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Show Me played out with all the sense of urgency one would expect from an April qualifier. With teams sensing the end of qualifying season is just around the corner, the intensity followed and it helped produce not only great competition but stellar individual standout performances. Below, we highlight those with our 15s All Red Hat Team. It’s our version of an all-tournament team selected from the teams which finished in the Top 12. 15 OPEN PIN HITTERS Shaye Witherspoon Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite Grace Pinegar Skyline 15 Royal Ryan Spencer Skyline 15 Royal Bo Bronson KC Power 15-1 Black Reagan Wallraff Premier Nebraska 15 Gold Morgan Hampton PVA 15 Elite Hallie Lauenstein VCNebraska 15 Elite Sophia Puleo OT 15 Randy Peyton Kubik Dynasty 15 Black Landri Trice TAV 15 Fifer Alyssa Todd TAV 15 Fifer Elleora Utecht Nortern Lights 15-1 *** MIDDLE BLOCKERS Parker Horton Skyline 15 Royal Erin Cramer Premier Nebraska 15 Gold Lyric Hudson Premier Nebraska 15 Gold Presley Kreter PVA 15 Elite Evelyn Igbenebor PVA 15 Elite Taylor Harrington Paramount 15 Nick *** SETTERS Camryn Penn Skyline 15 Royal Mo Wiezorek Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite Sasha Cromer KC Power 15-1 Black Reese Carlson PVA 15 Elite McKinley Moser VCNebraska 15 Elite Sophia Dostic OT 15 Randy Kaelyn Bjorklund Northern Lights 15-1 *** LIBEROS Dakota Huynh Skyline 15 Royal Audrey Schaeffer Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite Molly Bokenkroger PVA 15 Elite Kaelynn Lottman VCNebraska 15 Elite Ella Horvick OT 15 Randy Callie Gardner TAV 15 Fifer Clara Christ Northern Lights 15-1

The opening weekend of the Show Me Qualifier has come and gone. It was an incredible time in Kansas City as teams went full throttle in hopes of securing a bid. Below, we highlight the standout efforts of those individuals who impressed us the most over the course of the three days with our 16s All Red Hat Team. It’s our version of an all-tournament team selected from the teams which finished in the Top 12. 16 OPEN PIN HITTERS Madison Miles Boiler Jrs 16 Gold Caroline Ward Boiler Jrs 16 Gold Addison West Premier Nebraska 16 Gold Avery White Premier Nebraska 16 Gold Grace Martin Pohaku 16-1 Hailie Vaughn Pohaku 16-1 Taylor Clarke Skyline 16 Royal Skylar Brady OP2 16 Elite Reese Naeve Iowa Rockets 16R Ava Beasley MJVA 16 Elite Ashley Theiss HPSTL 16 Royal Amaya Love HJV 16 Elite Sarah Hickman HJV 16 Elite *** MIDDLE BLOCKERS Bre Morgan Boiler Jrs 16 Gold Kennedy Derks Pohaku 16-1 Keoni Williams Skyline 16 Royal Stella Smith Iowa Rockets 16R Macie Lupkes Iowa Rockets 16R Elle Vandeweghe Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar Bennett Raterman HPSTL 16 Royal Katherine Byergo HPSTL 16 Royal Jasmyn Walker HJV 16 Elite *** SETTERS Lexi Shondell Boiler Jrs 16 Gold Ella Florez Pohaku 16-1 Ellery DeBoer MN Select 16-1 Madison Victoriano Skyline 16 Royal Olivia Branum OP2 16 Elite Reese Stringer Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar Isabella Sohl HPSTL 16 Royal Zora Bello HJV 16 Elite *** LIBEROS Ellie Hepler Boiler Jrs 16 Gold Kami Dyrstad Premier Nebraska 16 Gold Miranda Como Pohaku 16-1 Cora Bicknese Vital 16-1 Gold Sidney Burley MN Select 16-1 Kennedey Whitford Iowa Rockets 16R Tiani Shaw Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar

What a wild ride it was watching 17 Open play out over the weekend at Show Me. There were definite twist and turns that led to unpredictable results. Below, we present the 17s All Red Hat Team. It’s our version of an all-tournament team selected from the teams which finished in the Top 12. 17 OPEN PIN HITTERS Ella Lewis Hou Skyline 17 Royal Bailey Warren Hou Skyline 17 Royal Ashlyn Blazer MAVS KC 17-1 Izzy Busignani Mich Elite 17 Mizuno Jessica Costlow Mich Elite 17 Mizuno Elena Maynulet GP 17 Rox Victoria Hill GP 17 Rox Mesaiya Bettis Northern Lights 17-1 Gabrielle Clinkscale Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite Abigail Mullen Dynasty 17 Black Tara Greenberry HPSTL 17 Royal Hannah Leftridge HPSTL 17 Royal Addison Gaido Austin Skyline 17 Royal Lydia Chinchar No Name 17 Sarah *** MIDDLE BLOCKERS Bayleigh Minor Hou Skyline 17 Royal Shelby Ignash Mich Elite 17 Mizuno Sydney Davis GP 17 Rox Keira Schmidt Northern Lights 17-1 Lainey Waser HPSTL 17 Royal Bria Dawson PVA 17 Elite *** SETTERS Kassidy O’Brien Hou Skyline 17 Royal Logan Parks MAVS KC 17-1 Ella Craggs Mich Elite 17 Mizuno KK Green GP 17 Rox Reese Messer Dynasty 17 Black *** LIBEROS Morgan Madison Hou Skyline 17 Royal Brookelyn Hatton MAVS KC 17-1 McKenna Payne Mich Elite 17 Mizuno Angelis Figueroa GP 17 Rox McKenna Garr Northern Lights 17-1 Harper Highfill HPSTL 17 Royal Callie Krueger Austin Skyline 17 Royal Mattea Casale No Name 17 Sarah

