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Red Rock Rave

Red Rock Rave: Day 3 Show Stoppers

March 14, 2023

With qualifying on the line during the last day of competition of the Red Rock Rave at Las Vegas, players came out determined to help their teams finish positioned for a bid. While only a few clubs could leave town with their tickets punched, plenty of athletes caught our attention during the process. Below, we bring you our Day 3 Show Stoppers. DAY 3 SHOW STOPPERS Ayden Ames MB Drive Nation 17 Red: The 5-star Nebraska commit is a legit game-changer in the middle with her ability to impact both sides of the ball. She moves well and takes away space in a hurry blocking while also being able to torment defenses with her scoring. Lolo Lambert OH Drive Nation 17 Red: Lambert – a 4-star recruit – is a high-flying outside capable of delivering highlight worthy kills. She takes a lot of important swings for Drive Nation and was key in its success. Grace Carroll RS Drive Nation 17 Red: Carroll – a 4-star recruit committed to Baylor – shined at the net. With Drive Nation forced to run a 5-1 this weekend due to injury, Carroll was invaluable to the attack. The lefty’s big swing brought instant offense to the court and Drive Nation made sure to feed her the ball. Brianna Watson OH Drive Nation 17 Red: A 3-star outside committed to LSU, Watson was another piece of the team’s success. She came through with plenty of clutch swings as she helped keep the offense powering along when she was in front. Caleigh King L/DS Drive Nation 17 Red: King – a 3-star recruit committed to UNLV – did a sound job in the back row. She covered well and was helping extend rallies. Jaidyn Jager OH Coast 17-1: A 5-star outside from the Class of 2025, Jager is a six-rotation player Coast relies on a lot. She’s a smart hitter who can hurt defenses with a variety of shots. She’s also a strong backrow defender and passer. Mackenzie Parsons MB Coast 17-1: A 3-star recruit, Parsons brings some physicality to the net. She puts up a big block and is definitely an offensive threat defenses need to be prepared for. Kiki Remensperger S Wave 17 Juliana: Remensperger did a nice job directing Wave’s attack as it ended Day 3 with a bid. The 3-star recruit is quick with nice hands and a consistent delivery. She did well connecting with her middles too. Jenna Hanes MB Wave 17 Juliana: Hanes – a 4-star Michigan commit – was lights out in the middle once more. She changes the dynamic when she’s in, both with her blocking and attacking. In system, Wave goes to Hanes a bunch and still defenses struggle to slow her down at all. Maya Evens L/DS Wave 17 Juliana: Evens – a 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – faced big-time hitters on the final day and didn’t blink. She more than held her own defensively with accurate passing and doing a great job digging balls. *** Camden Bolane RS Wave 17 Juliana: Bolane, a Yale commit, brought versatility to the lineup throughout the weekend as she played outside, middle and right side at times. On Day 3, she was mostly tasked with anchoring the right side across the front and she did great in her role. She came up with timely blocks and kills. Blaykli Bobik OH Arizona Storm 17 Thunder: A 4-star recruit committed to BYU, Bobik was a big part of Storm’s run to the semis as they knocked on the door for a bid. She has a whippy arm and carries a large portion of the attack on the left. Skyler Gartin MB Arizona Storm 17 Thunder: Gartin – a 3-star recruit – is someone defenses need to keep track of. Storm will get her the ball when in system because she knows how to end the point. Taylor Deckert L/DS SCVC 17 Roxy: Deckert – a 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – had her hands full facing both Wave and Hou Skyline in gold pool action. Both her passing and defending were on point as she owned the back row. Taylor Yu S SG Elite 17 Rosh: Yu – a 5-star recruit – is an effortless setter who is rarely off her mark. She puts her hitters in great situations consistently and is a big reason SG was in the hunt for a bid on Day 3. Sophia Wolfson MB SG Elite 17 Rosh: Wolfson was scoring well out of the middle for SG and giving Wu a reliable option she took advantage of. She gets up quickly and was putting balls down to the floor. Cleo Hardin RS Vision 17 Gold: A 3-star recruit committed to Yale, Hardin was bringing it on the attack. She’s an aggressive swinger who isn’t afraid of challenging blockers and seeing what happens, leading to big kills at times. Jaden Hendrickson RS Absolute 17 Black: Hendrickson is a solid pin hitter with a nice arm. She gives Absolute versatility and was swinging well from the right. Caelyn Emmerling OH TAV Houston 17 Adidas: A six-rotation outside, Emmerling is a featured part of the attack. She swings well and knows how to keep pressure on defenses. Kirra Musgrove S/RS Hou Skyline 17 Royal: Musgrove – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – was on it once again. She’s a smooth setter and locates well. Offensively, she’s long and has a very good arm to go at defenses with. *** Quinn Loper OH Wave 16 Kevin: Loper was a vital part of Wave’s run to the 16 Open gold medal. The 4-star outside has a fluid swing and hits with plenty of pace as she keeps coming at defenses. Ruby Hill S/RS Wave 16 Kevin: Hill – a 4-star recruit – brings her height to the front row as well as gives Wave another option on the right. Her versatility to remain in and set back row is also a

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Red Rock Rave: Gold Medal Rundown

