AAU 14s Day 4 2022
The 18s and 14s divisions wrapped up play at AAUs in Orlando. It was podium day as teams competed in the gold bracket in hopes of medaling and reaching it. vballrecruiter.com was on hand taking it all in and scribbling notes on which players were standing out the most. Below, we present our Day 4 Show Stoppers.
Sofia Guerrero-Wilson, MB, A5 Mizuno 14 Helen – A 6-1 middle with amazing upside and potential, Guerrero-Wilson can rip it when it’s lined up for her. She was also winning 50-50 balls at the net with her size and scoring that way too.
Kalyssa Taggart, S/RS, A5 Mizuno 14 Helen – Taggart is a valuable piece to the puzzle, as she can run a 5-1 or set in the back and hit across the front as she was doing for most of the tournament. She has a great touch as a setter and doesn’t miss her spots too often.
Ruby McDermott, L, A5 Mizuno 14 Helen – McDermott is the type of player the more you see of her the more you appreciate what she does. She holds down the back row well and shows plenty of range when it comes to keeping plays alive.
Emily Keiran, L, Adidas KiVA 14 Red – Like many of the players featured on Day 4, we’ve written about Keiran before during the tournament. She again displayed her back row prowess and ability to chase down balls and anchor serve receive.
Rayna Christianson, S/RS, Northern Lights 14-1 –A 6-2 high-level prospect, Christianson is part of the backbone of Northern Lights. She does a lot setting and hitting. When she’s front row, she’s a featured part of the attack and for good reason. With her length, smaller blockers have virtually no chance of slowing her down.
Madeline Kraft, L, Northern Lights 14-1 – Attackers need to bring real heat if they are going to score on Kraft going cross court when she’s at left back. Anything short of that and she’ll get it up. She also showed her willingness to hit the floor to extend rallies.
Romi Chlebecek, OH, Northern Lights 14-1 – A bit undersized on the left, Chlebecek is a gamer and a smart hitter. If it’s there, she’ll go for it but if it’s not she doesn’t overdo things and looks to keep the ball in play and not make an error.
Kaleigh Langmo, OH, Top Select 14 Elite – Langmo brings physicality to the attack. She takes strong cuts and hits a heavy ball that can be tough on defenders to get up.
Isabella Johnson, RS, Top Select 14 Elite – Another strong hitter for Top Select to utilize, Johnson put down a few powerful hits. She was also able to block a few balls for points as well.
Caroline Vargas, MB, Top Select 14 Elite – Vargas is a capable scorer and somebody Top Select will go to when the pass allows. She also makes a mark blocking, getting in the way and helping to slow down attacks.
Catherine Palmi, OH, GP 14 Rox – Palmi powers GP along, literally. She’s a strong hitter and server who uses her strength and jumping ability to her advantage. She can absolutely unload on shots to all parts of the court.
Madison Wehr, S, GP 14 Rox – Wehr is on the stoic and unassuming side and doesn’t get too high or low. She’s a steady setter who puts up a clean ball in good locations for her hitters to score.
Jenness Orcutt, RS, GP 14 Rox – Orcutt might be the tallest member of GP and it’s her height that helps her score consistently on the right side. She swings with nice extension and can go over smaller blocks regularly.
Lexi Shondell, S, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – Que the broken record, like we said on Day 3 we could write about Shondell every time she plays. She has great leadership skills and is in total control of running the offense.
Reese Resmer, MB, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – We’ve yet to see a team stop or slow Resmer down with any consistency. The best hope is getting Boiler Jrs out of system, because if Shondell can run the full offense Resmer is going to make her presence known over and over.
Arielle Hepler, L, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – Hepler is one of those players who you see smiling a lot. She’s a steady passer and defender and is always uplifting her teammates.
Caroline Ward, RS, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – The way Ward has it going already, she’s a future Top 10 recruit. She’s 6-0 and only a seventh grader. She’s long with a whippy swing that can generate serious heat be it down the line or cross court.
Cali Foster, OH, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – One of the best all-around players in the age group, Foster is fun to watch because of her smoothness. She’s a really smart hitter who can tool blocks, go through them or around them. She’s also a back row treasure with her defending and passing skills.
Bre Morgan, MB, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – Another point scorer out of the middle for Boiler Jrs, Morgan can get up and put it down.
Madison Miles, OH, Boiler Jrs 14 Gold – There’s a reason it comes from everywhere with Boiler Jrs. Miles is a point-scoring machine on the outside with her fluid swing and ability to generate plenty of pace with it.
Kayla Nwabueze, MB, Legacy 14-1 Adidas – As we keep saying, this is a name you’ll get to know well in the coming years. At 6-0, Nwabueze has nice size and can hit from anywhere across the front row with great extension and power.
