Chris Tobolski

With the first weekend of the Sunshine Classic all wrapped up and the Open bids awarded in the 16 and 17 divisions, we turn our attention to our All Red Hat Team for 16 Open. It’s our version of an all-tournament team. The selections were picked from the 12 teams which made the gold pools and based on their performances over the course of three days. 16s ALL RED HAT TEAM PIN HITTERS Sara Snowbarger Mintonette Sports m.61 Layla Hoying Mintonette Sports m.61 Jordin Southall GP 16 Rox Catherine Palmi GP 16 Rox Jenness Orcutt GP 16 Rox Madisyn Crnjac Arizona Storm 16 Thunder Taylor Clarke Skyline 16 Royal LeVariya Pinder Skyline 16 Royal Clara Briley A5 16-1 Gabe Sofia Guerrero-Wilson A5 16-1 Gabe Gigi Artiles Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal Mia Gold Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal Isabella Umpierre WPVC 16 Armour Black Brooklyn Jenkins AZ Sky 16G Sarah Hickman HJV 16 Elite Amaya Love HJV 16 Elite *** MIDDLE BLOCKERS Alia Schoonover Mintonette Sports m.61 London Adkins GP 16 Rox Brooke Harwood Arizona Storm 16 Thunder Hayden Conner Arizona Storm 16 Thunder Keoni Williams Skyline 16 Royal Riley Bethea A5 16-1 Gabe Gracison Saylors A5 16-1 Gabe Eva Smith Triangle 16 Black Jolene Oddo Triangle 16 Black Jenna Hunt Vision 16 Gold *** SETTERS Mallory Matheny Mintonette Sports m.61 Elizabeth Scholvin Mintonette Sports m.61 Lily Rolfes Arizona Storm 16 Thunder Madison Victoriano Skyline 16 Royal Riley McCaughey Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal Elle Mottola WPVC 16 Armour Black Vivian Hickman AZ Sky 16G *** LIBEROS/DSs Emma Cugino Mintonette Sports m.61 Aylani Correa GP 16 Rox Kalli Lipo Arizona Storm 16 Thunder Kiley Brooks Skyline 16 Royal Marianne Garcia AZ Sky 16G Gemma Hopkins HJV 16 Elite

It was an incredible three days of competition this past weekend at the Sunshine Classic. The first bids went out in 16 Open, while 17 Open picked up its qualifying after the opening round at Northern Lights back in January. You can read about how it played out here. Below, we introduce our 17 Open All Red Hat Team. It’s our version of an all-tournament team. The selections were picked from the 12 teams which made the gold pools and based on their performances over the course of three days. 17s ALL RED HAT TEAM PIN HITTERS Teraya Sigler Arizona Storm 17 Thunder Devyn Wiest Arizona Storm 17 Thunder Raegan Richardson AZ Sky 17G Georgi Stein AZ Sky 17G Addison France AZ Sky 17G Sophia Thornburg Skyline 17 Royal Bella Ocampo Skyline 17 Royal Naya Salfiti Skyline 17 Royal Alex Richter TAV 17 Black Marie Laurio Legacy 17-1 Adidas Hannah Hankerson OT 17 Aaron Maggie Dostic OT 17 Aaron Ava Wysocki Sky High Adidas 17 Elite Kelly Kinney Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal Victoria Hill GP 17 Rox Gabi Martinez HJV 17 Elite Layli Ostovar Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar Brianna Brewer Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar *** MIDDLE BLOCKERS Kenna Cogill Arizona Storm 17 Thunder Makena Rumple Arizona Storm 17 Thunder Zoe Gillen-Malveaux Skyline 17 Royal Olivia Wayne TAV 17 Black Shelby Burris TAV 17 Black Olivia Grenadier Legacy 17-1 Adidas Connore Siler-Nixon OT 17 Aaron Sydney Davis GP 17 Rox Jordan Taylor HJV 17 Elite *** SETTERS Sarah Pfiffner TAV 17 Black Campbell Flynn Legacy 17-1 Adidas Izzy Mogridge OT 17 Aaron Emelyn Stettin Sky High Adidas 17 Elite Charlotte Glass Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal KK Green GP 17 Rox *** LIBEROS/DSs Izzy Mahaffey Arizona Storm 17 Thunder Lilliana LaFlesch AZ Sky 17G Maddie Smotherman Skyline 17 Royal Sarah Mendoza TAV 17 Black Devin Dzienny Legacy 17-1 Adidas Lily Hayes OT 17 Aaron Zoey Matias Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal Sydney Black HJV 17 Elite

