Marshall University Athletics
@HerdVolleyball Adds Jacques and Rowe for 2017 Season
11/14/2016 12:00:00 AM | Volleyball
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Marshall volleyball head coach Mitch Jacobs officially welcomed Katie Jacques (Mount Pleasant, S.C./Wando High School) and Addisyn Rowe (Limestone, Tenn./David Crockett High School), who each signed a National Letter of Intent to be a part of the Thundering Herd.
"We definitely filled our need to get taller," Jacobs said. "Both players give us a lot of length and athleticism. Both players have mostly played the middle for their teams, but they also have some experience at the pins."
Jacques is a three-year letter winner and two-time South Carolina 5A State Champion under the tutelage of the 2015 PrepVolleyball National Coach of the Year Alexis Glover. The 6-2 middle hitter has received many honors in the 2016, including American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour All-American and Coaches Association of Women's Sports (CAWS) All-State. She also received High School Sports Report (HSSR) All State in 2015 and 2016, while also being named 2016 Porter Gaud Tournament MVP and to the all-tournament team of the WIT tournament. During her high school career, Jacques has recorded 495 kills and 274 blocks. She is on the watch list for National Player of the Year and listed as a Top-50 recruit for the class of 2017 by PrepVolleyball.
"Katie brings a really heavy ball and can be a shutdown defender at the net," Jacobs said. "A little bigger than 6-2 with a good jump, she is someone we could see moving to a pin at some point. But I love that she brings versatility and the ability to play all three net positions."
Jacques plans to major in Business. She is currently a member of the National Beta Club and the culinary arts program. She chose Marshall because she fell in love with the school, the coaches and the team.
Rowe was a two-sport athlete in high school, lettering in volleyball and track & field. The 6-3 middle blocker has been named player of the week three times this season and was named Player of the Year in her conference. She also received her conference's Athlete of the Year for track in 2016. Rowe is a two-time All-Conference and All-Academic selection.
"I would have to classify Addisyn as an athlete," Jacobs said. "She certainly can play the game, but at this point, in the high school game, she can get away with her lack of experience with pure athleticism. Addisyn is a very long 6-3. Her wingspan easily eclipses 6-6 and she has a big vertical leap. Her lateral quickness is excellent and with her skill set, I can see her doing great things in the middle for us as her career develops. I'm so excited to not only to see what she can do in our program but, how she will develop in the high jump as she competes for our track program as well."
Rowe plans to major in Biochemistry. She is currently a member of the Delta Epsilon Chi Association (DECA) and the French club. She chose Marshall because it felt like home.
"One thing I felt very strongly about was that these two and their families will fit in wonderfully with the group we have returning," Jacobs said. "They are both super kids that have had great support from their parents in the recruiting process. I felt that we were able to get to know the girls and also see how great their interaction was with their parents. Taylor Strickland once again has knocked it out of the park when it comes to continuous communication with our recruits and their families. These two will be great additions to our program. We couldn't be more excited for these two young women to be joining us."
For all the latest information about Marshall volleyball, follow @HerdVolleyball on Twitter and Marshall University Volleyball on Facebook.
Three-seeded Marshall begins the 2016 Conference USA Championship on Friday against the sixth-seeded Rice Owls at 6 p.m. (ET). The eight-team C-USA Championship is being held at Tudor Fieldhouse in Houston, Texas.
