Volleyball | 11/16/2016 4:39:00 PM

STATESBORO, Ga. – Georgia Southern volleyball coach Dustin Wood announced today that Skylar Ball (Greensboro, N.C./Grimsley), Lauren Hager (Columbia, Mo./Muriel Williams Battle), Landon Jones (Savannah, Ga./Savannah Christian) and Caroline Wise (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) have signed National Letters of Intent to attend Georgia Southern and compete for the Eagles, beginning in 2017.

"We are very excited to have this class come in, make an impact right away and help our program in the future," Wood said. "These kids are very talented and physical with size. They have lots of experience and come from winning teams. They are very competitive and are hungry to be the best. They all have strong work ethics that will drive this program to be better. Their families have all instilled great values and work ethics into them, and they are all well-rounded kids.  I am very excited to see what they can do for our program in the future."

Skylar Ball, 6-2, OH/RS, Greensboro, N.C./Grimsley, Piedmont Volleyball Club
Prep: Lettered three years for Rolando Buted at Grimsley High School • Averaged 12 kills, six blocks, four digs and two aces per match in 2016 • Named All-Metro Conference in each of the last three seasons • Selected for USAV High Performance Championships in 2014 and 2015 • Played club for Kyle Milborn and Kim Mansfield on Piedmont Volleyball Club • Won Quest 16U Tournament Championship with Piedmont Volleyball Club in 2014.
Wood on Ball: "We saw Skyler early on in the recruiting process, and we saw the potential in her. We also saw her last spring and were so impressed in the improvements she has made. She is a very physical player with a great arm. She pays attention to details and can pass a ball. She is very versatile in that she can play oppo and outside hitter. She has played mostly on the oppo in club, but we are looking at her possibly playing outside hitter for us because of her passing in serve receive. We also like that she is able to hit the 'bic' out of the back row. She needs some training and adjusting to our system, but once she understands what we are asking of her in our system, she is going to be a great six rotation player for us. She is driven and always wants to learn more. The sky is the limit for Skylar, and I am sure she will take advantage of every opportunity that she has in our gym."

Lauren Hager, 6-2, Middle, Columbia, Mo./Muriel Williams Battle, Invasion Black
Prep: Four-year starter for Natalia Koryzna at Muriel Williams Battle High School • Two-time first-team all-district and 2016 second-team all-region • Posted 340 kills (10.33 per match), 260 digs and 50 aces in 2016 • Owns school records for single-season kills, aces and blocks and ranks second in career digs • Played club for Mark Ethridge and Lauren Brentlinger on Invasion Black • Helped club team to seven USAV National Qualifiers and 17s took third at USAV Nationals in the Open Division.
Wood on Hager: "We are very excited for Lauren to be joining us. We really enjoyed getting to know Lauren throughout the recruiting process. She is going to be a very physical middle for us. Her block touch is already above 10 feet. We really like the grit and determination that she brings to the floor. She sacrificed playing time to play up on a nationally-ranked team to make sure she was getting better playing against some of the top middles in the nation night in and night out in her own program. Her family and her drove over two hours each way to practice over the club season. This kid is dedicated to winning and being the best out on the floor. She will flourish in our system and be a huge addition to our middle blocking position. We look forward to getting her in here and see what legacy she can bring into our program."

Landon Jones, 5-6, Libero/Defensive Specialist, Savannah, Ga./Savannah Christian, Club Savannah
Prep: Lettered four seasons for Julie Jones at Savannah Christian • 2016 A All-State Co-Player of the Year after tallying 273 kills, 307 digs and 35 aces while hitting .225 • Three-time first team all-state and three-time all-area Player of the Year • Four-time Savannah News first-team Best of the Prep selection and Player of the Year • Owns school records with 1,074 kills, 870 digs and 264 aces • Played on Club Savannah.
Wood on Jones: "It's finally nice to land a local kid. Landon has been around our program coming to camps and matches for a long time. She fits the mold of a Georgia Southern volleyball player. She does everything well. She has spent a lot of time playing on the beach growing up. She loves the game. We can use her in many different roles here at Georgia Southern. Her ball control is fantastic. She reads the game better than some more experienced players. We will look to her to compete for the libero position or a defensive specialist position so that she can hit the 'bic' out of the back row for us. She has a great jump serve that will help our program. I see her making an immediate impact and producing right away for our program."

Caroline Wise, 6-4, Middle, Annapolis, Md./Broadneck, Bay Area Volleyball Academy
Prep: Lettered three seasons for Tracey Regalbuto at Broadneck High School • Played club for the Bay Area Volleyball Club • Mother, Cheryl, played basketball at William & Mary.
Wood on Wise: "Caroline has all the tools to be one of the best and the potential to be a force in the Sun Belt. We noticed her last winter and saw great things from her. She improved each time that we saw her. I think she is still growing and will become very physical when Coach Obey, our strength and conditioning coach, gets his hands on her. She is very dedicated to being the best. She has a very high ceiling, which will make her a dominate player for us in the future. I am so excited to see what she is capable of when she gets here. We definitely have a good middle on our hands. The future is bright in that position with her and Lauren."
 
Georgia Southern finished third in the East Division and earned the No. 7 seed for the Sun Belt tournament Nov. 18-20 in Arlington, Texas. The Eagles will take on second-seeded Coastal Carolina, which won the East Division, Friday at 3:30 p.m. ET, and the contest will be broadcast live on ESPN3. The winner gets the winner of Texas State vs. South Alabama in the semifinals at 5 p.m. ET Saturday.

Georgia Southern Athletics provides up-to-date information on all its sports through its official website, GSEagles.com, through social media channels facebook.com/GSAthletics, twitter.com/GSAthletics, iOS app Georgia Southern Eagles and Android app Eagles GATA. Fans can purchase tickets to Georgia Southern Athletics events by visiting GSEagles.com/tickets.