Where are the top players in the tournament playing college volleyball?
Title Photo: Hannah Vanden Berg of Little Chute
Photo Cred: Appleton Post Crescent
To the average volleyball fan, it’s easy to see talent and say, “Wow, she’s really good”. Believe it or not, the state of Wisconsin brings some of the top prep players out of the Midwest and even the country. This week will bring some of them together featuring some of the best in the state going to schools across the country. Here are some “future” stories lines and a list of committed players who will be playing at a high level once high school is done.
SEC Connection:
Being in the middle of Big Ten Country, you don’t often hear of SEC volleyball in Wisconsin. There are three athletes who will be playing in the SEC which is definitely on the rise in the world of NCAA volleyball. Maggie Cartwright, the high flying, powerful hitter from Kimberly will be heading to Arkansas. She recently reached the 1,000 kill mark in her career. Maddie Berezowitz is literally a blue blood with family who has some coaching ties to Kentucky football. Berezowitz is a gritty defender from Burlington who will be a great fit for the Wildcats. Speaking of solid defenders, Caitlyn Crawford of Oconomowoc has over 400 digs this season and will be heading to play volleyball at South Carolina.
The Milwaukee Crew:
There will be two Marquette commits in Sam Naber from Burlington who made a splash on to the scene last year as a Freshman when Burlington won the title. Hannah Vanden Berg of Little Chute is also committed to Marquette and has over 700 kills on the year. The Mustangs have only one loss this season.
Kaley Blake of Burlington has committed to play at UW-MilwaukeeUW-Milwaukee has been picking up quite the momentum of in-state recruits. Senior Ari Miller from KML will be heading to play for the Panthers next Fall followed by Kaley Blake of Burlington, a standout setter who has been playing in the state title game every year of her career so far.
The Loyola Pipeline:
Loyola in Chicago is under first year head coach, Amanda Berkley, who is actually sisters with Milwaukee coach, Susie Johnson. The Ramblers have already dramatically improved their win record since last year and will be adding five Wisconsin recruits to the roster in the next two years. At the state tournament this year is Emily Banitt of River Falls and Karlie “KJ” McNabb from Sun Prairie. These two athletes are flat out dynamite. They are scrappy on defense, fly high on the outside, and the common denominator between them is they just have that edge to win every time they step on the court.
Sources: RichKern.com, Twitter, Prep Dig Wisconsin Database (If there are any updates on commits please let us know!)
Arrowhead
Aubrey Hamilton – Junior – Notre Dame
Elise Schneider – Junior – Wofford
Waukesha West
Anna Holland – Sophomore – Seton Hall
Burlington
Kaley Blake – Junior – UW-Milwaukee
Maddie Berezowitz – Senior – Kentucky
Sam Naber – Sophomore – Marquette
Kimberly
Maggie Cartwright – Arkansas
River Falls
Emily Bannit – Junior – Loyola (Chicago)
Maddi Kealy – Junior – Minnesota – Duluth
Anna Wolf – Sophomore – Minnesota
Greendale
Kayce Litzau – Senior – Wichita State
Oconomowoc
Tayler Alden – Northern Iowa
Caitlin Crawford – South Carolina
Sun Prairie
Karlie “KJ” McNabb – Loyola (Chicago)
Kettle Moraine Lutheran
Ari Miller – UW-Milwaukee
Little Chute
Hannah Vanden Berg – Marquette
East Troy
Brianna Scuric – Northern Illinois
Living Word Lutheran
Keri Walker – Northern State (SD)