Players to Watch – Triple Crown NIT – UPVBC 18 Open

There were hundreds of talented teams from across the country competing in this awesome tournament. Oklahoma was well represented by a few in three divisions. We will be highlighting a few of the players that showcased their skill-sets in Kansas City. Ultimate Performance Volleyball 18 Open has quite a few players listed in our state rankings. I was able to watch them in person as they battled some of the best teams in the country. They were extremely competitive as many college coaches were watching around the gym. Here are a few of the players that stood out while I watched. [player_tooltip player_id="156866" first="Maren" last="Johnson"] [2024] Outside (HS: Jenks/Club: UPVBC/Verbal: Uncommitted) <img class="size-medium wp-image-181657 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/02/Maren-htting-e1645751509634-300x249.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="249" /> Maren has moved up the rankings in our first update. She is now ranked as the 7th best player in the entire state of Oklahoma. Miss Johnson plays at Jenks High School and also for an amazing club in UPVBC. She was borrowed from her 16’s team as a couple of players could not make it. Playing up in the 18’s division was absolutely no problem for Maren as she was still her dominating self. She was one of the most consistent point scorers from the left side for UPVBC. It was a sight to see as she was able to move the ball around the blocks with ease. This kid was flying everywhere and many college coaches were watching as she did her thing on the court. We will be covering Maren all season long and cannot wait to watch her again soon. She definitely made a name for herself by playing up and playing well.   [player_tooltip player_id="144111" first="Mikiah" last="Perdue"] [2022] 5-10 Middle (HS: Jenks/Club: Ultimate Performance Volleyball/Verbal: Union University) Mikiah is currently ranked as the 15th best overall prospect and the 4th best middle in the 2022 class according to our Prep Dig State Rankings. No one was able to stop this dynamo as she was prolific over the course of the weekend. She was so much fun to watch as she patrolled the net on the defensive side and obliterated overpasses with power. The Union commit was having so much fun with her team while I watched her dominate out of the middle. I loved how she rises up off of the ground so quickly with her approach. Miss Purdue was outstanding and we loved covering her in KC. Stay tuned as she will help UPVBC 18 Open do great things this season.   Sawyer Franz [2023] 5-8 Outside (Club: Ultimate Performance Volleyball/Verbal: Uncommitted) <img class="alignleft wp-image-181658" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/02/Sawyer-Franz-e1645751623693-294x300.jpg" alt="" width="251" height="256" /> Sawyer was fantastic for UPVBC this past weekend in Kansas City. I didn’t expect her to be able to fly as she did from the left side. She is a little undersized at the position compared to other juniors that we have ranked, but don’t sleep on her as she can fly. I love how she drives her feet into the ground with authority and uses her up swing to get up higher and higher with her approach. She took some big rips on the ball when I watched them play. It was a joy to watch her natural bounce and I’m certain that there is more where that came from. Keep your eye on her this season as she is fun to watch.   Kate Ringer [2022] 5-10 Setter (HS: OKC Storm/Club: Ultimate Performance Volleyball/Verbal: Uncommitted) Although currently unranked in our State Rankings, she definitely is playing her way into consideration from what I saw this past weekend. She plays for the Oklahoma City Storm home school team and also club volleyball for the awesome Ultimate Performance Volleyball Club. She has some very deceptive athleticism that was showcased well from the setter position. I loved watching the ball come out of her soft hands as she made it look very smooth. This kid has some serious game. She was dishing out dimes in the match I watched to all of her hitters and was very consistent with her location. She had a lot of people oohing and aahing at her jump sets out of system. UPVBC 18 Open was very competitive due to her high level setting. Stay tuned for more on Miss Ringer.   As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes. If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at nov8vb@yahoo.com. Also don’t forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends. Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook. Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Oklahoma Family! Don’t be afraid to interact with us. We love the likes, shares, and quotes/comments. Keep them coming!