SEATTLE โ Washington Volleyball has assembled an outstanding recruiting class of five student-athletes that will help lay the foundation for replacing the accomplished 2017 graduating senior class. The group, which hails from five different states, signed their National Letters of Intent at Wednesday ceremonies at their high schools or club teams.
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"They are going to be a highly-rated class coming in, but I'm more interested in the people they're going to become," said Washington Head Coach Keegan Cook. "That excites me more than what they've done in their prep careers."
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The group nonetheless has done a remarkable amount during their high school and club careers. The five players are Dani Cole (Leander, Texas), Shannon Crenshaw (Winter Park, Fla.), Marin Grote (Burbank, Calif.), Claire Hoffman (Eugene, Ore.), and Ella May Powell (Fayetteville, Ark.).
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For starters, all five are rated in the top-100 of PrepVolleyball.com's annual list of Senior Aces.
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Cook describes the recruiting class as a diverse group that share core values that Washington values. "What they have in common is an incredible work ethic as well as a good sense of humility, and they enjoy being in the gym doing what it takes to improve," says Cook.
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With seven seniors graduating from the current roster, the five incoming freshmen could see a lot of action as true freshman, says Cook.
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"This is a group that is going to hit the ground running. The schedule next year is intentionally pretty tough, maybe even tougher than this year, because we want them focusing on who they're going to become in their four years at Washington."
Dani Cole
Dani Cole is a 6-foot-1 outside hitter/opposite from Leander, Texas who played club for the Austin Juniors. She helped lead her club team to the silver medal at the 2017 Junior Nationals in the 17 Open Division, while her Rouse High School squad is the Bi-District and Area Champions this season as it heads into Regionals this week. Cole was ranked 36th nationally in the Senior Aces list.
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A family atmosphere helped Cole decide to become a Dawg. "Being from a small town in Texas with a close-knit community, the familiarity of the volleyball program reminded me of home," she says. "The team exhibited a relationship very much like my high school crew โ they genuinely care for each other. Also, as I got to know the coaching staff, it became apparent to me that with their support and excellent coaching, I could be successful in achieving my goals throughout my college career. I cannot wait to finally play in purple and gold!"
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In Cole, Coach Cook sees "an elite level athlete, a player who looks like she's dynamic enough to be in our gym right now from that perspective. But that's not really why we recruited her, I think what we saw was someone with a tremendous work ethic. Her high school program is very intense, she works very hard, she has a quiet, business-like demeanor when she's practicing and often when she's playing. An exciting, high-ceiling player that we think we could spend all four years teaching her to the best of our ability and we still may not reach the ceiling she has as an athlete."
Traveling the furthest to Seattle will be Crenshaw, a 6-2 outside hitter who plays club for Top Select Volleyball Academy and helped her team capture the 2016 AAU 17 Open National Championship and take third in the 2016 USAV Nationals. Crenshaw also helped Bishop Moore Catholic High School win Florida state titles in 2015 and 2016 and was the Florida 5A Player of the Year in 2015.
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"Shannon Crenshaw probably has the most high-level competitive experience of any of the players we've recruited," says Cook. "She's played in the biggest matches from a very young age. Players from her club team have gone on to have immediate success in college. So I think the way she has trained and the competitive level she's played at will make for a good transition here. She moves very efficiently, has a great eye for the game, and elite ball control."
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PrepVolleyball.com ranked Crenshaw 69th on its Senior Aces list and in 2015 named her a top-10 outside hitter in its list of Club All-Americans. She also was Most Outstanding Player of the 2016 Nike Tournament of Champions and a two-time JVA All-National Team pick in 2016 and 2017.
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"First off, Seattle is gorgeous," Crenshaw says. "I love the outdoors and it's beautiful there, the greenery is incredible. But more importantly, the team and coaches are beyond amazing. People would tell me that coaches put on a face when they recruit players, which I can understand but it was different with them, it was easy to see they were genuine people that truly want the best for their current and incoming players. The environment had a homey atmosphere which is extremely important to me. There isn't one negative thing I could say about this school, the coaches, or the team. I'm excited to call this place home."
Marin Grote
Able to potentially play outside hitter or middle blocker is Marin Grote, who stands 6-4.5 from Burbank, California. Grote is ranked 20th on the Senior Aces list and has been the Pacific League MVP each of the past three seasons on her John Burroughs High School squad in addition to earning All-CIF First Team honors.
