High School Pre-Season Spotlight: Ridge Point

<p>July signals the start of season prep for high schools around the state. One of our pre-season spotlight teams is the Ridge Point High School Lady Panthers. After coming off a stellar 38-11 season, head coach Lauryn Baily is excited to bring back a very mature squad. Below we will highlight some of the lady panther athletes, and coach Baily’s keys to success for another successful playoff run.</p> <p>Ridge Point won their district in 2021 with a perfect 14-0 record. Returning to this squad is outside hitter<span style="color: #0000ff;"><strong> [player_tooltip player_id="87531" first="Sydney" last="Jordan"]. </strong><span style="color: #000000;">Sydney, a University of Colorado commit, is slated to return as Ridge Point’s leading offensive weapon in her senior season. A solid 6 rotation player, Sydney is able to provide her team with great passing and hitting. Another senior who will have some offensive responsibility is Mississippi State commit, <span style="color: #0000ff;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="87548" first="Arissa" last="Smith"]</strong></span> In the middle position, Arissa is strong, aggressive, and commands the court at the net. She is looking to have a great senior season and help lead her team on another deep playoff run. Other seniors looking to make a positive impact are defensive specialists <span style="color: #0000ff;"><strong>Ava Thornquist</strong></span> and <strong><span style="color: #0000ff;">Josie Condrey</span></strong>. Coach Baily is looking at these battle-tested seniors to set the tone for this year. She says they have done a great job so far of holding everyone accountable and pushing everyone to give their best.</span></span></p> <p>The Lady Panthers have a strong junior class as well. With <span style="color: #0000ff;"><span style="caret-color: #0000ff;"><b>[player_tooltip player_id="179873" first="Carrington" last="Cook"] </b></span></span>returning, she will bring more offense for the lady panthers. Cook has just ended a great season with HJV 16 Premier and is looking to put her skills to use this fall. She plays 6 rotations and you will often see her flying out of the back row for an attack that is very hard to defend. Returner <strong><span style="color: #0000ff;">[player_tooltip player_id="177547" first="Morgan" last="Grace"]</span></strong>, who plays for Houston Skyline, will be in the mix this season, as well as utility player <strong><span style="color: #0000ff;">[player_tooltip player_id="124106" first="Lauren" last="Battle"]</span></strong> who was also a part of HJV 16 Premier. Lauren played a variety of positions for Ridge Point last season, passing as well as hitting outside when needed.</p> <p>Rounding out Ridge Point’s potential impactful players are sophomore pin hitters,<strong><span style="color: #0000ff;"> Aaliyah Smith,</span></strong> and <strong><span style="color: #0000ff;">Kennedi Rodgers</span></strong>. These two played together on HJV 15 Premier this off-season. They both have a heavy arm swing on the outside and can bring some major offense for Ridge Point this upcoming season. Not only do they bring a great skill set, but they bring passion and excitement to the team as well. </p> <p>The Lady Panther volleyball team is loaded all the way around. After losing a 3-2 heart breaker in the final 4 last year to Keller High School, this team is eager to get back. Coach Baily says this team wants it and knows what it takes to make a run at it again. Ridge Point’s senior leadership and volleyball IQ will play a key role in their success this fall. </p>