March 14, 2023

This week’s edition of WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!? is brought to us courtesy of Wave 16 Kevin. At No. 26 in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50, Wave was the eighth highest-ranked team in 16 Open at the Red Rock Rave national qualifier in Las Vegas. Six teams ranked higher all finished above Wave at last month’s Triple Crown NIT. None of that would make Wave a favorite this past weekend to bid let alone earn the gold medal. But after going 7-3 and finishing on top of the 16 Open standings, the question had to be asked. What just happened? Las Vegas is becoming the place where this Wave group has breakthroughs. Last year as 15s, the team qualified for Open for the first time after finishing a surprise fourth. This year, Wave broke through and took it all. The field this go around featured top contenders like No. 1 Surfside 16 PV Legends, No. 3 Drive Nation 16 Red, No. 6 HJV 16 Elite and No. 7 Arizona Storm 16 Thunder, not to mention No. 10 TAV 16 Black and No. 13 Coast 16-1. It’s the reason why Wave retooled its roster though, in hopes of being able to take a step forward like it accomplished this past weekend. Outside Quinn Loper, setter/right side Ruby Hill and setter Emily Page were new additions who all played key roles in helping Wave win 16 Open. With returning players like outsides Nia Thompson and Mae Kordas and right side Keila Gabriel it’s given Wave more depth and roster flexibility. Wave needed to beat Rage 16 Garren in a crossover match on Day 1 to remain in contention. Wave lost to HJV and unranked A4 Volley 16 Cassie on Day 2 but managed to advance based on having the best set percentage in a three-way tie at 1-2 with A4 and AZ Rev 16 Premier. All that mattered though was Wave was positioned to take advantage of its luck and landed in a three-team pool with Surfside and Coast. For others, that might have doomed them. However, Wave was actually 2-1 on the year against Surfside before meeting in Monday’s gold pool and 0-1 against Coast, so there was familiarity. Wave pulled off two dramatic upsets, first edging Surfside 17-15 in the third before tackling Coast 15-10 in another Game 3. The feel-good story seemed to be in its last chapter though, with TAV on the horizon in the semifinals. Not only was TAV favored, but should Wave lose it would have to face the loser between Drive Nation and Arizona Storm in the third-place contest. Yet, Wave was not ready for the ride to end, first upsetting TAV in another wild conclusion, 16-14 in the third. That clinched the bid for Wave, so the pressure was off so to speak. But Wave wasn’t letting up and recorded another big upset in taking down Drive Nation in the final, 26-24, 26-24. That overshadowed what was an intense showdown for third place and the last remaining bid between TAV and Storm. Storm was able to survive, winning Game 3, 15-12. The qualifying action in 17 Open was a different type of thrilling. As highlighted on Day 2, with national No. 14 AZ Sky 17G and No. 15 Momentous 17 Dan out of contention and No. 13 Hou Skyline 17 Royal owning a bid, there was opportunity for others to capitalize. At the top of the list to do so was third-ranked Drive Nation 17 Red. The rest of the contenders included No. 16 Wave 17 Juliana, No. 18 Vision 17 Gold, No. 20 Coast 17-1, No. 22 SCVC 17 Roxy, No. 35 SG Elite 17 Rosh and No. 49 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder. Arizona Storm did its best to deliver another upset story, but it wasn’t meant to be. Storm advanced to the four-team gold bracket but lost to Coast in the semis. Drive Nation defeated Wave in the other semi before sweeping Coast in the final. Wave swept Storm for third place and the final bid. Wave had a tough gold pool with Hou Skyline and SCVC. Meanwhile, Storm beat both Vision and A4 Volley 17 Tyler in its gold pool. The bid chase in 18 Open ultimately boiled down to one three-team gold pool. Nine of the previously 11 qualified clubs advanced to the gold pools. As fate would have it, all nine were matched together in Pools 2-4. That left Pool 1 with three unqualified clubs in No. 2 Coast 18-1, No. 6 HJV 18 Elite and unranked TAV 18 Black. The first and second-place finishers in that pool were guaranteed bids through trickle down. Coast downed both HJV and TAV while TAV slipped past HJV to take second place and earn its bid. The final Open bid will go into the at-large pool.

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Red Rock Rave: Day 2 Show Stoppers

March 12, 2023

The path to the Open bids is clear with just the final day remaining of the Red Rock Rave qualifier in Las Vegas. While the top-ranked teams are still in contention in 16 Open, the same can’t be said about 17 Open after the Day 2 results shook up the final-day pairings. We knew something had to give in Pool 1 in 17 Open, as national No. 3 Drive Nation 17 Red, No. 13 Hou Skyline 17 Royal and No. 14 AZ Sky 17G shared the same four-team pool. It came down to Hou Skyline sweeping AZ Sky for second place behind Drive Nation. AZ Sky is the highest-ranked team in 17 Open out of contention but not by much. Momentous 17 Dan – ranked No. 15 nationally – was upset by both unranked A4 Volley 17 Tyler and No. 35 SG Elite 17 Rosh and finished third in its pool. Momentous had a chance to advance after losing to A4 but fell to SG in three games. Had Momentous defeated SG it would’ve earned the second-place tiebreaker over A4 but instead joins AZ Sky in the exit line. The winners of Monday’s four three-team pools advance to the four-team gold bracket where the Open bids will be ultimately determined. Hou Skyline, the only team with a bid so far, is in Pool 4 with No. 16 Wave 17 Juliana and No. 22 SCVC 17 Roxy. If Hou Skyline wins its pool, the other three pool winners will pick up bids before playing a gold-bracket match. But if Hou Skyline fails to advance, then teams must win in the semifinals and/or third-place match to qualify. Drive Nation is matched with Absolute 17 Black and Seal Beach 17 Black in Pool 1. It’s Arizona Storm 17 Thunder, Vision 17 Gold and A4 in Pool 2. Pool 3 is likely to come down to SG Elite and Coast 17-1, but TAV Houston 17 Adidas is certainly capable of the upsets. It was calmer in 16 Open, at least in regards to the national rankings. On Day 1, No. 35 Absolute 16 Black was the highest-ranked team to be eliminated. On Sunday, it was No. 28 Madfrog 16 Green being shown the door after losing to No. 21 AVA TX 16 Adidas. In addition, No. 49 AZ Sky 16G was also eliminated Sunday. It leaves all the top-ranked teams in the hunt for Monday. Pool 1 is an all-So Cal fight between No. 1 Surfside 16 PV Legends, No. 13 Coast 16-1 and No. 26 Wave 16 Kevin. Coast was upset by Temecula Viper 16-1 Costa in pool play and needed to beat Muscle 16-1 in crossover action to advance. Wave, meanwhile, finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 with A4 Volley 16 Cassie and AZ Rev 16 Premier but managed to take second based on tiebreakers. Seventh-ranked Arizona Storm 16 Thunder is favored in Pool 2 with No. 27 ID Crush 16 Bower and unranked Vision 16 Gold. Vision took Drive Nation 16 Red to three games in pool play before falling Sunday and will look to play spoiler on Day 3. As for Drive Nation, the third-ranked team in the country is in Pool 3 with Temecula and AVA TX. The final pool is No. 6 HJV 16 Elite, No. 10 TAV 16 Black and unranked Club One 16 Platinum. HJV is 1-0 against TAV this season, so TAV will look to even the score and win the pool. There is no trickle down in 16 Open, so teams must win the pool and advance to the gold bracket to stay alive. *** DAY 2 SHOW STOPPERS Sophia Meyer L/DS Coast 17-1: Coast is still in the mix but worked for it after beating both Tx Peformance 16-1 and Club V 17 Ren Matthew in three games before losing to SCVC in crossover. Meyer was solid throughout, holding down the back row and consistently making plays. Makayla Gates OH Momentous 17 Dan: Gates is a six-rotation outside who gets off the ground well and has a fluid swing. The 6-0 outside was doing well tooling blocks. Cymarah Gordon RS Momentous 17 Dan: A 4-star right side, Gordon puts up a massive block! She gets her hands over the net and forms a wall. She can also turn it around and send down booming kills. Victoria Leyva L/DS TX Performance 17-1: Leyva helped TX Performance upset Club V in pool play but was eventually eliminated with a loss to Absolute 17 Black in crossover. She is an energetic libero who is fast and makes up ground quickly. Amar’e Stout RS TX Performance 17-1: Stout’s big arm is a key part of the attack. Defenders need to be ready because Stout will get the ball and isn’t afraid to go for it. Maya Evens L/DS Wave 17 Juliana: Evens was part of a perfect 3-0 day as Wave didn’t drop a set. The 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025 scoops up everything near her in the back row and is a lights-out passer in serve receive. Taylor Deckert L/DS SCVC 17 Roxy: Another 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025, Deckert is a cool character in the back row. She’s always under control and doesn’t rattle while making plays look effortless. Kendall Beshear OH SCVC 17 Roxy: A 3-star recruit, Beshear explodes on the attack and hits a heavy ball. Beshear carried a big load as SCVC went 3-0 on the day and remains in the running for a bid. Zada Sanger OH Absolute 17 Black: It was a tough go for Absolute in pool play with losses to SCVC and Vision but Sanger and company beat Tx Performance in crossover to stay alive. Sanger was taking aggressive swings and not backing down. Dylan Whisenant L/DS Absolute 17 Black: Whisenant was getting after it defensively with lots of hustle and keeping rallies going. *** Grace Carroll RS Drive Nation 17 Red: Drive Nation didn’t lose a set in going 3-0 and

