April 7, 2024

There are two main things I typically watch for on the opening day of qualifiers. One is upsets. Two is how those upsets impact the next day’s pairings. The biggest shake up on the first day of Show Me in Kansas City came in 17 Open. The largest came with No. 4 overall seed Adrenaline 17 Ben, which entered ranked No. 25 in the nation in our Top 50 Rankings. However, Adrenaline lost to both unranked Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite and Premier Nebraska 17 Gold and finished 2-1. Instead, both those clubs advanced and remain in contention. Adrenaline was not the only ranked club to get knocked out on Day 1. Both No. 42 Academy 17 Tsunami and No. 48 KC Power 17 Black didn’t move on either from their respective pools. Meanwhile, the top three seeds, as well as our four highest-ranked clubs in Hou Skyline 17 Royal, Mich Elite 17 Mizuno, Dynasty 17 Black, plus Northern Lights 17-1, all went 3-0 without dropping a set. Something to watch for on Day 2 comes out of Pool 1, where previously-qualified Hou Skyline is matched with both No. 37 Austin Skyline 17 Royal and No. 47 HPSTL 17 Royal. It figures to be a tough day for Austin Skyline or HPSTL as it’s unlikely both will advance. The only other qualified team in the field in No. 30 MAVS KC 17-1 is the No. 2 team in Pool 3 with Dynasty. That pool also includes Front Range 17 Black and Premier Nebraska. So one of those two teams is going to need to spring an upset to remain in the hunt. The last ranked team we haven’t mentioned is No. 35 GP 17 Rox. GP lands in Pool 2 with Mich Elite, as well as PVA 17 Elite and MN Select17-1. I would have counted both Mich Elite and GP among the teams I expected to qualify this season in 17 Open, so we’ll see how it plays out with those squads on Day 2. I found it slightly less chaotic in 16 Open. But there were still two big storylines to me. One came with HJV 16 Elite taking second in Pool 4. The Lone Star Region club came in with a bid and was ranked No. 24 in our latest Top 50. Yet, unranked Dynasty 16 Black scored the upset to win the pool. What it really did was create a difficult Pool 5 for Day 2, that also features No. 34 Premier Nebraska 16 Gold and No. 23 Pohaku 16-1. The other storyline was No. 36 TAV Houston 16 Adidas falling to both No. 41 OP2 16-1 Elite and unranked Ozark Juniors 16 Elite and being eliminated. I actually predicted TAV Houston coming through and earning the final bid here this weekend, so their result Saturday definitely caught me off guard. Another top seed being bumped from contention was No. 42 Kairos 16 Alpha. OT 16 Roberto, Temecula 16 Viper and Kairos all tied at 2-1, but Kairos took third in the tiebreakers. As for 15 Open, Pool 1 was the one that intrigued me the most on Day 1. That’s because along with No. 4 Skyline 15 Royal, it featured No. 30 MN Select 15-1 and No. 35 PVA 15 Elite. While Skyline wen 3-0, PVA outlasted MN Select in three sets to advance. That left MN Select eliminated. Like I said in the preview, qualifiers take luck and that was an unlucky pool for the first day. The biggest surprise, though, was unranked Paramount 15 Nick going 3-0 as the No. 3 team in Pool 4. Paramount upset No. 23 KC Power 15 Black, which managed to advance at 2-1. KC Power losing created a local-flavored Pool 2 for Day 2. Along with national No. 3 OT 15 Randy – which has its bid already – the pool contains Heart of America region clubs in PVA, KC Power and No. 41 Dynasty 15 Black. Given OT is in the pool, two of those other hopefuls are unlikely to advance. That’s a tough break as well. Kairos 15 Alpha – at No. 34 – was knocked out. Kairos was in the same pool as Paramount and KC Power and went 1-2. ***** DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Molly Bokenkroger L/DS PVA 15 Elite: Bokenkroger is a energetic libero who brings a defensive edge to the lineup. She was passing nails and covering sharply at the net. Presley Kreter MB PVA 15 Elite: Kreter is part of a strong 1-2 punch in the middle for PVA. She can get out on the slide and hammer balls with her big arm. Evelyn Igbenebor MB PVA 15 Elite: Igbenebor is the other half defenses need to worry about. She has a fast swing and moves well. She can get up in a hurry and rip shots down past helpless defenders. Elleora Utecht OH Northern Lights 15-1: A 3-star recruit, Utecht is a smart hitter who can frustrate defenses with her scoring prowess. She has a solid arm and knows how to beat defenses. Kaelyn Bjorklund S/RS Northern Lights 15-1: Bjorklund – a 4-star recruit – plays an integral role setting and hitting. She’s strong at both, locating her sets consistently. She can also bring it on offense with a powerful arm. Peyton Kubik OH Dynasty 15 Black: Kubik – a 5-star recruit – is a lanky outside with a scoring touch. She has a fluid swing and can rocket winners when the chance arises. Bo Bronson OH KC Power 15 Black: A 3-star recruit, Bronson is a springy outside who elevates quickly. Combined with a big arm, she can light it up in a hurry. Anniston Clark MB KC Power 15 Black: Clark was coming through and providing key offense. She has a heavy arm and was booming shots. Taylor Harrington MB Paramount 15 Nick: Harrington – a 3-star recruit – has huge upside with her length and reach across the front row. She not only puts up a