Unseen Heavy Hitters: Class of 2024 Kill Leaders I Missed

Even though I made it to a large number of high school games in 2023, there were several hitting stars in the Class of 2024 that I did not get to see play in person.   Of the top 20 hitters according to stats recorded on Max Preps I missed nine of those players and saw 11 of them play in 2023.   Here is that group of heavy hitters in Kansas who sadly were not seen by eyes during the 2023 season. I hope to be able to catch a majority of them during the upcoming club season.   [player_tooltip player_id='172456' first='Fisayo' last='Afonja'], 5'10, OH, Baldwin, ‘24 (pictured above)   Here is a rock star hitter that I heard a whole lot about, but did not get to see in person. Afonja finished her senior season with 567 kills in 100 sets played. She finished with over 1,000 kills for her high school career.   Alex Bittner, 5'9”, OH/DS, Cheney, ‘24   Bittner was a six-rotation cog for the Cardinals. She collected 521 kills during 94 sets played in her senior campaign. That was a huge increase from the 193 kills she recorded as a junior. Bittner helped guide Cheney to a fourth-place finish in the Class 3A state tournament.   [player_tooltip player_id='119697' first='Lauren' last='Brummet'], 5'11”, OH/MH, Lakeside, ‘24   I saw Brummet play as a freshman in 2020, but have yet to catch the Knights since. She finished her senior season with 426 kills in 83 sets played. Brummet finished her high school career as a member of the 1,000-kill club with 1,260 kills in four seasons of varsity action.   [player_tooltip player_id='119722' first='Karoline' last='Schroeder'], 5'7”, OH, Wheatfield-Grinnell, ‘24   Schroeder was accustomed to bringing the thunder on her attacks for the Thunderhawks. She racked up an impressive total of 417 kills in 94 sets played as a senior. Schroeder helped the Thunderhawks qualify for the Class 1A DII state tournament.   [player_tooltip player_id='119716' first='Brenna' last='Smith'], 5'10”, OH, St. Mary's, ‘24   This one really hurts because St. Mary's is a school close to where I live, but I just never at any of the small school matches I scouted this season. Smith had a solid season and finished with 409 kills in 85 sets played.   [player_tooltip player_id='515445' first='Jaxi' last='Mitchek'], 5'9”, OH, Goodland, ‘24   Goodland has a three-sport prospect in Mitchek. She plays basketball and softball for Goodland as well as volleyball. She collected 404 kills in 100 sets played in 2023. According to Max Preps, she finished just seven kills short of 1,000 for her career. I hope that number is wrong and she made it.   Kolbie Bartlett, 5'9”, OH/RS, Bennington, ‘24   One of the best junior high basketball games I ever had came against Bennington. A return to the home of the Bulldogs to see Bartlett would have been nice. The senior, who can play, multiple positions, finished with 398 kills in 86 sets played.   [player_tooltip player_id='119708' first='Rachel' last='Van Gorp'], 5'9”, OH, Heritage Christian Academy, ‘24   I saw Van Gorp play club ball last season but never caught the Chargers in action in 2023. She finished with 397 kills in 98 sets played. She did finish her high school career as a member of the 1,000-kill club with over 1,500 high school kills. Van Gorp also finished her high school playing days with a Class 3A state title as the Chargers won their fourth straight state volleyball championship.   Taylor Wieshaar, 6'2”, MH, Riverside, ‘24   Wieshaar rounds out this group of killing machines. She registered 383 kills for the Riverside Cyclones in just 63 sets played.

Even though I made it to a large number of high school games in 2023, there were several hitting stars in the Class of 2024 that I did not get to see play in person.