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Red Rock Rave: Day 1 Show Stoppers

March 11, 2023

For many of the top-seeded clubs the opening day of the second weekend of the Red Rock Rave Qualifier in Las Vegas offered an easing-in period. But for some, the first day was truly a matter of survival as they found themselves locked in elimination matches. The highest-profile case came in 16 Open when AVA TX 16 Adidas and Absolute 16 Black were matched in a crossover in which the winner advanced to the Round 2 Division 1 pools while the loser would fall to the Round 2 Division 2 pools for Sunday. AVA entered ranked No. 21 in vballrecruiter.com’s 16s Top 50 National Rankings while Absolute sits at No. 35. This was a case where neither team expected to be knocked from contention on Day 1. Yet, Absolute was on the wrong side of the score as AVA TX prevailed in three, 25-17, 25-27, 15-8. Wave 16 Kevin – ranked No. 26 nationally – and unranked clubs in Forza1 North 16 One and Club One 16 Platinum joined AVA in capturing must-win crossover matches to move on as well. Two unranked teams in 16 Open which helped create some of the upheaval Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center were Forza1 16 One and AZ Rev 16 Premier. Forza began its day with an upset of Absolute while AZ Rev closed its three-team pool by upsetting AVA TX and finishing first. Forza lost its crossover to AZ Sky 16G while ID Crush 16 Bower defeated AZ Rev in another crossover. Both AZ Rev and Forza remain in the mix for Day 2. The only other real news out of 16 Open is Vision 16 Gold and Temecula Viper 16 both advancing as the No. 3 team in their respective pools. They each beat the No. 2 team in their pools, with Vision taking down Aspire 16 Adidas and Temecula upending Rage Westside 16 Jen. Of the top six-ranked teams in 16 Open from our Top 50, only No. 13 Coast 16-1 lost Saturday. Coast had already clinched first place in its pool when it fell to unranked Muscle VB 16-1. Meanwhile, No. 1 Surfside 16 PV Legends, No. 3 Drive Nation 16 Red, No. 6 HJV 16 Elite, No. 7 Arizona Storm and TAV 16 Black went a combined 15-0 with only Surfside dropping a set. All 12 teams in appearing in vballrecruiter.com’s 17s Top 50 National Rankings advanced in 17 Open. However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. While the highest-ranked team in No. 3 Drive Nation 17 Red went 3-0, the next two highest in No. 13 Hou Skyline 17 Royal and No. 14 AZ Sky 17G lost. Hou Skyline earned its Open bid at NEQ last weekend but was uprooted by No. 49 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder in its three-team pool. AZ Sky was beaten by unranked TAV Houston 17 Adidas. It left both Hou Skyline and AZ Sky – which tied for third at Triple Crown – needing to win crossovers to remain in the mix. Both did. Wave 17 Juliana – ranked No. 16 nationally – No. 18 Vision 17 Gold and No. 20 Coast 17-1 didn’t lose a set on the day. Momentous 17 Dan – ranked No. 15 – finished 3-0 and but went three twice while No. 22 SCVC 17 Roxy ended 3-0 and dropped one set. DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Addison Massey OH TX Performance 16-1: Massey helped her team to an upset of No. 49 AZ Sky 16G. She’s a six-rotation outside and a big part of the attack. She swings front and back row and did well in helping carrying her share of the offense. Sarah Pfiffner S TAV 16 Black: Pfiffner is a 4-star recruit with soft hands and a smooth delivery. She did well mixing her sets up and utilizing all of her hitters.   Lauryn Mack OH TAV 16 Black: Mack is another 4-star recruit and you can see her next-level potential when she goes on the attack. She elevates quickly and can deliver rockets for kills. Justice Fuhrmann S Forza1 16 One: Fuhrmann is a bit undersized but she did a nice job running the attack and putting up a hittable ball. She located consistently. Miley Thunstrom OH Forza1 16 One: Thunstrom did well in her role in helping provide offense on the outside. She found gaps in the blocks for kills and even delivered a big block of her own. Kimanni Rugley MB AVA TX 16 Adidas: Rugley is an athletic middle who makes her presence felt in the middle. She gets up fast and has a good arm to punish opponents with. Sydney Black L/DS HJV 16 Elite: Black – a 4-star recruit – was sound in serve receive and doing well with her first-ball contact. Nicole Steiner OH Vision 16 Gold: Steiner was taking her share of cuts on the outside and was helping keep Vision in the game. She has a fluid swing and was mixing up her shots. Kendall Timme OH Arete 16 Navy Telos: Timme is a lanky outside and one of Arete’s best scoring threats. She’s an option both front and back row and can deliver. Rylee Smith MB Arete 16 Navy Telos: Smith has nice size and is a disrupter in the middle. She does well getting touches and blocks. *** Tenesyn Frye S ID Crush 16 Bower: A 4-star recruit, Frye has command of the offense and does well locating. She has a nice touch and with her size she’s a factor at the net too. Kiana Mark OH Rage 16 Westside Jen: Mark brings physicality to the attack. She hits with power and score a lot of points. Lilyana Kautai RS Rage 16 Westside Jen: Kautai is someone opponents need to keep eyes on when she checks in. Rage will set her. She gets up well and takes aggressive swings. Natalia Clifford OH Rage 16 Westside Jen: Another six-rotation outside, Clifford contributes both front row with her attacking and her strong defense in the

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Red Rock Rave Week 2: Preview And Predictions (FREE)

