Volleypalooza Champions – Cornerstone Christian Warriors

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Volleypalooza tournament was held at a few of the Central Texas high school gyms this weekend August 25-27^th.&nbsp; There were 68 of the most talented teams from across the state competing in this awesome tournament. &nbsp;This is widely regarded as the toughest tournament in the nation.&nbsp; It proved to be one fantastic weekend of competition for everyone.&nbsp; I was super happy to have been there in person to witness the best battle the best.&nbsp; The cream of the crop rise on day three in the Gold bracket and there were some amazing matches.&nbsp; Only one team can be crowned as champion though.&nbsp; Please help us congratulate the Volleypalooza Champions, Cornerstone Christian.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This team is stacked with NCAA Division I talent all over its roster.&nbsp; They showed just how talented they are by going through the first two pools undefeated without dropping a set.&nbsp; Their biggest test came in the first round of the Gold bracket when they went up against the uber athletic Cypress Ranch squad.&nbsp; This was the only time that they were truly tested to three sets.&nbsp; Both teams stood toe to toe in the center of the ring and traded power punches all match long.&nbsp; Cornerstone won the three-setter (22-25, 25-20, 26-24).&nbsp; It was probably the best overall match of the tourney and some say it could have been the finals if they were on different sides of the bracket.&nbsp; They then faced last year's 6A State runner up Keller who battled them pretty well.&nbsp; Cornerstone would eventually come out on top (25-19, 25-23).&nbsp; This set them up against another private school with a star-studded roster, Prestonwood Christian.&nbsp; The championship match had its moments of awesomeness but Cornerstone was just too much for their opponent as they won the title in straight sets (25-21, 25-15).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While we could mention something about every player, these are the players who stood out the most while I watched.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='87528' first='Nayeli' last='Gonzalez'] [2023] 6-2 Outside (HS: Cornerstone Christian/Club: Alamo/Verbal: Iowa State University)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":221280,"width":239,"height":249,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/08/Nayeli-Gonzalez-scaled-e1661702310130.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-221280" width="239" height="249"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Nayeli is currently ranked as the 3^rd best overall prospect in the 2023 class in the entire state of Texas.&nbsp; She is also listed as the 30^th best overall prospect in the nation according to our national rankings.&nbsp; She plays at Cornerstone Christian High School and also the famed Alamo club program out of the San Antonio area.&nbsp; We have covered her a few times over the last couple of years during club and she has only gotten better and better.&nbsp; The amount of power that this young woman has in her entire body is amazing.&nbsp; She already plays the game at a college level and it is so much fun to watch.&nbsp; I almost feel sorry for the ball as her heavy hand makes contact with it.&nbsp; Her presence was felt on both sides as she was a blocking machine while playing middle during certain rotations.&nbsp; Offensively she was a juggernaut as she unleashed bomb after bomb on her opponent.&nbsp; She was named to the All-Tournament team as the best blocker.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='87532' first='Taylor' last='Anderson'] [2023] 6-0 Setter/Right Side (HS: Cornerstone Christian/Club: Alamo/Verbal: Purdue University)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"left","id":221281,"width":219,"height":244,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignleft size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/08/Taylor-Anderson-serving-better-scaled-e1661702417795-918x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-221281" width="219" height="244"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Taylor is currently ranked as the 6^th best overall prospect and top setter in the 2023 class in the entire state of Texas.&nbsp; She is also listed as the 26^th best overall prospect in the nation according to our national rankings.&nbsp; She plays at Cornerstone Christian High School and also the famed Alamo club program out of the San Antonio area.&nbsp; Taylor was masterful moving the ball around to her teammates.&nbsp; She delivered some beautiful sets all over the court and looked so smooth doing it.&nbsp; Her athleticism was on full display as she tracked down every ball from her passers really well.&nbsp; Since Cornerstone runs a six-two offense, she stays in the front row as an attacker/blocker and she is extremely effective at both.&nbsp; She showed a lot of explosiveness off of the ground on the right side and shut down a lot of opposing left sides.&nbsp; As she rises up so high, she is able to press and seal the net so well so that there is very little space for a hitter to attack.&nbsp; She also uses her lightning quick arm as a hitter and scores efficiently for her squad.&nbsp; Miss Anderson earned Most Valuable Player for the tournament.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='99495' first='Alyssa' last='Manitzas'] [2023] 5-0 Libero (HS: Cornerstone Christian/Club: Alamo/Verbal: Notre Dame)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":221282,"width":178,"height":257,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/08/Alyssa-Manitzas-scaled-e1661702492340-711x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-221282" width="178" height="257"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Alyssa is currently ranked as the 4^th best overall prospect and top libero in the 2023 class in the entire state of Texas.&nbsp; She plays at Cornerstone Christian High School and also the famed Alamo club program out of the San Antonio area.&nbsp; If I was walking in a dark alley and had to have someone with me as protection, I would choose Alyssa every day and twice on Sundays.&nbsp; This young lady is a pitbull and afraid of nothing.&nbsp; She routinely pushes her body beyond its limits and lays out if need be to keep the rally going.&nbsp; I love how she collapses while digging hard driven balls to soften the contact.&nbsp; Her defense is top notch and I would put her against any libero in the country.&nbsp; Her volleyball IQ is off the charts and you can see it as she always is one step ahead of everyone on the defensive end.&nbsp; She has ice running through her veins during tight moments and hardly ever succumbs to pressure.&nbsp; Her efforts on defense were one of the main reasons why this team won the title.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>They play an independent schedule and travel a lot for tournaments.&nbsp; It is my contention that they are one of the best teams in the nation and they should be able to prove it as they battle others from across the country this season.&nbsp; Whoever should win the UIL 6A State title should thank the heavens that they don't have to face this squad.&nbsp; Other notable standouts for this team during the tournament were super sophomore outside hitter [player_tooltip player_id='182110' first='Megan' last='Fitch'], junior right side [player_tooltip player_id='124114' first='Grace' last='Carroll'], senior middle Hannah Spencer and senior outside [player_tooltip player_id='99501' first='Rylee' last='Busse'].&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As always stay tuned for more articles on your favorite athletes.&nbsp; If you have anyone you think we should watch out for, please shoot me an email with some info at <a href="mailto:nov8vb@yahoo.com">nov8vb@yahoo.com</a>.&nbsp; Also don't forget to help these kids get more exposure by sharing our stories with your friends.&nbsp; Help us help them by simply retweeting on Twitter or sharing on Facebook.&nbsp; Thanks for following us, Prep Dig Texas Family!&nbsp; Don't be afraid to interact with us.&nbsp; We love the likes, shares, and quotes/comments.&nbsp; Keep them coming!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->