Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Volleyball Signs Five on National Signing Day
11/15/2019 12:00:00 PM | Women's Volleyball
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – The Middle Tennessee volleyball team announced the addition of five student-athletes for the 2020 season on National Signing Day.
The Blue Raiders have gained five outstanding players from Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee and Kansas. The newest members of the team include setter Taylor Eisert, outside hitter Ally Hall, defensive specialist Chloe Mingus, defensive specialist Megan Turner and middle blocker Amelia Van Der Werff.
Taylor Eisert | S | 5-8 | Louisville, Ky. | Sacred Heart Academy
Taylor is a setter from Louisville, Ky. who has been playing volleyball since third grade. She most recently played for the Kentucky Indiana Volleyball Academy (KIVA) under the helm of Alan Davis. During her time on the 18 Red team with KIVA, Taylor's team placed fifth, third on two occasions and second in Gold at the AAU Volleyball Nation Championship. She also received the AAU All-American Award.
In her final season at Sacred Heart Academy, Taylor was named to the District and Regional All Tournament teams, and named an AVCA All-American. She also reached the 1,000 high school career-assists mark as a senior.
Taylor is looking forward to the relationships and bonds she expects to form with her new teammates here at Middle Tennessee.
"Taylor Eisert is our setter and she is, in my opinion, what a setter should look like," said head coach Chuck Crawford. "She's intelligent, she can defend her position, she knows how to use her middles and she understands the game. She also competes at a very high level. We expect Taylor (Eisert) to come in here and pick up where Taylor Hammill left off."
Ally Hall | OH | 5-10 | Suwannee, Ga. | Lambert High School
Ally is a Georgia native who has been playing volleyball for ten years, most recently with the A5 Volleyball Club under the helm of Gabe Aramian. The five-foot-ten outside hitter was named to the All-Tournament team at the USA Volleyball National Championships in 2018 when her team finished Top Five. She also received the MVP award at the 2017 Beast of the Southeast tournament in Atlanta.
At Lambert High School, where she played under Missey Hall, Ally was named to the First Team All-Region, First Team All-County and 7A All-State Team all four years. As a freshman in 2016, she was a PrepVolleyball National Freshman of the Year top-20 finalist, and in both 2017 and 2018 she was a PrepVolleyball High School All-American. Ally was also named Region Player of the Year her sophomore and senior years.
Ally will major in speech pathology and minor in broadcasting, enrolling to Middle Tennessee in the spring of 2020. Her earliest memory of volleyball was meeting her favorite athlete of all-time, Kerri Walsh Jennings, at a volleyball clinic when she was eight years old.
"She's an outside hitter that also has the ability to set and play defense," Crawford stated. "She is an extremely dynamic player. She has all five skills of the game with blocking, passing, hitting, serving and setting. Her personality and energy on the court are infectious and she plays at a very high pace. Ally is not a kid that has to be motivated, she's very intrinsically motivated to be the best she can be."
Chloe Mingus | DS | 5-5 | Louisville, Ky. | Assumption High School
Chloe is a defensive specialist from Louisville, Ky. who has been playing volleyball for 10 years, most recently with KIVA. Her team placed third at the AAU Volleyball National Championships in both 2018 and 2019.
Mingus played for Assumption High School under the helm of Ron Kordes. Her team was the 2018 and 2019 Kentucky State Champions, and the 2018 National Champions. Chloe was also named to the All-State Academic Team in 2018.
Chloe's earliest memory of volleyball was watching her parents play in a pickup league when she was around two years old. She is looking forward to being a part of a the "family-feel" environment here at Middle Tennessee.
"Chloe is very steady and consistent," Crawford said. "She is someone you can rely on to do her job in all facets. She's a defensive specialist and plays at a very high level for Assumption (High School) and KIVA out of Louisville. She competes at the highest level in the nation. She has a very strong work ethic and is not afraid to face any level of competition."
Megan Turner | DS | 5-3 | Knoxville, Tenn. | Gibbs High School
Megan hails from Knoxville, Tenn. and has been playing volleyball for seven years. The five-foot-three defensive specialist played club for the K2 Volleyball Club in Louisville, Tenn.
At Gibbs High School, Megan received several honors including All-District three times, All-Region twice and is a two time District Defensive Player of the Year. She also reached the 1,000 career-digs mark as a senior.
Megan's dream job is to become an occupational therapist after majoring in exercise science here at Middle Tennessee. Two goals that Megan has set to accomplish in her first season as a Blue Raider are to be a team player and give 100 percent effort every day.
"Megan visited camp and we just instantly fell in love with her personality," Crawford said. "She'll be the smallest player that we've recruited since we've been here, but don't let her stature fool you. She is a spark plug. Super strong, very intelligent and has a tremendous work ethic. She will definitely help us out in the back row.
Amelia Van Der Werff | MB | 6-3 | Leavenworth, Kan. | Lansing High School
Amelia comes to Middle Tennessee from Leavenworth, Kan. as a six-foot-three middle blocker. She played for KC Power Volleyball under Danielle Stowell, where she was a three year starter.
For her high school team, Amelia was a three-year starter and finished with the second most career-blocks at Lansing High School. She was named to the UKC All-Conference Team twice, the 2019 All-State Tournament Team and the 2019 All-Tournament Team at the Seaman Invitational in Topeka, Kan. Her team also placed at the state volleyball tournament three years in a row.
Amelia plans to major in psychology after enrolling to Middle Tennessee. Three words that she would use to describe herself are devoted, determined and family-oriented.
"Amelia's family is all military," Crawford said. "Her father was a marine helicopter pilot and her brother is a marine infantry officer. She is a farm kid that understands hard work and is very tough. As far as the middle goes, she is a natural off one foot, so she'll be a big help in developing our slide attack this upcoming season. She has a very high IQ in terms of the game and will be a big impact on our offense."
