I don’t talk much about defensive specialists or liberi much in these “top players” articles, since there are so many that do well. I’d be remiss, though, if I didn’t mention the top defender from all classes at the regional. The Dayton commit finished with 35 digs in Jasper’s upset of #4 Greensburg in five sets last Saturday. She also received 25 serves error-free, making her indispensable to Jasper, as ball-control will be job #1 against #5 Tri-West on Saturday.

At first glance, some might think that Nora’s just a three-rotation defender, since she spends a ton of time being a six-rotation outside for both her club team and her high school squad. Nothing could be further from reality. Nora’s exceptional read-and-react skills, high-end serve receive and willingness to do the dirty work on defense earned her the spot as the first DS to “come off the board” in the class of ‘27.

From southwestern Indiana comes a defender that’s currently spending time being a six-ro outside for Metro. Realistically, she won’t be an outside at the next level, but I understand the coaching move to have Nora in on every single first contact throughout the match. Wide in her base, smart on contact and pass-to-attack ready, she’s more than capable of being a six-ro outside for her club team this season. Soon, it will be time for her to focus full-time on being that exceptional libero that got her mentioned here. For now, however, let’s all enjoy Nora’s ability to play all parts of this game well, despite her apparent lack of size to do so.

Nora is no stranger to good volleyball playing at Jasper HS and she is going to help continue that tradition very well. Currently she leads her team in digs per set and digs per match, averaging 5 and 15 respectively. In order to be a great defender (in my humble opinion), you should definitely possess two qualities: the ability to read well & the ability to stay on your feet as much as possible. Both of these qualities are present in Nora’s game, even though she is just a sophomore (usually you see these develop later, over time). Add to that the fact that she is calm when passing and seems to do it with such ease & confidence, and you already have yourself a SOLID libero/DS at this young stage.