Missouri volleyball has added three transferring players to its roster for the 2018 season: rising junior Annika Gereau, rising sophomore Katie Turner and rising redshirt freshman Jaden Newsome.
Gereau and Turner will join the Tigers as defensive specialists and will likely fill in the void left by Andie Hanus, who played in 112 of the Tigers’ 131 sets in 2017 before transferring to Delaware in January.
Gereau started 10 matches for the University of Illinois last season and recorded 150 digs, 18 assists and 18 aces.
In her senior year of high school, the Oshkosh, Wisconsin product was named the Eastern Central Conference Player of the Year and also earned AVCA Under Armour Girls High School Third-Team All-America honors, as well as Wisconsin Volleyball Coaches Association All-State Honorable-Mention recognition.
“[Gereau]’s a great student, tremendous athlete and highly-skilled volleyball player,” coach Wayne Kreklow said in a press release following Gereau’s transfer announcement on May 8. “Annika brings several years of Big 10 playing experience with her, which will be a tremendous value to our young team. She knows what it takes to be successful at a high level, both in the classroom and on the court.”
With 3.17 digs per set, Turner led William & Mary University and ranked 10th in the Colonial Athletic Association in her freshman season for the Tribe. She recorded at least 20 digs in three matches.
The Parker, Colorado native also led her high school team to consecutive regional championships and earned All-State as well as first-team All-Conference honors in 2016.
“We’ve been impressed so far this semester with her work ethic, attitude towards training and of course, her ability as a player,” Kreklow said in a press release following Turner’s transfer announcement on April 30. “She has good size and length as a libero, along with good foot speed and quickness. Katie is one of our most consistent and toughest servers as well at this point.”
Newsome, joining Missouri from the University of Colorado, will join rising sophomore Andrea Fuentes in taking over the setter positions in the team’s 6-2 formation from graduating seniors Courtney Eckenrode and Ali Kreklow.
The setter from Houston, Texas, was named the No. 36 recruit in the country by PrepVolleyball.com after her junior year of high school in 2015. Newsome earned 2016-17 AVCA Under Armour Honorable Mention All-America accolades after her senior year, in which she recorded 1,257 assists, 251 kills on .357 hitting, 113 blocks (63 solo) and 322 digs in 129 sets played.
Kreklow is looking forward to being adding Newsome to his team, and praises her athleticism and attitude.
“Jaden is an outstanding athlete, possessing great quickness and jumping ability,” Kreklow said in a press release following Newsome’s transfer announcement on May 3. “She has all the tools to become a great setter and we’re confident that she will develop into an outstanding player for us. Jaden is a hardworking, positive player and will add a lot to our gym culture.”
_Edited by Bennett Durando | bdurando@themaneater.com_