards the end of the 2025 season when she led [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] Jazz 13 to a tournament win in the Chesapeake Showdown in the 13/14 Division. At the Junior Nationals she received an extended view, showing an ability to play six rotations. Her passing kept [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] in system, while she could also generate an offense from the back row. She also showed consistency putting the ball down from the left side.   At 5'9" with an approach jump of 9'3" would fall short of some of the Metro prospects. However, she finds the empty spots along the floor, putting good velocity on her hits. With a little more growth and strength she should be even more terminal.   Leyla will play at Paul VI next year. The Panthers will have an opening at one of their pin positions.   Leyla made the All tournament team after leading [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] to the gold in the American Division. She will receive additional exposure at the Prep Dig frosh Showcase on the calendar for the end of July, along with her all-tournament teammate [player_tooltip player_id='944759' first='Nyla' last='Mclaurin'].     Julia first came to my attention when she attended the Junior National Prep Dig Showcase. At 6'0" she impressed with her hitting as well as her ability to play six rotations. When I watched her in actual games, she looked even better hitting the ball outside, passing and playing defense. She hit so well from the left side that she made my all 14 tournament team.   This past season Julia led her 8th grade team to the city championship. This coming high school season she will play for First Colonial. Looking forward to seeing how that progresses.   Julia also registered for the Prep Dig frosh showcase coming late July.     Arina already has some height for her age. While her listed height is 6'1" she looks a little taller. She is also not one of those tall young, middles who spend most of their time tipping over the block. Arina hits the ball hard in the middle whether it is the higher sets or quick tempo.   Her parents are from Belarus. Before they moved to Virginia she was really too young to play volleyball in Belarus. She also lists going to First Colonial for high school. Wherever she goes it would not surprise me to see her make an impact her frosh season.     Bella put a number of balls away for BAVA getting excellent extension on her swings. Each time I watched BAVA play my notes indicate that Bella drove one to the floor. She even generated a kill using a roll shot. Bella and middle [player_tooltip player_id='1001184' first='Autumn' last='Williams'] were the two primary sources of offense for BAVA (WAVE).   Still not a lot known about her except for the fact that she hits the ball hard swinging from the left side.     Last year at the East Coast Championships two middles from the Libero Huskies impressed with their play. Both went to [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] with [player_tooltip player_id='779106' first='Isabella' last='Jeantel'] playing for the 15 team and Pia playing with the 14 team. Isabella is now hitting primarily right side while Pia sees the extent of her time playing middle at Junior Nationals.   Pia and [player_tooltip player_id='1001180' first='Liana' last='Lipscomb'] created offense from the middle as well as blocked their position well. Pia participated in a block for the match winning 27-25 win in the finals to win the first set. She earned a spot on the Prep Dig DMV 14 Junior National all tournament team as a middle.   Pia will attend Fairfax high school, which could find themselves a power this year with their returning players along with a couple solid incoming frosh.   Pia is registered to participate in the Prep Dig frosh showcase coming in late July.     Liana was the other solid middle for [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] 14. At 5'11" she brought good height to the position. She also was very clutch at her position, normally getting most of the sets when the game was on the line. She not only earned a spot on the DMV Prep Dig All Tournament team, but she also appeared on the Junior National All tournament team by USAV as well.   Liana will play for Forest Park this coming high school season. It would not surprise me to see her as a starter on the varsity her frosh season.   [player_tooltip player_id='1001180' first='Liana' last='Lipscomb'] also registered for the Prep Dig Frosh Showcase occurring in late July.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">15s</h2>    Ava belongs to the class of 2028, playing down on the Virginia Juniors 15 team. She put a couple balls down in the middle that made me go "wow". While she received a few mentions when she played on Virginia Juniors 14 she really captured my attention with the 15 team. Her timing for the quick tempo sets is incredible, with an impressive jump that gets her high above the net. She also sets up the block well.   With her athleticism it would not surprise me to see her eventually move to a pin. Ava lists two time defending champ Riverside as her high school but she did not make the varsity roster.     She plays down for [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] 15. She and her sister Laura play the pins, with one playing right side while the other plays left side. Isabel is Brazilian.   She and her sister recently finished second in a Chesapeake Regional Bid championship for the beach. This qualified them to play in the Junior National championships later this month in Hermosa Beach, California.   Isabel has an intense personality on the court. It appears she is not linked to any high school in the area. Instead she may attend an international high school.       Laura also plays down for [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] 15. Like her twin sister she plays the pins. As with her twin sister Laura also hails from Brazil.   The two recently competed in a Chesapeake Regional Beach Bid championship and finished second. This qualified them for the Junior National beach championship later this month in Hermosa Beach, California.   