Volleyball Adds Four Signees For 2018 Recruiting Class

Volleyball Adds Four Signees For 2018 Recruiting Class

Ashland University volleyball head coach Cass Dixon announced Thurdsday (Jan. 4) afternoon the signing of four players to the program for the upcoming season.

The class includes middle/right-side hitter Quinn Coppess (Hilliard, Ohio/Darby), libero/defensive specialist Sophie Dahn (Westerville, Ohio/Olentangy Orange), outside hitter Erin Krupar (East Sparta, Ohio/Central Catholic) and setter Zoey Peck (Alliance, Ohio/Marlington).

"I am very excited about the addition of our 2018 recruiting class," Dixon said. "Each of our four recruits has proven to be an outstanding leader on their respective high school and club teams.  They are outstanding student-athletes who have the drive and the skills to help us in our quest for a national championship."

Coppess is a 6-foot-2 middle and right-side hitter from Hilliard Darby High School. Over three seasons, she recorded 425 kills with a .392 hitting percentage. Coppess also registered 102 aces and 129 blocks and was named to the Ohio Capital Conference honorable mention list. Her club team, Elite VBTC, won the AAU national title in 2017.

"Quinn is going to be a force for us in the middle or right side," Dixon said. "She is an exceptional student-athlete and has been competing at a highly competitive national level with her club team. Her strength is her blocking, which lends to her versatility as a middle or a right side. I'm excited to work with her and see her progression as a player.

Dahn is a 5-foot-5 defensive specialist and libero from Olentangy Orange High School where she lettered four years in volleyball. She had 1,059 digs in her career, including 325 as a senior when she was named Ohio Capital Conference honorable mention. She helped Orange to back-to-back district championships in 2016 and 2017 and three straight OCC titles from 2015-17. Dahn was a member of four club teams qualifying for nationals and played on USA Volleyball national club teams for eight years.

"Sophie is a natural leader," Dixon said. "It was one of the first things we really picked up on in the recruiting process and watching her interact with her team. Her work ethic and ability to unite her teammates toward a common goal is something special. Add that to her ball control and defensive skills and it's a great fit for Ashland. It will be exciting to see her transition into our program."

Krupar is a 5-foot-10 outside hitter from Central Catholic High School in Perry Township, Ohio. She set her school's all-time career records for kills with 1,158 and is also the single-season record holder with 498. CCHS was the district champion and regional runner-up in 2017, finishing the year with a 24-5 overall record. Krupar was the Stark County and district Player of the Year as a senior and was a three-time All-Stark County and all-district selection. She also lettered four times in basketball and softball, earning all-county honors in both sports as well.

Erin is a fantastic athlete. She is a very dynamic and fluid outside hitter with the great court awareness," said Dixon. "Her back court play is as strong as her front row which will allow her to see time as a six-rotation outside hitter for us. She is a very driven athlete who doesn't back down from a challenge. She will challenge our outsides immediately."

Peck is a 5-foot-11 setter from Marlington High School where she lettered in both volleyball and basketball. She finished last season with 591 assists, 120 kills and 32 aces, helping MHS to two district championships and a Northeastern Buckeye Conference title. Peck was the NBC Player of the Year and is a two-time member of the All-NBC first team. She was an honorable mention All-Ohio choice and was a four-time all-county first team and four-time all-district first team pick. Peck was also the district Player of the Year.

"Zoey is a great addition to our program for 2018, however we will be red-shirting her to add spacing between her and (current freshman setter) Kali Apelt," Dixon said. "Zoey is a natural athlete with great hands and setting accuracy. I'm excited about having the additional redshirt time to train her and work with her. It will allow us to get her caught up to the speed of the game and the intricacies of running an offense at the collegiate level."

The class will join a talented group of returners that helped the Eagles finish with the No. 8 seed the 2017 GLIAC Tournament.

AU

VB/BB