Meredith Martin, L, Legacy 14-1 Adidas – A sound libero, Martin doesn’t make many errors. She’s sturdy in serve receive and is capable of making some big-time saves.
Marlie Smith, S/OH, Legacy 14-1 Adidas – One half of the hitting/setting combo for Legacy, Smith is a heady attacker who can find gaps in the defense. She’s a stabilizing setter who can hit her target with consistently.
Eva Long, S/OH, Legacy 14-1 Adidas – Long is a little more offensive, as she can rip it deep cross court and apply pressure on the defense. She’s also a strong setter with nice hands and touch.
Chalei Reid, OH, Mauloa 14 Green – A freshman young enough to play 14s, Reid is a physical and powerful swinger. Her strength is too much for blockers and defenders at times as she carries a big offensive load.
Lexi Kedvesh, L, Rev 14-1 – Kedvesh is solid in the back row with the ability to make some critical saves. She’s typically on point when challenged in serve receive.
Ella Jenkins, OH, Rev 14-1 – Jenkins is one of the key components in the lineup. She’s the team’s most consistent scorer and the one Rev looks to when it really needs a point.
Isabelle Masten, OH, Rev 14-1 – A bit undersized, Masten isn’t afraid to challenge bigger blocks. She also excels in the back row with her passing and defending capabilities.
Marley Matautia, MB, 808 Athletic Club – Matautia is a physical hitter. Her strength and how hard she hits it makes her very tough to dig and keeps pressure on the defense.
Kalamaku Crabbe, OH, 808 Athletic Club – Crabbe is a key six-rotation outside who will hit front or back row. Her defense and ball control are also pluses and allow 808 to be the team it was in reaching the semifinals of Premier.
Adriana Jeanpierre, OH, JJVA 14 Teal – The more you see of Jeanpierre, the more there is to like. She’s certainly not the biggest outside in the division but she really brings it whether front or back row. She leaps well and is very aggressive with her swing.
Mollie Vandeusen, S/RS, JJVA 14 Teal – Vandeusen is a big part of the pulse of JJVA. She’s a dynamic player with strong setting abilities and also a big arm that can help carry the offense at times.
Ryan Murphy, S/RS, JJVA 14 Teal – Murphy brings a lot of versatility to the lineup. Like Vandeusen, she has nice height and is a strong setter. She can stay in and hit across the front row too at times.
Molly Fitzpatrick, MB, JJVA 14 Teal – Lanky in the middle, Fitzpatrick has a solid arm. Defenses cannot sleep on her as she will make them pay when JJVA calls her number.
Josie Noble, MB, Far Out 14 Black – Noble is a physical hitter out of the middle. She’s a reliable scorer and a great option when Far Out is in system and can utilize her in the attack.
Alana Bailey, MB, Far Out 14 Black – A bit undersized, Bailey makes up for it with her jump. She can get up and has nice extension, making it difficult to time and block her.
Maggie Szlachcic, OH, Far Out 14 Black – Szlachcic is part of a solid outside duo for Far Out. She’s a six-rotation player who mostly plays on the left but can switch it up and go on the right if it’s a better matchup there.
Karis Chatfield, OH, Far Out 14 Black – Another six-rotation outside for Far Out, Chatfield is a steady presence who is low error and finds way to score.
Eva Hudson, OH, Munciana 18 Samurai – Few, if any, play with the fire and passion Hudson does. She’s a firecracker and a team leader. It helps that she’s as good as she is scoring, either finding the gaps in the block or tooling them.
Ramsey Gary, L, Munciana 18 Samurai – Gary is a lights-out defender who can stand in there and take the biggest, baddest shots opponents can throw her way. She rarely gets targeted in serve receive because teams know to keep the ball away from her.
Ella Bostic, S, Munciana 18 Samurai – Bostic does a good job of both riding the hot hand and knowing when to mix it up and get others involved. Her location is consistent and she doesn’t miss her target very often.
Sydney Bold, L, Coast 17-1 – Bold more than held her own facing a tough Munciana team that transitions quick and puts tons of pressure on defenders to make plays. She was all over the court hustling and scrapping to keep Coast in rallies.
Claire Little, OH, Coast 17-1 – A four-star BYU commit, Little was showing all her skills during gold bracket play. She’s a front and back row threat. On one occasion she absolutely destroyed a ball down the line bouncing it at the 10-foot line.
Ella Wrobel, OH, SPVB 18 Elite – The Wisconsin commit can be a one-person wrecking ball. When she gets it going offensively, there’s not much anyone can do to slow her down. She’s big, physical and can score from anywhere on the court.
Maya Sands, L, SPVB 18 Elite – A UNLV commit, Sands was charged with the duties of picking up balls against some big-time hitters in Saturday’s gold bracket. She did well to stand her ground and keep rallies alive.
