The 14s and 18s divisions are behind us. In case you missed any of our coverage from those divisions, you can read about Munciana 18 Samurai bringing home the 18 Open gold and Boiler Jrs 14 Gold owning the 14 Open division. Also, we highlighted our Show Stoppers from the gold brackets as well. We are now onto the 15s and 17s divisions, which got underway Sunday at AAUs in Orlando. With 75 teams in 17 Open and another 59 in 15 Open, there was an insane amount of volleyball to attempt to take in on Day 1 of those divisions. We did our best to get to as many courts as possible. Fortunately, there is still three days of action to come. Also, keep scrolling on down for recaps on what took place but first here are 35 Day 1 Show Stoppers from those divisions.
Abigail Li, S, A5 Mizuno 15 Bob – A four-star recruit, Li is a stoic setter who doesn’t get too high or low. She has a great touch and puts her hitters in favorable positions many more times than not.
Addison Makun, MB, Adidas KiVA 15 Red –Makun – a three-star recruit – is a name you’ll be hearing plenty of in the coming years. She’s a great prospect with a bright future with her size and arm. She opens up the offense as opponents must focus in on her.
Jenna Vande Weerd, MB, Kairos 15 Adidas – Vande Weerd proved to be a strong presence. She was hitting deep winners and was getting touches to help slow down attacks.
Maggie Meister, L, Kairos 15 Adidas – A three-star recruit, was getting low to get balls up. It was part of the package as she was making saves on a regular basis.
Shylah Swope, S/RS, VA Elite 15 – Swope is a bit undersized but plays a valuable role by setting and hitting. She can hang in the air a split-second longer than expected, which can make her tough to time up blocking.
Evelyn Jurden, S/RS, VA Elite 15 – Jurden is the other half of the 6-2. She has a big arm and when in a pinch she can hit out the back row in out of system plays.
Sakura Codling, Tri-State Elite 15 Blue – A three-star recruit, we saw Codling a few weeks ago at the JVA SummerFest. She impressed then and she impressed again this time. She’s steady out of serve receive and does a solid job covering touches.
Charlotte Glass, S, Tribe 15 Elite Dean – A five-star recruit, Glass has a great touch and sets a consistently clean ball. She’s on the mark regularly and is a huge prospect.
Caroline Noonan, RS, CUVC 15 Premier – Noonan provides a boost on offense with her scoring capabilities on the right side. Her big arm combined with a big swing equals big kills.
Jasmine Glenn, MB, Team Indiana 15.1 – Glenn – a three-star recruit – is an undersized middle who we absolutely love. She’s fearless and doesn’t hold back. She jumps well and can provide an offensive punch when she’s in.
Addison Tindall, OH, Team Pineapple 15 Black – Tindall is a four-star recruit but it wouldn’t be surprising to see her end up as a five-star recruit by the time she reaches the next level. She’s listed at 6-2 but seems to play even longer than that. She can go straight over blocks and can hammer balls at times.
Navea Gauthier, OH, Far Out 15 Black – A four-star recruit, Gauthier is one of the best scoring outsides in the Class of 2025. She’s a force anywhere she’s at on the floor and Far Out definitely relies on her to score a lot.
Abbigail Pickard, S, Far Out 15 Black – A four-star recruit, Pickard is someone we’ve mentioned before. She’s consistent, rarely missing her mark and she possesses a nice release.
Kennedy Johnson, S/RS, Neb Jrs 15 Black – A bit undersized, Johnson fills two roles by setting and hitting. She’s a fun setter with her ability to run tempo and she goes behind her well too.
Elena Hoecke, MB, MN Select 15-1 – A 6-2 middle, Hoecke spices up the lineup when she checks in. She can make an impact on both sides with her scoring and blocking.
Ava Hunter, S, Asics Munciana 15 Lorax – Hunter is a fluid, smooth setter who can run tempo on any set. This three-star recruit also moves the ball around well and gets her hitters involved.
Lauren Buchanan, OH, Alabama Perf 15 Red – Buchanan is a six-rotation glue piece. She’s the team’s go-to hitter and provides stability and steadiness on the outside.
Bella Bullington, OH, SPVB 15 Elite – Bullington has a cannon for an arm. She’s smooth and fluid and is a huge threat on the outside. She scores lots of points as SPVB surely feeds her.
Sydney Davis, MB, GP 15 Rox – Davis is someone to keep watch on. She can get up quickly and has a good arm. We saw her absolutely crush one ball that showed exactly what she’s able to bring on the attack.
Ava Antonaros, OH, Infinity 15 Open – Every time we saw Antonaros pass in serve receive she was rarely off target.
Allie Grossenbach, RS, Club GSL 15 Andrew – GSL likes to get Grossenbach the ball as much as possible. The lefty has the capability to score in bunches.
Charlotte Bell, MB, Academy 15 Diamond – Bell is a difference maker across the front row. She provides high-level offense with her height and ability to put the ball down.
Hazel Alevok, MB, Wildfire Corey 15 – We like to identify future prospects and that’s exactly what Alevok is. It’s our first time seeing the 6-4 freshman and she’s much more than a tall body. She can score and has huge upside when it comes to the next level.
Reagan Jansen, OH, Kairos 17 Adidas – Jansen has a solid arm and someone Kairos goes to whether she’s front or back row. She’s the best scoring threat in the lineup.
Claire Mrukowski, RS, Elite VBTC 17 Black – A 6-1 lefty right side who plays all the way around, Mrukowski is a key component in the Elite lineup. She’s a weapon whether front or back row with her swing and scoring ability. She also lines up and swings at middle back.
Ava Sarafa, S, Mich Elite 17 Mizuno – A four-star recruit committed to Kentucky, there’s few smoother or more deceptive than Sarafa. She can give blockers headaches as she’s difficult to read and excels at getting her hitters one-on-one opportunities.
Neelege Sims, MB, Mich Elite 17 Mizuno – Sims isn’t the tallest middle but she can get up. She’s also quick and can be a difficult cover for slower middles who can’t keep up.
Sophia Garza, MB, OMNI 17 Rick – Garza can run the slide effectively. She has a good arm and was able to generate pace on her swings to put the ball down on defenders.
Janyah Henderson, MB, Rev 17-1 – A bit undersized in the middle, Henderson makes up for it with her smooth and quick play. She moves and jumps well and can be difficult to time. She’s definitely someone defenses need to keep close watch on.
Laney Choboy, L, Academy 17 Diamond – A five-star recruit committed to Minnesota, many consider Choboy the top libero in the class. If a monster truck could be a libero, it would be Choboy. She will demolish anything standing in her way when it comes to making a save or a play on the ball.
Carly Sciborski, RS, Academy 17 Diamond – A 6-4 lefty committed to American, Sciborski is a big weapon across the front row and provides a different dynamic to the attack. With her length, she can brutalized smaller blocks and score points in bunches.
Sarah Brodner, RS, High Tide 17 Elite – Brodner is a tremendous prospect and someone to definitely keep tabs on. She’s a 6-5 pin hitter and part of the Class of 2024. She is very long and can rip balls over the block with ease and she’s only going to get stronger and gain power.
Margo Kemp, MB, EC Power 17 Steel – A 6-3 middle and Xavier commit, Kemp is a presence when she checks in. EC Power uses her with various sets to keep the defense guessing and she also puts up a solid block to interfere with attackers.
Avery Bolles, RS, MN Select 17-1 – A bit undersized – especially compared to the height MN Select carries – this Colorado commit was playing big. She was taking aggressive cuts and putting heat on her balls or using the block and scoring on tools.
Stella Swenson, S, MN Select 17-1 – A five-star recruit from the Class of 2024, Swenson would have no problem setting in the 18s division with her massive abilities. She has the height, skill and IQ and it’s noticeable when watching her direct an offense. She has smooth, accurate delivery and can get everyone involved, making it tough on defenses.
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With 19 pools, there was plenty to watch for in 17 Open. There was some big news in regards to overall seedings as well as our National Rankings. The No. 75 seed, which is the lowest seed in the field, in Kaimana VBC 17 went 2-1 in Pool 1 to take second behind top-seeded Legacy 17-1 Adidas. That’s already an accomplishment for the Hawaiian club.
MN Select 17-1 made headlines but not necessarily for the reasons it wanted to. MN Select was both the highest-seeded and highest-ranked team to go down on Day 1. MN Select – the No. 3 overall seed and ranked No. 13 nationally – lost to unranked K2 17 Adidas in the 1 v 2 match to finish 2-1 behind 3-0 K2.
ID Crush 17 Bower was the next highest nationally-ranked team to fall. Crush, ranked No. 28, went down to unraked Tri-State Elite 17 Blue in the three-team Pool 19. Tri-State was the No. 1 team and seeded No. 19, which made Crush the No. 20 seed.
The next highest seed to go down was No. 7 Rev 17-1, which is also ranked No. 44 nationally. Rev fell to unranked High Tide 17 Elite in the 1 v 2 contest and also finished second at 2-1 while High Tide went 3-0.
Six other No. 1 teams in their respective pools also took losses Sunday. Let’s run through them, starting with No. 11 overall seed Northern Lights 17-1. Northern Lights – ranked No. 48 nationally – lost to the No. 3 team in the pool in Gainesville 17 Black, which went 3-0 after also beating the No. 2 team EC Power 17 Steel.
GP 17 Rox, seeded No. 13 overall, was uprooted by the No. 2 team Ku’Ikahi 17 Wahine RSB. Munciana 17 Pandas, the No. 14 seed, was beaten by the No. 2 team Infinity 17 Open. Miami Elite 17 Julie, the No. 15 seed, was topped by No. 2 team A4 Volley 17 Joaco. NE Elite 17 Vici, which we have ranked No. 38 nationally, was the No. 2 team in pool and was able to take down No. 16 seed CVH Select. And lastly, No. 18 seed Kokoro 17-1 met its match against the No. 2 team in the pool in VC Unite 17 Elite.
When it came to elimination, only 18 teams were knocked from contention. The highest-seed to meet the end of its medal hopes was No. 35 seed Dunes 17 Black. Dunes was the No. 2 team in Pool 4 but went 0-3.
There was one match that featured a pair of nationally-ranked teams going head-to-head on the opening day. That was in Pool 18 between No. 32 Mich Elite 17 Mizuno and No. 41 Academy 17 Diamond. Academy was the No. 1 team in the pool and beat Mich Elite.
In all, there were 15 of our nationally-ranked teams competing on Day 1. They combined to go 39-5.
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Only 14 of the 59 teams in 15 Open were eliminated on Day 1. From that perspective, there was not much movement after the first day of play. The highest-seeded team to lose Sunday was No. 12 overall seed A5 Mizuno 15 Bob. The Georgia club was upended by the No. 2 team in the pool in Far Out 15 Black, which went 3-0 to take first place. The next highest-seeded team to take a L was No. 15 seed Temecula Viper 15-1. The So Cal squad was taken down by No. 16 seed Tribe Elite 15 Dean, so that wasn’t much news. Tribe won the three-team pool at 2-0, as all three teams advanced after an early day that saw the pool wrapped up before 11 am. Couldn’t we all be so lucky?
Of the 15 pools, Pool 11 delivered the most drama. While Mich Elite 15 Mizuno went 3-0, the other three clubs tied at 1-2 in Rage Westside 15 Jen, Lexington United 15 Adidas and WVBA 15 Adidas. On top of that, all three teams tied on set percentage too. That meant a one-game playoff to see which team would be eliminated. Since Rage had the best points ratio, the one-game playoff was supposed to take place between Lex United and WVBA.
We were watching 17 Open at the time, so we don’t know for sure what happened but we can surely speculate. WVBA posted a 15-0 playoff win over Lex United. That very likely means Lex United, as the No. 3 team in the pool and one that wouldn’t have to be reffing the 1 v 2 contest left the building and wasn’t around for the playoff. So there was a forfeit with Rage and WVBA advancing.
In terms of elimination, the highest-seeded team to be knocked from contention Sunday was No. 29 K2 15 Adidas. K2 was the No. 2 team in Pool 2 but went 0-3 and took fourth. The lowest-seeded team which performed the best was No. 58 seed Wildfire Corey 15, which was one spot off from being the lowest-seeded club in the field and was in the same pool as K2. Wildfire went 2-1 to take second.
The 12 teams in our National Rankings combined to go 34-2 on Day 1. We mentioned A5’s loss already. The only other ranked team to go down on the opening day was No. 34 ID Crush 15 Bower, which fell to No. 49 Top Select 15 Elite. While it was an upset in our rankings, Top Select was the No. 1 team in the pool ahead of No. 2 ID Crush.
