If it’s a weekend in September we are probably gearing up for another big-time tournament here at vballrecruiter.com. That’s the case with this coming weekend’s Louisville Invitational Volleyball Tournament (LIVT) hosted by Assumption. I’ll be heading there for the two-day event, which features the best programs from Kentucky and a handful of out-of-state teams like Mother McAuley IL, Mount Notre Dame OH and St. Joseph’s MO. The field features 24 teams broken down into eight pools of three teams. Pool winners from Friday advanced to Saturday’s eight-team gold bracket. Below, we shine a spotlight on the top seeds as well as more players to watch for in action.

TEAM SPOTLIGHTS

MOTHER MCAULEY IL – The top seed out of Illinois is surely to get its undefeated record challenged over the two days. Ellie White – a 5-11 junior outside hitter – is the team’s kill leader and is off to a hot start to the season. While the Macs do rely a lot on White, the offense behind her is spread out between others who include sophomore outside Sydney Buchanan and junior middle Ellery Rees. Seniors Tess Hayes and Olivia Klapp share setting duties while senior Gigi Navarrete – who was part of 1st Alliance 17 Gold run to the 17 Open gold medal in Indianapolis – suits up at libero.

ASSUMPTION KY – The hosts gear up for a busy couple of weeks. After participating in its own tourney over the weekend, the Rockets travel west to take on Mater Dei CA in Orange County before traveling to Las Vegas for the weekend to compete in the Durango Fall Classic. Assumption is off to an 11-0 start, including victories over St. Henry and Mercy. Both those schools are also in the LIVT. Senior setter Whitney Woodrow runs a balanced attack. Junior outside Charlotte Moriarty, junior outside Chloe Smith, senior pin hitter Alexis Strong, sophomore middle Bailey Blair and senior middle Gabrielle Gerry are all players to watch for on the attack. Defensively, Assumption uses sophomore Kristen Simon at the libero position.

ST. HENRY KY – After traveling to Florida last weekend for the Nike TOC Southeast tourney, the Crusaders remain in-state and open the LIVT as the No. 3 seed. If an opponent is going to beat St. Henry it needs to contain junior outside Alivia Skidmore, the team’s kill leader. Junior Anna Guard is another to pay attention to. At setter, the Crusaders use juniors in Audrey Leonhard and Macy Lentz. At libero is junior Elizabeth Tabeling, who is averaging over 4.0 digs per set.

MOUNT NOTRE DAME OH – The Cougars – who begin as the No. 4 seed – enter this weekend having just three matches under their belts. Seniors Shaye Wolf, Audrey Armbruster and Katie Wilking are all part of the mix.

NOTRE DAME KY – As the No. 5 seed, the Pandas should be in contention on Saturday. Senior Sydney Nolan is the big arm and comes in as the kill leader. While Nolan takes the most swings, the trio of sophomore Riley McCloskey, senior Peyton Mast and sophomore Ava Tilden get roughly the same amount of swings and are also key contributors on offense. The Pandas also featuring rising freshman middle Audrey Dyas. The team is also young at the setting position with sophomore Lauren Ott and freshman Lizzy Larkins. It’s the opposite at libero, where the Pandas utilize senior Kamden Schrand.

ST. JOSEPH’S MO – Last week we saw Lafayette from Missouri playing in the Nike TOC Southeast event. This weekend it’s another team from the Show Me state in the Angels, who open as the No. 6 seed. Like Notre Dame KY, the Angels use a pair of underclassmen at setter in sophomore Katie Hickman and freshman Charlie Frederick. Outsides in junior Claire Morrissey and sophomore Zoe Baliva take a lot of the swings while senior Madison Smith dons the libero jersey.

MERCY KY – The Jaguars – the No. 7 seed – are senior-heavy except at libero, which features sophomore Madisyn Green. Senior setter Cameron Downs’ main target are fellow senior outsides Katie Poynter and Maddie Hagan as well as senior middles Emma Barnett and Meredith Brown.

MORE PLAYERS TO WATCH FOR

Sophie Henry JR OH Walton GA

Kiana Dinn JR OH Ryle KY

Alexis Woolf JR L Ryle KY

Amanda Mack JR OH Maryville TN

Kiernan Stamey JR MB Maryville TN

Liv Gravatt SR S Maryville TN

Ashley Taylor JR L Maryville TN

Annabelle Groomes SO S/OH St. Joseph Academy OH

Brooke Green SR OH Clearwater Central Catholic FL

Taylor Bedinghaus JR OH Clearwater Central Catholic FL

Josephine Hensley SO S Clearwater Central Catholic FL

Isabella Pereira SO OH Clearwater Central Catholic FL

Trinity Ward SO L Holy Cross KY

Alyssa Adams SO L Knoxville Catholic TN

Blair Cherry SR OH Knoxville Catholic TN

Kennedy Holley JR OH Knoxville Catholic TN

Jessica Meiman JR RS Padua Franciscan OH

Ava Siefke SR OH St. Ursula Academy OH

Ivey Stocks SR MB St. Ursula Academy OH

Addy Brus JR OH St. Ursula Academy OH

Anna Powell SO OH Sacred Heart KY

Elise Hart SO MB Sacred Heart KY