Four Sign to Join Beavers’ Volleyball Program
November 13, 2019 | Women's Volleyball
CORVALLIS, Ore. – Four future student-athletes made their commitments official to join the Oregon State volleyball program for the 2020 season, head coach Mark Barnard announced Wednesday.
The 2020 recruiting class consists of Nevaeh Bray (Corvallis, Ore./Corvallis HS), Aliyah McDonald (Pearland, Texas/Glenda Dawson HS), Ellie Turner (Austin, Texas/Westlake HS) and Mychael Vernon (Ossining, N.Y./Ossining HS).
"I really like this group," Barnard said. "We have a nice balance across three positions. The addition of two middles really add to the depth and they are all players who are leaders on really good teams. These additions to the program gives us some high quality, impact players."
Vernon, who stands 5-feet, 11-inches, is a highly polished outside hitter who was named as a 2019 AVCA Under Armour First Team All-American last week. Vernon made the varsity team at Ossining High as a 7th grader and went on to record her 1,000th career kill during her sophomore season. As a senior, she now holds the school record for career kills with more than 2,150 and set the school's single match record last week with 49 kills en route to winning a section title and advancing to the state tournament. Vernon's high school career has included being named as a 2019 Senior Ace by PrepVolleyball, Soph 79, Frosh 59 and MaxPreps 2016 Freshman All-American team honors as well as earning all-section, all-league and all-conference three times and HVCA Player of the Year honors twice with more senior awards still to come as she is currently competing for a state title. Mychael was named USA Today's High School Player of the Week multiple times since her freshman year, and she has been nominated for the Lohud Player of the Decade this year.
She has also played an age group up on the club circuit playing with the 17s as a freshman. She earned 17 Open Best Attacker at the Capitol Hill Classic at age 15. As a freshman, Vernon played in the USA A1 High Performance and as a junior she played for her GEVA High Performance team finishing second and earning all-tournament team honors.
Vernon has also played basketball and winter and spring track during her prep career.
Follow this link to watch Vernon's highlights.
"Mychael has a great pedigree. She is our first All-American to come to OSU in a long time. She is a rare find with outside hitter and setter abilities. She is very multi-skilled and extremely athletic which will make her a crowd favorite. She has the athleticism to play in the Pac-12 and be a solid six-rotation hitter. She'll have good competition, but she has the ability to play for us right away."
McDonald, a 6-1 middle blocker, played four years on the varsity squad at Glenda Dawson High setting the school's block record with 370 career rejections. She was named as a 2019 Senior Ace by PrepVolleyball while playing for Houston Juniors Volleyball Club and was named in the preseason as a 2019 AVCA Under Armour All-American. She is a two-time all-district first team selection and a three-time academic all-district honoree.
She'll join forces with Vernon, who she was teammates with in 2017 on a USA A1 High Performance Team where both were originally scouted by the OSU coaching staff.
Follow this link to watch McDonald's highlights.
"Aliyah has gotten better and better as she's gone along in the recruiting process. She is a good blocker and has improved her attacking capability greatly over the last 12 months. She is a good jumper and we certainly expect her to make an immediate impact."
Bray, a 6-foot-1 middle blocker, has helped lead Corvallis High to three straight state tournaments, including winning the 5A title as a junior in 2018 and finishing third this fall, as well as three Mid-Willamette Conference titles. Bray has secured first team all-league honors each four times and earned first team all-state as a junior and senior. Bray helped her North Pacific Juniors Volleyball 17s Club team to a third-place finish at nationals.
Bray will rejoin her former Corvallis High teammate Taylor Quinn with the Beavers. She also participates in track & field for the Spartans.
Follow this link to watch Bray's highlights.
"Nevaeh has been in our backyard here in Corvallis and we are fortunate that she had a desire to stay close to home. She has made significant improvement over the last two years. She is a strong, fast middle and has all of the physical attributes to play a major role for us."
Turner, who will play libero and defensive specialist for the Beavers, is a seasoned back row digger and passer. She led her Westlake High team in digs two seasons earning all-district honors and was the 2019 Vype Junior Player of the Year runner-up. She has also led her Austin Skyline Juniors team in digs multiple times finishing among the top 10 in digs in the 2018 Tour of Texas. She was a Girls Junior National Championship Prep Volleyball 17 National Star Search selection.
Follow this link to watch Turner's highlights from her senior season.
"Ellie is a very high energy player. She is a great passer and an exciting defender. She moves very well and has been a high level libero on a high level team in Texas. Her vast experience at such a level will translate well to the Pac-12."
Season and single game tickets for the 2019 Oregon State volleyball season are now available for purchase via BeaverTickets.com/Volleyball and 1-800-GO-BEAVS.
Oregon State volleyball fans are encouraged to join Off the Bench, the program's new donor club. Click here for more information or call Alex Gary in Our Beaver Nation at 541-737-2370.
For more information on the Oregon State volleyball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeaverVBall, by Facebook at Facebook.com/BeaverVBall or on Instagram at Instagram.com/BeaverVBall.
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).
