High Flying Pins Breaking the Mold

One of the greatest outsides in volleyball history was a Cuban named Luis Mireya. She won gold medals in 1992, 1996 and 2000. In 2004 she was inducted into the International Hall of Fame. Her height was 5'9". All you need to do is query her name on You Tube to find many of her highlights.   Now, the average height for an outside hitter on the U.S. National team is around 6'1" while still continuing to grow. Middles and right sides tend to average about 6'3" while setters sprout to 6'0". As an old Bob Dyan song kept repeating - the times they are a changing. The difference between 5'9" and 6'1" is about four inches. Take a ruler out to see how much territory four inches covers. Not a lot but enough when you get to the higher levels.   Theoretically, if a 5'9" player has an approach jump of 10'2" while the 6'1" hitter can only bring it to 9'10" everything should be equal. However, the reality exists that the higher the level you play the greater the challenge. At some point the Darwinian theory of survival creeps in. You run into more 6'1" players who can approach jump 10'5". So now your advantage is crushed.   Below are some outsides who wish to break the mold that an outside hitter must stand 6'1". It is not an easy task. The odds are probably stacked against them. However, sometimes it is always fun to try to mess with the odds. I wish them all success.   Jeremy already talked about two class of 2027 players [player_tooltip player_id='464573' first='Blake' last='Crawford'] at 5'8" and [player_tooltip player_id='536741' first='Lacey' last='Bogues'] at 5'7", already bucking the trend by having success hitting from the outside. Blake led her [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'] to a second place finish in the 16U Division at Volley by the James while Lacey led her [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] 17U team to a second place finish. Below are some additional smaller outsides to keep an eye on.    Rujuta won a top performer award at our Prep Dig frosh showcase a couple years ago. What initially attracted me to her was her hands as she was setting to her playing partner. I thought it was the net for setters, but she surprised me when she told me she was with the hitters. My first thought was that if she couldn't make it as a hitter, she certainly had the hands to set   Watching her further she also impressed me with her back row play, making some incredible diving digs on hard driven balls, chasing balls into the spectator area while also passing nails on serve receive. The potential exists for her to make an incredible libero. However, the libero candidates are many.   What she does incredibly well is she hits the ball hard while finding the open spots on the court. During her frosh season she rocketed a ball through the block to give Langley a 15-13 win in the fifth set of the Class 6 state championship defeating Chantilly and Lameen Mambu. An incredible feat by a frosh at the time.   She continues to hit outside for a [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] team that is one of the strongest teams in the country. Advanced Event System ranks them at 75. Normally, they rely on taller players to fill their front row positions. Soon, [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] will compete in the Triple Crown so the challenge for Rujuta will be to continue that success as she plays against elite competetion.   A solid all around player who will not intimidate you with her size or her 9'4" approach jump but beware of that volleyball IQ.    [player_tooltip player_id='536717' first='London' last='Jones'] (Thomas Dale/[program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club']) - London has not grown much since I first saw her with [program_tooltip program_id='498495' first='Richmond' last='Volleyball Club'], playing up on the 15 team. She lists at 5'7" but when standing next to her 6'1" teammate [player_tooltip player_id='768375' first='Alexis' last='VerMeer'] she appears very tiny. Watch her warm up and she uses her tremendous athleticism to reach 10'2" with her approach jump. Her block touch reaches 9'9". Despite her small height and right handed swing she plays right side. However, the setters vary their location along the net so her hits can come from anywhere. Because she rotates out for the setters, I have not seen her back row play. When she was younger she struggled in the back row but that was a couple years ago. She lacks an internet footprint but is definitely a player to watch.   [player_tooltip player_id='787533' first='Chika' last='Onukwugha'] (Guillford Park/Metro travel) - Another player who impressed me early but has failed to sprout as she ages. While she lists at 5'8" she appears to have an older sister who played for John Hopkins that played at 6'2". So there still could be some late growth. Her jump touch reaches 10 feet. Last year the Metro 15U team won the National Championship in the National Division. For her play Chika was named to the all tournament team. When she plays she fills all six rotations, allowing her to create offense when in the back row. Ideally, she will grow a little to meet the challenges as she rises to play at the older age level. However, even at her current height it would be hard to find a player that hits the ball to the floor with her velocity.   [player_tooltip player_id='321678' first='Elaina' last='Murphy'] )South Carroll) - Because she played at the same age level as [player_tooltip player_id='303701' first='Caydence' last='Doolan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='301696' first='Nadiya' last='Johnson'] there was not a lot of room for a 5'6' outside hitter among a group that stood on average 6'3". So, she stayed hidden on the Metro North regional team. While they played in a few qualifiers the team was never at the level to challenge for a bid.   Even at 5'6" Elaina impresses with the velocity she can put on the ball hitting from the front and back row. It helps that she accomplishes this with a 10 foot approach jump. Just an amazing athletic player ranked number 61 in our class of 2026. This year she will play for the Metro travel team. The expectation is they will use her as a back row attacker but she could see some front row. The Baltimore Sun twice voted her player of the year for Carroll County. Surprisingly, she has yet to commit.    Early in her career, when she played for Virginia Juniors and even Madison high school they used her in the back row as an attacker. On occasion she would hit from the right side, however the pins were filled with players greater than 6'0".   This past season Madison found they could use her on the right side to create a more consistent offense than a taller player could deliver. For Madison she actually finished second on her team in kills and despite her 5'9" height second in blocks.   This year she will bring her 9'6" approach jump to Virginia Elite to continue to create offense from the right side. Ever since I have seen her play she seems focused on hitting from the right side. For Virginia Elite she may get some opportunities on the left.   Because she hits the ball so hard from the back row while also playing a steady defense you want her there as a six rotation player. If she plays right side running a 6/2 you lose her back row play. It would be ideal to establish an offense that accentuates her strength.     On a lesser team Kayla could perform on the left side. However, she plays for [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] and they are loaded with Division I committed pins that reach 10'2" or greater with their approach jump. Kayla can reach 9'4" but on this team that relegates her to back row play if she hopes to see more court time.   For her high school she still hits from the pins. When she hits she can still put velocity on the ball. However, more and more she is seeing time in the back row. A very athletic player who gives 100 percent no matter where she plays.     Last year [player_tooltip player_id='536741' first='Lacey' last='Bogues'] and Kaelyn combined to make [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] one of the surprising clubs of the year. Two smaller outsides who ripped balls past the blocks. For the first time in club history [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] won a bid to Junior Nationals. In previous years they would play in the Patriot Division.   This year Kaelyn will take her skills to Virginia Juniors where she will play down at the 16 level. This is a new opportunity for her to take her game to another level.    [player_tooltip player_id='608978' first='Francise' last='Ramirez'] (Langley/MOJO) - Last year Francise did not get a lot of playing time with Ana Toumazatos and [player_tooltip player_id='554770' first='Rujuta' last='Singh'] filling the outside roles. After Ana graduated Francise won the left side hitting role despite her 5'8" height. After watching her fly with her 9'9 approach jump you wondered how she could be left on the bench. She surprises you with her ability to hit any area of the court with some sting to the ball. This will give you a reason to watch MOJO play. This team has some players to watch.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Metro 18 Falls Short of Bid in First Qualifier</h2>   Considering all the players they lost to early college enrollment Metro did pretty good to make the gold bracket in their first Qualifier. They finished seventh in the Windy City Qualifier.   In pool play they escaped with just one loss each day putting them in second on Saturday and first on Sunday. This earned them a spot in the gold bracket with seven other teams. As it turned out they lost all three matches in a four team pool, two of them going three sets. They did win the opening set in each of those three set matches, but after a 32-30 loss in the second set of the second match they tumbled losing their last three sets.

One of the greatest outsides in volleyball history was a Cuban named Luis Mireya. She won gold medals in 1992, 1996 and 2000. In 2004 she was inducted into the International Hall of Fame. Her height was 5'9". All you need to do is query her name on You Tube to find many of her highlights.