The Sunshine Classic wrapped up with plenty of drama and unexpected results. With the gold pools playing out and remaining teams in the hunt competing for Open bids, the final day produced big-time efforts and performances. Below, we highlight those players who stood out to us the most with our Day 3 Show Stoppers. DAY 3 SHOW STOPPERS Teraya Sigler OH Arizona Storm 17 Thunder: Sigler – a 5-star Nebraska commit – anchored Storm’s run to the 17 Open championship. She’s a do-it-all type, high-IQ outside who is solid out of serve receive and can hurt opponents with a wide array of shot selections. Makena Rumple MB Arizona Storm 17 Thunder: A 3-star Iowa commit, Rumple was very effective in the middle. She scored at a high rate when called upon and delivered timely blocks to aid in Storm’s dominant day. Georgi Stein OH AZ Sky 17 Gold: Stein – a 3-star Northern Arizona commit – was a key piece as Sky worked its way to a second-place finish and one of the three bids. The six-rotation contributor takes her share of swings on the outside and knows how to beat opponents in different ways. Addison France RS AZ Sky 17 Gold: A 3-star recruit, France is a physical right side. She can drop the hammer at times and power down kills with authority. Zoe Gillen-Malveaux MB Skyline 17 Royal: A 5-star Duke commit, Gillen-Malveaux is a dynamic middle who is a handful offensively. She runs an effective slide attack and with the way she can get up and extends, it’s very tough to slow down. Maddy Smotherman L/DS Skyline 17 Royal: Smotherman – a 3-star recruit – was solid in the back row and showed up well on that side of the ball. She did well extending rallies and making hustle plays. Alex Richter OH TAV 17 Black: A 4-star Georgia commit, Richter played at a high level and scored at a high clip. She’s long and can hit at high contact points which helps create sharp angles for defenders to cover. Campbell Flynn S Legacy 17-1 Adidas: Flynn – a 5-star Nebraska commit – helped Legacy position itself to qualify on the final day but came up short of making the semis. There’s plenty of superlatives one can use to describe her. Effortless and smooth are among them, as she shows total command of the offense. Marie Laurio OH Legacy 17-1 Adidas: A 3-star Syracuse commit, Laurio is a wirey outside with a lively arm. She can unleash at times and rip impressive winners. Izzy Mogridge S OT 17 Aaron: A 4-star Oregon commit, Mogridge is a fun setter to watch get after it. She’s quick and does well getting her feet to the ball. She also connects well with all of her hitters. *** Charlotte Glass S Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal: Glass – a 5-star Duke commit – is another setter who is in complete control of the offense. She locates consistently and puts her hitters in favorable matchups. Kelly Kinney OH Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal: A 5-star Minnesota commit, Kinney can get up and crush it. She has a big-time arm and is a featured part of Tribe’s attack. Jordan Taylor MB HJV 17 Elite: Another 5-star Minnesota commit, Taylor is so long in the middle and takes up a ton of space. She can close the gap on the block in a hurry, as well as hit over blockers on the regular. Layla Hoying OH Mintonette Sports m.61: Hoying – a 4-star recruit – is part of a strong 1-2 punch on the outside for Mintonette. She has a powerful arm but can keep defenses guessing with her ability to deliver a well-timed off-speed shot. Sara Snowbarger OH Mintonette Sports m.61: Another 4-star recruit, Snowbarger completes the outside duo that helped Mintonette to the 16 Open title. She’s a lanky hitter who extends and can hit straight down when the opportunity is right. Alia Schoonover MB Mintonette Sports m.61: Schoonover – a 3-star recruit – is a play-maker in the middle. She’s quick and knows how to finish and always seems to come up with a clutch play at a key moment. Emma Cugino L/DS Mintonette Sports m.61: A 5-star recruit, Cugino is a lights-out defender. She has the ability to change the course of a set or match with the way she can make saves or keep her team in a point. Catherine Palmi OH GP 16 Rox: