University of Memphis Athletics
Photo by: Brandon Dill
Volleyball Adds Three To 2020 Class
Apr 23, 2020 | Women's Volleyball
Drewry, Hamilton, Huber to join the Tigers for the 2020 campaign.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – University of Memphis volleyball head coach Sean Burdette announced Thursday that Samantha Drewry, Autumn Hamilton and Addyson Huber are joining the Tigers program for the 2020 campaign.
The trio increases the UofM's 2020 signing class to six. Bailey Houlihan and Loren Robertson signed with the Tigers in November, and Miaya Smith transferred to Memphis over the Christmas break and is enrolled at the university for the 2020 spring semester.
"With this class, we have brought in skilled physical players that have a tremendous upside to grow and improve their skill sets," said Burdette, who enters his third season at Memphis this fall. "They are a highly competitive bunch and what stands out the most is that they are winners. This class has competed and won at the highest levels in high school and club volleyball. We can't wait to get them on campus and started in our strength and conditioning program with Coach Darin Lovat.
"These three, along with our fall signees Loren Robertson and Bailey Houlihan, have a lot of common goals. I am excited to start working with them and integrate them into the team when we all get back on campus."
The following are brief biographical sketches on the signees and Burdette's comments on Drewry, Hamilton and Huber:
Samantha Drewry
5-11 | OH
Chandler, Ariz. | Basha High School
Club: Arizona East Valley Juniors
Three-year starter at Basha High School … Helped lead the Bears to three-straight 20-win campaigns and three-consecutive trips to the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) Conference 6A state tournament … Finished career with 1,289 kills and 1,002 digs … Also had 125 aces … Played in 356 career sets … Graduated in the top five percent of her class (23/544) with a 4.619 grade-point average …
Captained the 2019 Bears squad to the AIA Conference 6A state crown, the first in school history … Posted a double-double of 24 kills and 11 digs in helping Basha upset No. 1 seed Perry 3-2 in a dramatic come-from-behind fashion (Basha trailed the match 2-0) … Downed 555 kills and collected 382 digs in 2019 … Third in the state (all levels) and second in Conference 6A in kills .. 2019 honors included: MaxPreps.com All-America second team … PrepVolleyball.com All-American honorable mention … The Arizona Republic'sVolleyball Player of the Year nominee (one of eight finalists) … The Arizona Republic'sAll-Arizona Team … PrepVolleyball Academic All-American third team … Sports360AZ All-Academic Girls Volleyball Team … 6A All-Conference first team … 6A All-Premier Region first team … Chandler Unified School All-District first team … Two-time MaxPreps.com Player of the Week … House of Payne All-Tournament Team …
As a junior in 2018, had 389 kills and 346 digs in helping lead the Bears to 27 wins and the quarterfinal round of the AIA Conference 6A state tournament … 2018 honors included: Sports360AZ All-Academic Girls Volleyball Team … 6A All-Premier Region second team … Chandler Unified School All-District first team … PrepVolleyball.com Improvement Award Nominee … Also played for the Bears' sand volleyball program … Member of the 2019 AIA Division 1 sand volleyball state pairs runner-up …
Played her first season of varsity volleyball as a sophomore in 2017 … Posted 335 kills and 274 digs … Helped Basha to an AIA Conference 6A state tournament appearance … 2017 honors included: PrepVolleyball.com Sophomore Special Mention … 6A All-Premier Region honorable mention … Chandler Unified School All-District honorable mention.
Coach Burdette's comments on Drewry:"Sam really fit the mold of what we were looking for to fill one of our outside hitter pin positions. She is a 6-rotation player that has very good ball control in serve receive and defensively, as well as seeing the court well offensively. She is a fiery competitor and, with her court vision, possesses a great shot selection against the block and defenders. Sam plays for a great club system in East Valley Juniors Volleyball Club in Tempe. They do a great job of setting up players for success from a physical training aspect to individual skill and team development."
