The four signees will provide a combination of size and athleticism from the outside
TAMPA, MAY 3, 2019 – Head coach Courtney Draper and the USF volleyball program have announced four more NLI signings for the 2019 roster.
The additions join Makayla Washington, Ally Barnhart and Jordan Valley, whom USF secured during the fall signing period.
Eboni Harris | 6-0 | Outside Hitter | Ocala, Fla. | Vanguard HS
Harris spent her freshman season at Alabama and will be a redshirt freshman in 2019. She played for the club team Ocala Power United under coach Jeff Reavis. Harris was a four-year letterman at Vanguard High School, playing for coaches Jason Morris and Randy Ewers. Harris was named to the Ocala Star Banner All-County Team as a freshman, sophomore and junior and was named the Ocala Star Banner Player of the Year in 2017. She was named to the AAU Girls’ Junior National Volleyball Championships 15 and Under Club All-American Team in 2014, as well as to the PrepVolleyball Frosh 59 that year. She was named to the PrepVolleyball Class of 2018 Senior Aces, recognized as one of the top seniors in America. She qualified for the USA Volleyball Junior Olympics Nationals with seven different teams from 2010-17.
Coach Draper on Harris:
“I have enjoyed watching Eboni Harris for many years. She was a stand out in the state of Florida from a very young age. I think that she has the ability to really impact our program this season. Our entire staff and our team really connected with her on her visit and I think that she is a great addition to our program. Because we only return two outsides from last year’s team, it was critical for us to add depth in that area. I think that she has a fast arm and will be able to score at a high level.”
Aleia Wilborn | 5-9 | Right Side | McKinney, Texas | McKinney HS
Wilborn played for the club team Texas Advantage Volleyball in Carrolton, Texas under coach John Sample. She was a three-year varsity letterman at McKinney High School. Wilborn was named an Academic All-District as a junior and was the Co-MVP of the team in her freshman season. At the end of April, Aleia and her TAV team won the 18 Open National Championships in Dallas.
Coach Draper on Wilborn:
“Aleia is a dynamic athlete who is quick off the ground and has a great arm. She can play either on the outside or the right side, and I love her versatility. I think that she is very much a team player and is open to playing on either pin. Because of her excellent jumping ability, I also think that she can become an outstanding blocker for us. Having Aleia in the gym simply makes us a better team. She has played at the highest level possible for a long time now, and is used to college game speed even though she has not played in college yet.”
Madisyn Lyons | 5-7 | Outside Hitters | Red Wing, Minn. | Red Wing HS
Lyons played for the Mizuno Northern Lights club team in Burnsville, Minn., for coaches Bryna Thompson, Joanna Weber and Joy Johnston. The team went to Europe in 2018 with Bring It Promotions, traveling to Italy from March 26-April 3. Northern Lights finished third at the 2017 USAV Nationals. Lyons was a three-year varsity letter winner at Red Wing HS, playing for coach David Lyons. She was named team captain, MVP and All-Area First Team as a junior. She was again named the team captain as a senior along with being the offensive and defensive player of the year and All-Area First Team.
Coach Draper on Lyons:
“Madisyn came to us at the beginning of the semester after playing on the USF club team in the fall. We do not typically do tryouts during the academic year, but we were a little thin on players this spring, so we had her with our girls all spring and every week she showed improvement. She is a great teammate and a very hard worker. Those are the kind of athletes that you want in your gym. She is very fit and fast, and she is the type of player who is willing to try new things.”
Jac St. Cin | 6-3 | Outside Hitter | St. Petersburg, Fla. | Shorecrest Prep
St. Cin played at Shorecrest Preparatory School for coach Raquel Ferreira. She tallied 412 kills, 23 blocks, 95 digs and 45 aces as a sophomore. As a junior, St. Cin had 368 kills, 86 digs, 16 blocks and 50 aces. She was named a team captain as both a junior and senior and was the team MVP her junior season. She helped lead Shorecrest Prep to a state title in 2018. The St. Petersburg product was named to the Tampa Bay Times All-Tampa Bay Volleyball team as a freshman and sophomore, and earned the Pinellas Player of the Year following a stellar senior season.
Coach Draper on St. Cin:
“I am very familiar with Jac, because she is a local player that I have had the privilege to work with for many years. Jac has great size and has been extremely terminal on every team that she has competed for. It was exciting to see her high school team win state this year, and she has developed into one of the top players in the state of Florida over the past couple of years. It will be fun for her to play in front of a home crowd every week.”
About USF Volleyball
Head coach Courtney Draper led her team to 20 wins, the most in her time at USF and the most for the program since 2002. The Bulls appeared in the NIVC, the program’s first postseason trip since 2002. Redshirt senior middle blocker Clara Payne became the seventh player in program history to reach 400 career blocks during the season and was named to the All-American Athletic Conference second team. Junior outside hitter Jac’cara Walker led USF with 394 kills and recorded her 1000th career kill during the year. She paced the Bulls with 15 double-doubles and was named first team all-conference.
Follow the volleyball team on social media (Twitter | Facebook | Instagram) and visit GoUSFBulls.com for the most up-to-date information.
– #GoBulls –
Patrick Puzzo
Assistant Director of Communications (Baseball, Volleyball, Sailing) // USF Athletics