Show Me was the first qualifier this season where we saw the bid chase heavily influenced by trickle down. While I’m not the biggest fan of seeing bids determined before getting into bracket/playoff action, it wasn’t as if Show Me lacked drama on the final day. The thickest of it came out of 17 Open, where we did see one playoff match deciding the final bid with Northern Lights 17-1 sweeping past Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite, 25-17, 25-23, in the fifth-place match. Both Northern Lights and Rockwood Thunder finished third in their respective four-team gold pools and were forced into the winner-take-all match for the last remaining bid. The two teams in the 17 Open field with bids in Hou Skyline 17 Royal and MAVS KC 17-1 squared off in the championship match, with Hou Skyline producing a sweep to finish the weekend a perfect 10-0. Hou Skyline dropped just one set, with it coming in a three-set victory against Northern Lights in gold pool play. I picked Hou Skyline to beat Northern Lights in the final. It was good seeing Hou Skyline playing up to its potential. The team has had to navigate injuries at certain points this season, but was healthy in Kansas City and showed out well because of it. With Hou Skyline and MAVS KC reaching the final, it created trickle down to fifth place. It the process, GP 17 Rox and Mich Elite 17 Mizuno secured bids by taking second in their respective gold pools and tying for third. I predicted Mich Elite coming in third, but the club was dangerously close to bowing out on Day 2. GP opened Sunday’s action by beating Mich Elite, and if it wasn’t for Mich Elite closing the day with a dramatic three-set victory over PVA 17 Elite it would have been eliminated right then. I’d been waiting for both GP and Mich Elite to qualify. Mich Elite came in seventh at Triple Crown and narrowly missed qualifying at MEQ with a fifth-place finish. GP didn’t perform as well at Triple Crown, coming in 43rd. But the club did take ninth in a loaded field at Sunshine. It was nice seeing both come through in KC. By the time the gold pools wrapped up in 16 Open, the bid winners were known and it took the dramatics out of the four-team gold bracket. Boiler Jrs 16 Gold eventually prevailed over Premier Nebraska 16 Gold in the final, 21-25, 25-21, 15-11, to back my prediction of them winning it all. Boiler Jrs deserves major props for coming through Monday without two key starters in the lineup. Emma Lemming stepped up and played a huge role at outside to keep Boiler Jrs on track. Boiler Jrs set the tone early, outlasting Skyline 16 Royal in three games to open gold pool play in a match that had gigantic ripple effects. More on that in a moment. Premier Nebraska did well for itself, beating previously-qualified Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar and upstart MJVA 16 Elite in its gold pool to reach the gold bracket. Meanwhile, Pohaku 16-1 came out ahead in its three-team pool with previously-qualified HJV 16 Elite and HPSTL 16 Royal. The other gold pool featured Vital 16-1 Gold, OP2 16-1 Elite and Iowa Rockets 16R. It created a perfect opportunity for one of them to put itself in a position to qualify. Vital went 2-0 and reached the gold bracket. With Boiler Jrs the only team with a bid to reach the gold bracket, it secured bids for Pohaku, Vital and Premier Nebraska before the semifinals even started. Surprisingly, it left Skyline without a bid. That was definitely something I didn’t think would happen or see coming. It’s just part of what makes a qualifier so unpredictable. OP2 upset Boiler Jrs to end play on Day 2. That forced Boiler Jrs into Pool 1 with both Skyline and MN Select 16-1, which already had its bid. In the process, it created a golden chance for Vital, OP2 and Iowa Rockets. Unfortunately, with neither HJV nor Long Beach advancing to the gold bracket, we were robbed of further theatrics. Had either one made the gold bracket, we would have seen a playoff for the final bids between the teams that finished second in gold pool play. As for 15 Open, I outlined in the Day 2 recap that all three bids were already determined before play started Monday. PVA 15 Elite, KC Power 15-1 Black and Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite qualified by reaching the two, three-team gold pools along with previously-qualified teams in Skyline 15 Royal, VCNebraska 15 Elite and Premier Nebraska 15 Elite. Skyline ended up sweeping Rockwood Thunder, 25-15, 25-15, in the championship match. Skyline went 9-0 on the weekend, dropping just two sets and sweeping its final five contests.

