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2021 Mizuno Big South National Qualifier (Courts 1-80)

Top Players To Watch For At Mizuno Big South

Top Players To Watch For At Mizuno Big South

The rosters of teams competing at the Big South National Qualifier in Atlanta feature so many elite players.

Mar 23, 2021 by Megan Kaplon
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The rosters of teams competing at the Big South National Qualifier in Atlanta feature so many elite players, narrowing them down to any sort of manageable list was quite a task. 

Watch 2021 Big South National Qualifier LIVE!

April 2-4 | 8AM ET

This is by no means a ranking of the top players you’ll see on the courts inside the Georgia World Congress  Center. Instead, it’s just a collection of some of the absurdly talented athletes competing in 18 Open, 17 Open, and 16 Open who caught our eye for one reason or another. 

18 Open

Kalissa Greene

Setter, A5 18 Scott 

Greene has been one of the top setters in the Class of 2021 for some time, but her focus on high-level academics along with athletics made her college choice a little bit different than most. Originally committed to Princeton, Greene changed her commitment to Stanford in December. The Palo Alto school provides what seems like the perfect fit, offering Greene the opportunity to continue her high level of achievement in academics, without sacrificing a bit on the competitiveness of the volleyball team. The first team Under Armour All-American runs the offense for one of the top club teams in the country.


Molly Wilson

Setter, Coast 18-1 Ozhan

In a press release announcing his 2021 signees, University of Washington head coach Keegan Cook called Wilson “one of the best kept secrets in the 2021 class, particularly in Southern California.” Wilson won a state championship with her Vista Murrieta High School team in 2019, and she gets her athleticism from her parents: mom Desiree broke a Texas high school record in the 300m hurdles and went on to play basketball at Loyola Marymount, while her dad Travis played baseball at LMU and was eventually drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers. This is her second consecutive season setting for the 18s team at Coast.

Sami Francis

Outside Hitter, Coast 18-1 Ozhan 

Wilson’s teammate Francis (and a future teammate of Greene’s at Stanford) earns respect on the court simply for her height, but her skill goes beyond her 6 feet, 6 inches. “Typically, 6-5 girls just stand at the net,” her Torrey Pines High School coach Tina Kinkead said in an interview with the San Diego Union-Tribune, “but Sami can do everything on the court.” The middle-blocker-turned-pin-hitter is already on the radar of the national team, having trained at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs in the summer of 2019.


Allie Sczech

Opposite, Houston Skyline 18 Royal 

One of three juniors playing up for Houston Skyline 18 Royal, Sczech has already made her college commitment, joining teammate Sophia Keene in pledging her loyalties to Baylor. PrepVolleyball ranked the 6-4 lefty opposite as the No. 23 recruit in the Class of 2022, and she utilizes her height well, absolutely bombing balls from the right side and occasionally running some tricky stuff out of the middle.

London Davis

Outside Hitter, Legacy 

This fall, Davis raked in the honors for her performance leading Olentangy Orange High School to a 21-4 record and earning first team All-Ohio, first team Central District, and OCC Player of the Year. The Kansas commit became the first player at Olentangy Orange to surpass 1,000 career kills, and her future college coach Ray Bechard has this to say about her: “London is a dynamic outside hitter who will be a terminal attacker for us. She will develop into a high level six-rotation player who will score points for us with her attacking skills and blocking physicality.”

Watch 2021 Big South National Qualifier LIVE!

April 2-4 | 8AM ET

Jordan Iliff

Opposite, Rockwood Thunder 18 Elite

Missouri head coach Joshua Taylor said this of his 2021 recruit Iliff, “She has carried a heavy load for her club and high school team and we are looking for her to do the same when she gets to Mizzou. She's a great teammate and will be having a huge impact on the program the moment she gets in the gym!" PrepVolleyball ranks Iliff as the No. 37 recruit in the 2021 class and on the court at Big South, she’ll have fellow future Tiger Addison Lyon dishing her the ball. 

Arica Davis

Middle Blocker, NC Academy 18 Diamond

This fall, Davis led her North Raleigh Christian Academy team to its sixth consecutive NCISAA 4A state championship, and she’s one of just two North Carolinians on PrepVolleyball’s Class of 2021 Top 150, coming in at No. 31. “Arica is a dynamic athlete who will immediately elevate the level of physicality and competitiveness in our gym with a constant smile on her face,” Ohio State head coach Jen Oldenburg said. Oh, and did we mention she touches 10-5?

