2017 Early Predictions

[K2ruth]

I am ONLY referencing Knoxville teams!

 

Cunningham at Catholic is the best player in town.  She hits like a hammer.  The setting limits what she do, and they lost some key players from last year, but if Coach Carter can get anything from her supporting cast they should repeat.  She can hit back row better than her teammates on the front row.  She will draw a lot of attention which will help the weaker hitters.

Webb is the best team in Knoxville.  Well coached, experienced, should repeat.

Farraguts window closed with the loss of Parker.  HV is better this year, but neither has the ability to beat the mid state teams.

[TeeterTot]

19 hours ago, K2ruth said:

I am ONLY referencing Knoxville teams!

 

Cunningham at Catholic is the best player in town.  She hits like a hammer.  The setting limits what she do, and they lost some key players from last year, but if Coach Carter can get anything from her supporting cast they should repeat.  She can hit back row better than her teammates on the front row.  She will draw a lot of attention which will help the weaker hitters.

Webb is the best team in Knoxville.  Well coached, experienced, should repeat.

Farraguts window closed with the loss of Parker.  HV is better this year, but neither has the ability to beat the mid state teams.

We get it Mr./Mrs. Cunningham, she's the best player in Knoxville that needs better setting. 

[K2ruth]

Why does everything have to be an attack?

 

[flyjgray]

I'm not sure how players are ranked or how they are named the best in the city. Is it how hard they hit or how well they read the Defense and know where to hit? Is it the best all-around player? Hitter, passer, setter. Would it be one of the players that tried out for the USA volleyball HP team and was named A1 or A2? Would it be the players on any or all of the all-American teams (USA Today, UA, Prepvolleyball, or unapproved website, etc.) There are a few in Knoxville. The place is loaded with talent.

[K2ruth]

Good point.  I look first at whether the player is made better by her team or whether she makes her team better.  It is why club makes it hard to evaluate a player sometimes, because if they are on a stacked team then maybe they really aren't a top tier talent.  If OC wasn't on Catholic's team they would be just an average team.  With her, they are probably the early favorite to win a State Championship.  She makes all of her teammates better.  Also, she hits hard, reads the defense, and elevates the play of her team.  Kirby, the Hames girls and a couple of others in Knoxville do the same.  Cunningham is also still an underclassman.  She can anchor a team that could win 3 in a row,  if her teammates will commit to working as hard as she does.  

Again this is early.  She has the tools, but the coach will have to resist parent pressure to play certain players, and to play them in certain positions.  

[BruinBabe]

Logan Eggleton is the state's best player.  No question.  Brentwood is coming to Knoxville in a few weeks so I want to see these teams.  I have watched Nicklin Hames in club and think she is strong.  I looked on Catholics web page, is Cunningham number 4?  If so she is strong but isn't she a junior?

 

[Spartie]

Nicklin Hames is on the USA Girls' National Team along with Eggleston from Brentwood so yes she is strong. They are both fun to watch and great competitors   Think it is a little to early to name best players in Knoxville.

[BruinBabe]

Just finished a tough Knoxville tournament.  I made a point to watch the Knoxville teams.  Obviously Webb and the Wood won't resemble what you see now in October with Logan and Hames back.

Harden Valley looked better than I thought.  Farragut was way down.  I saw the big girl from Catholic.  She was the best non Webb Knoxville player I saw.  Cunningham was the name.  She just doesn't have anything around her.  She was the entire team.  Weak setting and no other hitters.  She was the only one that could hit the ball.  They got thumped by a weak team because they went away from her.  

Baylor and siegel looked strong.  Good tournament.

[K2ruth]

My prediction right now, after seeing everyone for the past two days, Webb, Brentwood and Catholic will all repeat as state champions.  No one will challenge.

Oddly, I think Brentwood has the toughest road because 3A is so strong.  Webb will not have a challenger, and Catholic has no one to beat in 2A.  Cunningham is Catholics Hames.  

[JMAVU9193]

16 hours ago, K2ruth said:

Oddly, I think Brentwood has the toughest road because 3A is so strong.  

Funny, I see it the other way. I don't see a 3A team in B'wood's league. Sans Logan Eggleston, the field opens up (but B'wood might yet be a favorite even in that case). But with her, I don't see anybody within shouting distance.

I see quite a few in the next tier down...

[K2ruth]

I agree that Brentwood would be a favorite, and with Logan a big favorite, but, there are some really good teams in their division.

Catholic, on the other hand, has nobody to beat.  CAK and the other privates are gone, Signal Mountain can't beat them, Page moved up to AAA, it's not that Catholic is that good it's just that everyone else is weak.

The difference is Catholic has OC.  I suspect that pretty soon they will adopt the Berean offense of setting  her all way around.

[K2ruth]

I am changing my prediction about Catholic.  I think the two coaches, who are really nice guys, are bowing to the pressure that a couple of mom's are putting on relating to playing time and position.  This is a clear case of a club calling the shots for a high school team.  If you play for K2 then you are in, if you don't then you are out.  Is it odd that a middle school coach with no high school experience gets this job, and he just happened to be the K2 club coach of a couple of players who now get highlighted?  It's not too late for them to turn around the ship, but this has to be the school's team, not the club's team.  Don't punish the girls who don't play for K2.