March 9, 2023

Last week was split between multiple qualifiers and Bluegrass but the main focus this week is centered on Part 2 of the Red Rock Rave featuring 16s and up. There are no other qualifiers or major national tournaments. vballrecruiter.com is making the journey for the three-day event. This event usually takes place later on the calendar. With it getting moved up earlier, it’s going to change the trickle-down situation in 16 and 17 Open. There are usually multiple teams with bids in the field but since the tournament is early this season only one team across the two divisions is previously qualified in Hou Skyline 17 Royal. Let’s take a look at the Open divisions and how they might play out. 18 OPEN Number of Teams: 34 Number of Bids: 3 Previously-Qualified Teams (11): A4 Volley 18 Joaco; A5 18 Marc; Arizona Storm 18 Thunder; AZ Rev 18 Premier; AZ EVJ 18 Elite; Club V 18 Ren Reed; Hou Skyline 18 Royal; MAVS 18-1; Sunshine 18 LA; Tstreet 18 Chandler; Wave 18 Juliana vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (13): 2. Coast 18-1 4. MAVS 18-1 5. Sunshine 18-1 6. HJV 18 Elite 11. Wave 18 Juliana 12. Club V 18 Ren Reed 14. A5 18 Marc 18. AZ Rev 18 Premier 21. Hou Skyline 18 Royal 27. Arizona Storm 18 Thunder 28. Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar 44. Legacy Girls 18 Elite 50. Tstreet 18 Chandler   5-Star Athletes To Know: Noemie Glover RS Coast 18-1 (Oregon) Jurnee Robinson OH A5 18 Marc (LSU) Olivia Babcock RS Sunshine 18 LA (Pitt) Torrey Stafford OH Sunshine 18 LA (Pitt) Jordyn Harvey OH Club V 18 Ren Reed (Stanford) Julia Blyashov OH Wave 18 Juliana Taylor Harvey MB Club V 18 Ren Reed (2025) Alex Bower S ID Crush 18 Bower (BYU, 2024)   4-Star Athletes To Know: Brooklyn Briscoe MB Coast 18-1 (UCLA) Koko Kirsch L/DS Wave 18 Juliana (Stanford) Bianka Lulic MB Coast 18-1 (Miami) Claire Little OH Coast 18-1 (BYU) Ava Marie Lange OH/RS Sunshine 18 LA (Notre Dame) Tori Davis MB Legacy Girls 18 Elite (Baylor) Lois Hansen RS Tstreet 18 Chandler (UCSB) Eva Travis OH Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (UCSB) Mele Corral-Blagojevich OH Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (Oklahoma) Zoe Rachow S Coast 18-1 (Tulane) Makena Lim L/DS A4 Volley 18 Joaco (Georgia) Fatimah Hall S Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (San Diego State) Reagan Fox OH MAVS KC 18-1 (Rutgers) Betsy Goodenow RS MAVS KC 18-1 (Yale) Auburn Tomkinson RS Wave 18 Juliana (Yale) Arya Jue L/DS A5 18 Marc (Yale) Eva Rohrbach MB Wave 18 Juliana (Maryland) Cayla Payne MB Wave 18 Juliana (Colorado) Cindy Tchouangwa OH HJV 18 Elite Kendal Murphy OH AZ Rev 18 Premier (Baylor) Madison Maxwell S/RS Legacy Girls 18 Elite (Long Beach State, 2024) Evan Hendrix OH AZ Rev 18 Premier (TCU, 2024)   Outlook/Prediction: The 18s are in a different spot with qualifying going on since January. That’s why there are 11 teams already qualified. Trickle down can only go to eighth place, so it’s possible that no bids go out at all. Of course, I don’t think that’s going to happen. There are a couple highly-ranked teams in No. 2 Coast 18-1 and No. 6 HJV 18 Elite have yet to earn their bids and I’m going out on a limb to say both will place at least in the Top 8 to qualify. At No. 28, Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar is the only other team from Vballrecrutier.com’s Top 50 in the field without a bid. Considering the depth of field, it’s going to take work for Long Beach to crack the Top 8. Coast gets its bid by winning it all, downing MAVS 18-1 in the final. HJV also bids with the third going into the at-large pool. *** 17 OPEN Number of Teams: 39 Number of Bids: 3 Previously-Qualified Teams (1): Hou Skyline 17 Royal vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (12): 3. Drive Nation 17 Red 13. Hou Skyline 17 Royal 14. AZ Sky 17G 15. Momentous 17 Dan 16. Wave 17 Juliana 18. Vision 17 Gold 20. Coast 17-1 22. SCVC 17 Roxy 32. Club V 17 Ren Matthew 35. SG Elite 17 Rosh 46. AZ Rev 17 Premier 49. Arizona Storm 17 Thunder   5-Star Athletes To Know: Zoey Burgess MB Club V 17 Ren Matthew (Kansas) Jaela Auguste MB Hou Skyline 17 Royal (Florida) Taylor Yu S SG Elite 17 Rosh Ayden Ames MB Drive Nation 17 Red (Nebraska) Jaidyn Jager OH Coast 17-1 (2025) Taylor Deckert L/DS SCVC 17 Roxy (2025)   4-Star Athletes To Know: Taylor Williams OH Vision 17 Gold Jenna Hanes MB Wave 17 Juliana (Michigan) Isabel Clark OH Momentous 17 Dan (San Diego) Cymarah Gordon RS Momentous 17 Dan Lolo Lambert OH Drive Nation 17 Red (Arkansas) Bethanie Wu S Drive Nation 17 Red (Yale) Grace Carroll RS Drive Nation 17 Red (Baylor) Blaykli Bobik OH Arizona Storm 17 Thunder (BYU) Lillian Croshaw MB Drive Nation 17 Red Levani Key-Powell OH Club V 17 Ren Reed (Utah) Amanda Saeger S Wave 17 Juliana (DePaul) Camden Bolane MB Wave 17 Juliana (Yale) Shelby Burris MB Drive Nation 17 Red (2025) Lauren Lynch L/DS SG Elite 17 Rosh (2025) Maya Evens L/DS Wave 17 Juliana (2025) Maya Baker S Vision 17 Gold (2025)   Outlook/Prediction: By all indications, this division is going to be a wild ride. Hou Skyline 17 Royal, having qualified last weekend at NEQ, is safe from the chaos but could definitely factor into the final outcomes by creating trickle down to fourth place. Drive Nation 17 Red enters has the highest-ranked team in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50 yet is anything but a lock. While Drive Nation finished tied for third at Triple Crown, it has been vulnerable at times. It’s a tournament where I see nine of the ranked teams having a legit shot at earning bids, down to No. 35 SG Elite 17 Rosh. The final two Top-50 teams in No. 46 AZ Rev 16 Premier and

