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As loaded as the 17 Open division is in 2022, predicting how any qualifier may play out is as difficult as it’s ever been. The only thing that was known for sure was that the three available Open bids were sure to go out at Show Me but it was anyone’s guess how it would all play out. If anyone had Premier Nebraska 17 Gold running the table and producing a perfect weekend at 10-0 in matches and 20-0 in sets then congratulations on that pick. Of course, Premier Nebraska secured its bid way back in January at the Northern Lights Qualifier so there were still the qualifying spots to fill out. Those went to second-place MN Select 17-1, third-place Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite – who tied with MAVS KC 17-1 – and fifth-place Mintonettte Sports m.71, who didn’t benefit from trickle down and needed to defeat Iowa Rockets 17 in bracket play to secure its bid. Below, we tell the tales of how those teams’ weekend played out. PREMIER NEBRASKA 17 GOLD (FIRST, 10-0) Day 1: d IPVA 17 Black 25-13; 25-14; d TIV 17 Asics Black 25-15, 25-7; d NKYVC 17 Tsunami 25-17, 25-13 Day 2: d Illini Elite 17 Cardinal 25-20, 25-17; d NE Elite 17 Vici 25-19, 25-15; d MAVS KC 17-1 25-20, 25-23 Day 3: d Iowa Rockets 17 25-21, 25-12; Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite 25-19, 25-22; NKYVC 17-1 Tsunami 25-19, 25-20; d MN Select 17-1 25-15, 27-25   The Northern Lights 18s Qualifier had a bit of twist this season by adding 17 Open and offering three bids back in January. Premier Nebraska joined 1st Alliance 17 Gold and MAVS KC in taking advantage and qualifying early. For Premier Nebraska, the only national tournament in between that one and this past weekend at Show Me was Triple Crown in February. If rust was of any concern, Premier Nebraska didn’t show any and instead played like a team eager to get back to competition and stake its claim as one of the title contenders come Nationals. “The biggest thing this weekend was already having the bid sometimes teams start looking at the finish line instead of continuing getting better,” Nebraska Premier coach Joe Wessel said. “We already had the bid but we didn’t want to take that for granted. We needed to prove why we earned the bid and show we can be one of the best teams in the nation.” The fact that Premier Nebraska was moving through the weekend without losing a set was on their minds but it remained unspoken about until sweeping MN Select in the final and completing the perfect weekend. The run also included beating NKYVC 17-1 Tsunami twice, plus MAVS KC and Rockwood Thunder. “They kept it quiet until we beat MN Select,” Wessel said. “Then it was the first thing they said was that they didn’t lose a set all weekend. We went 20-0 but no one made a big deal of it until it was over.” There’s a lot to like about Premier’s lineup, starting with vballrecruiter.com five-star recruit and right side Grace Heaney. She’s just one of many options Premier throws at opponents, with four-star recruits Destiny Ndam-Simpson and Alanna Bankston being two more. Then there’s middles Kailey Hrbek and Brooklyn Fuchs and outside Stella Adeyemi for setters Ivy Leuck and Reese Booth to utilize as well. Olivia Mauch – a five-star Class of 2024 recruit – and Makenzie Dyrstad can take turns trading off between libero and DS. “We can make changes to our lineup,” Wessel said. “We have an athletic, versatile team. Some matches we can play girls on the right side. Other matches we can play them on the left side. We have two really good defensive players that we switch up at times too. We don’t really have a set lineup. We do run a true 6-2 so all 10 girls can showcase their talents.” *** MN SELECT 17-1 (SECOND, 8-1) Day 1: d Co Jrs 17 Kevin 25-10, 25-22, 25-17; d HPSTL 17 Royal 27-25, 25-22, 25-23 Day 2: d Madfrog 17 Black 25-21, 25-14; d Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite 25-16, 25-23; d KC Power 17-1 19-25, 25-23, 18-16 Day 3: d Dynasty 17 Black 21-25, 25-16, 15-11; d MAVS KC 17-1 18-25, 25-21, 15-6; d Mintonette Sports m.71 25-20, 30-28; l Premier Nebraska 17 Gold 25-15, 27-25   Last month at