17 Open

Cheridyn Leverette

Outside Hitter, A5 17 Jing

Capable of hitting over most blocks, Leverette has height, athleticism, hops, and range, not to mention six-rotation skills that make her a force on serve receive and defense as well. She’s been raking in individual awards since at least her sophomore year of high school when she was named Area 2 Player of the Year, and all that hard work paid off last fall when she got to make her commitment to UCLA.

Kathryn Randorf

Middle Blocker/Outside Hitter, AVC 17 Red 

Randorf is the type of player you set on state championship point, even when the pass is off the net and you have to settle for a bump set to the middle (see the video below). She was the News-Herald Volleyball Player of the Year as a sophomore and a junior and led Gilmour HIgh School to an OHSAA DII state championship this fall. PrepVolleyball ranks her as the No. 17 recruit in the Class of 2022 — quite a pickup for Northwestern University, to which she has given her verbal commitment. 

Maya Duckworth

Outside Hitter, Madfrog 17 National Green

As a freshman, Duckworth tallied a school record 616 kills in her first varsity season with Birdville High School — hitting .320! — adding 70 blocks and 489 digs. She’s only gotten better since then, and she’s still just a junior. Iowa State is going to benefit greatly from her addition to the squad when she arrives on campus in the fall of 2022.

Watch 2021 Big South National Qualifier LIVE!

April 2-4 | 8AM ET

Vanessa Polk

Middle Blocker, Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite

Polk can absolutely bomb a ball out of the middle, and I pity the team that overpasses when she’s up at the net. Also a talented basketball player, Pepperdine scored big when they convinced this athlete to focus on volleyball at the next level. PrepDig ranks Polk as the No. 1 player in Missouri in the Class of 2022, while she comes in at No. 41 in PrepVolleyball’s Class of 2022 Top 150.


Anna Kate Herrington

Middle Blocker/Opposite, OTVA 17 O Roberto

Herrington earned a spot on the 2020 USAV Women's Junior National Training Team, which of course didn’t really get to do much training together last year, and she led her OTVA 16s team to a runner-up finish at AAUs in 2020. The Boston College commit’s whip-like armswing is hard to stop and she’s effective in front of and behind the setter. 

Avery Shimaitis

A dedicated athlete, Shimaitis works hard on the court and in the gym (check her Instagram for video of some of her brutal workouts). All that sweat equity has paid off in the form of touching 10-2 and earning a spot in the PrepVolleyball Top 150 (No. 86), not to mention a spot on the Pepperdine University roster for the fall of 2022.

16 Open

Harper Murray

Outside Hitter, Legacy 16-1 Adidas 

Murray is just a high school sophomore and already she can claim more than 1,000 career kills for her Skyline High School team. Considered the No. 1 recruit in the Class of 2023, playing for perhaps the best 16s club team in the country, it’s impossible not to be impressed by this 6-1 outside hitter, whose sister Kendall Murray is a freshman on the University of Michigan team. 

Clara Stowell

Setter/Opposite, Tstreet 16 Curtis

A stud on the beach and indoors, Stowell plays setter and opposite for Tstreet. She helped Tstreet with a GJNC title in 2019 and followed it up with a CIF division 2 championship with Esperanza High School that same year. A member of the PrepVolleyball Class of 2023 Top 150, Stowell will be one to watch for years to come.



Maddie Snider

Opposite, No Name 16 Sarah

Six-four lefty opposite Snider is making waves in the volleyball community. A member of the AVCA Phenom List, PrepVolleyball’s Club Watch List for the Class of 2023 and No. 53 on PV’s Top 150 ranking of the class, the versatile sophomore has a bright future ahead of her.

Eloise Brandewie

Middle Blocker, Mintonette m.61

Another AVCA Phenom, Brandewie is a two-sport athlete, excelling in volleyball and basketball for Bishop Hartley High School in Columbus, Ohio. USAV named Brandewie to the U.S. Girls Youth National Training Team roster over the summer, and PrepVolleyball ranks her as the No. 7 player in the Class of 2023.