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Red Rock Rave: Preview and Predictions (FREE)

March 2, 2023

It’s an earlier trip to Las Vegas than usual for those making their way to the Red Rock Rave taking place Saturday-Monday at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. The qualifier usually falls in April but is among the first to be held this season. This coming weekend is the first of back-to-back weekends and it features the younger ages vying for their bids. Below, we run through the 14 and 15 Open divisions to see how they might play out. 15 Open Number of Teams: 38 Number of Bids Available: 3 Previously-Qualified Club: n/a vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (22): 1. Skyline 15 Royal 4. Madfrog 15 Green 5. TAV 15 Black 7. Arizona Storm 15 Thunder 10. SCVC 15 Roxy 12. Alamo 15 Premier 13. AZ Sky 15G 14. Hou Skyline 15 Royal 15. Wave 15 Brennan 18. Dynasty 15 Black 19. Forza1 North 15 One 21. HJV 15 Elite 23. Drive Nation 15 Red 29. SG Elite 15 Rosh 32. Actyve 15 Black 33. GP 15 Rox 34. Tstreet 15 Curtis 38. AZ Rev 15 Premier 39. Coast 15-1 41. Aspire 15 Premier 42. Club V 15 Ren Reed 46. MAVS 816 15-1   5-star Athletes To Watch Layla Austin OH Skyline 15 Royal Keoni Williams MB Skyline 15 Royal Kinsley Young MB TAV 15 Black Brooke Harwood RS Arizona Storm 15 Thunder Finley Krystkowiak OH Wave 15 Brennan Danielle Whitmire S/RS TAV 15 Black Audrey Flanagan OH SCVC 15 Roxy   4-star Athletes To Watch Erin Clark L/DS/S Aspire 15 Premier Anna Flores S TAV 15 Black Ava McBride S/RS Actyve 15 Black Paisley Pavliska OH Alamo 15 Premier Emmerson Champagne MB/RS Tstreet 15 Curtis Milly McGee S SCVC 15 Roxy Gabi Rodriguez L/DS Madfrog 15 Green Caroline Huseman OH TAV 15 Black Kylie Kleckner OH TAV 15 Black   Outlook/Prediction: With 20 teams in the field featured in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50 it makes for a loaded field. With the only path to qualifying coming with a top-three finish, there are going to be plenty of unhappy teams heading home. On the flip side, for the fortunate few who are able to secure bids there is no doubt it will be well deserved. Skyline 15 Royal enters fresh off of winning Triple Crown and looking to keep the momentum going. Triple Crown runner-up SCVC 15 Roxy is also searching for a bid and will carry the confidence of its performance in KC with them to Vegas. Madfrog 15 Green, TAV 15 Black, Arizona Storm 15 Thunder, Alamo 15 Premier and AZ Sky 15G all fared well at Triple Crown too and any of them could walk away with a bid. A team like SG Elite 15 Rosh is ranked No. 29 but can’t be overlooked. SG was close to knocking off Boiler Jrs 15 Gold at Triple Crown. It’s that type of field where the one thing for sure is plenty of unexpected results are going to take place. The final comes down to Alamo knocking off Wave. Skyline takes the final bid.   *** 14 Open Number of Teams: 26 Number of Bids Available: 3 Previously-Qualified Club: n/a vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (14): 2. Arizona Storm 14 Thunder 3. Tstreet 14 Carson 4. Madfrog 14 Green 5. Skyline 14 Royal 10. MAVS KC 14-1 11. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar 14. Forza1 14 One 15. Wave 14 Tammy 16. AZ Rev 14 Premier 19. Forza1 North 14 One 22. AZ Sky 14G 25. Club V 14 Ren Silver 33. HJV 14 Elite 47. Coast 14-1   Outlook/Prediction: Much like 15 Open, it’s going to take a special effort to come through with one of the three bids in play. There is no trickle down, so teams must place in the top three. That leaves very little if any wiggle room. Lots of eyes will be on the favorites like Arizona Storm 14 Thunder, Tstreet 14 Carson, Madfrog 14 Green and Skyline 15 Royal. All showed strong at Triple Crown and it’s hard envisioning not one in the group earning a bid. It’s possible three of the four get bids. Still, it’s volleyball. Wave 14 Tammy was close to upsetting Arizona Storm in KC and could surprise. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar is likely hungry to finish higher than it did at Triple Crown and get its bid out of the way. MAVS 14-1 can’t be forgotten about and certainly has what it takes to get the bid. It’s a tough field to predict, but the call goes to Tstreet beating Storm in the final. MAVS takes the third bid.

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Red Rock 17O: Coast Conquers; Tstreet, Wave Secure Bids As Well

