May 27, 2023

If it’s Memorial Day weekend, it must be time for clubs to begin traveling again as tournaments start back up as everyone gears up for the upcoming national championships. As for vballrecruiter.com, the latest escapade brought us to the JVA West Coast Cup in Long Beach. The three-day tournament kicked off Saturday as teams looked to get the competitive juices flowing. While the top seeds in 16 Open were able to escape any dooming upsets, there was plenty of shake up elsewhere in the division. Top-seeded SoCal 16 Eric was taken down by SF Tremors 16 Tigers but finished second and still advanced. SoCal was the only No. 1 team in its pool to fall, as Arete 16 Navy Telos, Sunshine 16 Pacific, Tstreet 16 Naseri and Seal Beach 16 Black all finished 3-0. However, it wasn’t so straightforward elsewhere as the No. 4 team in SD Beach 16 Premier took second in Pool 4. In Pool 2 it was the No. 3 team in VA Elite beating the No. 2 team in Club V 16 Ren Matt to advance after finishing second. And in Pool 3 Tstreet IE 16 Andy also advanced after finishing second as the No. 3 team in Pool 3. The results were all over the place in 17 Open, making for a hectic day. The big news was top-seeded SF Tremors 17 Wolverines being eliminated. SF Tremors went 1-2 and took third in Pool 1, where Saddleback 17 Sofly finished 3-0 as the No. 3 team. Taking second was Academy 17 HP Lukasz. Included in the highlights was Tstreet IE 17 Taylor going 3-0 and winning Pool 4 as the No. 4 team. It was a three-way tie behind Tstreet IE between Amazons 17 Mambas, VVA 17-1 and VA Elite 17. Amazons advanced in second place based on tiebreakers. Another No. 4 team in SF Elite 17 Saga had a great day, going 2-1 and making it out of Pool 3 behind 3-0 San Clemente 17 Riley. Actyve 17 Black had no troubles in winning Pool 2, but the chase for second was tight. MVVC 17 Red, ACT 17 Jim and TCV 17 Fighting Mermaids tied at 1-2. MVVC, as the No. 3 team, finished second to move on. There was only one case of a lower-seeded team breaking through in 15 Open. It came in Pool 2 when Balboa Bay 15 Blue finished 2-1 and in second place as the No. 3 team. The top four seeds in Actyve 15 Black, Arete 15 Navy Telos, Academy 15 HP Daniele and Tstreet 15 Curtis combined went 23-1 in sets. DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Lynniah Rodriguez S/RS 303 VBA 14 Alpha: Rodriguez and company finished the day 3-0 and on top of Power Pool 1 in 14 Club. She played a valuable role with her setting and hitting. She also has a strong serve that was scoring points. Elsa Matherly OH 303 VBA 14 Alpha: Matherly flashed her potential at times. She’s a lanky outside who could send it down at certain moments and has plenty of upside. Kayla Wolford OH BRVBA 14 Royal: It was Wolford and teammates taking top honors with a 3-0 showing in Power Pool 2. Wolford is a heady attacker who was providing lots of offense. Madelyn Feramisco OH VVA 16-1: With Feramisco part of the attack, VVA went 2-1 and remains in contention. She was passing on point in serve receive and delivering consistently when set. Leimaile Lasike MB Tstreet LV 16 Trevor: Lasike is a tall middle with raw potential. She made herself known with stuff blocks and was also a reliable option on offense. Katie Camp MB Tstreet LV 16 Trevor: Camp was another impactful middle for Tstreet. She was scoring at a high rate as defenses struggled to slow her down. Sarah Page S Club V 16 Ren Matt: Page, who was part of a 6-2 package, did a nice job distributing the ball and looking to get her various hitters involved. Madison Evans S Club V 16 Ren Matt: Evans, the other half of Club V’s 6-2, showed what she could do with tempo sets to the outside and well-located backsets. Katie Swanson OH Empire 16-1: Swanson, part of the Class of 2026, was the go-to on the left for Empire. Though the team went 0-3, Swanson showed off her nice arm and the ability to score on the regular. Lauren Farris OH Tstreet 16 Naseri: Farris helped Tstreet to a 3-0 performance in Pool 4. She hits a heavy ball and was putting down big kills with it. Memphis Burnett OH Tstreet 16 Naseri: Burnett – part of the Class of 2026 – was the other half of a strong 1-2 attack that helped Tstreet not drop a set. Burnett gets off the ground quickly and has a nice arm to punish opponents with. Amika Swanson MB Seal Beach 16 Black: Seal Beach also managed to go 3-0 and win Pool 5. Swanson stood out in the middle with her blocking and scoring. She’s a tall middle with lots of potential. Kendall Timme OH Arete 16 Navy Telos: Timme and Arete looked strong on Day 1 with a 3-0 mark in Pool 2. A six-rotation outside, Timme did plenty in helping the team succeed as she’s a threat front and back row. Mackenzi Davis OH Arete 16 Navy Telos: Davis is an athletic outside who can bring it. She has an explosive jump and can crush balls. Ryan Gilhooly OH Sunshine 16 Pacific: Gilhooly and crew rolled in Pool 3 with a 3-0 finish. She’s a six-rotation outside with a high IQ. She was giving Sunshine consistent scoring and proved difficult for opponents to stop. Adriana Dorn S/RS Rage 15 Greg: Dorn showed considerable upside in her dual role setting and hitting. She has a nice touch and release and a strong arm when it comes to swinging. Aviya Russo OH Academy 15 HP Daniele: Russo is an offensive threat who provides lots of