PEORIA, Ill. -- Second-year Bradley Volleyball head coach Carol Price-Torok and the Braves received two commitments during the fall signing period, with Thursday's announcement 5-5 setter Hailey Delacher (Rockford, Mich./Rockford) and 6-2 outside hitter Kat Poore (Council Bluffs, Iowa/Lewis Central) both signing National Letters of Intent to attend Bradley.
"I am looking forward to adding Kat and Hailey to the 2018 roster," said Price-Torok. "They bring a wealth of volleyball IQ and court experience in addition to being strong competitors who know how to win. Their high school teams are making runs at state titles and that experience is great leading up to their collegiate careers."
A four-year starting setter for Rockford High School, Delacher was a first-team all-state performer as a junior following a second-team all-state selection her sophomore season. She is a three-time all-region selection and two-time first-team all-conference performer, helping her team to a second-place state finish in 2016.
The Grand Rapids Press Player of the Year in 2016, Delacher was named to the AVCA All-American Watch List prior to her senior year after she was a high honorable mention Prepvolleyball.com All-American as a junior. She owns the Rockford High School career assist record and set the Michigan High School Athletic Association single match record for assists during her sophomore season.
Part of back-to-back district championship teams and a 2016 regional title-winning squad, Delacher ranked third in the nation in assists in 2016 according to MaxPreps.com and was one of 52 finalists for prepvolleyball.com's National High School Junior Player of the Year. In addition, she was one of 10 finalists for Miss Volleyball in Michigan as a junior and was named to the AVCA Class of 2018 Phenom list.
"Hailey is a tenacious player that really understands the game," stated Price-Torok. "Coaching is in her blood and that is very important for her position. She has an "X" factor that you look for in setters and we are looking forward to her aiding our offense. She will bring a great deal of leadership to our team on and off the court and we are counting on her to continue to push our players to their limits."
At the club level, Delacher played for Dead Frog Far Out and was named to the 2016 All-America team at the AAU Nationals 16 Premiere Division.
Poore averaged 3.13 kills per set, while hitting .384 as a junior as she earned Iowa Girl's Coaches Association Class 4A second-team all-state honors in addition to first-team all-district distinction after helping the Titans to a state quarterfinal appearance last fall. A first-team all-conference pick as a junior, she has averaged 3.88 kills per set and is hitting .363 to go with a 2.98 digs-per-set average this fall while helping her team to a 33-5 record and Class 4A State semifinal appearance.
Named to the 2017 AVCA All-American Watch List, Poore was selected to the Omaha World Herald All Western Iowa First Team as a junior in addition to earning all-city honors from the Daily Nonpareil in 2016 after earning honorable mention all-city recognition the previous year.
"Kat will be joining us this spring and it will be very advantageous for her to get to know her teammates and make gains in the weight room," added Price-Torok. "She is a very well rounded player that has experience in multiple positions. Kat is a very composed player with a competitive streak that we need. We will look to her to help us immediately and can't wait to start training her."
At the club level, Poore was part of a silver medal winning team with Iowa High Performance at the USAV HP National Championships and qualified for the 2017 Junior Beach Tour Championships.
The Braves will close the 2017 regular-season with a three-match home stand which opens Saturday, Nov. 11 against I-74 rival Illinois State (7 p.m.) at Renaissance Coliseum.
