2025 Florida Rankings: New Exceptional Middle Blockers Pt. 1

<p>The middle blocker position is one of my favorite positions to give a shoutout and love to. They are always under-rated when compared to the other positions on the court no matter how hard and strenuous their position really is. Each of these middle prospects bring their own flavor and style to the position. These prospects show not only why they are deserving of being on the rankings list but how different builds and skills still work at a high level of play.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='499504' first='Taryn' last='Newton'] (#44)</h2>   <p>I've been able to coach against Taryn since she was balling out in the 13's and 14's division. She brings a different level of height, size, length profile to the position standing at around 6'5" with a long wingspan and quick feet. She is a multi-sport athlete where a lot of her time is spent playing softball versus volleyball. The last time I saw her play club was back in 2018 when she was playing club for a team a couple years older than her standard age group. Back then and even more-so nowadays Taryn has found her groove on her hitting and blocking. It's not just the size but the technicality she has for not playing year round club. She has an absolute whip while using her height to her advantage against opposing defenses. Her block is pretty much impenetrable when she gets her feet there and her eyes on the hitter. She's such a special prospect that I've even had the opportunity to try to convince her to stay in volleyball compared to the great things she does on the softball field. She's an unbelievable athlete who definitely earned her spot on this list even without playing club for the past few years. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='499515' first='Mya' last='Rutherford'] (#71)</h2>   <p>Mya may not be the most athletic player I have ever watched, but she's the type of player that really has no major weaknesses at the position she's asked to play. She's the player that coaches don't have to worry about working hard or putting her best effort on the court. She's consistently on time on her hitting tempo's no matter if she's running in front, away, or behind the setter. Although she has only played the sport for a couple of years, she has been able to pick up a lot of the harder concepts for most athletes to be consistent at. Yet Mya is one of the most reliable options I have seen on the rankings list when it comes to her ability to do her job to the best of her ability as often as possible. The one part of her game that really impresses me is the vision and eye work that she's been able to gain over such a short amount of time. When you watch her on film you can see her adapting to the situations that are given to her both offensively hitting or placing the ball into spots or defensively getting her eyes on the ball and the hitter.</p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='499516' first='Riley' last='Greene'] (#73)</h2>   <p>I've had the pleasure of coaching Riley at the University of Tampa summer camps a few years back. She was a super raw and athletic player with not a ton of skill developed at that time. I've been able to watch her both in person and on film recently, and she has transformed into a whole different player. She's not just a good middle but dynamic on both sides of the court. Her skills have improved drastically especially on the offensive end. Her arm swing is nice and fluid which allows her to bring her arm and body through her swing really fast. The difference in her swing and a lot of other middles on the rankings list is Riley's ability to use both off speed and fast swings effectively. She's able to hide what she's going to do to the ball until the very last second forcing the defense to get on their heels. When you watch her blocking, she's very aggressive with her feet to close the block but the balance and control to press her arms and hands over the net back into the court. Riley is one of those players that is only going to keep improving and I won't be surprised when she's killing it at the next level. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='499518' first='Mckayla' last='Stockwell'] (#74)</h2>   <p>Mckayla's arm swing might be one of the prettiest I have watched from the middle prospects in my rankings. Her swing is immaculate because of the combination of smoothness and control. She has full control of where she wants to hit the ball to whether that's full swings or even shots. She has so much range and athleticism that it almost seems like she's able to jump and look around the court before having to swing around the block. It definitely helps when she does a great job with her footwork to close to her setter on close quick sets or to close to the ball on a further set like a 3 or a slide. When you combine her ability to move fast laterally, jump high, and swing fast it creates the type of prospect that almost any program would love to have on their team. As much as I love her offense, those same attributes she shows on the offensive end is why she's able to be dominate on the defensive side of the court as well. One of my favorite parts of her game outside of her arm swing is how quickly she presses her hands over the net when blocking. Mckayla is a prospect that I will be looking into even for my own college program and will definitely be contacted by many others in the near future. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[player_tooltip player_id='499524' first='Kayden' last='Barber'] (#77)</h2>   <p>Kayden might be one of the hardest working players I have seen in a long time. It seems like her motor never turns off with how often she's sprinting along the net defensively or transitioning on and off the net offensively. Kayden is a perfect example of what coaches look for on everything outside of the volleyball skills whether it's attitude, effort, teamwork, or even overall team vibe. She brings a different level of tenacity to the position as well as her teams. Along with all of the intangibles, Kayden is a very strong all around player. Although she is definitely on the shorter side for the position, her never ending relentless attitude and determination is only scratching the surface of what she brings to her team. She has all of the athleticism you could ask of an athlete both laterally side to side and vertically on her block and hit approaches. Once she's in the air about to hit the ball, she has the option to unleash her power on the ball or give the team a change-up shot. She uses her vision to make those quick decisions in the air and is good enough technically on those skills to be able to execute. Kayden has one of the faster arm swings in her class while having the level of control that is needed at the level her teams play at. Kayden is one of my favorite prospects to watch yet she still has so much more room to grow as a player.</p>   <p><a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/18935123/65a79704ab92080c34d931db">https://www.hudl.com/video/3/18935123/65a79704ab92080c34d931db</a></p>   <p>As you've been able to read, each of these prospects stand out for what they bring to their team. Whether it's Taryn's size or Kayden's quickness, each of these prospects have found ways to be successful. I can't wait to see how each of these players use this upcoming club season to take their game to the next level. </p>

The middle blocker position is one of my favorite positions to give a shoutout and love to. They are always under-rated when compared to the other positions on the court no matter how hard and strenuous their position really is. Each of these middle prospects bring their own flavor and style to the position. These prospects show not only why they are deserving of being on the rankings list but how different builds and skills still work at a high level of play.