April 7, 2022

The 17 Open division at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas had all the makings of being able to deliver an entertaining three days of qualifying action. Still, the unpredictable results produced a level that exceeded expectations. Drive Nation 17 Red, AZ Rev 17 Premier, Club V 17 Ren Reed and ID Crush 17 Bower all came into the event already holding bids. All were in play during Day 3 gold pools to create the possibility of trickle down. But no one foresaw how it eventually played out. Coast 17-1 outlasting Drive Nation for the 17 Open title and earning its bid didn’t so much turn heads as what happened behind the pair of finalists that did. It was two surprise semifinalists that did in Legacy Girls 17 Pyramid and Tstreet 17 Naseri. That’s where it got even more interesting. As it looked like Legacy and Tstreet rounded out the qualifying clubs, it was found out Legacy actually declined its Open bid. That brought Wave 17 Juliana back into the fold. Wave was in the silver bracket with Club V, AZ Rev and ID Crush. Since all three already had bids, the one Legacy declined fell to Wave. Below, we write about how the teams which qualified got there. COAST 17-1 (FIRST, 10-0) Day 1: d Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar 25-19, 25-20; d United 17 Arete 25-12, 25-11; d Forza1 17 UA 25-18, 25-23 Day 2: d Excel 17 National Red 25-16, 25-9; d Supernova 17 All Stars 22-25, 25-22, 15-9; d Aspire 17 Premier 25-16, 25-16 Day 3: d OJVA 17 Gold 25-8, 25-12; d Wave 17 Juliana 25-16, 27-25; d Legacy Girls 17 Pyramid 25-21, 25-21; d Drive Nation 17 Red 25-13, 16-25, 15-10   After Coast made the gold pools last month at the Salt Lake City showdown but was on the wrong end of tiebreakers and wasn’t able to qualify, you could say the So Cal club came to Las Vegas on a mission. Coast certainly performed like it. It went through the field unscathed, going 10-0 and dropping only two sets. One came against Drive Nation in the final. It was the second time this season Coast downed Drive Nation after picking up a victory over the Texas club at Triple Crown. “There has been huge improvement from Salt Lake City,” Coast setter Zoe Rachow said. “In Salt Lake City, we had a dip of emotion and play on the third day. This tournament we kept a level head and steady pace and we were able to keep pushing through together.” Coast opened up the third day with a dominating sweep against OJVA 17 Gold that put it on the cusp of qualifying. Up next was rival Wave with the winner earning a spot in the final four and almost assuredly a bid. Coast rallied from a five-point deficit midway through the second set to sweep, 25-16, 27-25. Once Drive Nation won its pool to create trickle down to at least fourth place, Coast had its bid for sure before playing and sweeping Legacy in the semis. The roster is built to be able to compete with anyone. Rachow has options all around her and gets everyone involved. Claire Little is the big arm on the left, while Milan Bayless is a feisty outside with smarts. Brooklyn Briscoe is a physical presence in the middle and combines with Jasmine Saran to give Coast two reliable scorers. Noemie Glover can be electric at times on the right. Then there’s libero Sydney Bold and DS Brooklyn Yelland making up a strong defensive backrow. Even with all the pieces, Coast doesn’t plan on settling anytime soon. “We can get better in every aspect,” Rachow said. “Passing, digging, hitting, setting, emotionally. Everything.” *** TSTREET 17 NASERI (FOURTH, 7-3) Day 1: d Flyers 17 APX 25-15, 27-25; d Aspire 17 Premier 25-22, 25-23; d Club Cactus 17 Mizuno 25-6, 25-9 Day 2: d Club V 17 Ren Matthew 25-21, 23-25, 15-11; d SynergyForce 17 Jeff 25-19, 27-25; d Drive Nation 17 Red 25-22, 13-25, 16-14 Day 3: d Omni 17 Rick 25-18, 25-17; d ID Crush 17 Bower 25-17, 25-19; l Drive Nation 17 Red 25-23, 25-21; l Legacy Girls 17 Pyramid 25-21, 28-26   There are different ways of looking at Tstreet’s quest to qualify in Open. As the No. 11 overall seed to start Tstreet should have been among the 12 teams divided up into four, three-team gold pools on Day 3. From there, taking advantage of trickle down seemed realistic so qualifying shouldn’t have seemed like that much of a longshot. However, Tstreet wasn’t really on the bid radar. Mostly because Tstreet went after its USA bid in Salt Lake City, where it finished on top of the 17 USA division. Red Rock was Tstreet’s last qualifier of the season so going for Open was an easy call in hopes of improving its bid. Tstreet lost on Day 1 to Aspire 17 Premier but that didn’t derail the So Cal club. From there, Tstreet caught fire and rolled off six consecutive victories. It included beating Drive Nation on Day 2. That victory helped place Tstreet in a more manageable pool on Day 3 with ID Crush and OMNI 17 Rick instead of in one with AZ Rev and Sunshine 17 LA. Tstreet came out strong, sweeping both OMNI and ID Crush to make the top four and eventually secure its bid when Drive Nation joined the top four. Tstreet fought Drive Nation in a rematch in the semis before falling in two and wound up in fourth place after going down to Legacy in the third-place match. It didn’t matter at that point. “I thought our girls really, really played hard and battled every match,” Tstreet coach Naseri Tumanuvao said. “We took a huge leap in the right direction in terms of establishing a level of performance. I’m really proud of them.” It was an unbelievable run to be sure. Outside Eva Travis had

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Red Rock 16O: Wave Rolls; Vision, Drive Nation Find Ways To Bid

April 7, 2022

Coast 16-1 and Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar already had bids. Everyone else in 16 Open arrived at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas in hopes of joining them. One question was would the two previously-qualified clubs play a part in others bidding through trickle down or not? It was answered on Day 3 when both Coast and Long Beach had roles in trickle down going to fifth place and setting up an exciting conclusion in a winner-take-all match for the last bid between Drive Nation 16 Red and Seal Beach 16 Black. When that one was over – with Drive Nation prevailing in three sets to qualify – Wave 16 Brennan followed with a sweep over Long Beach to bring home the tournament title (and having qualified as well). Meanwhile, Vision 16 Gold also secured a bid by making the third-place contest, where it ended its weekend with a three-game victory over Coast. Below is how the bid winners’ weekend played out. WAVE 16 BRENNAN (FIRST, 10-0) Day 1: d SynergyForce 16 James 25-16, 25-22; d Idaho One 16 Blue 25-10, 25-9; d AZ Rev 16 Premier 25-23, 25-11 Day 2: d Club V 16 Ren Matt 25-13, 25-20; d Seal Beach 16 Black 25-20, 25-15; d SG Elite 16 Rosh 25-22, 25-18; d Momentous 16 Dan 20-25, 25-23, 15-8 Day 3: Drive Nation 16 Red 25-21, 33-31; d Vision 16 Gold 25-14, 25-16; d Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar 25-12, 25-15 Wave was deserving of the No. 1 seed. The SCVA region club has proven itself the best in the Premier Volleyball League so far featuring the best teams in So Cal. And Wave placed better than anyone in the Red Rock Rave 16 Open field back in February at Triple Crown. It seemed like a mere formality Wave would qualify in Las Vegas. Then again, much stranger things have happened and everyone knows nothing is a given. Wave’s performance though left nothing to chance. It went 10-0 and dropped one set in three days and concluded with an impressive victory in the final over Long Beach, which qualified the weekend before at PNQ. “Only dropping a set is something I’m really happy with,” Wave coach Brennan Dean said. “Seeing the consistency the team was able to show over the three days is really something we’ve been stressing and being prepared on Day 3 to show up.” Wave showed up all weekend. Not just on Day 3. The only time Wave appeared vulnerable was at the start of gold pools Sunday evening. Momentous 16 Dan grabbed the opening set and was neck-and-neck down the stretch of Game 2 before Wave forced a third set and rolled from there. Wave went on to sweep both Drive Nation and Vision to clinch its bid and reach the final. “I couldn’t be happier,” Dean said. “These girls are such a special group. They are really well-rounded and have a lot of different ways to score.” Setter Amanda Saeger, middles Camden Bolane, Jenna Hanes and Sara Dahl, outsides Niki Egan and Charlee Ellena, right sides Sinclaire McComic and Ayva Moi, as well as defenders Maya Evens and Dakota Conway were all part of the roster last summer when Wave placed tied for 13th in 15 Open. Though the team doesn’t have much height other than in the middle, Wave can pass and defend and Saeger can distribute the ball around making Wave tough on any opponent it faces. “It’s a fun group to coach,” Dean said. “It’s not surprising to find success right now but they want to be on top at the end of the year. They know they need to get back in the gym and keep getting better. There are bigger teams out there that we need to figure out how to beat.” *** VISION 16 GOLD (THIRD, 8-2) Day 1: d Aspire 16 Premier 25-16, 25-21; l SG Elite 16 Rosh 25-22, 25-23; d SF Elite 16 Saga 25-14, 25-14 Day 2: d City Volleyball 16 Gold 25-18, 25-22; d Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar 25-23, 19-25, 15-7; d OP2 16-1 19-25, 25-19, 16-14; d Drive Nation 16 Red 25-16, 25-15 Day 3: d Momentous 16 Dan 25-23, 25-19; l Wave 16 Brennan 25-14, 25-16; d Coast 16-1 19-25, 25-19, 15-13 Vision spent the previous weekend in Spokane trying to earn a bid at PNQ before heading to Vegas for yet another chance. Having missed out on the gold pools there, the first logical step forward for the Nor Cal club was to at least put itself in a position to make something happen in the desert by getting in one here. Vision ran into SG Elite 16 Rosh on Day 1 and dropped the meeting in straight sets. From there, however, Vision closed by winning seven of its final eight matches. The only loss in that stretch came to Wave in gold pool play. Vision managed to make it that far after outlasting City Volleyball 16 Gold, Long Beach and OP2 16-1 on Day 2. Vision then really helped its cause by handling Drive Nation to open gold pools Sunday evening. With a victory over Momentous to start Day 3, Vision was playing for a spot in the final. The loss to Wave bumped Vision to the third-place match, where Vision downed Coast for an impressive showing. “We did well,” Vision coach Ron Whitmill said. “We played a lot better than we played at Spokane. Some of the girls really stepped up. The team looked good. I was really happy with the way they played.” Addison Carbonara, Katelyn Cook, Amaya Kuchibhotla, Allison Legates, Erika Maas, Michael Torkaman and Taylor Williams were part of the group that finished 33rd in 15 Open a season ago. Two key additions to the roster this year include setter Maya Baker and outside Cleo Hardin. “We were disappointed with how we performed in Spokane,” Whitmill said. “Not with not getting a bid but we just didn’t feel we played well.

