Cooper beats Bishop Brossart 3-0 (25-11, 25-21, 25-16).

 

First set, Brossart and Cooper went back and forth for first 19 points of the match. Cooper lead 10-9 and then turned it on with a 13 point run, sophomore Hailey Gillespie serving 12 of them, to go up 23-9. Brossart setter dumped for 10th point, followed by another Brossart point. Cooper went back to back quick points to take the first set 25-11. Brossart came out strong in second set and led most of the way until Cooper tied it at 17. The rest of the set went back and forth until Cooper managed to pull away for a 25-21 second set win. Cooper eased through the third set for a 25-16 set win, putting away the match for the program's 100th win.

No surprise in that outcome. Brossart will struggle against bigger schools, and Cooper can play.

A BIG Congrats to Cooper for giving Coach Isaac win #100!!! Cooper is the team to watch!! Coach Isaac knows how to pull the most out of her players!! Congrats & can't wait to watch the Cooper/Ryle game!!!

That's a long way off. Cooper has some tough matches before that - Beechwood, St. Henry, Henry Clay, PLD, NDA. They could go 1-4 in those.

That's a long way off. Cooper has some tough matches before that - Beechwood, St. Henry, Henry Clay, PLD, NDA. They could go 1-4 in those.

 

Morgan Hentz is the real deal. She and Ashley Bush are the best in NKY right now. Kaity is very good. However there is more to volleyball than just swinging hard every time. I prefer players who swing, read the blocks, hit line and deep corners, and know when to roll the ball off of their hit. I also like when they can set when called upon and play defense. I don't know if Kaity is there yet. Two other players in her class, who can do all of that, are Haley Bush of Ryle, and Rachel McDonald of NCC.

I don't see Beechwood as an immediate threat as they have no spectacular players. They play them on

Tuesday and I think it should be an easy 3 set sweep. The others are all talented teams. I think Cooper will beat St. Henry and Henry Clay, but PLD, NDA (and Ryle, not previously mentioned) will all be very competitive matches.

Morgan Hentz is the real deal. She and Ashley Bush are the best in NKY right now. Kaity is very good. However there is more to volleyball than just swinging hard every time. I prefer players who swing, read the blocks, hit line and deep corners, and know when to roll the ball off of their hit. I also like when they can set when called upon and play defense. I don't know if Kaity is there yet. Two other players in her class, who can do all of that, are Haley Bush of Ryle, and Rachel McDonald of NCC.

 

Morgan Hentz IS the real deal! There are few in our area other than Ashley who can compare. I would agree that Kaity is not quite there - YET. She is still newer to playing volleyball (compared to McDonald and Bush) but has made some significant progress at NKYVC where I believe she plays on the same team? I heard from other coaches that she was getting a ton of big DI interest after her performance at Nationals and Elite camps this summer. The call-out for her would be to gain body strength. Her arm swing is probably one of the fastest around at her age. Haley and Rachel are both extremely good as well! Haley is just an all around beast! You can put her in any spot and she will perform! Very intense! In some ways, I see her as a bigger threat than her sister. IMO she is a better defensive player. That NKYVC club team should be a powerhouse this year!

I agree volleyballmom1. All three sophomores are very good and bring different games to the court. They will be fun to watch the next 3 years. Makes for great volleyball in nky.

Morgan Hentz is absolutely the best player in the region without a doubt. She can read the opposing defense and opposing blockers like no other outside hitter i've seen in the region, probably because she is shorter than most hitters.

Ashley Bush is also very good at hitting/setting, but with Ryle's weak middle back defense, it leaves opposing hitters with lots of room to work with, thus making it difficult to get a good set for A Bush and her younger sister, Hayley.

Kaity Smith is a middle hitter, different than Hentz and Bush. Until someone has played middle, they won't know how drastically different it is to hit middle rather than hitting on the pins. As a middle, you almost always have a block set up right in front of you that is more difficult to hit around. What Kaity has going for her is that she is fearless. You may block her once or twice, but she is going to shove it down your throat at least 10 more times. She knows how to work around blocks and tool them. Middles can't really use roll shots and very rarely can tip because the opposing defenses will almost always be ready for it. It is very hard to tip as a middle unless you use a power tip, which Smith uses frequently. As far as back row defense goes, Smith isn't used much because of the deep defensive bench Cooper has. She does play defense sometimes and she isn't bad at all.

Hayley Bush is great in the back row but in the front row, she lacks the ability to read blockers which was very apparent when Ryle played Dunbar earlier this week. Bush was stuffed quite a lot. Granted, she was going up against a large Dunbar block.

Rachel McDonald seems to be fairly good in the front row and alright in the back row but she doesn't really jump out to me as amazing in either aspect. Especially with what seems to be quite a weak NCC team this year (0-3), McDonald would have to step up big time to make an impact on the season.

I don't see Beechwood as an immediate threat as they have no spectacular players. They play them on

Tuesday and I think it should be an easy 3 set sweep. The others are all talented teams. I think Cooper will beat St. Henry and Henry Clay, but PLD, NDA (and Ryle, not previously mentioned) will all be very competitive matches.

 

I wouldn't count Beechwood automatically out next week. They did beat NCC recently?

 

I'm just enjoying the fact that we as a group are discussing the possibility of the local powerhouse teams potentially being beaten this year! It's been a loooong time coming!

If only Bush had the height of McDonald and Smith, she would be a force to be reckoned with, well, even more than she already is.