The 2020 recruiting class consists of Nevaeh Bray (Corvallis, Ore./Corvallis HS), Aliyah McDonald (Pearland, Texas/Glenda Dawson HS), Ellie Turner (Austin, Texas/Westlake HS) and Mychael Vernon (Ossining, N.Y./Ossining HS).
"I really like this group," Barnard said. "We have a nice balance across three positions. The addition of two middles really add to the depth and they are all players who are leaders on really good teams. These additions to the program gives us some high quality, impact players."
Vernon, who stands 5-feet, 11-inches, is a highly polished outside hitter who was named as a 2019 AVCA Under Armour First Team All-American last week. Vernon made the varsity team at Ossining High as a 7th grader and went on to record her 1,000th career kill during her sophomore season. As a senior, she now holds the school record for career kills with more than 2,150 and set the school's single match record last week with 49 kills en route to winning a section title and advancing to the state tournament. Vernon's high school career has included being named as a 2019 Senior Ace by PrepVolleyball, Soph 79, Frosh 59 and MaxPreps 2016 Freshman All-American team honors as well as earning all-section, all-league and all-conference three times and HVCA Player of the Year honors twice with more senior awards still to come as she is currently competing for a state title. Mychael was named USA Today's High School Player of the Week multiple times since her freshman year, and she has been nominated for the Lohud Player of the Decade this year.
She has also played an age group up on the club circuit playing with the 17s as a freshman. She earned 17 Open Best Attacker at the Capitol Hill Classic at age 15. As a freshman, Vernon played in the USA A1 High Performance and as a junior she played for her GEVA High Performance team finishing second and earning all-tournament team honors.
Vernon has also played basketball and winter and spring track during her prep career.
Follow this link to watch Vernon's highlights.
"Mychael has a great pedigree. She is our first All-American to come to OSU in a long time. She is a rare find with outside hitter and setter abilities. She is very multi-skilled and extremely athletic which will make her a crowd favorite. She has the athleticism to play in the Pac-12 and be a solid six-rotation hitter. She'll have good competition, but she has the ability to play for us right away."
McDonald, a 6-1 middle blocker, played four years on the varsity squad at Glenda Dawson High setting the school's block record with 370 career rejections. She was named as a 2019 Senior Ace by PrepVolleyball while playing for Houston Juniors Volleyball Club and was named in the preseason as a 2019 AVCA Under Armour All-American. She is a two-time all-district first team selection and a three-time academic all-district honoree.
She'll join forces with Vernon, who she was teammates with in 2017 on a USA A1 High Performance Team where both were originally scouted by the OSU coaching staff.
Follow this link to watch McDonald's highlights.
"Aliyah has gotten better and better as she's gone along in the recruiting process. She is a good blocker and has improved her attacking capability greatly over the last 12 months. She is a good jumper and we certainly expect her to make an immediate impact."
Bray, a 6-foot-1 middle blocker, has helped lead Corvallis High to three straight state tournaments, including winning the 5A title as a junior in 2018 and finishing third this fall, as well as three Mid-Willamette Conference titles. Bray has secured first team all-league honors each four times and earned first team all-state as a junior and senior. Bray helped her North Pacific Juniors Volleyball 17s Club team to a third-place finish at nationals.
Bray will rejoin her former Corvallis High teammate Taylor Quinn with the Beavers. She also participates in track & field for the Spartans.
Follow this link to watch Bray's highlights.
"Nevaeh has been in our backyard here in Corvallis and we are fortunate that she had a desire to stay close to home. She has made significant improvement over the last two years. She is a strong, fast middle and has all of the physical attributes to play a major role for us."
Turner, who will play libero and defensive specialist for the Beavers, is a seasoned back row digger and passer. She led her Westlake High team in digs two seasons earning all-district honors and was the 2019 Vype Junior Player of the Year runner-up. She has also led her Austin Skyline Juniors team in digs multiple times finishing among the top 10 in digs in the 2018 Tour of Texas. She was a Girls Junior National Championship Prep Volleyball 17 National Star Search selection.
Follow this link to watch Turner's highlights from her senior season.
"Ellie is a very high energy player. She is a great passer and an exciting defender. She moves very well and has been a high level libero on a high level team in Texas. Her vast experience at such a level will translate well to the Pac-12."
Season and single game tickets for the 2019 Oregon State volleyball season are now available for purchase via BeaverTickets.com/Volleyball and 1-800-GO-BEAVS.
Oregon State volleyball fans are encouraged to join Off the Bench, the program's new donor club. Click here for more information or call Alex Gary in Our Beaver Nation at 541-737-2370.
For more information on the Oregon State volleyball team, follow the club's official Twitter account at Twitter.com/BeaverVBall, by Facebook at Facebook.com/BeaverVBall or on Instagram at Instagram.com/BeaverVBall.
OUR MISSION
Oregon State Athletics strives to Build Excellent Authentic Visionary Student-Athletes (Go BEAVS).
Players Mentioned
DS/L
/ Women's VolleyballOregon State Volleyball 2025 Highlights
Wednesday, April 02
Oregon State Volleyball: Highlights vs Oregon
Friday, September 27
Oregon State Volleyball: First Practice 2019
Saturday, August 10
2010 Spike Out Cancer
Thursday, April 11