MEQ, MN Select needed to win its gold pool – one that included Circle City 17 Purple – to have a shot at qualifying. At Show Me, it wasn’t so cutthroat for MN Select, which merely needed to finish in the top three in its gold pool to stay in the hunt for a bid. MN Select ended up taking matters into its own hands, downing Dynasty 17 Black, MAVS KC and Mintonette before falling to Premier Nebraska in the final to qualify without any trickle down. “We cut down on our errors,” MN Select coach George Padjen said. “We have some physical hitters and we can be really good offensively. We have a great setter but if we can’t pass we can’t get good swings. We were passing better and Stella (Swenson) was making good decisions getting everyone looks.” MN Select redesigned its roster that finished 13th in 16 Open last summer. Among those back are outsides Avery Bolles and Marlie Hanson. Plus middle Kate Simington and libero Kate Thibault – both three-star recruits. That left room for many newcomers, including the five-star recruit Swenson and her sister and outside hitter Olivia Swenson – a three-star recruit. Another key addition was 6-4 right side and four-star recruit Sydney Schnichels. Joining the trio was also L/DS Sophia Johnson and middles Annika Veurink and Kaia Caffee, a sophomore like the Swenson sisters and another five-star recruit. The focus moving forward for the group is continuing tightening up its play and taking some of the close sets that have gone against them. In the team’s last four qualifier losses

Going into 15 Open at the Show Me Qualifier in Kansas City all three bids had to be awarded out as trickle down could only extend to sixth place and no further. It was just a matter of how previously-qualified teams in Dynasty 15 Black, Nebraska One 15 Synergy and Circle City 15 Purple would factor into the mix. The answer was heavily. Nebraska One wound up defeating Dynasty in the final in straight sets, while Circle City tied for third place with NE Elite 15 Matrix. That gave NE Elite the first bid. The last two went to fifth-place finishers in Northern Lights 15-1 and HPSTL 15 Royal. Here’s a rundown of the teams’ path to their finishes. NEBRASKA ONE 15 SYNERGY (FIRST, 8-2) Day 1: l MAVS 816 15-1 25-19, 15-25, 15-10; d FRVBC 15 Black 25-16, 25-14; d ECJ 15-1 25-12, 25-20 Day 2: l MAVS KC 15-1 25-20, 25-20; d Skyline 15 Royal 25-18, 25-22; d OP2 15-1 25-14, 25-18 Day 3: d HPSTL 15 Royal 19-25, 29-27, 15-8; d Mich Elite 15 Mizuno 25-21, 25-22; d NE Elite 15 Matrix 25-13, 25-21; d Dynasty 15 Black 25-16, 25-15   As long as Nebraska One wasn’t playing a MAVS team, it proved untouchable on its way to winning the 15 Open division. Having clinched an Open bid previously at Northern Lights, there was no pressure on Nebraska One in terms of finishing in a spot to qualify. However, long before Nebraska One was in a position to finish on top of the field, it was simply looking to survive Day 1 after losing its opening match of the weekend to MAVS 816 15-1. It wasn’t reason to panic necessarily but another loss in pool play would knock out Nebraska One much earlier than anyone expected. That was never in danger of happening with the way Nebraska One responded, sweeping FRVBC 15-1 Black and ECJ 15-1 to take second. The loss did put Nebraska One in a much tougher Day 2 pool and again the Great Plains Region club received an early-morning wakeup call with a setback to MAVS KC 15-1 in straight sets in its first match. With Skyline 15 Royal up next, there was no guarantee Nebraska One would advance. But once again, Nebraska One found its form and swept past Skyline and OP2 15-1 to move into gold pools. Once there, there was no stopping Nebraska One on Day 3. Nebraska One fought past HPSTL, Mich Elite 15 Mizuno and NE Elite to make the final, where Nebraska One swept Dynasty, 25-16, 25-15, to claim the championship. Nebraska One was in position to make the final at Northern Lights but fell to Drive Nation 15 Red in its final gold pool match. That left Nebraska One in a showdown with Northern Lights for the final bid. Nebraska One took that contest in straight sets, 25-10, 25-22, to secure its bid. Outside