April 8, 2023

With the Windy City Qualifier the largest event taking place this weekend in sheer numbers and given the fact many of vballrecruiter.com’s top-ranked teams are in Chicago, this year’s version of the Salt Lake City Showdown offers a great opportunity for clubs to punch their tickets to Junior Nationals. Of course, the only way to make that happen is to survive Day 1! While the top seeds did their part and advanced, which unexpected teams kept their dream alive for Day 2? There was a lot of shaking up in 17 Open, where top-seeded Vision 17 Gold lost to Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar. Vision and Club V 17 Ren Matthew are the only qualified teams in the field so there results impact everything. Club V – fresh off winning the Big South Qualifier – was upset by Tx Performance 17-1 though it technically wasn’t an upset. Tx Performance was the No. 1 team in Pool 7, but considering Club V is ranked No. 23 in our Top 50 and just won Big South, that has to be viewed as an upset. NPJ Salem 17 National – the No. 4 team in Pool 2 – moved on with a 2-1 mark, topping both Hive 17 Gold and Norco 17 Black. However, RRHVB 17-1 Robyn had an even better day. RRHVB was also a No. 4 team, but won Pool 6 by going 3-0. The No. 1 team in the pool in Abq Juniors 17-1 finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 and managed to grab second to stay alive. DaKine Warriors 17 Surf went 2-1 and stayed in contention as the No. 3 team in Pool 3. As for 16 Open, NPJ Salem 16 National was one of the lower-seeded teams to rise up and remain in the bid chase. The Oregon club – as the No. 3 team in Pool 4 – was the lowest-seeded team to break ranks and remain in bid contention. NPJ finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 with A4 Volley 16 Cassie and Club V 16 Ren Matt and earned second place based on tiebreakers. Only one other No. 3 team advanced along NPJ. It was Vegas Aces 16 UA. Vegas Aces went 2-1 as the No. 3 team in Pool 1, picking up victories against Tx Performance 16 Black and Elevate Athletics 16 Nike to move on. It wasn’t all easy sailing for the top seeds, however. While ID Crush 16 Bower, NorCal 16-1 Black, Norco 16 Black, AVA TX 16 Adidas and Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar all went undefeated as No. 1 teams in their respective pools on the opening day, No. 2 overall seed Temecula Viper 16 Costa was upended by OT 16 Roberto. This wasn’t a surprise though, as I think it was more mis-seeding than anything else. OT Roberto is actually the highest-ranked team in the field from our Top 50, coming in at No. 28. ID Crush is next at No. 29 and already has a bid. So to me, OT Roberto really should’ve been seeded No. 1 or No. 2 overall anyway. DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Sunni Skipps RS Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar: Skipps was effective at the net and helped boost the attack. She’s a smooth-swinging lefty who generates lots of pace. In addition, the she stayed in across the back row and helped in serve receive. Layli Ostovar OH Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar: Ostovar – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2026 – is an athletic, quick outside with springs for legs. She elevates well and has a whippy arm that can blast balls all over the court. Anna Rice OH OK Charge 16 UA: Rice is a big-hitting outside who held down the offense across the front row. She used her size to her advantage and either overpowered blockers or went right over them for kills. Gia McGrew RS OK Charge 16 UA: McGrew is a strong, physical hitter who gave her team a reliable right-side option to open the attack. She jumps well and swings hard and made defenses have to pay attention to her. Addison Worley OH OK Charge 16 UA: Worley is a bit undersized on the pin but she doesn’t back down from a challenge. She has a strong arm and was getting after it on the attack and going at defenders. Mylee Blake OH NPJ Salem 16 National: Blake was a consistent scoring option and did well showing a variety of shots. She exploited holes in the block and sent balls down when it was there or went off-speed and found the gaps in the defense. Melissa Jin S NorCal 16-1 Black: Jin sets a consistently clean and accurate ball. She did a great job connecting with both her middles and using her full range of options. Lilliana Montes MB Temecula Viper 16 Costa: Montes – 3-star recruit from the Class of 2024 – is 6-4 and has a huge impact at the net, especially against smaller front-row players. She was owning the net on tight balls and was doing well scoring when set. Ryleigh Short OH Temecula Viper 16 Costa: Short is another outside who is a bit undersized but she has a strong arm and hits hard. She’s also a solid serve, with a really nice hard, flat ball that was eating passers up. Klea Tarja OH Forza1 16 One: Tarja – a 3-star recruit – caught our eye last month in Las Vegas and she was back showing off her arm in Salt Lake. She has a loose swing and can really connect when she catches one. *** Ayanna Watson OH Vegas Aces 16 UA: Watson – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2026 – is a high-flying, hard-hitting outside who can bring the wow factor. The crazy thing is she’s still figuring it all out and has tremendous upside. Macey Smith L/DS Tstreet 16 Naseri: Smith was holding down the back row nicely. She was passing soundly out of