Private School Spotlight: Oakridge Owls

<p>Even though the focus on high school volleyball in the state of Texas might be more often turned to the teams competing in the six division of the University Interscholastic League (UIL), which features public high schools, the Lone Star state also has a tremendous amount of talent elsewhere.</p> <p>Private schools across the state are also filled with athletes that play at the highest level of the sport. We were able to watch some of these squads in action recently at the 2021 Houston Open, held at the facilities of the Houston Skyline Volleyball Club, and will bring our analysis on each of them and their most promising players over the next few weeks.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Oakridge Owls</strong></p> <p>The Owls represented the Oakridge High School out of Arlington and managed to finish fourth in the tournament, winning three of their five matches. Head coach June Boller, who recently reached the 300^th win of his career, has a good group of players to work with and has been putting the pieces together during preseason, where the Owls hold a 3-5 win record so far.</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Owls defeat Grapevine Faith 3-1! <a href="https://x.com/hashtag/goowls?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#goowls</a> <a href="https://x.com/hashtag/oakridgeowls?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#oakridgeowls</a> <a href="https://t.co/zjh3Y3dQoF">pic.x.com/zjh3Y3dQoF</a></p> — Oakridge Owls (@OakOwlsSports) <a href="https://x.com/OakOwlsSports/status/1436140627423547392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 10, 2021</a></blockquote> <p><script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Players to Watch</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="122901" first="Megan" last="Weldon"] – Outside Hitter – Club: Drive Nation – 2023</strong></p> <p>An explosive outside hitter, [player_tooltip player_id="122901" first="Megan" last="Weldon"] is the player who will be in charge of scoring points for Oakridge when the game is on the line. The six-footer typically responds well to the challenge, delivering in big moments. Also a solid passer, Weldon is really difficult to play against because of her complete offensive game, which allows us to find different solutions to any situation. She made it to the event’s All-Tournament Team with her great play.</p> <p><iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D5q5NSWDatQ" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p><strong> </strong></p> <p><strong>Taylor Handy – Setter – Club: ACE Volleyball – 2022</strong></p> <p>A creative, yet consistent setter, Taylor Handy does a great in running the Owls’ offense. She’s extremely technical, getting great location on her sets, but also very intelligent with her distribution, always finding the right options among her hitters. Handy also brings a great amount of value to her game with her superior defensive skills.</p> <p><iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/11986049/5e66a9bc4205f81488b7305f" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Isa Leon – Middle Blocker – 2024</strong></p> <p>It’s hard to imagine the impact Isa Leon can make in the game when you first see her tirelessly battling taller opponents at the net. At 5’9”, she’s typically in disadvantage against opposing middle blocker, but what she might lack in size she has in determination and athleticism, always giving everything she has to match up with her opponents at the net. Her movement speed and impressive footwork are extremely valuable assets to her.</p>