Sophia Zhu Sophia Zhu 5'2" | DS/L Hockaday | 2031 TX is two full class years younger than most of the players she competed against at the Dallas Freshman Showcase and she made that irrelevant within the first few points of the day. What stands out most about her game at this stage is the quality of her read before she moves. She is not reacting to the ball off the hitter’s hand the way most young liberos do. She is reading the setter’s release, tracking the hitter’s approach angle, and committing to a direction before contact happens, which is a cognitive skill that some players never fully develop regardless of how long they play. Her platform shape was clean and repeatable under pressure and she showed an understanding of how to use her arms as a unit rather than scooping or breaking at the wrists when the pace increased. At 5’1″ every ball she gets to is a testament to her positioning and anticipation rather than her reach and both were working at a high level in Carrollton. Please help us congratulate her on earning a Top Performer award for this showcase.