Checking in on some 2027 Liberos

Again, more top talent out there catching everyone's attention and as we get closer to June 15th there are some liberos who are making some serious strides. When I'm watching liberos I am looking for someone who is leading the back court. I want a vocal leader in serve receive and someone who is going to be able to cover a ton of ground and make everyone else passing around them look good. On defense I want to see all out effort. You can't make every play, but you can try. I want serious defensive pursuit and I expect “easy” balls to be pretty dang near perfect. This is a ton of pressure on liberos and I think that's why they go under the radar for so long. But, don't worry… I’m here to talk a little about some of those bros who don't always get their flowers!

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Laila Chadwick- Metro, PPV 198- makes some serious reads. I love her hustle and effort after everything. Even if she makes the wrong read she is making HUGE plays after balls. I am impressed with the way she's playing right now and think she's really standing out on her team. 

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Lucy Moriarty- HPSTL, PPV 209- really gritty libero! She makes hustle look like her job. She's making big plays and hard digs look easy. I'm impressed and I think a lot of college coaches are too! Definitely a bro I’ll be looking to see where she ends up after June 15th.

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Audrey Schaeffer- Rockwood Thunder, PPV 187- A scrappy libero that just gets balls up. She hustles and finds a way to make plays happen and just keeps the ball off the ground. She's also a really strong server and point scores for her team while she's serving at a really high percentage. 

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Gemma Hopkins- Houston Jrs, PPV 270- top bro in this class. Really calm, cool and collected. Does a nice job handling the hard driven balls. Her platform on defense is nails. She makes really good reads and makes some of those tips look easy to pick up. If schools need 2027 liberos they will be looking at her. 

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Pulelehua Laikona- AZ Storm, PPV 264- another top libero in this class. Just an overall hard worker. I love her out of system setting game. I think that's a big part of her game that sets her apart. She makes crazy dive moves and does an impressive job at getting the ball HIGH. The height on her digs allows so much offense to be run even after a hard driven attack. 

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Kendyl Strack- Academy, PPV 178- she has a recent bump in PPV due to her making some big strides. She is a libero with a ton of potential. She is really strong in her technical abilities. She is fully stopped when the attacker is making contact and that generally results in great digs. She also covers a ton of ground on serve receive for her team.

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Mallory Johnson- Far out VBC, PPV 213- strong passing libero. She has a really strong platform and controls the first contact at a high level. I have had my eye on her defense and she's been improving overtime and is making some big defensive plays now too. Cant wait to keep seeing her develop these next few months of the club season. 

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‍Graceyn Shepard- Triangle, PPV 164- I mean some of the best hands on a libero I have ever seen. She loves to take second balls with her hands and set her hitters out of system and I couldn't be a bigger fan. Out of system setting is a really huge part of the game for a libero and she is one of the best at it. On the first ball side she's also a really strong defender and overall great passer. She definitely deserves her pump in PPV and I will be following closely.