of 6-4 middle blocker and vballrecruiter.com four-star recruit Natalie Wardlow, Nebraska One doesn’t have the size of some other teams in the division. It also relies on seventh-grade setter Malorie Boesiger to run the show and she definitely plays with a maturity beyond her age. Outside hitters Mattie Kamery and three-star recruit Anna Jelinek are both steady with a knack for scoring against bigger blocks. Kacey Porter helps balance the offense with her attacking on the right side, while Nebraska One relies on Kendall Cose in the other middle position. Also, Keri Leimbach showed herself to be one of the more impressive liberos in the division flying around the court making plays. *** DYNASTY 15 BLACK (SECOND, 8-2) Day 1: d Synergy 15-1 25-23, 25-18; d Nebraska Jrs 15 Black 25-12, 25-16; d Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite 25-19, 25-16 Day 2: NE Elite 15 Matrix 25-22, 25-19; d Premier Nebraska 15 Gold 25-16, 23-25, 15-10; d MKE Sting 15 Gold 26-24, 25-19 Day 3: d Northern Lights 15-1 25-17, 25-10; d Circle City 15 Purple 11-25, 25-22, 15-13; l MAVS 15 KC 15-1 25-23, 25-23; l Nebraska One 15 Synergy 25-16, 25-15 We were on hand at MEQ in Indy when Dynasty captured first place and clinched its 15 Open bid. There, Dynasty reeled off victories in its last five outings and kept it going in KC, where it took its first eight matches before dropping its final two, including in the final to Nebraska One. Dynasty also lost to MAVS KC in gold pool play but had already clinched first place and its spot in the final. It was Dynasty’s defense and ability to extend rallies and take advantage that led to its success in Indy and the Heart of America Region club continued on with that style of play in KC. Dynasty is not an overly big team but has one of the most reliable outsides in the division in three-star recruit Lauren Lopez. The attack was helped out by Jenna McClure, who showed some strong play at outside as well. Setters Ella Florez and Emma Christian also had middles Epifania Salamasina and Isabel Glover to work with, as well as right sides Leah Russell-Bova and Ashlee Chavez. Hadley Porter was her usually steady self at libero to anchor the defense and set the tone. Up next for Dynasty is Windy City, where it opens as the No. 1 seed and will look to triple qualify. *** CIRCLE CITY 15 PURPLE (T-THIRD, 7-2) Day 1: d Premier Nebraska 15 Gold 25-11, 18-25, 15-13; d Team Momentum 15 Navy 25-8, 25-17; d OT 15 Meg 25-19, 25-20 Day 2: l HPSTL 15 Royal 25-19, 16-25, 15-7; d Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite 19-25, 25-15, 15-11; d Tulsa Power 15-1 26-24, 29-27 Day 3: d MAVS KC 15-1 25-20, 20-25, 15-11; l Dynasty 15 Black 11-25, 25-22, 15-13; d Northern Lights 15-1 25-16, 25-22 After defeating Legacy 15-1 Adidas in the third-place match at MEQ, Circle City arrived knowing there would be no such dramatics in terms of bidding at Show Me. That’s

Dynasty 16 Black was untouchable in its first two qualifiers of the season – winning both Northern Lights and MEQ. The Heart of America Region club was continuing its dominance into Day 3 at Show Me until NKYVC 16-1 Tsunami finally found a way to solve it in their gold pool meeting. The huge victory not only eventually gave NKYVC a bid, it helped propel the squad into the final. There, however, NKYVC ran into a red-hot Circle City 16 Purple group that wasn’t going to be denied as the Hoosier Region club finished off its undefeated run to the 16 Open championship and earned its bid as well. With Dynasty, KC Power 16-1 and Premier Nebraska 16 Gold already having bids and finishing in the top six, it created trickle down with OT 16 Roberto taking advantage and earning the final qualifying spot on the weekend. Here’s a look at these teams’ weekends in Kansas City. CIRLCE CITY 16 PURPLE (FIRST, 10-0) Day 1: d USA South 16 Premier 25-18, 15-25, 15-10; d MKE Sting 16 Gold 20-25, 30-28, 15-6; d HPSTL 15 Royal 25-15, 25-18 Day 2: d Nebraska Jrs 16 Black 25-22, 25-13; d Pohaku 16 25-17, 25-17; d NKYVC 16 Tsunami 25-18, 21-25, 15-12 Day 3: d Premier Nebraska 16 Gold 25-22, 18-25, 15-9; d HPSTL 16 Royal 25-16, 25-20; d KC Power 16-1 21-25, 25-22, 