Xitlali Lopez plays libero, and the trait she named first about her own game wasn’t a physical one. It was her ability to read her teammates’ energy and adjust to whatever a given moment required. She is recognizing when her team’s energy was dipping mid-set and making a point to lift it back up. She was clear that she considers this more valuable than any single play she made.

That’s a mature read for a 2030, and it’s consistent with how she described her focus for the rest of the summer: strength and agility training, an SDSU camp, pre-tryout clinics, and simply accumulating as many reps as possible. Away from volleyball, she enjoys crocheting, sewing, and drawing, and she credits the sport with teaching her time management and emotional intelligence. For a player still years out from recruiting, that kind of emotional attentiveness paired with in-game awareness is exactly the sort of foundation worth watching develop.

~ Michelle Bamford @Coachable247