The Daily Recap: June 19th Day 4ish

The Daily Recap: June 19th

Notes and Highlights from the Open Period Class of 2027

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Well, oh my, just when you think it's safe to take a little coffee break, boom, things got a little weird on us Thursday night. I guess NCAA Volleyball said, 'Move over, NBA Finals, we're taking center stage for entertainment' (okay, I can dream, right), but there was some crazy action.

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First, here are the Top Commits from Wednesday and Thursday (we might have to go on to Friday because this got insane by the end of Thursday night, this list is sick)

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1. Lauren Forelli - Outside AZ Revolution PPV 275 Michigan State
2. Kate Kalczynski - Outside Legacy PPV 255 Ohio State
3. Westley Matavao - Outside Forza 1 PPV 273 UCLA
4. Kristen Sheehy - Middle AZ Revolution PPV 226 TCU 
5. McKenna McIntosh - Outside SCVC PPV 279 USC
6. Isabel Incinelli - Middle WPVC PPV 232 Texas A&M
7. Zamari Christensen - Setter Club V PPV 223 St. Mary’s
8. Lexi Martin - Outside TAV PPV 228 TCU
9. Kyla Williams - Middle AVC PPV 277 Pitt
10. Piper Chylinski - Setter City PPV 213 TCU

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Explanation:

Forelli: Why #1 for MSU to land a PPV 275 player for a first-year HC is a statement and a value commitment for the Sparty program.

Kalczynski: Why #2 similar to Forelli OSU needed a difference maker and a B1G arm, and Kate can be that.

Matavao: Why #3? Any other day, this is #1. In-city W, 1st major Cali commit for staff, biggest prep commit for staff, huge LA personality for program. Put West on a billboard right now in LA.

Sheehy: Why #4 Difference making middle. Went into conference rival's backyard and took a recruit. Beat several other programs for Sheehy, the highest PPV prospect of the program.

McIntosh: Why #5 Trojans keep a big in-state prospect home. Difference-making prospect. Recruiting W over some big programs. Hometown player. Rivalry Factor with/ UCLA.

Incinelli: Why #6 Big W over several other Top 15 programs? Solidifies this as a Top 10 program.  

Christensen: Why #7 Starting Setter impact player for mid-major program early in open period. W over several other P4 programs.

Martin: Why #8 Another Impact PPV player to class. Another W over P4 programs. Adds to the best class ever.

Williams: Why #9 Tells you how good of a day this was that Williams is #9 at anything—perfect fit for the program. Pitt gets a perfect middle fit for them. Highest rated PPV middle in program history. Opportunity to come in and play early.

Chylinski: Why #10 TCU adds 3rd potential starter in one day. 3rd PPV player over 210 in one day. Major club setter who has worked with multiple college-bound pins and played in up-tempo offense. She is as college-ready a setter as TCU has recruited.

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Staff Making Statements:

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TCU: The Class PPV avg. of 219 leads the Big XII and would be the program's highest since the start of our website. Yesterday was a big day, landing impact athletes at Outside, Middle, and Setter. The staff also hit three different states with their prospects.

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Michigan State: The staff has exceeded any expectations I think most could have had coming into Recruiting Class #1. Again, I stress the importance simply on the fact that this is a first-year HC doing this, and that usually doesn’t happen; prospects often need a “wait and see year” before buying into a coach and program. So that is why I’m giving this class extra significance, and landing Forelli, a legit Gold Level PPV prospect, solidified the class as the #1 surprise, no doubt in our book.

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Ohio State: What a day and what 48 hours in Buckeye Volleyball land. For a program that needed a shot of Mojo, they received exactly what the doctor ordered. I stated on (whatever day it was), the upside with Cancellari (verbal #1) is that she has B1G athleticism, and OSU needs to reload the roster with those bodies. Then yesterday, they added two more B1G pins in Gravelee (Tribe) and Kalczynski (Legacy). So, the Bucks bring in three athletic front-row players who fit the conference mold athletically and are productive. Love the class.

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Alabama: First, you are going to look immediately at Bama’s class and scratch your head, but I also would say that I would venture to say that even we have undervalued most of their prospects, and end-of-year evaluations will have them higher. Second, I don’t think this class is done for the Tide, and they may have their biggest verbal yet still to come? Third, I have discussed programs like Pitt and Louisville's progress over and over again, from 10 years ago to where they are now. Pitt didn’t recruit Kyla Williams 10 years ago. You gradually recruit better and better talen,t and then you win more and more with it.

That is what Bama is doing with this class, and that is what I like. The local kid (Haymond) could be HUGE, and if certain other SEC programs invited her to camp, her PPV would be 250. I have stated that I love taking on large club athletes to help turn programs around because they have won and have high expectations, having played in matches with high stakes. So, I’m not looking at the overall average of Bama's class; I’m looking more at depth and culture in how it fits into the big picture.

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Fits Like A Glove Team Week 1

*Sometimes it is way more about how you fit into a program than how high your talent level is. Now I confess I don’t know the ‘fits’ of every program, but I’m learning more, and I also appreciate the programs that have taken time to reach out and attempt to let me learn more about the true feel of their programs. That being said, here are some of the prospects that I am familiar with and the BEST PROGRAM FITS by position

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Setter- Alice Wood, Kansas State

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Outside- Annika Dandridge Vandy

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Outside- Elly Randolph, Kentucky

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Middle- Kyla Williams Pitt

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Middle- Camille Pressley

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Right side- Samantha Karjala, Indiana

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Libero- Elizabeth Bower Louisville

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Libero- Cora Bicknese, Michigan State

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SOD (Steal of the Draft) Program got a great PPV player for where they normally would go. It’s a compliment to the recruiting staff.

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Zamari Christensen to St. Mary’s

Madelyn Henry to Oregon

Sophee Peterson to Texas A&M

Marlie Smith to North Carolina