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Coach Fred Battenfield isn’t tempering down any of the excitement or expectations about one of the top recruits in Puerto Rico committing to North Greenville.
Battenfield called setter Sergio Carrillo one of the most talented recruit in the program’s history as the coach earlier this week announced that the high school senior signed a national letter of intent to play for the Crusaders beginning in 2019.
“Unless I have totally lost my eye for talent, Sergio Carrillo will be one of the best players I’ve ever signed for the North Greenville University men’s volleyball team,” Battenfield said in a statement. “I remember standing on a court in Columbus watching this team from Puerto Rico play, and I noticed a very tall setter with amazing hands. His team was also running a 6-2 offense and he was ripping the ball. Naturally, I was intrigued and after contacting him, I realized he was a perfect fit for NGU. He will come in next fall with the capability of playing three positions, but his setting will get us to another level in the future. He comes from a wonderful family, and I am very anxious to see what his career will look like in 2018-2019. We also ask that the NGU family continue to pray for Sergio’s family as they are still recovering from the devastation of the hurricanes that hit the island this past summer.”
Carrillo is a member of the Puerto Rican Men’s Junior National Team and trains under Puerto Rican National Team setter Angel Perez.
With his club team, Carrillo, earned All-Tournament honors at the 2017 USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships in Columbus, Ohio. He also led his team to a national championship at the 2016 USA Volleyball Boys’ Junior National Championships.
Carrillo is one of two players in the last two weeks to commit to North Greenville for the 2019 season. Carter Eby, a 6-foot-5 middle attacker from New Holland, Pennsylvania, signed with the Crusaders after being named a first-team all-conference selection in each of the last two seasons with his high school team.
The Crusaders finished last season in seventh place in the ConfCarolinas and reached the conference tournament quarterfinals.
North Greenville entering the program’s fourth season will play the defending NCAA champions Ohio State in its season opener Jan. 6. The team also will play Grand Canyon and Lindenwood as part of the Off the Block Grow the Game Challenge presented by MotorMVB on Jan. 12-14 in Nashville.