From the first ball entered in warmups to the last whistle sounded, Natalie was THE leader every court needs in the libero position. I had to do a double-take at first—-the maturity she brings with her when playing makes her look and act FAR more mature than her age presumes. Every part of her game oozes confidence and leadership, while also being vocally and physically encouraging to all players around her, regardless of position or situation. As a receiver, Natalie’s quick feet and quiet platform nailed nearly every pass that she got to, making the setter’s job that much easier in every drill and scrimmage. When taking the second ball, her location is accurate and hittable, and hitters more often than not scored because of Miss Bowman’s ability to make it so. Behind the base line, Natalie was calculated, accurate and tough to pass, showing that all kinds of sizes can score points when given the opportunity. For this author, Natalie was quite an easy choice for the Avoli Committed athlete series, and I look forward to her continued success as she plays at both Ursuline and Tri-State Elite .

The balance and body position Bowman creates when receiving serve helps her move quickly while maintaining good control of her platform and angles to the point of contact. She is locked in as a passer, which has an impact on the rate of quality that can get her team into system often. On the defensive side, she covers the court with good composure as she can make routine and difficult plays look simple and effortless at times.