There's no doubt however that entering in as a Gatorade North Carolina Player of The Year, and second-team High School All-American seeing Avery feature so much could be expected, but with how the setters were deployed in each match last weekend, there is some pause to wonder if she did not win the job outright moving forward.
Now let's be perfectly clear, Coach Stubbs can roll out Ana Heath tomorrow against Prairie View A&M and surprise arguably no one, as with a pair of high-caliber dynamic setters, the Wildcats are in very strong shape in 2024.
Cisneros Struggles and That's a Good Thing
When you come in as the number one recruit in the country in any sport, you're basically expected to come in, dominate for one to four years depending on the sport and then depart as a legend. On Thursday night, however, Carlie Cisneros likely had a night to forget hitting just .188 with six kills on 16 attempts with 3 errors.
Why is this a good thing? Because with another match tomorrow night, it allows Cisneros to recover and adjust before the start of conference play.
While Alabama State and tomorrow's opponent Prairie View A&M are not expected to make much noise nationally in 2024, they do provide a very quality experience for the Wildcats to grow and improve their mental game, which is arguably as important as any visible skill there is.