Houston Area HS Team to Watch: Clear Springs

The high school volleyball season is about to start in the Lone Star State, and we at Prep Dig Texas can't wait to get back to the exciting routine of being out there multiple times a week and checking out how teams and players progress as the season unfolds.   Like the past years, we'll continue to provide the best coverage of the high school season in the Houston area and beyond, featuring weekly previews, match reports, standout reviews, photo galleries and social media posts, and giving the talented prospects in our state the exposure they deserve.   Before the season gets underway, we'd like to feature some teams from the Houston area we believe have the potential to have incredible seasons.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Clear Springs</h2>   The Clear Springs Mustangs produced a 35-11 win record, which led them to winning District 24 and making a solid playoff run, which was stopped by Dawson in the area round. The team brings back most of its core and could be set for an even more successful season, having senior outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='808171' first='Caylee' last='Young'] as the centerpiece in their playing system. Clear Springs have three great options at setter in seniors [player_tooltip player_id='524083' first='Karmen' last='O'Quinn'] and [player_tooltip player_id='790788' first='Madelyn' last='Powell'] and junior [player_tooltip player_id='744472' first='Sydney' last='Pinkston'], an elite libero in junior [player_tooltip player_id='744558' first='Aubree' last='Svoboda'], a productive middle in junior [player_tooltip player_id='725653' first='Gavin' last='Jacelyn Cramer'] and a dynamic outside hitter in junior [player_tooltip player_id='727749' first='Olivia' last='Barnett'].   Key Players    An extremely well-rounded outside hitter, the senior has a big impact on everything Clear Springs does on the court. Standing at 6'1", Young is a capable scorer who uses her length to have an edge over opposing blockers at the net. She takes full advantage of her high contact point and can fire really powerful swings, but also stands out for her court vision, making use of well-placed tips and shots to put the ball down. Young, who plays as a libero at the club level, is also an elite back row player, efficiently covering a large area in serve-receive and using her length to get several touches when playing defense.      Used as a defensive specialist in her first two seasons with Clear Springs, Svoboda should be moved to libero in her junior year. A technically sound and always-focused defensive player, she's extremely prolific with how she operates on the back row, offering significant contributions to her team. Svoboda thrives at reading opponents and is very quick to react, a combination that allows her to touch anything that goes anywhere around her. Her outstanding ball control makes of her an elite defender and also plays a big role in her efficient and reliable serve-receive game. She also plays the role of a back row general well, consistently communicating with her teammates.      O'Quinn is one of the many good options Clear Springs has at the setter position. The senior brings to the table a great deal of stability, keeping their offense well-balanced and feeding her hitters with consistently accurate sets. She's very creative and likes to play fast and move hitters around when in system, but can also be very straightforward and conservative with her distribution when needed. O'Quinn is also an elite defensive player and uses her combination of positioning, ball control and hard work on the back row to generate transition plays for her team.

The high school volleyball season is about to start in the Lone Star State, and we at Prep Dig Texas can't wait to get back to the exciting routine of being out there multiple times a week and checking out how teams and players progress as the season unfolds.