Tiered Player Rankings of Iowa’s 2029 Class

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 30% off your first billing cycle with code:&nbsp;howe30&nbsp;in the coupon code area</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As many of you have heard, I'm very familiar with Iowa's 2029 graduating class. Our daughter is in it. I've watched it more than any other cycle, by far.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I feel like I have a pretty good handle on it. Still, I'm reluctant to rank its members from No. 1 through whatever without more evaluation. Right now, it feels more comfortable putting them into tiers. I think I can do that with about 25 kids to date.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's is Iowa's 2029 Class broken up into tiered rankings of like-talented players. They're listed alphabetically within each tier:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">TIER 1</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='754657' first='Cyan' last='Blommer'], OH, Iowa City West/Iowa United </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='754551' first='Zane' last='Ehler'], S, Tipton/Iowa United</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='769009' first='Ellie' last='Friessen'], MH/S, Hinton/Midwest Elite</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='781517' first='Hadassah' last='Smith'], MH, Cedar Falls/Six Pack</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-The top tier is comprised of a foursome of fabulous athletes on a great trajectory. Blommer is a dynamic pin with a crazy vertical and heavy swing. She's improving in the back row and defensively at the net. Ehler is a unicorn setter that performs all tasks at a high level. Friessen is a tremendous all-around volleyball player capable of succeeding at multiple positions. Smith is a powerful, athletic middle hitter with a super high ceiling. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">TIER 2</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='754537' first='Amelia' last='Guinn'], OH, Solon/Iowa United</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='750513' first='Caylee' last='Jensen'], MH, North Cedar/Iowa United</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='759977' first='Abbey' last='Kirk'], OH, Marion/Rockets</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='893087' first='Kate' last='Limbaugh'], OH/RS, Algona/Six Pack</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='887022' first='Quinn' last='Sweeney'], MH, Janesville/Six Pack</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-As we can say throughout these tiers, there's upward mobility for everyone not in Tier 1. All of the kids in this tier are coming off excellent club campaigns after being impactful freshmen last fall. Guinn, Limbaugh and Kirk are hammers at the pin with latter being one of the class's top six-rotation outsides. Jensen and Sweeney are powerful, athletic, intimidating two-way standouts in the middle of the net. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">TIER 3</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='610472' first='Josie' last='Austen'], RS, Iowa City West/Iowa United</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='880642' first='Sidney' last='Bryan'], DS/L, Dowling Catholic/PowerPlex</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='785394' first='Hannah' last='Buhman'], S, Sumner-Fredericksburg/Six Pack</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='741877' first='Tenley' last='Cewe'], DS/L, Clinton/Iowa Select</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='889843' first='Paige' last='Davis'], OH, Hudson/Six Pack </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='776054' first='Espyn' last='Decker'], DS/L, Wapsie Valley/Six Pack</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='849088' first='Chloe' last='Degroot'], MH, Benton Community/CIA</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='777812' first='Havanna' last='Dolbeare'], OH, Ankeny Christian/Iowa Impact</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-The last two tiers are large and filled with very like-talented competitors. Austen is a right side steadily growing her overall game. Bryan, Cewe and Decker are consistent back-row defenders that cover a lot of ground. Buhman is a tall, long-armed setter with a significant ceiling. Davis and Dolbeare are rising six-rotation outsides packed with potential. Degroot is a dominant two-way middle with prodigious power in her attack. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">TIER 4</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='893263' first='Brynlee' last='Asche'], MH, Dunkerton/CIA</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='959211' first='Luella' last='Craig'], S, Waukee/PowerPlex</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='891599' first='Charlee' last='Kirkpatrick'], OH, Grundy Center/CIA</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='762921' first='Taylor' last='Kriegel'], S, Marion/CIA</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='902417' first='Julia' last='McGraw'], S, Indianola</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='765171' first='Dillynn' last='Moore'], OH, Davenport Central/Iowa Select</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='789484' first='Avrielle' last='Ohda'], OH, Pleasant Valley/Rockets</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='902980' first='Addy' last='Ortegren'], OH, Hinton/Midwest Elite</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>-There's a lot of upside in this tier. Asche is a middle on a great trajectory. Craig, Kriegel and McGraw are well-rounded setters capable of impacting the game in multiple ways. Kirkpatrick, Moore, Ohda and Ortegren bring heavy swings at the pin and sound six-rotation abilities to the court. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->