Palmi – a 3-star recruit – helped hold it down as GP took home a surprise bid after finishing runner-up to Mintonette. She has a booming arm and hits a heavy, heavy ball that eats defenders up. Aylani Correra L/DS GP 16 Rox: Correra played a key role in GP’s success. She’s quick, scrappy defender who shows a lot of hustle and desire to keep the ball alive. Brooke Harwood MB Arizona Storm 16 Thunder: Harwood – a 5-star recruit – is virtually unstoppable on the slide attack. When in system, it is a high-percentage play that Storm turns to time and time again. *** Madisyn Crnjac OH Arizona Storm 16 Thunder: Crnjac – a 3-star recruit – is a six-rotation outside with a knack for scoring. She has a strong arm and isn’t afraid to challenge the block in front of her. Kalli Lipo L/DS Arizona Storm 16 Thunder: A 3-star recruit, Lipo brings a defensive edge to the lineup. She covers really well and shows nice reactions in the back row. Alexis Anderson RS Skyline 16 Royal: Anderson was an unsung hero at times. Skyline its share of options but it was Anderson making timely contributions on both sides of the ball with her attacking and blocking. Taylor Clarke RS Skyline 16 Royal: A 4-star recruit, Clarke is a menace on the right side. Skyline likes to feed her the ball and with the way she explodes and lets it go, she’s a reliable option. Riley Bethea MB A5 16-1 Gabe: Bethea –

When we look back at the Sunshine Classic at the end of qualifying season, it very likely will stand as the toughest one for the 16 and 17 Open divisions. The depth of both fields played out on Day 3 in a highly-anticipated conclusion and with it delivered its share of drama and excitement. While it didn’t come as a surprise to see nationally-ranked No. 2 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder finish on top of 17 Open and punch its bid to nationals, it most certainly was a shock to see Storm’s final opponent and another bid winner in Arizona Sky 17 Gold. AZ Sky came into the weekend ranked No. 41 in Vballrecruiter’s Top 50 rankings and did well positioning itself to make a move Monday. With upsets of No. 28 Sky High Adidas 17 Elite and No. 37 GP 17 Rox, AZ Sky moved onto the semifinals where it was matched up with No. 8 Skyline 17 Royal. While Sky’s gold-pool victories were minor upsets, sweeping Skyline and earning a bid was a major one. It left Skyline in need of beating No. 15 TAV 17 Black in the third-place match to pick up the final bid, which it did with a sweep. TAV took down both No. 10 Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal and No. 25 HJV 17 Elite in its gold pool before running into the buzz saw that was Arizona Storm in the semis. Storm, meanwhile, had no issues with any of its contests Monday. The eventual champ only saw an opponent break 20 points in one of the eight sets played. It included downing No. 9 Legacy 17 Adidas and No. 39 Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar in gold-pool action. Storm finished the weekend a perfect 10-0 with its only set loss to AVA TX 17 Adidas in the opening match Saturday morning. As for Skyline, it fended off No. 23 OT 17 Aaron in Game 3, 15-13, to win its pool and advance. Skyline’s loss to Sky in the semis was the only one on the weekend for Skyline. As for 16 Open, nationally-ranked No. 2 Mintonette Sports m.61 matched Storm’s effort in 17 Open by going a perfect 10-0 and taking home the title as well as qualifying. Like Storm, Mintonette also beat a surprise finalist in No. 24 GP 16 Rox. GP was dealt a blow along the way. After sweeping No. 25 Vision 16 Gold in its first gold pool match, GP lost outside hitter Jordin Southall to injury in the third set against No. 13 WPVC 16 Armour Black. Trailing at the time, GP managed to rally and pulled it out 15-13. The other two semifinalists were No. 2 Skyline 16 Royal and No. 10 Arizona Storm 16 Thunder. While Skyline rolled through its gold pool with victories over No. 41 Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal and unranked Tribe 16 Elite Navy, Storm had a slugfest with No. 14 A5 16-1 Gabe to win its pool. A5 was leading 24-18 before a fierce Storm rally pulled it out and eventually led to a three-set victory, 26-24, 14-25, 15-11. It left Storm facing GP in one semi and Skyline and Mintonette dueling in the other. Mintonette and Skyline have plenty of history. It features Mintonette beating Skyline in the 15 Open championship at AAUs while Skyline returned the favor and downed Mintonette in the 15 Open gold medal match at the USAV GJNC. The two also met on Day 1 at Triple Crown two weeks ago, with Skyline prevailing in three. The latest chapter went Mintonette’s way, but not before a thrilling comeback. Skyline was leading 12-9 in Game 3 before Mintonette used a 6-0 run to close it out and advance. In the other semi, GP kept its hot hand going by outlasting Storm in three sets. It set up a showdown between Skyline and Storm for the final bid. However, it seemed all the drama had been tapped out by that point as Storm swept handily, 25-15, 25-14, to secure the last remaining bid and end the weekend 9-1.

It only takes one match for things to go boom! And with it, the 16 Open division on Day 2 at the Sunshine Classic took on an entirely unexpected look. The opening round Sunday saw nationally-ranked No. 41 Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal upset No. 1 Legacy 16-1 Adidas in straight sets. The recent Triple Crown champion and newly-appointed top-ranked team in the country in our Top 50 rankings finished in a three-way tie at 2-1 with Tribe and GP 16 Rox. However, Legacy lost out in the tiebreaker because of the head-to-head defeat to Tribe and wound up finishing third, behind first-place GP and second-place Tribe. Legacy had a shot at winning the pool, but needed to sweep GP in the final match but instead pulled it out in three. Joining the shock of Legacy not advancing was Tribe 16 Elite Navy going 3-0 as the No. 3 team in Pool 6. It included upending national No. 13 WPVC 16 Armour Black. STVA 16 Mizuno was another No. 1 seed in its pool to not make Monday’s gold pools. STVA went 0-3 in Pool 5, as A5 16-1 Gabe (3-0) and Triangle 16 Black (2-1) advanced. Mintonette Sports m.61, Skyline 16 Royal and Arizona Storm 16 Thunder all went 3-0 and held their seeds going into Day 3. There was drama in Pool 4 behind Storm’s performance as HJV 16 Elite, Wildfire 16 Open and OT 16 Roberto all went 1-2. HJV took second to stay in bid contention. In 17 Open, the big surprise came out of Pool 3. Nationally-ranked No. 7 Excel 17 National Red had a rough ride, going 0-3 with losses to Legacy 17-1 Adidas, Sky High Adidas 17 Elite and OT 17 Felix. The latter three clubs all tied at 2-1, with Sky High taking first and Legacy second to advance. Arizona Storm 17 Thunder, Skyline 17 Royal, HJV 17 Elite and TAV 17 Black all went 3-0 as No. 1 seeds in their pools. GP 17 Rox also took first as the No. 1 team in Pool 6, but only after finishing in a three-way tie at 2-1 with Circle City 17 Purple and Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar. Long Beach, the No. 4 team, took second based on tiebreakers. AZ Sky 17 Gold and KC Power 17 Black joined Long Beach as moving on as a No. 4 team. AZ Sky went 2-1 in Pool 1 to stay alive. KC Power, the No. 4 team in Pool 4, beat Triangle 17 Black and PVA 17B. *** With teams settling in after opening-day jitters, the action kicked up a notch Sunday. There were difficult pools to navigate and with a chance to stay in contention for bids on the line, the competition was intense. Below, we highlight the players who caught our attention the most with their performances with our Day 2 Show Stoppers. DAY 2 SHOW STOPPERS Karis Carpenter L/DS STVA 16 Mizuno: STVA lost all three matches in three sets, with Carpenter providing a boost defensively. She was making digs all over the court and extending rallies. Isabella Umpierre RS WPVC 16 Armour Black: Umpierre – a 3-star