 

I think what people are noticing is that you don't always have to go to a private school to get good coaching and to get recognized by college scouts. What you can see is that club volleyball is the connection between the two. People who start with a good club early are almost guaranteed to get a decent college scholarship if they work for it. What some parents don't see is that just because its a club team, that doesn't mean that the club is good. There are several clubs around that, I feel like, parents are wasting thousands of dollars on. I don't want to name them but other than NKYVC, Elevation and Tri-State Elite, you are wasting your hard earner dollars. Yes, these 3 clubs are more expensive and maybe not everyone can afford $3,000 every club season, but if you think your daughter could be good enough for a college scholarship, she NEEDS to go to one of these clubs to get the training that other clubs just don't have.

Morgan Hentz is absolutely the best player in the region without a doubt. She can read the opposing defense and opposing blockers like no other outside hitter i've seen in the region, probably because she is shorter than most hitters.

Ashley Bush is also very good at hitting/setting, but with Ryle's weak middle back defense, it leaves opposing hitters with lots of room to work with, thus making it difficult to get a good set for A Bush and her younger sister, Hayley.

Kaity Smith is a middle hitter, different than Hentz and Bush. Until someone has played middle, they won't know how drastically different it is to hit middle rather than hitting on the pins. As a middle, you almost always have a block set up right in front of you that is more difficult to hit around. What Kaity has going for her is that she is fearless. You may block her once or twice, but she is going to shove it down your throat at least 10 more times. She knows how to work around blocks and tool them. Middles can't really use roll shots and very rarely can tip because the opposing defenses will almost always be ready for it. It is very hard to tip as a middle unless you use a power tip, which Smith uses frequently. As far as back row defense goes, Smith isn't used much because of the deep defensive bench Cooper has. She does play defense sometimes and she isn't bad at all.

Hayley Bush is great in the back row but in the front row, she lacks the ability to read blockers which was very apparent when Ryle played Dunbar earlier this week. Bush was stuffed quite a lot. Granted, she was going up against a large Dunbar block.

Rachel McDonald seems to be fairly good in the front row and alright in the back row but she doesn't really jump out to me as amazing in either aspect. Especially with what seems to be quite a weak NCC team this year (0-3), McDonald would have to step up big time to make an impact on the season.

 

I got a chance to watch Cooper at Bluegrass when they were playing Dunbar - we were on the court next to them and had to check out what all of the cheering was about! That was an exciting game to say the least! There were quite a few college coaches there and we got a kick out of watching them start texting furiously whenever Kaity had a kill or block. That Dunbar team was stacked though and was tough to beat. The OH (Ruppel) on Cooper's team is really good too. Didn't think I would ever say this about Cooper, but they were a lot of fun to watch and I might have to make a special trip when Cooper plays NDA and Ryle. :walk:

I said Cooper is the team to "watch" not necessarily meaning will win it all but they could!! I think traditionally the 9th Region is associated with the same 3 teams year after year...NDA, St.Henry, & Ryle!! With that usually follows the name POY favorite coming from one of those same 3 schools!! I just feel that this year could potentially break free from that trend & in my book both Cooper & Kaity Smith should be on the top lists!!! Cooper has more than just Smith's hitting. They have other talented players that come together & play as a team to win!! They aren't playing for the individual glory or spotlight. Teams playing Cooper need to go into the game knowing that Cooper will claw, fight, scrap & never give up on the ball!! No team is going to have a perfect season & perfect games every time. Any team can be beaten on any given day no matter who they are. I'm just saying Cooper needs to be seen as a threat for NDA, St.Henry & Ryle. And given the fact Kaity Smith is a sophomore & being compared to top players that are older with more experience should also speak volumes!! While I'm at it, I'll just go ahead & throw my vote out there for Coach of the Year, too....Cooper's Michelle Isaac!!! Let the fur fly now!!!

I said Cooper is the team to "watch" not necessarily meaning will win it all but they could!! I think traditionally the 9th Region is associated with the same 3 teams year after year...NDA, St.Henry, & Ryle!! With that usually follows the name POY favorite coming from one of those same 3 schools!! I just feel that this year could potentially break free from that trend & in my book both Cooper & Kaity Smith should be on the top lists!!! Cooper has more than just Smith's hitting. They have other talented players that come together & play as a team to win!! They aren't playing for the individual glory or spotlight. Teams playing Cooper need to go into the game knowing that Cooper will claw, fight, scrap & never give up on the ball!! No team is going to have a perfect season & perfect games every time. Any team can be beaten on any given day no matter who they are. I'm just saying Cooper needs to be seen as a threat for NDA, St.Henry & Ryle. And given the fact Kaity Smith is a sophomore & being compared to top players that are older with more experience should also speak volumes!! While I'm at it, I'll just go ahead & throw my vote out there for Coach of the Year, too....Cooper's Michelle Isaac!!! Let the fur fly now!!!

 

They must get some key wins, just because they have one all region player in you opinion does not make a coach of the year, if they don't get some key wins against the likes of Ryle and others in their region, and show improvement, I am sure there will be other choices much better for coach of the year!! If they beat teams with winning records and win their district, then yes she would deserve coach of the year.

Cooper has more than just Smith's hitting. They have other talented players that come together & play as a team to win!!

 

Names? And doesn't every traditional 9th Region favorite team?

 

They aren't playing for the individual glory or spotlight.

 

Are your saying players at St. Henry, NDA, or Ryle are?

 

Teams playing Cooper need to go into the game knowing that Cooper will claw, fight, scrap & never give up on the ball!!

 

Care to list the traditional 9th Region favorite teams that do give up?

 

IMO, you haven't listed a single reason why Cooper will topple St. Henry, NDA, or Ryle.