January 11, 2024

There’s really no time to settle in if you’re among the 18s clubs participating in the opening weekend of qualifying. There’s been limited action leading up to the start of the bid chase and now suddenly it’s time to attempt to qualify. Just about anything can happen because of it. Below, we dive into the KC MLK Tournament taking place Jan. 13-15 in Kansas City. KANSAS CITY MLK 18s Number of Teams: 22 Number of Bids: 3 Previously-Qualified Teams: n/a vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Clubs (9):   vballrecruiter.com 5-star Players to Watch:   vballrecruiter.com 4-star Players to Watch:   Outlook: You can toss out trickle down. There’s only one method to qualify this coming weekend and that is to finish in the top three. Of the 22 teams competing, nine start off the season ranked in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50. It might not be the biggest field but it’s a strong one highlighted by KC Power, which comes in ranked the highest at No. 10 and starts off as the No. 2 overall seed. The strength of competition should make for a fierce three days of action. While KC Power is among the top bid contenders, it’s really wide open. Rockwood Thunder, Pohaku, Premier Nebraska, A5 and Academy are all capable of earning bids. Same goes for the remaining three ranked teams in Co Jrs, VCNebraska and MAVS. It really wouldn’t surprising to see any combination when it comes to which three teams walk away with bids. Prediction: It’s a really difficult call to make but it must be done. The pick to win it all is Rockwood Thunder, which will beat KC Power in the final. Premier Nebraska will be the third team returning home with a bid.

This early in the season there is both plenty of optimism and lots of uncertainty. It only adds to the excitement of the opening weekend of qualifying. There’s been very few outings for clubs leading into the first chance to qualify this season and it usually makes for one of the more unpredictable weekends of the year. Below, we take a look at the Windy City 18s event set for Jan. 13-15 in Chicago. WINDY CITY 18s Number of Teams: 22 Number of Bids: 3 Previously-Qualified Teams: n/a vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Clubs (10):   vballrecruiter.com 5-star Players to Watch:   vballrecruiter.com 4-star Players to Watch:   Outlook: The first qualifier of the season is as straight forward as it gets when it comes to earning a bid. Forget any trickle down scenarios because no one has a bid yet. It means placing in the top three to lock up a spot for the USAV 18s GJNC in April. The field is decent sized with 22 teams in contention. It’s also a solid field with 10 clubs listed from vballrecruiter.com’s 18s Top 50. At No. 2 overall, 1st Alliance is not only the top seed in the field but a heavy favorite to bring home one of the three bids, especially being its home qualifier. After that, it gets real interesting in a hurry. Plenty of teams have what it takes to join 1st Alliance in qualifying. Vision has most everyone back from last year’s roster and joins City as two California clubs looking to get the job done. Meanwhile, Top Select makes the trip from the other coast, as does Metro. After that, it’s a Midwest bunch looking to finish in the top 3, with AVC, Circle City, MKE Sting, Legacy and FC Elite. Prediction: It would be a shocker if 1st Alliance didn’t qualify. The question is does the home club end up on top? The call here is yes, as 1st Alliance downs MKE Sting in the final. Rounding out qualifying is Vision taking the last remaining bid.