As for the 15 Open bid chase, all the drama took place on Day 2. That’s because we know the three teams that are leaving Show Me qualified for Open after Sunday’s results. There was plenty of potential for the final day of play to produce a climatic close to the three days of competition. But one large surprise ended that. The second day of action started off with all six previously-qualified teams in contention in 15 Open. However, it ended with only three advancing to the two, three-team gold pools set for Monday. That means the remaining three clubs in the gold pools – PVA 15 Elite, KC Power 15 Black and Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite – already know their fate before hitting the court on Day 3. No matter the results, they’ll earn bids. The shocker came with national No. 3 OT 15 Randy – the No. 2 overall seed – going 1-2 in Pool 2 and not advancing. With TAV 15 Fifer and NE Elite 15 Revolution also not moving on, it took the drama away for Day 3. Had one of that trio advanced, it would have brought the silver bracket into play. I for one was pulling for that scenario to play out, but that’s the thing about qualifiers. There’s always an unexpected twist around the corner and I did not see this one coming. Not sure anyone did with OT falling to both KC Power and PVA. KC Power ended the day at 3-0, followed by PVA at 2-1. Filling out the gold pools are previously-qualified Skyline 15 Royal, VCNebraska 15 Elite and Premier Nebraska 15 Gold. Skyline and Premier Nebraska were in Pool 1 together, along with TAV and NE Elite. All four had bids already and only two could advance. That certainly created an opportunity for others. Rockwood Thunder went 2-1 in Pool 3, finishing tied with VCNebraska and taking first based on the head-to-head tiebreaker. VCNebraska barely pulled through in its last outing against Paramount 15 Nick, winning 25-15, 22-25, 15-13, and ending Paramount’s hopes of qualifying. Had VCNebraska not advanced, that would have brought a bit of drama to the Day 3 gold pools. While the bid chase is over in 15 Open, the scenarios in 16 Open are many. Among the happenings on Day 2 was previously-qualified HJV 16 Elite going 1-2 and finishing third in its pool. However, there were two play-in brackets and HJV prevailed in one of them to make one of the four, three-team gold pools. MJVA 16 Elite survived the other one. As for the gold pools, I’m really looking forward to seeing how they play out on Day 3. That’s because the other big news was OP2 16-1 Elite upsetting previously-qualified Boiler Jrs 16 Gold in pool play to finish first. That knocked Boiler Jrs into Pool 1 as the No. 3 team for Day 3. Also in that pool is top-seeded Skyline 16 Royal and previously-qualified MN Select 16-1. What I’m watching for is if teams which finish in second place in the gold pools will still have a shot to qualify or not. Pool 2 doesn’t feature any qualified teams, while Pool 3 features Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar and Pool 4 contains HJV. There are lots of scenarios that can play out, but if only one qualified team advances to the top four, then the other three teams will earn bids. However, if two or more qualified teams – only three can advance in all – make the final four, teams coming in second place will playoff for the last bid or bids. That could create a fantastic conclusion on Monday. As for 17 Open, both qualified teams in Hou Skyline 17 Royal and MAVS KC 17-1 are in the mix. They are split up between the two, four-team gold pools. Of the remaining six teams, three are going to earn bids. Pool 1 is filled out by Northern Lights 17-1, Dynasty 17 Black and Mich Elite 17 Mizuno. Mich Elite had quite the day after starting off 0-2. However, Mich Elite managed to edge PVA 17 Elite in three, 25-16, 23-25, 21-19, to create a three-way tie at 1-2 with PVA and MN Select. Mich Elite earned second place behind 3-0 GP 17 Rox. GP is part of Pool 2, along with MAVS, Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite and HPSTL 17 Royal. HPSTL also finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 with MJVA 17 Elite and Austin Skyline 17 Royal but took second to remain alive. MAVS avoided a three-way tie at 1-2 by beating Dynasty in the last match. Both finished 2-1 with MAVS earning the head-to-head tiebreaker. ***** DAY 2 SHOW STOPPERS Logan Cary S/RS FRVBC 17 Black: Cary – a 2026 recruit playing up – helps make up a solid setter/right side duo for Front Range. She’s skillful at both, able to locate consistently while finding space in the defense when attacking. Audrey Hollis S/RS FRVBC 17 Black: A UC San Diego commit, Hollis fills out the setter/right side combo for Front Range. She’s above average in both categories. She has a nice touch setting and sees the court well when swinging. Sydni Vice OH MJVA 17 Elite: Vice – a 4-star recruit from the Class of 2026 – is really long. She can extend way up in the air and not only can easily go over blocks but has a fluid swing to match. Ella Seeger OH MJVA 17 Elite: A 3-star Wright State commit, Seeger is a strong attacker with a solid arm. She hits with power and provides a definite boost to the attack. Shelby Ignash MB Mich Elite 17 Mizuno: Ignash – a 3-star Texas Tech commit – adds an offensive dynamic when she’s across the front row. Mich Elite looks to get her involved as much as possible and she delivers more times than not. Ella Craggs S Mich Elite 17 Mizuno: A 3-star Illinois State, Craggs does a great job