The Year of the Littles: Libero Talent Everywhere in the Class of 2028

The Year of The Littles: Everyone tries to ignore them, even in recruiting, but the Class of 2028 is so deep with college-ready talent they simply won’t sit quietly. The talent of this group will make sure that this group of Littles is a very BIG DEAL all the way through June 15th and beyond.

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First off, recruiting of liberos simply isn’t fair to begin with. How does each team recruit a bro, walk-on? 2 and 2 (2 years paid and 2 years walk-on), starter gets the $? Now with revenue sharing, how will that change things for programs, and does it help liberos, does it hurt them, or doesn’t it matter? Quite a bit of exploration this year for the position group as a whole, and then you throw in those programs that prefer to make an undersized OH a college bro, as the hardest working man in college volleyball, Lincoln Arneal, likes to say, “justice for liberos,” please!

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This group will be different, at least at the top end of the class, as there is consistent high-end talent that runs deeper than I have seen. Plus, I know that we haven’t cracked the surface on probably 1/3 of the legit D1 names we will evaluate by Triple Crown in mid-February. Then the class possesses the first legit superstar candidate in Cala Haffner. Now, superstar on the court, off the court, she’s quiet and reserved, so many of you may not have heard of you, but she is THAT GIRL, and the recruiting buzz is real, and the competition for her will be that intense.

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I’m simply going to warn athletes, parents, and followers that this is going to be that kind of class that is GOING TO HAVE MUCH SHIFTING IN EVALUATIONS. Athletes are going to be moving all over the place throughout the season simply because they are that close in talent, and even though they are talented, they are also raw, so some are simply going to “get it faster” this year than others. Some are going to stay locked in during the recruiting grind better than others, and some are simply going to train some others out. So I would look at this group to be the one that has constant movement in our evals, and much of that could be these athletes getting better and better! It’s an exciting season for libero lovers.

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Let’s take a very quick look at our initial top 20 liberos heading into the club season

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Cala Haffner - Diamond - Team Pineapple Indiana 

*Not sure we will EVER have another Diamond Level Libero in high school evaluations, Haffner is that good. EVERYONE will take a shot at her in recruiting.

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Morgan Nesloney - Elite Red - TAV - Texas

*Nesloney had a big select camp season that boosted her quite a bit, and great reports from those camps. Just love the feistiness she plays with in the back, and when you play at TAV, enough said.

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Averi Bridges - Elite Red - VCNebraska - Nebraska

*Bridges had a steady 15s season, and another who probably did more good for themselves at select camp season than they did during club. I have told Averi’s story a couple of times. We will break her game down later.

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Chloe Ritchie - Elite Red - Muncianna - Indiana 

*One of two Muncianna bros on the list, Ritchie was newer to us, as she doesn’t have a Player Profile, but she recently made a big jump, as we just hadn’t seen her much. She is going to be right there and love her physicality at the position.

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Brooke Neale - Elite Red - Muncianna - Indiana

• Neale is the other Municanna libero, whom we have watched much more of up until now. Another one of the taller and longer liberos, but she is going to fit that Midwest model of down and dirty, and will do anything to keep a ball alive, and has great communication skills.

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Annabelle Cummings - Elite Red - AZ REV - Arizona

*Cummings is one of the smaller liberos in the group, but technique-wise is solid. She has played up with their talented 17s squad, so she is used to the older competition, and she won that libero spot, so it tells you a bit about her talent level.

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Ashlyn Pelon - Elite Red - Legacy Volleyball - Michigan

*Pelon is one who made a jump at the end of the Summer, and I would look to make a jump early in the club season, and to me has Top 5 potential in this class.

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Kenadi Sieg - Elite Red - NKYVC - Kentucky

*Sieg is not as well known on the National stage, but her game is solid, and she is fundamentally a P4 prospect. Already interest from the hotbed of schools in that little volleyball corridor, who know all about Sieg.

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Harper Broyles - Elite Red - Alliance Volleyball - Tennessee

*Broyles consistently climbed the PPV chart last season and has attended NTDPs and some SEC/ACC and Big Ten camps, so word is out on her as well. She is another who could make a leap higher up on this list early on in the club season.

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Bella Osborn - Red Level - Madfrog Volleyball - Texas

*Osborn was at the Dream Team camp and the U17 National Team, so you know she is thought highly of. This is exactly what I’m talking about when I say just how deep I think the talent level is in this class, and just how close I think many of these liberos are in talent. Now, we didn’t know Osborn as well until late because she was another that didn’t have a profile with us, but we did get to watch her late in the Summer, and as I have said, I think she is like Broyles, Pelon, and even a Sieg who could jump up spots early on. Also important to not let club names fool you, Osborn is a fierce competitor, though she is one of the shorter liberos in the class.

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Ava Nowling - Red Level - Premier Nebraska - Nebraska

*Nowling isn’t talked about as much, but she has a very good club career. Anchoring her Premier team to a Natty last summer. Because of her size and range, it will be interesting to see what kind of school interest she draws this Spring.

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Aubree Svoboda - Red Level - Houston Jrs - Texas

*Svoboda makes the move to Houston Jrs this season and will play with a talented crew, so that should help her recruiting simply with more foot traffic from more P4 coaches on her court. She has a chance to really strengthen that backcourt and strengthen her recruiting future by playing well on that team. Look for her to make a jump into the Elite Red group early, as that is where her potential lies.

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Dakota Washington - Red Level - A5 Volleyball - Georgia

*Washington is working on her mechanics, but she has range and quick reactions. Her athleticism might be the best in the entire group, and she does some things keeping balls alive that only Haffner can replicate. She needs to continue to rep technique, but you have to love her potential long-term.

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Reese Wallraff - Red Level - Nebraska ONE - Nebraska

*Wallraff was just featured in our Nebraska state breakdown, and we talked more about her there.

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Makenzie Turosik - Red Level - Texas Legacy - Texas

*Turosik is playing for the relatively new Legacy club in Texas, and we watched her film from the end of last year. She was the only Freshman to make All-State in her class of Texas HS VB, so that tells you a little bit of her talent and who is recognizing her. She didn’t update her camps from the summer.