April 14, 2023

Not all, but most of the drama on the opening day of the Lone Star Classic in Dallas didn’t come from pool play action but rather from the competition that followed afterward. Between 15, 16 and 17 Open, there were third-place challenge brackets as well as crossover matches in order to stay in the hunt. The third-place challenge matches went down in 15 Open, where four teams which finished in third-place had an opportunity to play themselves back into contention after being unable to break pool. Kairos 15 Alpha and 1United 15 Dylan were two teams which capitalized. Kairos beat Triangle 15 Black, 25-20, while 1United ousted Drive Nation 15 Red, 25-22. At No. 25 in our Top 50, Drive Nation was the highest-ranked team eliminated on Day 1. Triangle wasn’t far behind at No. 33. Joining Kairos and 1United were TAV Houston 15 Adidas and 1st Alliance 15 Gold. 1st Alliance actually had the toughest road having to win not one but two challenge brackets to 25. 1st Alliance beat High Tide 15 Elite then downed Coqui VBC 15U. TAV Houston defeated Arete 15 Navy Telos in its game to 25 to remain in the mix. The other big news in 15 Open came out of Pool 2 when Dynasty 15 Black upset national No. 4 Madfrog 15 Green to win the pool. That result did little to impact anything on Day 1, as both were guaranteed to move on. However, it does shake up the seedings for Day 2 as now Madfrog becomes the No. 4 team in Pool 6. That pool features No. 6 AZ Sky 15G and No. 13 Hou Skyline 15 Royal. Madfrog and Hou Skyline have bids, but AZ Sky does not. And now Sky’s path to breaking pool Saturday just became that more challenging. Northern Lights 15-1 did well in upsetting Drive Nation in pool play. That not only knocked Drive Nation to the challenge bracket but it allowed Northern Lights to finish 2-1 and move on as the No. 3 team in the pool. You know the Lone Star qualifier is different based on what went down in 16 Open on Day 1. That’s because there was a must-win clash between No. 31 Skyline 16 Royal and No. 39 Alamo 16 Premier in crossover action. We haven’t seen that elsewhere. Skyline went 0-2 in pool while Alamo went 1-1 and that left them squaring off in a contest in which the winner advanced and the loser was eliminated. It was lights out for Alamo as Skyline swept to keep its bid chances alive. Alamo already had a bid and becomes the first qualified team out of contention. So now there are nine teams with bids in 16 Open. Other must-win crossovers saw AJV 16 Adidas sneak past TAV 16 Platinum, 25-20, 20-25, 15-11, and Excel 16 National Red clip Flyers 16 APX Ed, 27-25, 25-23, as both stayed in the upper pools. None of the top seeds lost on Day 1 in 16 Open, except in crossover play for seeding purposes. One example was Arizona Storm 16 Thunder beating Austin Skyline 16 Royal after both won their three-team pools. Rancho Valley 16 Premier had the best day for the lowest seed, as Rancho Valley advanced as the No. 4 team in Pool 6. Rancho Valley beat both Tulsa Power 16-1 and MuscleVB 16 Black to advance. FRBVC 16-1 Black, Arete 16 Navy Telos and 915 16 Gilbert all advanced as No. 3 teams after going 2-1. In 17 Open, there was a big-time upset when CHAVC 17 Black took down Drive Nation 17 Red. Drive Nation now becomes the No. 4 team in Pool 4, with Triangle 17 Black, AJV 17 Adidas and Northern Lights 17-1. While Drive Nation, Triangle and AJV all have bids, it does mean one won’t advance to the top 12 for gold pools and that could ultimately impact trickle down. As it stands, CHAVC takes over the No. 2 seed and is in Pool 2 with HJV 17 Elite, Madfrog 17 Black and Arete 17 Navy Telos. That pool would look drastically different with Drive Nation on top instead of in another pool altogether. But like 15 and 16 Open, most of the drama came late. Northern Lights was pushed to the brink before prevailing against Supernova 17 All-Stars, 24-26, 25-8, 16-14, to keep its bid chances in tact. Alamo 17 Premier had a chance to win its pool but fell to HJV in three sets and was forced to a crossover to remain in contention. Alamo edged KC Power 17 Red, 24-26, 25-19, 16-14, to move on. DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Grace Lee OH High Tide 15 Elite: It was a tough day overall for High Tide, which was knocked out after dropping a challenge match but Lee did well in her role as a six-rotation outside. She was carrying the offense in stretches and was also defending well in the back. Kaylee Maikranz L/DS High Tide 15 Elite: Maikranz had her hands full against strong hitters and was scrappy keeping rallies going and keeping her team in points. Ella Andrews MB Legacy 15-1 Adidas: Andrews – a 4-star recruit – and her Legacy teammates had a solid day finishing 3-0 and holding seed. Andrews was making plays on both sides of the ball, disrupting attackers while giving Legacy a reliable point scorer in the middle.   Eva Long S Legacy 15-1 Adidas: Long – a 3-star recruit – is an under-control setter who moves well. She’s consistent with her accuracy and has nice hands. Paisley Pavliska OH Alamo 15 Premier: Pavliska – a 4-star recruit – is relentless on the outside and a very high IQ attacker. She can let it fly and rip balls or frustrate defenders with her off speed and roll shots. Addison Polivka OH 1United 15 Dylan: Polivka is the go-hitter for 1United and she does well in that capacity. She has a nice swing and she extends well. She