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Red Rock 15O: Tstreet, TAV, Wave Gain Bids

April 7, 2022

Arizona Storm 15 Thunder made it two-for-two on the season. After winning and qualifying by taking first at the Salt Lake City Showdown last month, Storm was back at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas and was just as dominate. Storm lost just one set in both Salt Lake and Vegas, where Storm went 10-0 and bested the 32-team field. Storm topped upstart Tstreet 15 Curtis. While Storm had another outstanding outing, we want to focus on the teams that qualified in this story. Tstreet was one along with TAV 15 Black and Wave 15 Scott joining in on the bid action. Here’s how their weekends played out. TSTREET 15 CURTIS (SECOND, 5-5) Day 1: d Laguna Beach 15 Mark 25-7, 25-9; d APAC 15 Courtney 25-10, 25-10; l Club V 15 Ren Adam 25-23, 25-23 Day 2: l Aspire 15 Premier 25-19, 21-25, 17-15; l AZ Storm 15 Thunder 25-22, 25-16; d Rage Westside 15 Jen 25-12, 29-27; d Club V 15 Ren Adam 25-16, 25-13 Day 3: l Wave 15 Scott 25-16, 23-25, 15-13; d Drive Nation 15 Red 25-22, 25-15; l AZ Storm 15 Thunder 25-12, 25-10   Most know the adage. These tournaments are not about the number of matches a team wins but more about winning at the right time. Tstreet 15 Curtis is the perfect example of it. Though Tstreet – which opened as the No. 3 overall seed – finished 5-5 on the weekend, it placed ahead of everyone else not named Arizona Storm. Storm downed Tstreet, 25-12, 25-10, in Monday’s 15 Open final but it didn’t matter much to Tstreet at that point. The bid was in hand and that was anything but a guarantee when the season kicked off months ago. “It’s a really big deal for us,” Tstreet coach Curtis Yoder said of qualifying. “This is a team early in the season where we weren’t quite sure of how we would measure up in Open. We have a lot of great pieces but we were figuring things out so for us to get a bid is huge.” One setback early on this season was the loss of setter/right side Ruby Hill to injury but she’s since been back and helped stabilize the rotation running a 6-2 with Sophia Saad in Vegas. Tstreet was also down to two middles before calling up Maya Brown to help out and Yoder praised her play over the weekend. Combined with Memphis Burnett, they provided scoring options out of the middle so Tstreet wasn’t so pin heavy with outsides Quinn Loper and Brianna Brewer, as well as right side Lola Padilla. With Kyra Zaengle at libero, Tstreet also played defense well at times. “We’ve just been getting better every single day at practice and just chipping away,” Yoder said. “This team has huge upside. I’m excited to get back into the gym and keep working with them.” Tstreet’s timing helped out tremendously, winning when it needed to. After starting Day 1 by winning its first two matches, Tstreet fell to Club V 15 Ren Adam and was knocked into the same Day 2 pool as Storm. When Tstreet lost to Aspire 15 Premier first and then Storm it was sitting at 0-2 and looking at an exit from contention. However, Tstreet swept Rage Westside 15 Jen in a key result. That forced a three-way tie at 1-2 with Rage and Aspire, but it was Tstreet sweeping Rage that allowed Tstreet to take second and advance. A victory in three sets would’ve obviously still force the three-way tie, but it would’ve been Rage advancing instead in that scenario. Alive for gold pools, Tstreet capitalized. First, Tstreet downed Club V on Sunday evening in a rematch. But, Tstreet stumbled against Wave and was 1-1 with a clash against Drive Nation 15 Red – a team already qualified – waiting. Tstreet sprung the upset and eventually finished in a three-way tie with Drive Nation and Wave at 2-1. Tstreet owned the first-place tiebreaker to move onto the final and face Storm. Tstreet still would’ve had a path to the bid had it lost to Drive Nation. Yet, in that scenario Tstreet would have been the third-place team and faced Coast 15-1 for the last bid in the fifth-place match. As it happened, Coast didn’t get that opportunity as trickle down only went to fourth place. “I thought it was a really good weekend for our team,” Yoder said. “We are learning what it takes to play at this level. We were a little bit fortunate but we did the job to get here to the final. That was not our best match but we were here to see how we measure up against the best in the nation so we can get to work on things and get better.” *** TAV 15 BLACK (THIRD, 8-2) Day 1: d Vinaka 15-1 25-12, 25-18; d Over The Top 15 Blue 25-15, 25-11; d SG Elite 15 Rosh 30-28, 25-19 Day 2: d ARVC 15 Adidas 26-24, 25-15; l Wave 15 Scott 17-25, 25-22, 16-14; d AZ Rev 15 Premier 25-17, 25-23; d Excel 15 National Red 25-20, 25-21 Day 3: l AZ Storm 15 Thunder 25-19, 25-16; d Coast 15-1 25-21, 25-16; d Wave 15 Scott 20-25, 25-16, 15-11   It’s been a quiet season to date for TAV 15 Black. The North Texas region squad didn’t attend Triple Crown in February and didn’t play in a qualifier in March. That meant TAV was making its first national appearance in Las Vegas. Though TAV accomplished what it came for in qualifying, perhaps expectedly it wasn’t an overly sharp performance. “I don’t think we played very well all weekend for what our standards are,” TAV coach Arthur Stanfield said. “We struggled. We won matches but we struggled.” It’s not a knock really. Most everyone knows the lofty expectations of TAV but in reality TAV only lost one match that it probably shouldn’t have. It came on Day 2 when