Autumn Hamilton
6-2 | RS
Duluth, Ga. | North Gwinnett High School
Club: A5 Mizuno Volleyball Club
Played four seasons of varsity volleyball at North Gwinnett High School (2017-19) and Duluth High School (2016) … Recorded more than 500 kills and 200 total blocks in her career …
In her senior season, helped the Bulldogs to a 20-win campaign and a spot in the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) Class AAAAAAA state playoffs … North Gwinnett advanced to the GHSA state tournament second round … 2019 honors included: 2019 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour All-American Watch List … Gwinnett Daily PostAll-County first team … Georgia Volleyball Coaches Association (GVCA) Senior All-Star List …
Posted her best statistical season with nearly 200 kills and 100 total blocks in 2018 … Helped lead North Gwinnett to an impressive 39-8 overall record … Squad won the GHSA Class AAAAAAA Area 6 championship (6-0 area record) … Bulldogs advanced to the GHSA Class AAAAAAA state tournament semifinal round (final four) … 2018 honors included: Gwinnett Daily PostAll-County second team … MVP School of Sports All-Star …
Played her first season with North Gwinnett in 2017 … Helped the Bulldogs to a 37-6 overall record and the GHSA Class AAAAAAA Area 6 crown (7-0 area crown) … As a freshman at Duluth High School, posted more than 125 kills and 40 total blocks … Helped lead the Wildcats to a 20-win campaign and a Georgia High School Association Class AAAAAAA state playoffs berth.
Coach Burdette's comments on Hamilton:"Autumn is a versatile player that can play both the right side and middle hitter positions. Her immediate impact will be on the right pin, and we will be able to use her strengths of attacking various tempos and setting up a physical block against the opponents' left side attackers. With her families' athletic background, Autumn knows what it takes to train day in, day out to perform at a highest levels. Autumn comes from A5 Volleyball Club, a top club nationally, in the Atlanta area that continually produces players ready to compete at the collegiate level."
Addyson Huber
6-2 | OH
Erie, Colo. | Erie High School
Club: Colorado Juniors
Four-year member of the varsity volleyball squads at Lyons High School and Erie High School … Transferred to Erie from Lyons prior to her junior year … Three-year letterwinner … Three-year academic letterman and four-year honor roll student … Two-time Dean's List student … Played at OH, RS and MB for the Tigers …
As a senior, helped lead Erie to the program's first Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) state tournament appearance since 1994 … Earned a spot in the 2019 CHSAA Class 4A state tournament … Tigers won their first CHSAA state tournament match in program history with a 3-2 victory over Cheyenne Mountain … Downed 11 kills in Erie's historic state tournament win … Earned CHSAA Academic All-State first team honors … Named all-state honorable mention … In her first season at Erie, helped the Tigers reach the CHSAA Class 4A/Region 7 tournament … Named to the CHSAA Academic All-State first team …
Played her first two prep seasons at Lyons High School … Earned a starting role as a freshman at MB … Helped the Lions to a 20-win season and the CHSAA Class 2A state tournament semifinal round (final four) … Earned CHSAA Academic All-State first team recognition.
Coach Burdette's comments on Huber:"Addyson is another left side pin hitter in this class, and she brings a physical, terminating ability at the net. She has a high contact point, fast arm when attacking and can end points with her block as well. She is another competitive player that has a high volleyball IQ that she's acquired over the years working and training with several great coaches and club teams. Addyson's current club, Colorado Juniors, is known for producing physical teams and have had a lot of success qualifying teams to the USA Junior National Championships."
The trio increases the UofM's 2020 signing class to six. Bailey Houlihan and Loren Robertson signed with the Tigers in November, and Miaya Smith transferred to Memphis over the Christmas break and is enrolled at the university for the 2020 spring semester.
"With this class, we have brought in skilled physical players that have a tremendous upside to grow and improve their skill sets," said Burdette, who enters his third season at Memphis this fall. "They are a highly competitive bunch and what stands out the most is that they are winners. This class has competed and won at the highest levels in high school and club volleyball. We can't wait to get them on campus and started in our strength and conditioning program with Coach Darin Lovat.
"These three, along with our fall signees Loren Robertson and Bailey Houlihan, have a lot of common goals. I am excited to start working with them and integrate them into the team when we all get back on campus."
