The Future is now for Crank-It Volleyball
Six 14U Middle and Outside Hitters coming up By Michael Selecky Contributing Writer The Crank-It Volleyball Club in Macomb County has three 14U teams. This includes 14U Blair and 14U Marzicola, but the top squad in this age bracket for…
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Continue ReadingSix 14U Middle and Outside Hitters coming up
By Michael Selecky
Contributing Writer
The Crank-It Volleyball Club in Macomb County has three 14U teams.
This includes 14U Blair and 14U Marzicola, but the top squad in this age bracket for Crank-It is 14U Wakely coached by Kirsten Wakely. With a roster that includes five-foot-five Setter Stephanie Holtcamp from L’Anse Creuse Middle School North and five foot-two Outside Hitter Saniyah Terry of L’Anse Creuse Middle School East this squad certainly has a handle on the class of 2024.
“The setting has been phenomenal. We have two Setters, Elizabeth Kerr and Jadeyn Bisdorf, and run a five-one system. They’re both great. Good servers,” said assistant coach Mike Saier. “They understand the court and the game well. They make good decisions and rotate in the center position. We always have two going through. We’re lucky we have a good, strong core of parents that are involved and committed. That’s pretty much what it takes to keep this going.”
In another world this team would have spent April 18-19 in Detroit at Motor City Madness and May 2-3 in Sandusky, OH., at the Battle of Lake Erie according to Crankitvolleyball.com. But, even if things are currently unclear, that doesn’t mean this team isn’t planning what’s next.
“We want to keep this group together and continue to build. There are multiple girls on this team going to high school together. It’s going to set up a fun situation,” Saier said. “This year we moved up to a National-Select Team. It was a big bump for kids that are 14 years old. That often doesn’t happen until later on. This is the first time our club has done that. We only played in one tournament before the pandemic hit and we won the Presidents Day Challenge (in Lansing Feb. 15-16).”
When it comes to the positions on 14U Wakely that stand out this includes Outside and Middle Hitter, which for this team features talent such as…
BROOKLYN LEWIS
“She has superior court awareness. She’s that kind of player, gets everything that’s going on,” Saier said about this five-foot-eight Middle Hitter from L’Anse Creuse Middle School. “She’s excellent all-around and plays all-the-way-around. Solid server and real aggressive blocker. The best on the team, and aggressive attack. (Lewis) hits from different angles and uses different setting styles. Real good, solid kid.”
JENNA YOUNGBLOOD
“She’s a good learner. She plays the Right Side and completes the block well over there with our Middle. They close it up real good,” Saier said about this five-foot-eight Right Side and Middle Hitter from Anchor Bay Middle School North. “She has super low errors. Doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. High percentage on the court. (Youngblood) is real sneaky with her attack. Her swing is elusive. It’s hard to read. Solid server. Good attitude.”
RACHEL YOUNGBLOOD
“She is solid all the way around. Often she does play all the way around. She’s the tallest on our team and plays real high at the net,” said Saier about this five-foot-nine Outside Hitter from Anchor Bay Middle School North. “(Youngblood) has the best serve-percentage on the team. She has a really wicked float-serve. I don’t think she does it on purpose, but it does it anyways. She’s really athletic and play multiple sports.”
SARAH CURTIS
“Sarah is our live-and-breathe volleyball girl. She’s diehard and exceptional at all positions. (Curtis) has a great jump-serve,” Saier said regarding this five-foot-seven Middle Hitter from L’Anse Creuse Middle School North. “She commits the fewest errors on the team. Her percentage on her kill is amazing. It’s probably better than 95 percent of the girls her age in the state. She’s just really good percentage-wise when it comes to putting the ball in play and scoring.”
NICOLETTE MELIA
“She’ got a great, free spirit. She’s all kinds of fun. She’s also strong at all positions. She’s got a great build for volleyball. (Melia) is athletic, built really strong and has great form at all positions,” said Saier about this five-foot-five Outside Hitter from Anchor Bay Middle School South. “She can do just about everything. She is going to round out real nice.”
JANE MAXWELL
“Jane wasn’t with us the entire year. She had to take care of a small back problem and we only got to practice with her for a couple weeks. She didn’t any game time in her first season with this team,” said Saier in regards to this five-foot-six Outside Hitter from Pierce Middle School. “We’ve had this team assembled for about three years and she’s one of the new girls. (Maxwell) is really confident and willing to learn. She’s strong with a heavy hand. She fit right in coming in late in the season. It’s unfortunate we didn’t get her on the court, but we’re looking forward to seeing more of what she can do.”