recruit – is a heavy-armed right side who shoulders a fair share of the attack. She can hit through or off blocks with consistency. Jolene Oddo MB Triangle 16 Black: Oddo’s length creates all sorts of advantages on her side of the net. She can easily go over blocks and score at will at times. She can also get in the way of attackers with her reach. Nadiya Johnson RS Metro 16 Travel: Johnson – a 5-star recruit – is filled with endless potential. She gets set a ton and for good reason. She can absolutely sky and extends way up in the air to produce highlight kills. Kiley Brooks L/DS Skyline 16 Royal: A 3-star recruit, Brooks was covering the back row with reckless abandon. She brings intensity to the defensive side and was passing well out of serve receive. Lily Rolfes S Arizona Storm 16 Thunder: Rolfes does a nice job directing the attack and moving the ball around. It helps keep the defense guessing. She also does well going behind her and going against the flow. Hayden Conner MB Arizona Storm 16 Thunder: Conner – a 3-star recruit – is part of a strong middle group for Storm. She has a strong arm and can power shots down with authority. Brooke Harwood MB Arizona Storm 16 Thunder: A 5-star recruit, Harwood is more than a handful in the middle. She runs a really effective slide attack that opponents have a tough time slowing down. Eva Long S Legacy 16-1 Adidas: Long – a 4-star recruit – showed consistent location. She connects very well with both of her middles and runs a balanced offense. Jenelle Legates S Vision 16 Gold: Legates has a nice touch and release. She sets a clean ball and did well getting her feet in position. *** Isabella Sohl S HPSTL 16 Royal: Sohl is a feisty setter who did well guiding the attack and moving the ball around. Bennett Raterman MB HPSTL 16 Royal: Raterman – a 5-star recruit – is a presence in the middle on both sides of the ball. She puts up a very strong block. She is also an effective scorer who can hurt defenses in a variety of ways. Amaya Love OH HJV 16 Elite: Love is an athletic outside with lots of potential. She can extend and hit at a high contact point and is one of the featured parts of the attack. Marianne Garcia L/DS AZ Sky 16G: Garcia is a quick libero who covers lots of ground. She was solid out of serve receive and putting the ball on target. Gracison Saylors MB A5 16-1 Gabe: Saylors was making an impact in the middle. She was delivering when called upon and showed she’s a reliable scoring option. Gabby Nichols MB Triangle 17 Black: Nichols – a 4-star Penn

There are different ways at looking at an event like the Sunshine Classic. One way is coming off the Triple Crown weekend two weeks ago and with no events in between, the opening day here in Orlando could feel like somewhat of a letdown. On the other hand, the results on the first day of Triple Crown didn’t really matter to those in power pools and the same couldn’t be said at Sunshine. Plenty of hopefuls arrived aiming for one of the three available Open bids in the 16s and 17s division and of those 48-team fields, already half have been eliminated. One of the most entertaining and toughest pools on Day 1 came In Pool 1 for 16 Open. It featured nationally-ranked teams in No. 24 GP 16 Rox, No. 26 Academy 16 Diamond and No. 32 Metro 16 Travel. That’s a brutal pool for the first day and it was Academy Diamond paying the price by going 1-2 and missing out on moving on. GP went 3-0, while Metro went 2-1. Not all was well for another No. 1 seed in their respective pool in TVC 16 Black. Coming off its third-place finish at Central Zone in early February, No. 35 TVC was the No. 5 overall seed but fell to STVA 16 Mizuno and Mobile Storm 16 Nat Black won’t be advancing. Those were the only two No. 1 seeds in their pools not to advance. Both No. 41 Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal and No. 25 Vision 16 Gold both went 2-1. Tribe was upended by No. 22 AZ Sky 16G while Vision was topped by No. 30 HJV 16 