Girls club volleyball Dream Team: O’Brien, Gilreath, Hendrix, Mambu, Cavillo, Comer, Collins, Wave-Nelson

Each week during the club season, VolleyballMag recognizes a Dream Team of eight girls volleyball players (15s to 18s age groups) who were standouts the weekend before. The team, most weeks, consisted of the following:

Setter or S/RS
Setter, S/RS or RS
OH
OH
MB
MB
Libero
DS

We include our eight-player Dream Team below, as well as others we considered, based exclusively upon nominations received.

Note to coaches and directors: while there is no science to how we choose members of our Dream Team, performing on bigger stages will give players an edge, as will nomination forms that describe with specificity how well a player performed the previous weekend.

VolleyballMag DREAM TEAM for March 13:
S: Kassidy O’Brien, 6-1 Jr., Houston Skyline 17 Royal (TX) – One of the nation’s top junior setters, the Kentucky-bound O’Brien ran Skyline’s potent offense to perfection in leading her team to a second consecutive 17 Open title.

S: Taryn Gilreath, 6-0 Sr., HJV 18 Elite (TX) – Injuries and illness plagued HJV at NEQ and even Gilreath went down after getting tangled up underneath the net. But the East Carolina signee got back up and led her wounded team to an upgraded Open bid in a truly remarkable effort.

OH: Evan Hendrix, 5-9 Sr., AZ Revolution 18 Premier (AZ) – Hendrix helped Revolution qualify in Open for 18s Junior Nationals in Philadelphia. “Evan is a returning player from last year’s roster that won 3rd in 18 Open at Nationals,” coach Carl DeFriez said. “She had an amazing weekend in helping to inspire and bring the best out of her teammates.”

OH: Mimi Mambu, 6-0 Jr., Metro 18 Travel (D.C.) – Like she has all year, Mambu led Metro to the 18 Open title at NEQ this past weekend. She was named to the All-Tournament Team.

RS: Kalina Cavillo, 6-0 Sr., Alamo 18 Premier (TX) – Cavillo was nominated late last week so we include the Troy pledge on the list this week for her work at the Boston qualifier. Alamo had lost two of its “bigs” to injury, meaning that Cavillo never came off the court. “She was our team leader, and performed every skill for us, aside from the setting duties,” said coach Jennifer Montoyo. “Kalina carried the bulk of our offensive load, and got the job done regardless if she was in the front row or the back row. She led our team in kills with 74 for the tournament. She tallied 7.5 blocks en route to the Gold Pools. Kalina’s performance led our team to a 5th place finish, and one win shy of earning our bid to nationals!”

MB: Carsyn Comer, 6-1 Fr., Munciana 15 Blue (IN) – Comer helped protect the net with quality touches and was part of a potent offense that won 15 Open at Bluegrass.

MB: Mackenzie Collins, 6-1 Jr., Houston Skyline 17 Royal (TX) – The super athletic Texas A&M recruit is a force at the net and she was unstoppable this past weekend in Philly as Houston Skyline captured the 17 Open title.

Libero: Mia Wave-Nelson, 5-8 Jr., Carolina Rogue 17 Black (SC) — Wave-Nelson recorded 55 digs and 8 aces to help Carolina Rogue to a 5th place finish in 17 Open at Bluegrass. Rogue defeated Elevation in the first round of the Gold Challenge bracket before falling to KiVA in a match to advance to the semifinals.

Also considered (by position, in order of consideration):
OH: Janiah Burrage, 6-0 eighth grader, Forza 1 15 ONE (CA) – Burrage hit .455 to help Forza 1 upend Tstreet in the semifinals of an SCVA Power League event. This was the first region loss for Tstreet this season.

OH: Bailey Warren, 5-10 Jr., Houston Skyline 17 Royal (TX) – A Wake Forest pledge, Warren showed off her heat on the left side this past weekend for the NEQ 17 Open champions.

***

RS: Blakely Johnson, 6-2 Jr., Carolina Rogue 17 Black (SC) – Johnson had 37 kills and 14 blocks to help Rogue reach the quarterfinals of 17 Open at Bluegrass in Louisville. Rogue fell to KiVA in an elite eight match, but earlier got s signature win over Elevation.

***

MB: Lexi Luginbuhl, 6-0 Fr., Elevation 15 Chicas (OH) – Luginbuhl was fantastic playing at Bluegrass. “Playing in the competitive power pools and then having to make to the Gold Round, she did a great job scoring with her relentless block and attacking in locations on the net,” said coach Howard Garcia. “She led the team in hitting percentage and blocks while going toe to toe with the best of the division.”

MB: Milana Mays, 6-0 Fr., Munciana 15 Blue (IN) — Mays helped protect the net with quality touches and was part of a potent offense that won 15 Open at Bluegrass.

MB: Rebekah Pfefferkorn, 6-2 Jr., Houston Skyline 17 Royal (TX) – Pfefferkorn has raised her game a notch, which may explain why Houston Skyline has become the favorite to win 17 Open at Junior Nationals. The FIU recruit did it again this past weekend at NEQ, leading Skyline to a second consecutive qualifier win.

MB: Jordan Hunt, 6-0 Jr., Carolina Rogue 17 Black (SC) – Hunt was a force in the middle for Rogue, which tied for fifth in 17 Open at Bluegrass. She finished the event with 24 kills, 11 blocks and 5 aces.

***

Libero: Olivia Foye, 5-8 Jr., Surfside Legends 17 Loriann (CA) – Foye’s extreme digs helped lead a finally healthy Surfside to an Open bid in 17 Open at NEQ.

Libero: Piper Rama, 5-8 Sr., AZ Revolution 18 Premier (AZ) – Rama was a back row standout as Revolution qualified in 18 Open at NEQ.

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