The Prospect Report: Two Months Out and it's heating up

Prospect Report: Updates on the off week

What we are hearing around the sport as recruiting heats up for the Class of ’28 and beyond.

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Bryn Walcott - OH Washington State - Sudden Impact - Silver Level Prospect

We told you after Vegas that Walcott was a rising name on the ’28 list and high-ceiling prospect. Her camp list proves that (and she has many more Top 15 options if she would decide to add more camps, trust us. USC, Washington, but PITT is the the marquee name on her list and we can confirm it is a legit offer and then Auburn.

Watch for movement on her list still as that is a volatile group and Washington is always going to be there for Walcott, but look for other Top 10s to come in at the end and try and convince her to camp before June 15.

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Shayla Rautenberg - MB Nebraska - Nebraska ONE - Diamond Level Prospect

Rautenberg is still our #1 overall in the 2028 class because she brings the Total Package on and off the court. High level of play, great teammate and culture kid, has the potential to play at any program on Day 1 and the potential to be the National Player of the Year.

Our thought was always this was a Nebraska slam dunk, but it might not be the case. I like the fact that Shayla is looking around and weighing all of her options.  

**This is also another GREAT example of how it would be so cool if volleyball would just move their recruiting calendar back like football and basketball. Then Rautenberg wouldn’t have to guess what the Husker MB depth chart will look like quite as much. She would have one more year to sit back and watch things play out in front of her eyes. The MB room could look completely different in 12 months and may help make her mind up much easier.

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A new wrinkle in the 2028 Setter equation? While the battle for #1 clearly appears to be between Nebraska and Texas for Taimane Ainu’u and it depends who you ask, what answer you will get as to whom the favorite is right now, the battle for #2 might be different than we predicted previously. VBAdrenaline has been contacted by three different sources that there is a foreign setter who is being heavily considered (rumored by Wisconsin and Nebraska) as a top recruit who could be the #2 setter prospect in this class. What is odd, especially in today’s world is how well her identity is being concealed. VBAdrenaline is checking for confirmation, but hasn’t received that yet. However we have been told the prospect is legit and would be a close #2 to Ainu’u. This would also help sort out the rest of the dominos, at least through Louisville at four and presuming that Stanford would pass until 2029.

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You know you are legit when your court looked like Cala Haffner’s did at Chicago two weeks ago. Texas, Louisville, Kentucky, Pitt, USC, Stanford and Texas A+M all at the same match and none of them were getting up early to leave. I know winning is very important to Cala and the schools in attendance get that too.

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Rilynn Wingenbach - MB HPSTL - Elite Red Prospect

Wingenbach has made a legitimate jump and it was noticeable the second we “didn’t” notice her in Chicago. One of the main questions (at the end of her 15s seasons) was how strong would she be by the time “decision day June 26” came around? I literally said, to the coach I was standing next to “is Rilynn hurt or something? Where is she this weekend?” They laughed at me and asked if I was joking as they pointed her out about 10 ft. in front of me. The ’28 prospect had made the physical jump that many make between their 16s and 17s season. Her size and athleticism was at a new level, she just looked like a new player. So much more aggressive and confident attacking the net and her body looks like it can withstand a college career now. Plus she has 18 months to continue to grow and get even stronger before setting foot on campus. She bumped to an Elite Red Level and with improved footwork I think she ends up a Silver Level Prospect for sure. I was very, very impressed with Rilynn and think this Spring NTDP will be a big one for her.

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Leah Stickney - OH A5 - Elite Orange Prospect

Stickney went from a literal unknown to us a few weeks ago and is now an Elite Orange Prospect with her long frame for growth. She is only 6’, but she touches over 10’ already and will put on muscle and more explosion at the next level. She projects to be an Elite Red Prospect by the time she hits a college campus.

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Saylor Halvorsen - OH SG Elite - Elite Red Prospect

Halvorsen is another prospect that we heard quite a bit about early in the season, but gets shut down by her club recruiting wise so we don’t learn much about her plans late in her process. Depending on what direction she wants to take (academic, stay in the region, or take top offer) we think Halvorsen could get to Top 20 program.

She has legit T.O.P. scores in all 3 of her Physical Subtests and is more than productive on the court. She had a mixture of high academic and high athletic interest programs in the heartland and eastern part of the country earlier in her process so the assumption would be those offers have continued to pick up. Again we have heard nothing from her camp on any updates.

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Loryn Piening - OPP/MB - Nebraska ONE - Red Level Prospect

Piening just moved into the Red Level for the Class of ’28 with an in-depth film review of her team and her season. It revealed that she is a solid middle blocker, with an above average block touch (no profile so no exact measure) and has the skill and ability to go play on the pin. She would have to work on her explosion and quickness to do that at the D1 level, but she is good enough and a smart enough volleyball player to play at the D1 level.

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Josslyn Jacks - OH T Street - Red Level Prospect

Jacks is another of the Cali prospects we haven’t heard any real updates from this season like last year. Other than seeing her at the last NTDP training she has been a name that hasn’t popped up as much as in her 15s season. Again something that happens with the West Coast clubs recruiting philosophies of not allowing athletes to talk about their camps etc? Jacks strength was at the net w/ an impressive block touch, but was going to need to improve approach touch and vertical game to be effective terminating at the elite level. I’m guessing she will be in Colorado Springs so we will get a look at her there, but she would be one of those bubble OH’s that final camps could really help and I’m sure has several ranging options across multiple conferences heading into June,

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Surfier Grounds - Opp - Spike and Serve - Elite Red Prospect Level

Grounds is catching much more attention than most on the mainland would think. Select camp interest from schools like Mizzou, KU, ASU and Utah. Plus her size and strength give her an added bonus few others have and it only takes one elite program to take a shot at that “project” 6’5” and college strength/physical frame day 1 and she gets an offer from a Top 10 program.

