Early Bird Shootout: Available Players, Part 2

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the club season rapidly approaching, the Early Bird Shootout, hosted by Circle City, has 40+ courts available to give teams something more than "practice scrimmaging" available for teams of all levels and age groups. The four teams (and eight players) listed below can be found at the Academy, and will have their courts listed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Circle City 18 Black (Academy Courts 1 &amp; 2)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 18-2 program from the host club has a ton of talent from multiple recruiting classes as well as kids that have already committed to play somewhere next fall. A pair of solid pickups for both this fall and next fall come from the same high school. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='110493' first='Abby' last='Sollenberger'] ('24, 6-1 MB, Brownsburg)</strong> has a ton of high-level experience at not only her high school but through Circle as well. She's a big and strong middle that does best as the M2 with a strong right side next to her. She takes up a ton of space on the block, and is fully capable of putting away heavy swings on a regular basis. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='286678' first='Payton' last='Hinkle'] ('23, 5-4 DS/L, Brownsburg)</strong> is an exceptional defender that has no problem taking the first contact in either serve receive or defense. She can play any of the back row positions at the next level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>NCISVBC 18-1 (Academy Court 4)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is the first time I've noticed the North Central Indiana Sand VBC at any tournament I'm attending, let alone at this Early Bird Shootout. Located in the Lafayette area, the 18-1 program is the flagship of the three teams mentioned, and they train both the hard court and sand court disciplines of our sport. A couple of kids to keep an eye on are <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='108606' first='Sydney' last='Swan'] ('23, 5-10 OH, Clinton Prairie)</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='286675' first='Jaycee' last='Strawsma'] ('24, 5-11 MB, Benton Central).</strong> Sydney has been on my radar for quite some time, and should excel at being a six-rotation primary-passing outside at the next level. Jaycee could play any of the front-row positions for three rotations, but would be best suited as a middle for purposes of recruiting because of the combination of athleticism and length. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Circle City 17 Black (Academy Courts 2 &amp; 3)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As part of an overlap with another pool at the Academy, the 17-2 at Circle will have their hands full in the 17/18 division on Sunday. Two kids that should earn a ton of attention in the near future are <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='155214' first='Reanna' last='Lee'] ('25, 6-0 MB, McCutcheon)</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='171378' first='Raegan' last='Stader'] ('24, 5-9 OH, Monrovia).</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='155214' first='Reanna' last='Lee'] plays bigger than her size indicates and can be terminal on both offense and defense. Raegan was forced to play middle at Monrovia, but should see a ton of pin time in club this spring. She's a springy athlete with a whip of an arm that jumps well. Her speed and athleticism make up for her smaller stature.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Union 17-2 UA (Academy Courts 1 &amp; 2)</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Speaking of a tough schedule on Sunday, the 17-2 at Union will be playing among a bunch of bigger and older teams in their pool. No worries, though---setters <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='142822' first='Meredith' last='Slaton'] ('24, 5-6 S, Scottsburg)</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='286684' first='Nevaeh' last='Griffin'] ('24, 5-5 S, Jeffersonville)</strong> should run a solid offense through a Kentucky-heavy roster. Although both will be solid pickups for a college program as a 6-2 setter, I would not be surprised if either kid ran a 5-1 from time to time this spring to see what they're capable of.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->