July 10, 2022

Welcome to the AVP’s version of volleyball paradise. Along a little stretch of sand surrounding the Hermosa Beach Pier the AVP hosted not only a professional tournament for men and women’s field but also the start of the 18U and 14U AVP Junior Nationals. With 43 courts running the whole day it was heaven for volleyball enthusiasts. The 18U field has 124 teams and 14U included 97 pairs. Here are the Day 1 Show Stoppers who caught our attention. 18U Alexis Durish/Sarah Wood – Wood captured the 16U division on Wednesday and Friday she started her quest to hold both 16U and 18U titles. With Durish being really steady both on offense and defense the No. 1 overall seed has a shot at history. Ashley Pater/Zoey Mitchell – Both USC commits play with good energy. Pater brings a lot to the table. Her relentless defense and vocal energy makes watching them exciting. Kendra Brown/McKenna Flaherty – Being both good sized and possessing ball control is rewarded by having a balanced team. Brown and Flaherty are both splits who handle the net and defense with no drop off. Kylie Truslow-Neffendorf/Virginia Trost – With both from this duo bringing a good jump serve to the table it adds one more layer to how they can beat teams. Trost is a strong blocker and getting touches consistently. Erin Inskeep/Clara Stowell – Fresh off the second-place finish in the 16U division, Inskeep kept the ball rolling with a strong first day. Her ball control continues to amaze and making tough plays seem normal. Grace Goudy/Sabrina Moore – A bit of a smaller team, Goudy and Moore play with big energy. They are a super athletic team and able to cover the whole court. We saw Moore chase down a ball off the block, and after diving she got back up and converted with a powerful swing. Kylie Vaickus/Malia Gementera – This team will make you beat them. They just don’t make errors. Playing a high energy game their never-give-up attitude takes a lot of steam out of their opponents. Gementera is a stud in the back row. Macy Butler/Kelly Belardi – Belardi is a beast at the net. Not only stuff blocking but when she swings it usually ends up with the thumping sound of the ball hitting the sand. Tawny Ensign/Skylar Ensign – The twins are both Tulane commits. Being siblings clearly helps this duo as they move around each other naturally. Skylar is a smart attacker mixing up her tempo and location making it hard to read her. Brooke Birch/Grace Townson – Townson the TCU commit takes up good space with her blocking, allowing for Birch to do what she does best in making strong reads and ending up in points for the team. 14U Finley Krystkowiak/Thais Treumann – Krystkowiak – fresh off a successful indoor season for Wave – has made a seamless transition to the sand game. Her 6-3 frame and athletic ability makes it tough for opponents to defend against. Bella Scherfenberg/Layla Austin – Scherfenberg’s energy drives the team. Defensively she makes so many exciting plays diving for balls and converting. Blair Bowers/Gabriella Rodriguez – Bowers is a force at the net. She not only jumps well but reads the attack angels and gets good touches. Simone Roslon/Sara Moynihan – Moynihan is the do-it-all player. She plays well at the net getting touches and bringing the heat with her lefty swing. Defensively she’s got great energy and focus. Izzy Masten/Ella Grimes – This duo’s ball control is fun to watch, especially their passing. Whether in serve receive or dropping in defense the ball predictably ends up in the same spot giving them countless opportunities for big swings. Zoe Znider/Tiani Shaw – Znider’s quick feet and her long left-handed swing makes her a plus defender. By the way she’s also got a good serve. With her starting a match she proceeded to beat the opponent 25-0. Ella Olson/Addison Williams – Olson brings her dominance from indoor out to the beach. On the hardwood she is a big swinging high flyer. On the sand her shots and court sense sets her apart from other attackers. Sophee Peterson/Capri Romjue – Peterson and Romjue are a well-rounded team. Romjue plays the net well blocking and hitting while Peterson has the quickness to chase down shots and convert for points.