Just like her sister Isabel, Laura also has an intense personality on the court. The two are not linked to any high school in the area. They may both attend an international school.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">16s</h2>    Layla does not really belong on the list as one of those players not really known until the tournament. After all she ranked at number 56 in the class of 2028. However, she seemed to really put it together playing for [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] Alec. She played an impeccable six rotations. hitting the ball with strong velocity when in the front row and passing the ball with precision while in the back row. She was one of the principle reasons for [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] Alec finishing 11th in the 16 American Division.   Last year Layla played for the Class 6 state champion West Springfield. She ranked 4th on her team in kills with a .214 hitting percentage. She also played a solid six rotations for West Springfield. Expect improvement on her offensive numbers for next year.     Coming into Junior Nationals Johanne stood out like a tree in a forest. I did not even recognize her participation in the Junior National Prep Dig showcase. She won a top performer award at this showcase, putting her on the map.   When watching her play for the Metro National 16 team she put some impressive quick tempo sets quickly to the floor. At 5'11" she has an approach jump of 9'8". She plays for Sherwood.   A player who now appears on the radar. Shame on me for taking this long to notice her. Definitely a player a smaller college in need of middles needs to take a look at.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">17s</h2>    At some point Ella appeared on my radar because she ranks at number 144 in the class of 2027. At that time she played for Liberty Elite. Jeremy noted her move to Metro from Liberty Elite.   While listed at 5'8" she hit the ball pretty well. She also played a solid six rotations, also providing offense from the back row. For the last couple years she has earned a spot on the Frederick County First Team All County.   She brings a good approach jump, reaching 9'8" to give her success in the front row. While there still needs a little more consistency in finding the court she still stood out as the main banger on the Metro 17 team.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">MOCO Menace Finishes Fifth in AAU Wave 4 Club Division</h2>   MOCO Menace grabbed a fifth place finish in the AAU Club Division. They could not qualify for the USAV Junior Nationals falling to ninth place in the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championship. A disappointment since they are ranked as the fifth best team in the Chesapeake Region, ahead of a number of teams who competed in the Junior Nationals.   Despite being the number one seed in their pool MOCO only won one of their first three matches on the first day, putting them in third place in their pool. In USAV this would have dropped them out of any gold appearance. In AAU they still advanced to the first division. The two teams that beat them in pool play each advanced to a ninth place finish at the end of the tournament.   MOCO went on to win their next eight matches, including an exciting first round gold bracket win over NC Coastal Loma 22-25, 25-23 and 17-15. Unfortunately, they were beaten in their next match by Kairos Gamma 28-26, 25-15. Kairos Gamma would go on to play in the final before losing to River City Juniors Red.   MOCO is led by libero [player_tooltip player_id='754674' first='Clarke' last='Rodney'] (56), left side [player_tooltip player_id='956006' first='Katarina' last='Haag'] (46), middle [player_tooltip player_id='956015' first='Anna' last='Raab'] (81) and setter/outside [player_tooltip player_id='884166' first='Beatrice' last='Bradburn'] (113).   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] Also Grabs a Fifth in the 16 Elite in AAU</h2>   The [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] 16 team would have competed well in the USAV Junior Nationals. However, their competition of choice is the AAUs. In the 16 Elite Division [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] finished fifth. Prep Dig ranked them as the fourth best club in the DMV area.   In their first six matches in AAU they swept past their competition. Their last three matches the teams became more competitive taking [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] to three sets. In each case [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] won the third set.   It did not go so well in their first match of the gold medal round. They lost to C2 Nationals Travis in three 18-25, 27-25, 11-15. C2 would eventually reach the finals before losing to Vaqueras Freddy, a team from Puerto Rico.   [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] is led by left side [player_tooltip player_id='768375' first='Alexis' last='VerMeer'] (15, Iowa), right side [player_tooltip player_id='536717' first='London' last='Jones'] (21), setter [player_tooltip player_id='936618' first='Ryann' last='Owensby'] (82, Liberty), middle [player_tooltip player_id='936617' first='Ava' last='Shabazz'] (122), pin [player_tooltip player_id='584072' first='Madison' last='Butler'] (130), setter [player_tooltip player_id='721139' first='Mollie' last='Wamhoff'] (133), Libero [player_tooltip player_id='937152' first='Ella' last='Davis'] (158), middle [player_tooltip player_id='936616' first='Mycah' last='Bingham'] (166) and left side [player_tooltip player_id='464573' first='Blake' last='Crawford'] (2027, 16 Loyola - Maryalnd).

It all comes down to getting that exposure. That old saying that if a tree falls and no one is around does it still make a sound. Not a lot known about the players below before Junior Nationals but they certainly made some noise at the Junior Nationals. As expected, the younger players surprised the most.