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Ava Nowling - Libero - Nebraska Premier - Elite Red Prospect Level

I know we have Nowling higher valued than most sites do, but when we have seen her live and she has been given a shot “In BIG Gym situations” she has performed well.

UA NEXT MVP isn’t too shabby and they don’t just give those away. I think she is a solid choice for Elite Red/Red Level Program looking to bring a libero/DS and develop her into the teams ‘bro eventually. Also, with that said I don’t think she has been given enough Big Gym opportunities and she could have been invited to one certain event just as soon as 3-4 others in this class and I think if she would have then her recruiting situation probably looks differently.

It all will depend if Nowling wants to take an early offer and commit right away or waits like many liberos have to.

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Kennedy Davis - Middle - A5 Gabe Georgia - Orange Level Prospect

Davis is yet another A5 prospect entering out list and another Middle Blocker. She gets overshadowed a bit in the mix, but is a threat on the defensive end and can cause problems with her block right now. She plays vertical and takes away multiple attack angles for the offense. She has a quick up off the floor and room for growth.

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Maya Ogbogu - OH TAV - Gold Level Prospect

We haven’t talked a ton about Ogbogu yet this season, in part because she is another athlete we simply don’t get many updates from so we don’t know a ton about. Also, she is very popular so obviously everyone else is writing about her so they honestly probably know more about her than we do. We have simply said from the beginning that the top of the OH crop in this class is very difficult to judge and separate.

Maya is obviously a very dynamic volleyball player and is being looked at by MANY programs in the US. She will have plenty of attention come the 15th and I think she ends up being a Day 1 starter for the program she ends up with (minus 1 that is in the mix). Again what we don’t know is all of her physical stats, but her swing is beautiful and powerful. I love how compact her takeoff and swing are together. It reminds me a lot of Cari Spears a couple of years ago.

She has also done a nice job of blending in on the Dream Team this season where she has sacrificed individual stats to be on a squad with many other weapons. She just received a decent PPV bump because of her consistency in her play. Again there is no report we are going to give that hasn’t already been said about her. She is being looked at by as many schools right now as anyone in the class and will be a day 1 difference maker for someone. I have my feelings where I think she ends up, but let’s see how it ends up. For now let’s just enjoy that POWER ARM a few more weeks through Nationals.

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Deviryn McCarty - Libero Kairos - Red Level Prospect *When healthy again

We have been asked a few times about Deviryn and monitored her injury situation fairly closely this season. We have also “asked around the recruiting world” about how an ACL injury to a libero affects their recruiting.

Trust me, since I was the first one to start promoting this athlete about 16 months ago and sent her name to about 30 D1 coaches saying that she is the real deal, no one wants her to succeed and fully recover as much as I do. I also don’t think it’s fair to rank her #1 in a state ranking when she hasn’t played all season, until you actually see her come back.

**So when we see her back and playing where she was last August THEN she is a legit Red Level prospect who is long and athletic and was one of my top 5-6 in the entire class last year. It’s difficult because libero recruiting is so tough anyway, example you are about to see a very reputable program sign a bro for their ’27 Class (it’s April). So do you wait and get healthy and get the best offer next season OR see who is interested this season with no one really seeing you at 100% after your injury?  I'm pulling for Deviryn no matter what she does, like I said I was a huge fan the first time I saw her on the court and wrote about her immediately. 

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Molly Monday - Setter Tribe - Silver Level Prospect

All has been quiet on the Monday front for a bit now. The riddle is if Kentucky could be a fit or would it be a Prestige Level school such as Miami, Georgia Tech, UVA etc.? We have had Monday as a Silver Level prospect since the beginning of the season so don’t be alarmed if a few more schools come in with camp invites later in the process.

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Charli Niu - Setter Austin Juniors - Elite Red Level Prospect

You know that Charli is a prospect that we are cheering for hard this June. We know a bit of interest, but don’t know a ton of her recruiting story right now. It still amazes us each time we watch her, her simple size and strength. Charli just dwarfs her other setter sisters. Her touch continues to improve and she is running a quicker tempo as the season goes on. Her footwork is excellent and she is such an athlete on the court. But, we all know that her superpower is going to be her leadership and locker room presence she will bring in addition to the skill she has. Right now we have her at the very top of the Elite Red Level group, but you could call her a Silver Level Prospect very easily.

She can handle the pressure of playing for a Top 10-15 program and can handle the stress/training also. We will try and get more knowledge on her group she’s looking at.

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Sara Gonzalez - Libero Alamo - Red Level Prospect

Gonzalez is a libero that continues to go under publicized nationally, but we are going to trust our scout sources here and know that she is getting a couple of very serious looks.

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Charlotte Patton - OPP/OH Tri-State Elite - Silver Level Prospect

No matter how much you have heard about out Patton or not, don’t be afraid to look her up and watch some film on her. Midwest hard nose athlete who plays the game with a high-IQ and how do you argue with her physical stats? T.O.P scores: Height of 9.4 and Approach Touch: 9.8 Charlotte is built for the D1 level and at Tri-State everyone knows how to pass the ball. She is an underrated player who can play either pin and can fill many roles on a volleyball team for you.

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Maggie Jewell - MB NC Academy - Red Level Prospect

We made the comment to Maggie a week ago that she needs to go update her Player Profile because her Block Touch and her Approach Touch have to have improved since January. She simply looks stronger on the court and more explosive. She added a select camp invite to her profile today and noted that the others will be added as soon as her team finishes their final qualifier. She is another that will simply get better in another 18 months for the college that takes her.