15-13; d NKYVC 16-1 Tsunami 25-22, 22-25, 17-15   At MEQ, Circle City put itself in a position to get a bid in its hometown but went 0-2 in gold pools with straight set losses to 1st Alliance 16 Gold and NKYVC. It was part of a rough finish in Indy, where after winning its first five outings Circle City dropped three in a row. With the grit and determination Circle City played with at Show Me, it was bound not to let that happen again. The path to the bid was not without its challenges as Circle City needed to pull out three-set victories six times, including in four of its final five matches. Two of those types of victories came against NKYVC – once on Day 2 and then again in an exciting conclusion in the championship match as Circle City won 17-15 in Game 3. Circle City also picked up impressive victories over previously-qualified Premier Nebraska and KC Power – both in three as well. The weekend kicked off in that fashion too, with Circle City going three in victories over USA South 16 Premier and MKE Sting 16 Gold on Day 1. Circle City went with the same lineup at MEQ and Show Me. Five-star recruit Ava Utterback was a featured part of the attack with her explosiveness on the outside. Sophia Mayo also had a strong effort at the other outside position, as did right side and three-star recruit Alexis Maesch. Setter and three-star recruit Emery Moore was also finding Caroline Frost, Scarlett Kimbrell and Dakota Elliott in the middle. Kimbrell and Elliott are three-star recruits, along with libero Alleigh Dutton. Dutton was part of a steady back row that also featured defensive specialists Rachel Vorst and Chloe Gilley. *** NKYVC 16-1 TSUNAMI (SECOND, 8-2) Day 1: d KC Power 16 Red 25-21, 25-13; d IPVA 16 Black 25-12, 25-4; d OP2 16-1 25-17, 25-15 Day 2: d Pohaku 16-1 25-21, 25-21; d Nebraska Jrs 16 Black 25-5, 25-12; l Circle City 16 Purple 25-18, 21-25, 15-12 Day 3: d Six Pack 16 25-17, 22-25, 15-9; d Dynasty 16 Black 25-19, 15-25, 15-11; d OT 16 Roberto 25-11, 26-28, 16-14; l Circle City 16 Purple 25-22, 22-25, 17-15   Few teams were as eager to get another crack at qualifying as NKYVC was. Its only setback at MEQ – a 15-13 loss in Game 3 to 1st Alliance – cost NKYVC its bid in Indy. Even then it wasn’t like NKYVC put it on its opponents en route to qualifying at Show Me. There was a definite grind to its second-place showing as NKYVC went three sets in its final five contests, including losses to Circle City on Day 2 and again in the final. However, NKYVC picked up arguably the most impressive victory of the season so far when it handed Dynasty its first loss in qualifying play. But given the wackiness of qualifiers the triumph over Dynasty still left NKYVC needing to beat OT or else NKYVC could finish third in the pool. Either way, NKYVC was still looking at a bid but no doubt deserved better after upsetting Dynasty. NKYVC pulled it out against OT in three – 16-14 in Game 3 – to finish its gold pool on top and reach the final. “I think it was exciting,” NKYVC coach Tyler Collins said. “It was a fun weekend going 8-2 and beating the No. 1 team in the country. We just missed the mark at MEQ. We were just a hair shy and we went back to practice working on different things.” Dynasty had NKYVC’s number at Triple Crown and NKYVC was determined to put up a better showing this time around. One key focus was trying to attack Dynasty from the service line and it worked. “We really served them hard,” Collins said. “We have a lot of respect for Skyler (Pierce) and their right side Abigail (Mullen). They have another really good outside too (Carlie Cisneros). We wanted to go really aggressive on serves against them. It helped tremendously. It limited their middle exposure and that allowed our middles to cheat and put up a better block.” Collins said he could talk about each individual in detail. The weekend was that good. Yet, he did want to make sure setter Abby Yoder – a three-star recruit – received just due. “I think people look past her but she did a phenomenal job,” he said. “She’s IQ heavy and was able to make the different sets that needed to be made. She finds our middles often and that relates