The Daily Recap: June 20th

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The Daily Recap: June 19th

Notes and Highlights from the Open Period Class of 2027

Well, Friday and Saturday did not slow down. Solid commits for many programs, sleepers, and steals by some up-and-coming programs. Loved so many decisions made by both athletes and the coaching staff. It's been a great couple of days in the recruiting world, which took me several hours to write this, so sorry about the delay..

First, here are the Top Commits from Friday and Saturday (didn't get any easier, I will tell you that). I loved the value that some programs received with their commits. Significant decisions and great decisions by some athletes to join some programs where they can be the centerpiece right away. I like how this class is taking more time and thinking things out. You do see the effect of the Salary Cap playing out and athletes filtering to multiple programs already, not stacking up behind each other in the same few programs, and that should be great for the sport (only my opinion).

Tinsley Welker - Setter, Houston Skyline PPV 227, Arizona
Maggie Kurpeikis - Outside Adversity PPV 224 Michigan
Hunter Ross - Middle Metro PPV 253 UCLA
Braelyn Patton - Middle Dallas Premier PPV 234 Texas A&M
Nailah Randle - Outside San Antonio Juniors PPV 222 LSU
Sophea Puleo - Outside OTVA PPV 215 Baylor
Kyla Mitchell - Middle Michio Chicago PPV 215 Virginia
Gemma Hopkins - Libero, Houston Jrs PPV 27,1 Arkansas
Sophia Austen - Outside Iowa United PPV 186 Iowa State
Elly Randolph - Outside NC Academy PPV 233 Kentucky

Explanation:

Welker: Why #1 now, I know this will be questioned, but I think she could be evaluated higher. I love her physicality and leadership. I think Arizona hit a homer and landed their setter of the future to build around. In mock drafts, I had Welker going to a TCU or SMU, so that was excellent verbal for Zona.

Kurpeikis: Why #2? This is a giant W for Virtue and staff. Maggie was sought after by multiple Midwest and regional schools. Yes, there were family connections to Michigan, but landing her still required fighting off other offers. This is an instant starter.

Ross: Why #3? I have loved Ross and her game for months. Yes, she is undersized, but she is athletic and bouncy. They will have to figure out ways to get her to score in the B1G, but her block is quick enough to be effective. This is another athletic prospect that UCLA beat other top-15 schools for.

Patton: Reason #4 My guess is her PPV will go up the more I watch of her, but I couldn’t score her higher from what I have seen. She is tall, physical, and athletic, yes, and I think she will move up the class and make the A+M class even more attractive.

Randle: Why #5? This is another athlete for the Tigers, and they are stacking them up. Randle was HIGHLY sought after by multiple schools and was one of the hotter names in the Southeast during the final month of the recruiting period.

Puleo: Why #6 Puleo is a solid volleyball player, and Baylor is adding multiples of those to the program. Her 215 PPV is a no-brainer score, and she adds depth to that position group. Love this addition.

Mitchell: Why does #7 Virginia get another solid athlete and volleyball player they need? They plug into their program. This is the second one they throw in from this class, and it instantly makes them better. Recruiting W.

Hopkins: Why #8? Of course, this is gigantic for Arkansas. If this is the correct score for Hopkins, she should grab the Libero jersey when she is about 30 miles outside Fayetteville and never give it up until she graduates. The Hogs are another program that just needs to add more SEC athletes to their roster to compete with the top teams in the conference, and Hopkins will help close that gap at bro.

Austen: Why #9 State’s top prospect. Cyclones keep her in-state, and she reminds me of Abby Hayes, who went to Creighton. She needs to get stronger, but has some ability to hit that level of productivity where she is effective, terminating from all over the court.

Randolph: Why #10. This was one of my dark horses all season, and she almost received too much attention, where some of the Top 5 offered her. But, Kentucky was able to get the verbal from her, and depending on how quickly her strength development can catch up to her growth, she could be a big part of UK’s plans early on.

Busting the Ceiling: Here are some athletes who appear to have the “highest projected ceilings” thus far—aka the most potential for development and growth in their game.

Annika Dandridge Outside PPV 202 Vandy Commit

Ellyson Randolph Outside PPV 233 Kentucky Commit

May Durrill Middle PPV 191 North Carolina Commit

Lyla Crowder Middle PPV 187 Kansas Commit

Staff Shouts Round 2:

Texas A+M:

The Aggie staff is taking advantage of the environment, great relationships, and winning a couple of huge recruiting battles to assemble what will equal their 2nd Top 5ish class in 3 years. I do not mean to say that landing Sophee Peterson was luck, but most years the nation’s #1 setter is taken by (corn or horn), regardless, Coach Morrison landed her, and she is going to be a star in College Station. Then you add 1 of the 2 fastest rising middles in this class and a talent that may end up being a top 3-4 PPV at the position by the time this class leaves for school, in Braelyn Patton, and the Aggies have weapons. This program is built to win RIGHT NOW and should see big-time on-court results in 2025. That should continue to lead to improved recruiting gains. High-ranked recruiting classes should be a trend for Aggie fans going forward with this veteran staff!

UCLA:

These guys keep signing some of my favorite prospects. First, they take PK in the portal, so I must be a Bruins fan…. Then the Matavao splash was huge. I think the Ross commit is undervalued nationally. Small for a middle, but I have given her a higher evaluation since seeing her early because of her athleticism. She was highly sought after by several Top 15 programs and a couple of Midwest programs heavily. So to get her out West was a W and winning over the other programs shows another win for the Bruin staff. They followed a theme I liked in a couple of programs that I have pointed out so far in 2027 recruiting. They have upgraded in the ATHLETE LEVEL that they have brought in. Now I’m sure some traditionalists will read this and rip me for saying this, but hey it’s the staff’s job to teach them the technique to be successful. If you aren’t athletic enough to keep up with the top programs nowadays, you aren’t winning. UCLA has become more athletic with both commits.

North Carolina:

Everyone in America knows how much I like Marlie Smith as a floor general and setter. For three days I’ve sat here like an NFL fan after their team drafted a rookie QB saying “they need to get some weapons for her” lol well the Tar Heels did that on Saturday and I they went out and took a shot on a high-end project (see above) that many in the game have noticed May Durrill, of St. Louis. I kept hearing rumblings of Durrill improving, and though she played with another top prospect, she received many high remarks on her progress. So bringing her in the same class to work with Smith is a big commit for UNC in my opinion. I would love to see the staff land one of the (approximately 10) potential year 1 impact pins still out there that could come in to work with Smith right away. Regardless, I think they have made a mark, adding one more significant piece would be BIG.

Underrated Commits: Here are 10 commits that probably haven’t received enough attention, but will end up being larger contributors than their “rankings” predict.