Out of Preseason and Into Regular Season: '24 Daring Defenders

They may be small, but boy are they mighty. Their job has everything to do with keeping the ball off the ground, and these defenders take what it's like to have a defensive mindset, to a whole new level. Here are the top five 2024 uncommitted defenders in the Chicagoland area that you want to keep your eye on heading into their high school seasons:   [player_tooltip player_id='135946' first='Samantha' last='Falk'] (L/DS)- Mother McAuley High School   Sam is everything and more. She is quick on her feet and deliberately gives her setter a quality first-ball contact to keep her team's offense running smoothly. She is willing to make plays all over the court, so you can do your best to avoid hitting to her controlled platform as a hitter, but I can't guarantee she won't find a way to make a play on a ball sent anywhere on her side of the net. Her great defensive reads help her understand the game quicker and establish an unreal defensive standard on her court.   Sophia Boumans (L/DS)- Montini Catholic High School   Sophia is a natural athlete and an absolute baller. Watching her you can tell she owns the court and is the kind of libero that would run through a wall to save a ball for her teammates. Sophia is the kind of teammate you want to play harder for simply because of how hard she plays. She has a great understanding of how to get the ball to her setter by using her athletic defensive moves and aggressive angles. Her serve receive range is great and she can cover more than half the passing line solo, thanks to how well she can track serves out of the server's hand. Much of her quickness and great read on the ball surely has to come from training and competing in the sand, on top of her playing indoor.   [player_tooltip player_id='136627' first='Alexis' last='Byas'] (L/DS)- Lincoln Way East High School   Disciplined is the best way to describe Alexis and how she plays. She is explosive and isn't afraid to get her body behind any attack heading her way. She does a great job staying low in defense, which helps her make explosive defensive moves making her get under balls quick and assists in her being able to cover a huge defensive range producing quality digs. Her explosiveness helps her in all aspects of her game, including her feet in serve receive. She can aggressively push her feet to adjust her serve receive positioning and give her setter a three-level pass.   Reilly Chausse (L/DS)- Carl Sandburg High School   Reilly can take any hard-driven ball that is hit her way. She knows how to maneuver not only her platform but her body to put up a dig that gives her teammates time to get in position to put the ball away. On top of her defensive grit, her serve is a real threat to anyone on the other side of the net. She serves a fast-paced float that stays low to the tape and gets on the passers quick. Her serve gives passers little time to decide on an angle to pass with or to get their feet in the right position to put up a quality ball.   [player_tooltip player_id='135949' first='Kiley' last='Mahoney'] (L/DS)- Lyons Township High School   Kiley's volleyball IQ can be seen in the first rally you watch her. She has a great understanding of the goal to make plays using her controlled platform, but that isn't always the case when the game speed picks up. She does a great job of using her body to control the ball without only relying on her platform to do the work, especially in serve receive. Her middle-back experience this last club season has helped her see the game differently, making her defensive reads almost always on point. The best part about her play is that while she trusts her read very well, when that read isn't accurate she is more than willing to make a play on the ball and understands her responsibility in keeping the ball off the ground.

They may be small, but boy are they mighty. Their job has everything to do with keeping the ball off the ground, and these defenders take what it's like to have a defensive mindset, to a whole new level. Here are the top five 2024 uncommitted defenders in the Chicagoland area that you want to keep your eye on heading into their high school seasons: