On a sunny Saturday from Hermosa Beach we attended Day 3 of the AAU beach championships. The 14 and 15U finished pool play for a chance at the gold bracket. The silver brackets for 18 and 16U finished up. Here are the Show Stoppers for Day 3.
18U Consolation Champs
Alexa Fernandez/Carys Patton – We were able to see a couple of this team’s matches and they were exciting to watch. Fernandez looked fearless out there. She played with a high defensive intensity going for every ball then converting with big swing after swing. Patton has an effective jump serve tracking towards the sideline and scoring points in bunches. She also possesses good court vision by continuously being able to chip the ball over the block and eluding the defender.
16U Consolation Champs
Madelynn Hokanson/Jordan Patrick – Although we only saw them once we were impressed. Patrick is a good defender and a low-error attacker. She perfectly compliments the 5-11 Hokanson and her big swing. An athletic lefty with a good jump and a high reach on her swing, we saw Hokanson absolutely crush it. We can’t wait to see her return next season with a year to train. The sky’s the limit for her.
14U
Ella Olson/Addison Terrell – Terrell dominated with her attack today. She can crush a ball, while also mixing in a roll shot made defending her a chore. Olson chipped in with some strong serving and low attack errors in a recipe for success.
Sara Moynihan/Simone Roslon – Moynihan is a lefty who can play effectively on both sides and was solid again. She’s active defensively, leading to a powerful transition swing. Combined with Roslon’s ball control and a myriad of offensive shots gives this duo a good chance at a medal.
Olga Nikolaeva/Thais Treumann – This duo’s ball control is solid. They were one of the better teams in serve receive that we witnessed. Nikolaeva can defend the best attackers with her reading and passing touch. Treumann is a spark, playing with good energy. It seems her team always goes on a long run with the momentum she gives.
Nafanua Alofipo/Janie Mccanna – After watching these two play they can definitely make a run in the gold bracket. Both are plus defenders with good anticipation of where the attacker is looking at. Combined with a good court vision on offense made their day relatively easy.
15U
Elena Fisher/Kyra Zaengle – The No. 1 seed overall was impressive. Fisher was steady with her digging and offense. Rarely making errors she has a good feel for where the set and block are and made good choices. Zaengle put on a serving clinic. Her jump serve was on point. It blended her intensity with a consistent high velocity serve that scored in bunches.
Mikki Carlin/Kiara Edwards – Both of these splits are not only tall but very skillful. Carlin’s moves are athletic and quick, constantly getting to shots usually reserved for smaller defenders. Edwards has a high reaching swing that makes it hard to block, combined with some feel for the block, she has no problem scoring.
Lily Dee Davis/Aubrey Mcbride – Davis and McBridge are a well-balanced team. Mcbride covers the defense with her quickness and high conversion rate. Davis plays the net well. Getting good touches and blocks, Davis also shows quickness reading a shot then dropping to defend and getting back up to put down a big kill.
Avery Cukjati/Ariana Medchill – We saw this team for the first time and came away impressed. Both possess good ball control making their defense and serve receive solid. Medchill moves well in the back defending and making good reads. Cukjati sees the court well offensively mixing in hard shots with a couple of wrist away swings finding the sand for points.
