Emily’s more of a right side than a middle, but for a kid that can do both, you can do a lot worse in this class. Long, lean and with a defense-first mentality, a lot of the swing blocking and eye-sequencing that is avoided by some trainers comes inherently with Emily. I’d like to see a little more rise from Miss Miller when attacking, but for now, she has many traits that will get her a bunch of early looks this club season.

It’s hard to talk about a kid’s last match of their high school season, but in Emily’s case, she’s got a world of success in front of her. In their three-set loss to #4 Rossville last Saturday, Emily finished with 11 kills and 9 digs in what was otherwise not the brightest of days for Northfield. I look forward to her progress at PHP, where she’ll be a solid M2 in the future.

Big and physical, Emily’s attack touch height makes her look like she’s a few inches taller. Able to hit in the M2 slot for Northfield, her two-footed attack is lethal, and can hit every angle needed for a middle her size. Being promoted to PHP this coming spring is huge for her recruitment—-but for now, look for Emily to control the middle, both offensively and defensively, on Saturday.

Long, lean, and fast in her transition, Emily’s wing span makes her look taller than she is. Able to defend from pin to pin with ease, Miss Miller can sometimes “hang” in midair when a set isn’t perfect, which is a heck of a way to defy gravity. More of an M2 currently, she excels with a setter that is adept at setting a zero-tempo ball in front, which is where Emily thrives.

Miller is a new middle blocker to me, so I am really glad she came to the showcase, as I got a chance to see some excellent play from her. She was one of the taller middles who came and definitely made her presence known right away during hitting drills. Emily can easily bounce balls on the 10′ line in both directions on attacks in front of the setter. On top of that, I thought she was one of the better slide attackers of the bunch and would make an excellent M1 based on that ability. Miller puts up a big, solid block and if she continues to develop her lateral speed will be a serious wall at the net. If she can improve her ability to watch the pass/dig to the setter and adjust, she is going to be a LOT to deal with for opposing teams.

Listed as a right side first, we can also include middle as a strong position for her, as she did both for Empowered’s 15 Black this past spring. In the middle, she’s an M2 through and through, excelling at sets away from the setter. Her jumping ability, combined with her length, allow her to almost “hang” in the air if the set isn’t at a perfect tempo. I also like her ability to hit every angle on her attack, whether it’s a zero-tempo in front of the setter or a right side swing. She has all of the angles covered, which is hard to say in this age group for a multi-positional talent such as she. I’m looking forward to seeing her among others her age and older, as her physical tools should match up well with the others attending.