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Grote's San Gabriel Elite Volleyball Club placed third at the 2017 Junior Nationals 17 Open, one spot behind Cole's squad, and Grote was named to the All-Tournament/All-American squad following that tourney run. She also led her club team to second at Junior Nationals in 2015.
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A multi-talented athlete, Grote has also earned All-League honors in basketball as a sophomore and junior, a skill set that Coach Cook likens to another former two-sport star, sophomore Kara Bajema.
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"Marin is a player with a very high physical ceiling, in terms of her height, length, and speed," he says. "A multi-sport athlete kind of like Kara Bajema, Marin plays the game very free. She can play a variety of positions, outside hitter, middle blocker or right side, so that's exciting. She can run the slide, which we think is a big deal at this level. Just a high motor and a quirky, fun kid that I like being around. And behind that quirkiness are long hours in the gym at some really high level clubs."
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Grote says she chose Washington "Because the coaching staff is not only talented, but coaches in a way I can learn to reach my potential. UW is also in Seattle, which is far enough away from home to go away to school, yet the team often travels to the L.A. area so my parents can support me without traveling. The campus is gorgeous and the varying majors allow me to pursue what I want to, and I can change my mind! Finally, my life long goal has been to get to the Olympics. I believe Coach Keegan is the coach to help me take the next steps to achieve this goal. Finally, UW has an incredible sense of school camaraderie, and that is something I take deep pride in being part of."
Claire Hoffman
Claire Hoffman, 6-2 out of Eugene, Oregon, is another big talent that Cook describes as "One of those skilled six-rotation outsides who has the power to score the ball. You really need some players who can play all phases of the game, so I think that's what jumped out about Claire. She really has become a nice serve-receive passer and has an ability to terminate the ball with how hard she hits."
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A product of the Webfoot Juniors club team and Marist Catholic High School, Hoffman was named to the AVCA/Under Armour All-America Second Team this season. Her high school squad has finished top-four at the state championships all three years thus far and won three league titles with Hoffman winning three league Player of the Year awards. Hoffman helped Webfoot Juniors take fifth at Colorado Crossroads, fourth at the Pacific Northwest Qualifier, and reach the silver bracket in the National division at Junior National Championships.
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"Again we talked about shared values," says Cook. "She is a kid who her teammates love to play with, and she really made a big jump from her sophomore year to get to a level where we thought we needed her to be. She has a work ethic and determination to be great."
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Hoffman, ranked 87th in the Senior Aces list, says she chose to be a Husky because of its community. "The coaching staff is awesome and all of the girls on the team make it feel more like a family than just a team," she said. "On top of the amazing volleyball program, the academics are also some of the best in the country. I can't wait become a part of it all and officially call myself a Husky!"
Ella May Powell
Powell was the 2015 and 2016 Gatorade Player of the Year for the state of Arkansas and one of the most highly-regarded setters in the nation. She was recently named a First Team All-American by AVCA/Under Armour, and led her Fayetteville High School squad to three consecutive Arkansas 7A state titles and national rankings.
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The six-foot-tall Powell has some experience in the national team pipeline as well, as she was the starting setter and team captain for the 2016 U.S. Girls Youth National Team that earned a silver medal at the NORCECA Championships in Puerto Rico. She is a multiple time MaxPreps Underclass All-American, and PrepVolleyball.com ranked her 26th overall in its Senior Aces list.
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"With two pretty special setters departing, finding a player that could contribute right away was the number one goal of this class, and Ella May was our top target from the very beginning," says Coach Cook. "I think what has always been special about Ella May is her ability to affect others in a positive way. Teams that she's on get better. On paper she has the skills and athleticism to be one of the best setters we've ever recruited. She can really affect the game with all of her skillset -- serving, digging, blocking, attacking, she wins points in a variety of ways."
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Playing for the Ozark Juniors club, Powell led her squad to the 2015 National Division Championship and she was named the Most Valuable Player.
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"I chose Washington because it was my gut feeling that I was going to be happiest there," Powell says. "The coaching staff and the team went out of their way to make sure I felt welcomed and a part of their family. The feeling I got at UW was something that I didn't feel anywhere else and I'm so excited to be a part of such a respected and encouraging team! The culture and support of UW volleyball by the university and community is evident and something I can't wait to be a part of!"
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