The Blue Raiders have gained five outstanding players from Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee and Kansas. The newest members of the team include setter Taylor Eisert, outside hitter Ally Hall, defensive specialist Chloe Mingus, defensive specialist Megan Turner and middle blocker Amelia Van Der Werff.
Taylor Eisert | S | 5-8 | Louisville, Ky. | Sacred Heart Academy
Taylor is a setter from Louisville, Ky. who has been playing volleyball since third grade. She most recently played for the Kentucky Indiana Volleyball Academy (KIVA) under the helm of Alan Davis. During her time on the 18 Red team with KIVA, Taylor's team placed fifth, third on two occasions and second in Gold at the AAU Volleyball Nation Championship. She also received the AAU All-American Award.
In her final season at Sacred Heart Academy, Taylor was named to the District and Regional All Tournament teams, and named an AVCA All-American. She also reached the 1,000 high school career-assists mark as a senior.
Taylor is looking forward to the relationships and bonds she expects to form with her new teammates here at Middle Tennessee.
"Taylor Eisert is our setter and she is, in my opinion, what a setter should look like," said head coach Chuck Crawford. "She's intelligent, she can defend her position, she knows how to use her middles and she understands the game. She also competes at a very high level. We expect Taylor (Eisert) to come in here and pick up where Taylor Hammill left off."
Ally Hall | OH | 5-10 | Suwannee, Ga. | Lambert High School
Ally is a Georgia native who has been playing volleyball for ten years, most recently with the A5 Volleyball Club under the helm of Gabe Aramian. The five-foot-ten outside hitter was named to the All-Tournament team at the USA Volleyball National Championships in 2018 when her team finished Top Five. She also received the MVP award at the 2017 Beast of the Southeast tournament in Atlanta.
At Lambert High School, where she played under Missey Hall, Ally was named to the First Team All-Region, First Team All-County and 7A All-State Team all four years. As a freshman in 2016, she was a PrepVolleyball National Freshman of the Year top-20 finalist, and in both 2017 and 2018 she was a PrepVolleyball High School All-American. Ally was also named Region Player of the Year her sophomore and senior years.
Ally will major in speech pathology and minor in broadcasting, enrolling to Middle Tennessee in the spring of 2020. Her earliest memory of volleyball was meeting her favorite athlete of all-time, Kerri Walsh Jennings, at a volleyball clinic when she was eight years old.
"She's an outside hitter that also has the ability to set and play defense," Crawford stated. "She is an extremely dynamic player. She has all five skills of the game with blocking, passing, hitting, serving and setting. Her personality and energy on the court are infectious and she plays at a very high pace. Ally is not a kid that has to be motivated, she's very intrinsically motivated to be the best she can be."
Chloe Mingus | DS | 5-5 | Louisville, Ky. | Assumption High School
Chloe is a defensive specialist from Louisville, Ky. who has been playing volleyball for 10 years, most recently with KIVA. Her team placed third at the AAU Volleyball National Championships in both 2018 and 2019.
Mingus played for Assumption High School under the helm of Ron Kordes. Her team was the 2018 and 2019 Kentucky State Champions, and the 2018 National Champions. Chloe was also named to the All-State Academic Team in 2018.
Chloe's earliest memory of volleyball was watching her parents play in a pickup league when she was around two years old. She is looking forward to being a part of a the "family-feel" environment here at Middle Tennessee.
"Chloe is very steady and consistent," Crawford said. "She is someone you can rely on to do her job in all facets. She's a defensive specialist and plays at a very high level for Assumption (High School) and KIVA out of Louisville. She competes at the highest level in the nation. She has a very strong work ethic and is not afraid to face any level of competition."
Megan Turner | DS | 5-3 | Knoxville, Tenn. | Gibbs High School
Megan hails from Knoxville, Tenn. and has been playing volleyball for seven years. The five-foot-three defensive specialist played club for the K2 Volleyball Club in Louisville, Tenn.
At Gibbs High School, Megan received several honors including All-District three times, All-Region twice and is a two time District Defensive Player of the Year. She also reached the 1,000 career-digs mark as a senior.
Megan's dream job is to become an occupational therapist after majoring in exercise science here at Middle Tennessee. Two goals that Megan has set to accomplish in her first season as a Blue Raider are to be a team player and give 100 percent effort every day.
"Megan visited camp and we just instantly fell in love with her personality," Crawford said. "She'll be the smallest player that we've recruited since we've been here, but don't let her stature fool you. She is a spark plug. Super strong, very intelligent and has a tremendous work ethic. She will definitely help us out in the back row.
Amelia Van Der Werff | MB | 6-3 | Leavenworth, Kan. | Lansing High School
Amelia comes to Middle Tennessee from Leavenworth, Kan. as a six-foot-three middle blocker. She played for KC Power Volleyball under Danielle Stowell, where she was a three year starter.
For her high school team, Amelia was a three-year starter and finished with the second most career-blocks at Lansing High School. She was named to the UKC All-Conference Team twice, the 2019 All-State Tournament Team and the 2019 All-Tournament Team at the Seaman Invitational in Topeka, Kan. Her team also placed at the state volleyball tournament three years in a row.
Amelia plans to major in psychology after enrolling to Middle Tennessee. Three words that she would use to describe herself are devoted, determined and family-oriented.
"Amelia's family is all military," Crawford said. "Her father was a marine helicopter pilot and her brother is a marine infantry officer. She is a farm kid that understands hard work and is very tough. As far as the middle goes, she is a natural off one foot, so she'll be a big help in developing our slide attack this upcoming season. She has a very high IQ in terms of the game and will be a big impact on our offense."
Players Mentioned
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