Houston II Top 250 Expo – DZ’s Top Performers Vol 3

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We were very excited to see all of the players who had signed up for our Top 250 Expo in Houston Session II.&nbsp; We had some amazing players from all over the state sign up to show their skills.&nbsp; Many players stood out to our court coaches and scouts throughout the entire expo for a variety of reasons.&nbsp; Some players stood out for their dynamic physical skills and some stood out for intangibles like leadership, effort and attitude.&nbsp; I was scouting from the live stream on BallerTV and also have been watching the replay over and over to evaluate.&nbsp; There were some awesome players.&nbsp; Let's meet a few of the players who earned the honor of Top Performer at the Expo.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='486953' first='Macy' last='Cepeda'] [2026] 5-10 Setter/Right Side (HS: Leander/Club: Roots/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Macy is currently an unranked prospect in the 2026 Class according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings.  She plays for Leander High School and also club for the Roots volleyball program.  Miss Cepeda wowed our scouts and court coaches at the Expo with her on court play.  While I was watching via the live stream on BallerTV, the lefty was silky smooth on offense as her left arm sliced through the air to kill the ball.  She is a gifted setter who can also distribute the rock well.  Because of her frame, strength and height, she is a valuable contributor at the net while blocking.  I liked how she battled against everyone well and her stock is definitely on the rise from what I witnessed with her game play.  By the way she plays the game and the way she moves on the court, you can tell that she has a lot of experience at many different positions.  This kind of versatility is key to be seen at the next level.  Please help us congratulate her on earning the Top Performer award for this showcase. <strong><a href="https://www.prepdig.com/player/alyssa-manitzas/"></a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mckenzie Dearborne&nbsp;[2026] 5-7 Outside (HS: Heights/Club: MoCo Mavs/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mckenzie is an unranked prospect in the 2026 Class according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings.&nbsp; She plays at Heights High School and also plays for the MoCo Mavs volleyball club program. &nbsp;Miss Dearborne showed some awesome skills while I watched the Expo.&nbsp; From what I saw of her as an attacker, Mckenzie has great control over the ball with a wide open hand at contact.&nbsp; This allows her to move the ball around to many different locations to try to score.&nbsp; By being slightly undersized at the attacker position, it is key for her to move her hand contact and arm swing around.&nbsp; She was constantly trying to score in a variety of ways including high, hard, and deep shots along with off-speed and tips to open spots in the defense.&nbsp; As a defensive specialist, her ball control was on point and she did extremely well in serve receive.&nbsp; Please help us congratulate her on earning a Top Performer award.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='490856' first='Sydney' last='Crowder'] [2027] 6-1 Middle/Outside (HS: Paetow/Club: Houston Skyline/Verbal: Uncommitted)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sydney is currently an unranked prospect in the 2027 Class according to our Prep Dig Texas State Rankings.&nbsp; She plays at Paetow High School and also for the Houston Skyline club program.&nbsp; Miss Crowder shined very bright at the Expo with her skills at the net.&nbsp; Her awesome vertical really caught my eye, but I kept watching because of her awesome high contact point.&nbsp; I think she has some untapped skills that will definitely continue to grow as she gets stronger and gain more experience.&nbsp; Her court coaches agreed that she was a bright star and all nominated her for an award.&nbsp; Her blocking was astounding with how well she pressed over the net.&nbsp; If she works on her lateral movement along the net to close the block, it will be lights out for everyone who goes up against her.&nbsp; We will be watching her growth very closely and you should also.&nbsp; Please help us congratulate her on earning a Top Performer award from our showcase.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are many more amazing players that will be written about.&nbsp; 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:Michael@prepdig.com">Michael@prepdig.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 Prep Dig Family!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->