Mocs Volleyball Sign Three Players

  • Monday, April 27, 2015

 The Chattanooga Mocs volleyball team has added depth to the roster by adding three more student-athletes for the 2015-16 season on Monday.

Head coach Travis Filar builds up the Mocs frontcourt with the addition of outside hitter Miranda Elpers while reinforcing the back court with defensive specialists Rachel Petkosh and Lindsey Farrell.

“I could not be more excited to finish our 2015 class with these three incredible individuals, Rachel, Miranda, and Lindsey,” Filar said.  “These additions, along with our two fall signees, Emily Plumlee and Ally Ford, will make up what I think is the most decorated class since I have been here. I think that their competitive mindsets and confidence added to our returners will make for the most depth and talent we have had in my 5 seasons here.  Every individual is what you look for as a coach when recruiting true student-athletes. They are genuinely outstanding young people, and we are excited to add them to our roster.”

Elpers played four seasons of varsity volleyball for Assumption High School in Louisville, Ky. The outside hitter saw action in 268 sets in her high school career, registering 641 kills, 52 blocks, 60 aces and 189 digs for the Rockets. As a senior she played in 73 sets and tallied 262 kills (3.6 k/s), 67 digs, 19 solo blocks and 10 aces.

In 2014, Elpers recorded 11 double-digit kill performances including a career-best 16 kills to lead the Rockets to a 3-0 win over St. Henry (8/26/14). The outside hitter also registered a career-best .684 hitting percentage as she hammered out 13 kills with zero errors against Carmel (9/06/14).

She also paced the Rockets to the Durango Fall Classic Championship and was named to the Mizuno Sports Performance Presidents’ Day All-Tournament Team and the Asics Challenge All-Tournament Team.

Overall, Elpers led AHS to four Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) district titles, three KHSAA regional titles and three KHSAA state titles. Her effective presence along the net named her to the 2014 KHSAA All Region Team and the Kentucky Volleyball Coaches Association (KVCA) First Team All-State.  Throughout her club career she has competed with one of the most well-known and prestigious programs in the country, the Kentucky-Indiana Volleyball Academy (KIVA).

“Miranda will come to Chattanooga as probably the most prepared and game-ready 6-rotation outside hitter that we have ever had in a first-year student-athlete,” Filar said. “She is as good in the front row as an attacker, as she is in the back row as a primary passer and defender.  She competes and attacks on the left side more like a veteran, possessing command of every shot in the books, a real point scorer who takes care of the ball efficiently.  She will be coming from one of the most prestigious volleyball backgrounds you can find, in which she has been a part of two of the highest nationally ranked and most well-known volleyball programs in the country, Assumption High School and the KIVA Volleyball club, both located in Louisville, KY.  Because of this training and a mentality of what it takes to win, she will provide great depth in our outside hitter position.”

Playing competitively since 2004, Rachel Petkosh joins the Mocs from Merritt Island High School in Florida. As the starting libero for the Mustangs since her freshman year, Petkosh paced Merritt Island to a 5A state title in 2011 and runner-up finishes in 2012 and 2014. She competed in 364 sets for the Mustangs. The libero posted 411 digs as a senior and currently holds the school record for career digs at 1,656. Efficient with her serve, the Florida native also recorded 183 aces.

A three-time Cap Coast All-Conference Team honoree and USAV All-American, Petkosh also played for the Orlando Volleyball Academy from 2010-2014.

“Rachel is coming from both a tradition-rich and highly successful program in both her club and high school teams in the Orlando area, the same programs that alumni, Paula Passmore competed for,” Filar said. “She will immediately improve our backcourt play with her quality first touch in serve receive and steady play defensively.  She competes with great positivity, energy, skill, communication, and discipline, and is a selfless teammate, which are some of the most important traits that we look for in a libero.  It is because of this consistency and her technical ability that she will seamlessly transition into our program and the college game. “

Lindsey Farrell comes to Chattanooga from Bartlett High School in Tennessee, where she was a four-year letter on the Panthers’ volleyball team.

As a senior, Farrell played in 122 sets and led her team with 278 digs.  In 2014 the three-time Best of Preps honoree lead the Panthers to a 40-9 overall standing and a 5-0 district finish.  She was named to the All-District 14-AAA team from 2011 to 2014 and was selected to the All-Region Tournament team 2012-2014.

The Tennessee native also saw action with the Memphis Juniors, helping the club to rank fourth best in Tennessee.

“Lindsey is an individual that I have known for a long time as I had the fortunate opportunity to work with her at a couple of camps over the summers since I have been here in Chattanooga,” Filar said.  “She possesses such a confident and competitive mindset that she will make the transition to the college game well.  She will add depth and skill to our backcourt, and will be ready to train in our gym because of her fearlessness and effort she consistently competes with.  We want to always recruit the best student-athletes in the state of Tennessee, and in Lindsey, we feel like we have the best libero in the state coming to Chattanooga, and just as exciting, her best volleyball is ahead of her because of how hard she will work to reach her potential.”

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