Elite. Vballrecruiter’s top-ranked team in Legacy 16-1 Adidas, as well as No. 2 Skyline 16 Royal, No. 3 Mintonette Sports m.61, No. 10 Arizona Storm 16 Thunder, No. 13 WPVC 16 Armour Black, No. 14 A5 16-1 Gabe, No. 34 TAV Houston 16 Adidas and No. 47 Team Indiana 16 Elite all went 3-0. In 17 Open, only one No. 1 team in its pool was eliminated from bid contention. That was No. 30 HPSTL 17 Royal. The Gateway Region club went 1-2 on Saturday with losses to Tx Performance 17s and USA South 17 Premier Purple. Another higher-seed not advancing is No. 13 Metro 17 Travel, which finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 with No Name 17 Sarah and Mintonette Sports m.71. Mintonette earned the tiebreaker to move on as the No. 4 team. Nationally-ranked No. 21 Madfrog 17 Green and No. 28 Sky High Adidas 17 Elite both went 2-1 as a No. 1 team and finished second. Excel 17 National Red, ranked No. 7 nationally, also went 2-1 as a No. 1 team but still won its pool. Ranked teams going 3-0 on Day 1 included No. 2 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder, No. 8 Skyline 17 Royal, No. 9 Legacy 17-1 Adidas, No. 10 Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal, No. 15 TAV 17 Black, No. 17 Circle City 17 Purple, No. 23 OT 17 Aaron, No. 33 Triangle 17 Black and No. 37 GP 17 Rox. *** There was plenty of action to get through in the Open divisions as the Sunshine Classic kicked off Saturday at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Coming off covering both Tour of Texas stops, Central Zone and Triple Crown, we turned our attention on Day 1 on teams and players we have yet to cover and/or write about. You can see those who stood out the most to us below with our Day 1 Show Stoppers. DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Isabelle Bardin S/RS Metro 17 Travel: A 3-star Purdue commit, Bardin plays a vital role for Metro. While the team finished 1-2 and failed to advance, she was dynamic in her play setting and hitting. She’s a smooth disher with nice hands. She’s also a heady attacker who sees the court well. Lydia Chinchar RS No Name 17 Sarah: Chinchar – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2027 – is playing up two age groups but you wouldn’t know unless you checked. She has a strong arm, a wide range of shots and is relentless on the attack. Mattea Casale L/DS No Name 17 Sarah: Another Purdue commit, Casale is a 3-star L/DS who brings a lot of tenacity and presence to the back row. She reads and reacts well and is a sound passer out of serve receive. Ella Duong OH Vision 17 Gold: Duong is a bit undersized on the outside but she’s a fun player to watch regardless. She’s a quick jumper with a fast arm and she’s fearless in attacking the block. Emelyn Stettin S/RS Sky High Adidas 17 Elite: Stettin – a Baylor commit – is a two-way contributor. She does well delivering a hittable ball while also being a factor with her scoring prowess. Alexa Haley L/DS PVA 17-B: A Florida Gulf Coast commit, Haley helped PVA go 2-1 and remain in the hunt for a bid. She plays under control and stays calm in tight situations, as well as putting the ball on target out of serve receive. Mariyana Cardwell RS Wildfire 17 Open: Cardwell is a high-flying lefty who can entertain at times with her ability to send one down in impressive fashion. Addison Pollock L/DS Wildfire 17 Open: A 3-star Penn commit, Pollock brings a lot of fire to the defensive side of things. She does well extending rallies and keeping her team in the point. Nenu Kpea MB Madfrog 17 Green: Kpea was holding it down in the middle on both sides. She brings athleticism to the position. She moves well and does a nice job getting touches at the nt. Greer Chambless OH Excel 17 National Red: Chambless – a Cal commit – was getting after it on the outside. She has a solid arm and wasn’t go right at blockers and tooling consistently. *** Asia Harvey OH 575 17-1 Ella: A 5-star Missouri commit, Harvey has the wow factor. She can get