Setters and Liberos Added to the Class of 2029 Rankings

There were five setters and three liberos added to the class of 2029 rankings. These positions stand out as the toughest positions to master at a young age. Their position relies more on accuracy than power. Whether it involves their set or their pass it needs to find the target for the next action. Below the seven players added to the rankings as setters or libero/defensive replacement for the class of 2029.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Setters</h2>    It is not common for a new player to rise into the top 50 rankings. Olivia stands out as an exception to that rule.   At 5'11" she brings good height to the setting position. The ball flicks off her hands smoothly with some pretty good accuracy for a class of 2029. The pass can move her close to the left side hitter but she still carries the ability to direct the back set to the right side hitter with little effort.   Olivia sets in a 6/2, remaining in the front row to hit right side. She showed an ability to power the ball when taking a swing as well as putting her hands over the net when forming a block. What really impressed was a setter dump while she played front row and the back row setter dug a ball close to the net.   In addition to her setting her serve can also stand out as a weapon. She delivers it with excellent velocity. Last year she made the frosh team at Yorktown as an opposite. At the start of the season she lists at 5/9". However, her Sports Recruit height shows her at 5'11", a height she more closely fits when I watched her on the court.   For club she plays for MOJO. Their next big tournament will be the East Coast championships in Pittsburgh in late May to prepare for the AAUs in Orlando.     I first noticed [player_tooltip player_id='947249' first='Eileen' last='Kim'] when she set for a talented Virginia Juniors 14 team. She still sets for them at 15 but her game has notched up a level. For one, she appears to set a 5/1 for Virginia Juniors for the most part, instead of just setting the back row. Asking a setter who stands just 5'5" to set a 5/1 tells you the coach exudes a lot of confidence in her ability to set.   Virginia Juniors does have [player_tooltip player_id='763155' first='Angelina' last='Yan'] who they can also call on to set to run a 6/2. Last year Eileen set for the Oakton Junior Varsity team. This summer she has set the Virginia Juniors team to a Liberty Bid, which could turn into a USA bid after [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] Nick won an Open bid.   Virginia Juniors will play in the Salt Lake City showdown as well as the East Coast championships at the end of May.     Her older sister sets for Magruder as well as MVSA Volleyball Club. Chloe ranks at number 160 in the class of 2027. Cydney made the frosh team as the second setter and outside hitter. [player_tooltip player_id='772012' first='Chloe' last='Tanseco'] did most of the setting, running a 5/1 while stringing together 535 assists to reach 1,000 assists for her career. The playing time for Cydney was a bit restricted.   Cydney looked pretty sharp while setting a 5/1 for MVSA Charge. Unfortunately, MVSA Charge has not earned a bid for the junior nationals. Their next big tournament is the East Coast Championships in Pittsburgh.   After her club performance it would not surprise me to see Cydney share the setting duties with her older sister for Magruder.     On the MOCO Matrix roster in AES she shows a grad year of 2028. She also has a second profile that shows 2028. I was told she is a 2029. If accurate it impresses that she plays floor captain for her 17 U team. Charles E. Smith lacks roster information for last year's team making it difficult to determine her graduation year.   Sarah fit in with the older players, running the offense with strong hands to push the ball outside. Because she stands only 5'5" this could restrict her to setting a 6/2.   The only other Charles E. Smith player to make our rankings belonged to the class of 2026. Libero Rachel Fagin ended up committing to play for Wellesley College.     She set a 5/1 for [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] Tony, leading them to a third place finish in the Shamrock Showdown. She also was one of four frosh to make the varsity for Stone Bridge. While they failed to win a match last year better results are expected for next year. Three of the four frosh rank in our class of 2029.   Adelena also showed a good serve in the Chesapeake Regional Bid championship stringing off two four point service runs. Unfortunately, [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] failed to earn a bid and appear destined to play in AAUs.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Liberos/Defensive Specialist</h2>    She is one of those liberos who just flies all over the court. No area of space is beyond her reach to dig a ball. She plays with a fierce intensity on the court. When she fails to make a dig she shows no fear for taking the blame.   Tenley dug a couple of hard driven balls by [player_tooltip player_id='748487' first='Sierra' last='Thomas'] showing she is not afraid to stand her ground no matter the velocity of the ball hit at her. She made the All County first team and the All Central Maryland second team. A pretty good haul for a frosh libero.     Elly has helped seal up the back row for [program_tooltip program_id='511606' first='Vienna' last='Elite'] to earn them some gold in a couple tournaments. She normally plays as a defensive specialist with class of 2028 [player_tooltip player_id='755851' first='Sophia' last='Bordener'] playing libero. Her serve creates shanked passes.   As a frosh she made the varsity for a strong Dominion team. Her main role for Dominion appears to be as a serving specialist. She finished tied for second on the team in aces. Elly was the only frosh to make the varsity for her Dominion team. Next year she should take on more responsibility.     Sadie made an impression on Jeremy at our exposure tour in Richmond. She moves her feet well to get into position to cover her area. That tends to prevent highlight reel plays but she still stats the dig. If her read is off she has the quickness to hit the floor to make the spectacular play.   She also finds some time to play beach, though her last tournament was June of last year. This enhances her overall game,   Sadie played for Yorktown last year but did not appear on the varsity roster.

There were five setters and three liberos added to the class of 2029 rankings. These positions stand out as the toughest positions to master at a young age. Their position relies more on accuracy than power. Whether it involves their set or their pass it needs to find the target for the next action. Below the seven players added to the rankings as setters or libero/defensive replacement for the class of 2029.