by Austn Kingsley
KANSAS CITY, MO -- Every volleyball team has its own intricacies and quirks. Austin Skyline 17 Royal has a lot of them.
Most teams would be content with running a vanilla offense with 17 Royal’s elite collection of frontcourt weapons. Future Texas Longhorn Henley Anderson is one of the most feared attackers in the Class of 2026. Riley Malloy, a USC commit, is not far behind her peer on the left side.
But as the clock ticked past 8 p.m. on a Kansas City on Sunday at the TC NIT, 17 Royal’s unique system and style are what set it apart.
Austin Skyline’s trek to the Elite bracket started in Power Pool A, where 17 Royal was one of three Texas teams to finish with a 3-0 record after opening day. In fact, 17 Royal did not drop a single set en route to victories over Pohaku, Mintonette, and Legacy. The streak continued with a two-set challenge-round triumph over 1United, placing Austin Skyline in the top left corner of NIT’s 17 Elite bracket.
Even with the threat of elimination looming, Austin Skyline’s dominant form never wavered. The Lone Star visitors took down Tribe to set up a Round of 16 showdown with Idaho Crush 17 Bower.
This Sunday nightcap would be a worthy test for Skyline. 17 Bower was riding the high of a dramatic three-set win over Premier Nebraska to set up the day’s final tilt. Idaho Crush was another power pool team with a wealth of early NIT success.
However, Austin Skyline was not ready to relinquish its string of emphatic victories.
The Sunday finale started with the aforementioned duo of Anderson and Malloy getting a steady dose of swings. These two athletes are primarily left-side hitters, but they do so much more in the 17 Royal offense.
This is where Austin Skyline’s unique wrinkles materialize.
Anderson already has takeover potential as an outside hitter, but she also spends her final rotation in the front row as a middle blocker. Her length and physicality make her a good fit for the role, but we rarely see a pin hitter with Anderson’s incredible efficiency off of one foot.
17 Royal’s system effectively employs a “middle-by-committee” approach. Along with Anderson, Austin Skyline will lean on Christa Wilburn, Joy Udoye, and Elsie Law to contribute as temporary middle blockers in particular rotations.
Udoye is perhaps the most fascinating utility player in the 17 Royal frontcourt. Her rotational spot along the net effectively dictates which position she plays at that moment. In other words, Udoye gets reps as an outside hitter, middle blocker, and opposite as she moves from left to right across 17 Royal’s rotations.
Wilburn, meanwhile, operates in the middle despite primarily being an opposite. She even plays across the back row—a rare feat for a player with Wilburn’s attacking repertoire.
Such a unique puzzle gives opposing blockers a lot to think about, and 17 Royal setter Maggie McCarroll ties the entire operation together. The Arkansas commit has engineered Austin Skyline’s attack since the team arrived in Kansas City, and she’s long enough to be an intimidating wing blocker. McCarroll can even become an attacker if 17 Royal brings Ava Carrasquillo into the setting lineup.
The unorthodox strategy showed no signs of faltering as Austin Skyline claimed an early lead against Idaho Crush. 17 Royal’s terminators were aided by an exceptional libero tandem—one in a contrasting red jersey, another in blue. Rileigh Butler and Sophie Haskell are perhaps the unsung heroes of Austin Skyline’s persistent dominance. Ava Lyle and Claire Montgomery have also been ever-present in this defense phase.
A 25-19 opening-set win was the next step in what seemed like an inevitable path to perfection. The lineup may be a head-spinning menagerie, but one truth remains: it works.
Austin Skyline 17 Royal prevailed 25-21 in Set 2 to wrap up its sixth sweep in six NIT matches. Sunday’s slate beckons, and it’s a Texas tilt with MADFROG.