The following are brief biographical sketches on the signees and Burdette's comments on Drewry, Hamilton and Huber:
Samantha Drewry
5-11 | OH
Chandler, Ariz. | Basha High School
Club: Arizona East Valley Juniors
Three-year starter at Basha High School … Helped lead the Bears to three-straight 20-win campaigns and three-consecutive trips to the Arizona Interscholastic Association (AIA) Conference 6A state tournament … Finished career with 1,289 kills and 1,002 digs … Also had 125 aces … Played in 356 career sets … Graduated in the top five percent of her class (23/544) with a 4.619 grade-point average …
Captained the 2019 Bears squad to the AIA Conference 6A state crown, the first in school history … Posted a double-double of 24 kills and 11 digs in helping Basha upset No. 1 seed Perry 3-2 in a dramatic come-from-behind fashion (Basha trailed the match 2-0) … Downed 555 kills and collected 382 digs in 2019 … Third in the state (all levels) and second in Conference 6A in kills .. 2019 honors included: MaxPreps.com All-America second team … PrepVolleyball.com All-American honorable mention … The Arizona Republic'sVolleyball Player of the Year nominee (one of eight finalists) … The Arizona Republic'sAll-Arizona Team … PrepVolleyball Academic All-American third team … Sports360AZ All-Academic Girls Volleyball Team … 6A All-Conference first team … 6A All-Premier Region first team … Chandler Unified School All-District first team … Two-time MaxPreps.com Player of the Week … House of Payne All-Tournament Team …
As a junior in 2018, had 389 kills and 346 digs in helping lead the Bears to 27 wins and the quarterfinal round of the AIA Conference 6A state tournament … 2018 honors included: Sports360AZ All-Academic Girls Volleyball Team … 6A All-Premier Region second team … Chandler Unified School All-District first team … PrepVolleyball.com Improvement Award Nominee … Also played for the Bears' sand volleyball program … Member of the 2019 AIA Division 1 sand volleyball state pairs runner-up …
Played her first season of varsity volleyball as a sophomore in 2017 … Posted 335 kills and 274 digs … Helped Basha to an AIA Conference 6A state tournament appearance … 2017 honors included: PrepVolleyball.com Sophomore Special Mention … 6A All-Premier Region honorable mention … Chandler Unified School All-District honorable mention.
Autumn Hamilton
6-2 | RS
Duluth, Ga. | North Gwinnett High School
Club: A5 Mizuno Volleyball Club
Played four seasons of varsity volleyball at North Gwinnett High School (2017-19) and Duluth High School (2016) … Recorded more than 500 kills and 200 total blocks in her career …
In her senior season, helped the Bulldogs to a 20-win campaign and a spot in the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) Class AAAAAAA state playoffs … North Gwinnett advanced to the GHSA state tournament second round … 2019 honors included: 2019 American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour All-American Watch List … Gwinnett Daily PostAll-County first team … Georgia Volleyball Coaches Association (GVCA) Senior All-Star List …
Posted her best statistical season with nearly 200 kills and 100 total blocks in 2018 … Helped lead North Gwinnett to an impressive 39-8 overall record … Squad won the GHSA Class AAAAAAA Area 6 championship (6-0 area record) … Bulldogs advanced to the GHSA Class AAAAAAA state tournament semifinal round (final four) … 2018 honors included: Gwinnett Daily PostAll-County second team … MVP School of Sports All-Star …
Played her first season with North Gwinnett in 2017 … Helped the Bulldogs to a 37-6 overall record and the GHSA Class AAAAAAA Area 6 crown (7-0 area crown) … As a freshman at Duluth High School, posted more than 125 kills and 40 total blocks … Helped lead the Wildcats to a 20-win campaign and a Georgia High School Association Class AAAAAAA state playoffs berth.
Addyson Huber
6-2 | OH
Erie, Colo. | Erie High School
Club: Colorado Juniors
Four-year member of the varsity volleyball squads at Lyons High School and Erie High School … Transferred to Erie from Lyons prior to her junior year … Three-year letterwinner … Three-year academic letterman and four-year honor roll student … Two-time Dean's List student … Played at OH, RS and MB for the Tigers …
As a senior, helped lead Erie to the program's first Colorado High School Activities Association (CHSAA) state tournament appearance since 1994 … Earned a spot in the 2019 CHSAA Class 4A state tournament … Tigers won their first CHSAA state tournament match in program history with a 3-2 victory over Cheyenne Mountain … Downed 11 kills in Erie's historic state tournament win … Earned CHSAA Academic All-State first team honors … Named all-state honorable mention … In her first season at Erie, helped the Tigers reach the CHSAA Class 4A/Region 7 tournament … Named to the CHSAA Academic All-State first team …
Played her first two prep seasons at Lyons High School … Earned a starting role as a freshman at MB … Helped the Lions to a 20-win season and the CHSAA Class 2A state tournament semifinal round (final four) … Earned CHSAA Academic All-State first team recognition.
Players Mentioned
MH
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