AVP Junior Nationals: 14/18U Gold Medals Awarded
On a beautiful Sunday in Hermosa Beach the AVP crowned not only its professional champions in the men and women’s divisions, but also awarded gold medals to the 18 and 14U champs. There was excitement and anticipation in the air as scores of spectators were shuffling around catching the volleyball action and sun rays on a hot So Cal day. Here are recaps of what we were able to catch of matches while navigating the courts. 18U Final Maggie Boyd/Gabrielle Walker vs Erin Inskeep/Clara Stowell – We were glad we stayed until the 5:30pm start time. As the sun was starting to set and AVP workers breaking down tents, this Texas versus California final was about to begin. Inskeep/Stowell from California came in as the 14th seed against the 15th-seeded Boyd/Walker from Texas. Boyd had her prints early on in set one. With her jump serving producing points while adding in thunderous kills, she had the crowd on its feet and as her team jumped out to an early lead. Inskeep’s offense kept it close with well-placed shots but Walker answered with kills of her own, punctuated by a big hammer with no one up and her team won set one, 21-15. Stowell found her grove in set two, starting with hard cross court swings to take back momentum. Half way through the set she had a monster block which got a lot of noise from the cheering section. She finished off the set with three more blocks as they won it 25-13. A Stowell kill got the crowd excited to start set three and they were underway. This set had it all with Inskeep and her defense complimenting Stowell’s net play. Then Boyd would get a jump serve ace and Walker would make one of her amazing defensive plays and converting with a big kill. It made for a great ending to the final. Boyd/Walker ended up winning 15-12 and claiming the gold at Hermosa Beach. Semifinals Erin Inskeep/Clara Stowell vs Jenna Colligan/Bailey Showalter – Stowell – a Stanford commit – and Showalter – a USC commit – were the big blockers and had power for days but this match turned into a chess game. Both teams were aware of the blockers and roll shots were called upon. Inskeep impressed with her resume of shots that find open court. Colligan tried hard to keep it close with her quick feet chasing down roll shots. In the end it was hard to keep Inskeep from her points with her shot variety as Inskeep/Stowell marched on to the finals. Liv Johnson/Harper Cooper vs Maggie Boyd/Gabrielle Walker – After watching Boyd, the UCLA commit, and Walker, the USC commit, play this match we can now fully appreciate this duo. Their calm and confident demeanor just exuded the been there, done that attitude. After a Boyd ace off a jump serve or a Walker resounding kill, they would share a smile and acknowledged each other then go about their business. That level of communication is huge in team sports and they went on to a straight set victory. Quarterfinals Erin Inskeep/Clara Stowell vs Alexis Durish/Sarah Wood – This was the matchup we were excited to see as Inskeep and Wood played in the 16U gold medal match with Wood coming out on top. The match featured some exceptional blockers but ball control dictated who won. Inskeep’s ability to read and defend created more scoring opportunities for her team and they won in straight sets. Carra Sassack/Ashley Vincent vs Maggie Boyd/Gabrielle Walker – Boyd and Walker’s game is very traditional. Pass, set, hit. Block, set, and hit. Nothing in between, no set over or option play. What is amazing is while being predictable they are absolutely amazing at what they do. After weathering an error filled first set they rebounded by winning 25-7 and 15-7. We like their temperament and how calm they were the entire match. *** 14U Final Finley Krystkowiak/Thais Treumann vs Janie McCanna/Kaitlyn Nguyen – We were disappointed that we were unable to catch any action from this showdown. It was shaping to be the front row dominance and defensive energy of Krystkowiak/Tremann against the steady ball control and shot making abilities of McCanna/Nguyen. In the end Krystkowiak/Treumann won and earned their 14U gold medal. Semifinals Finley Krystkowiak/Thais Treumann vs Zoe Znider/Tiani Shaw – The word momentum correctly applies to Treumann’s team. After a huge comeback win in the quarterfinal match everything they touched turned to points. With Treumann’s defense and Kryskowiak’s crushing sets and overpasses they cruised in the match 25-13 and 25-10. Quarterfinals Janie McCanna/Kaitlyn Nguyen vs Bella Scherfenberg/Layla Austin – Let’s start off with the most ridiculous scoring game we’ve seen in a while. The first set was unbelievable and went into overtime. Both teams had opportunities to finish the set and as the crowd waited nearly 10 minutes after it was 21-all, a Nguyen knuckle pokey caught the corner for a 40-38 win!! McCanna and Nguyen’s ball control and steady demeanor helped this team navigate through a tough match losing a tight set two before winning the third 16-14. Zoe Znider/Tiani Shaw vs Ava Kretschman/Bailey Farnes – Znider had a great match and her team needed every bit as they won 15-12 in the third set. Her high reaching swing was hard to block, add on her stellar defense in creating rallies balanced her game. Her signature moment was the huge block she had that gave her team much needed energy after a long rally. Finley Krystkowiak/Thais Treumann vs Ceila Hendrickson/Addison Terrell – It was the wake-up call that Kryskowiak/Treumann needed. After losing a set for the first time all tournament they rebounded by crushing their opponents 25-12 and 15-9. The feistiness of Treumann with her relentless defense and vocal energy set the tone for the comeback.
