MONROE, La. – Head indoor and beach volleyball coach Charlie Olson announced the addition of six signees on Wednesday. Three of Olson's newcomers will play indoor volleyball, while the other three will be beach volleyball players.
"All of these girls are impact players," Olson said. "They can come in and not only push us from the training aspect, but also have the opportunity to compete their first year here. It's exciting to bring on individuals that are excited and Kayla (Armer) and I are very excited to get these girls in the gym and in the sand."
Chloe Jordan | 5-6 | Defensive Specialist | Pearland, Texas | Pearland High School
Jordan has earned numerous accolades during her time at Pearland High School including First-Team All-District and All-VYPE Honorable Mention during her junior year. She helped lead the Oilers to become district runner-up while being named to the John Turner Classic All-Tournament team and the Under Armour All-American Watchlist during her senior year. Jordan also earned two varsity letters, and was named a team captain. She plans to major in business.
"Chloe is not only a defensive specialist, but a setter as well," Olson said. "By bringing in someone that has multi-skills, that's really going to help us out."
Bella Lockwood | 5-10 | Outside Hitter | Friendswood, Texas | Clear Brook High School
After helping guide the Wolverines to a district championship, Lockwood established herself and earned First Team All-District honors after her junior and senior years. As a junior, Lockwood accumulated 135 kills and 388 assists. She grew those numbers and as a senior, as the Wolverines compiled a 28-9 record while Lockwood gained 403 kills, 1,056 assists and 311 digs. She earned three varsity letters and was a team captain. She plans on majoring in forensics.
"Bella is a six-rotation outside hitter and with Mikaela graduating, she is someone that we need to start training from day one and potentially look at her coming in and stepping into that role."
Emma McWhorter | 5-10 | Middle Blocker | Spring, Texas | Klein Collins High School
McWhorter rounds out the indoor signings and brings a wealth of knowledge to the squad. During her time at Klein Collins High School, McWhorter has been named to the Academic All-State team all four years, 2018 Second Team All-District and the 2019 Under Armour All-American Watch List. McWhorter is also a member of the National Honor Society and is ranked 39 out of 813 in her graduating class. She has earned three varsity letters and been named a team captain. She plans on majoring in kinesiology with a minor in business.
"I recruited Emma when I was still at Sam Houston," Olson said. "She was my first phone call when I took this job and she was ecstatic to have the opportunity to come play with us."
Avery Reynolds | 5-6 | Beach | League City, Texas | Clear Springs High School
Reynolds comes to Monroe from League City, Texas and has played both indoor and beach volleyball, but will focus on beach. She helped lead the Lightning Horse to an undefeated season in 2018 and a district championship. They followed that up in 2019 as district runner-up. Reynolds was named Second Team All-District and the Academic All-District in 2018. She followed that up with First Team All-District, Academic All-District and the All-State team in 2019. Reynolds has earned three varsity letters and was named a team captain. She plans on majoring in speech-language pathology and minoring in health studies.
"Defensively, she's a stud," Olson said. "Her ball control is going to be her biggest added value to the team."
Abbey Bufkin | 5-7 | Beach | Katy, Texas | Homeschooled
Bufkin hails from Katy, Texas and has played with the Homeschool Christian Youth Association and Fort Bend Christian Homeschool Athletics. Bufkin and her teammate earned first place at the Austin AAU Summer Qualifier in May and has finished in the top-three five times since January. She plans on majoring in kinesiology.
"She's coming in great shape and can play that split role," Olson said. "She can either be a blocker at the net or pull off and be a defender. Abbey knows the game very well and we're excited to bring her on."
Kaitlyn Nowak | 5-9 | Beach | Flower Mound, Texas | Edward S. Marcus High School
Nowak and her teammate recently earned first place at the 692 Beach p1440/Rox Qualifier in March and have five top-five placings since November. Nowak is a member of the National Honor Society, French National Honor Society and the Math National Honor Society. She was named French Student of the Year, earned the Pride in Excellence Award, Stethoscope Award, is a Medical Education for Dedicated Students officer and has earned the US History Achievement Award. Nowak plans on majoring in biology.
"Kaitlyn is a ball of energy," Olson said. "She played indoor for a long time, but has decided to focus on the beach side and we're excited to have her."