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Red Rock Rave: Top Outside Hitters

April 6, 2022

It was a great three days of action at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas! We spent our time observing as many teams and players as possible. Here are the outsides who stood out the most to us while we were watching 15, 16 and 17 Open. 15 Open Ava Poinsett, Coast 15-1 – Poinsett is a vital piece of the Coast attack. This 5-11 pin hitter can play on either the left or the right. She brings consistent and reliable scoring as is always an option. Mae Kordes, Wave 15 Scott – When Kordes is front row and Wave needs a kill, there’s little doubt they are looking for her to deliver. At 6-2, she’s tall and hits a heavy ball. She has lots of kills ahead of her! Ella Duong, Vision 15 Gold – At 5-9, Duong is a bit undersized but she passes very well out of serve receive. She also jumps well which helps make her a threat in the Vision attack. Karli Jordan, Drive Nation 15 Red – Jordan is a high-octane outside. She plays with tons of energy. At 5-8, she’s undersized but gets up in the air and doesn’t back down from big blockers. Lauryn Mack, Drive Nation 15 Red – We’ll definitely be following Mack! She’s a 5-10 three-star recruit with huge potential. She can leap and has a smooth swing. Watch out for her! Teraya Sigler, AZ Storm 15 Thunder – There’s no one in the division quite like this 6’0 five-star recruit! Sigler is a force who can carry the offense if needed. She’s physical and brings some serious heat. But she can pass and defend too! Brianna Brewer, Tstreet 15 Curtis – This 5-9 three-star recruit makes up for being a bit undersized with a strong jump. She’s has a physicality to her attacking. Quinn Loper, Tstreet 15 Curtis – There’s lots of upside with Loper. She’s lanky at 6-1 and can hit from either pin with her smooth swing. She’s a four-star recruit who obviously is going to continue to develop. Nia Thompson, Wave 15 Scott – Thompson is cool on the court. She doesn’t try to overdo it when attacking. And she’s really solid in the back row with both her defending and passing. She could be a future libero at the next level! Cecilia Vance, ARVC 15 Adidas – We like the spirit and upbeat attitude this 5-11 freshman displays. She’s quick and has a fast arm swing. She lets it fly on the attack! Delany Harrington, Excel 15 National Red – Another outside who is a bit undersized. But Harrington has an aggressive approach to her attacking and isn’t afraid to challenge blockers. Alyssa Aguayo, Aspire 15 Premier – This 6-0 wirey outside is a three-star recruit. She carries an offensive load for Aspire. She has a quick swing and can whip it down. 16 Open Suli Davis, Drive Nation 16 Red – College coaches certainly know Davis! She’s a freshman playing up for Drive and has tremendous potential. She’s 6-1 and a five-star recruit. She’s physical and plays with real determination to succeed. Sofia Williams, Wave 16 Brennan – A steady six-rotation player, Williams knows how to score against big blockers. She’s good at taking what the block and defenses are giving her. Niki Egan, Wave 16 Brennan – This 5-7 outside is a spitfire and full of energy. She plays fast and bigger than her height. It’s a mistake to underestimate this three-star recruit who passes and defends very well too! Babi Gubbins, Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar – A 6-2 five-star recruit, Gubbins is asked to carry a load for Beach. She has a lot of shots in her bag that she can pull from and it keeps defenses guessing what’s coming next. Gabriella Destler, Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar – There’s nothing flashy about Destler and that’s meant in a good way. She just gets the job done being steady and consistent. She has good ball skills and uses her smarts to be a reliable scorer. Madison Triplett, Coast 16-1 – It was a big weekend for Triplett. Coast was without Jaidyn Jager for the last two days and this 5-9 outside really stepped up and was playing very well. It’s part of the reason why Coast still finished fourth.   Isabel Clark, Momentous 16 Dan – This 6-0 four-star recruit was one of the more powerful hitters in the division. When she gets up and gets a hold of one there’s no stopping her. We watched her bounce more than a few balls! Morgan Graves, Rancho Valley 16 Premier – This 5-10 freshman has a high ceiling! And the way she jumps, she needs it. Graves is the go-to hitter for Rancho Valley and she gets off the ground quickly. Madison Mosley, Arete 16 Navy – Mosley is 5-7 but don’t be fooled. She reads well and has a great timing which makes her an adequate blocker. She also has a quick swing and is fearless on the attack. Brianna Hamilton, Arete 16 Navy – Hamilton is someone to put on your radar! She’s 6-0 and touches 10-0. She could be moving up as she continues to progress. Taylor Williams, Vision 16 Gold – Williams is a valuable six-rotation outside for Vision. She’s long and wirey with a solid swing. She has definite upside to her! Cleo Hardin, Vision 16 Gold – We’ll be seeing more of Hardin down the road. This 6-2 outside has next level written all over her. She can let loose when she’s in the front row and adds a different dimension to the Vision offense. 17 Open Eva Travis, Tstreet 17 Naseri – We have lift off! Travis hits like she’s jumping off a trampoline. She’s 5-10 but touches 10-2 and absolutely explodes on the attack. She was a big reason Tstreet picked up its bid this weekend. Claire Little, Coast 17-1 – This 6-2 five-star recruit is committed to BYU. Because of

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Red Rock Rave: Day 3 Show Stoppers

March 14, 2023

With qualifying on the line during the last day of competition of the Red Rock Rave at Las Vegas, players came out determined to help their teams finish positioned for a bid. While only a few clubs could leave town with their tickets punched, plenty of athletes caught our attention during the process. Below, we bring you our Day 3 Show Stoppers. DAY 3 SHOW STOPPERS Ayden Ames MB Drive Nation 17 Red: The 5-star Nebraska commit is a legit game-changer in the middle with her ability to impact both sides of the ball. She moves well and takes away space in a hurry blocking while also being able to torment defenses with her scoring. Lolo Lambert OH Drive Nation 17 Red: Lambert – a 4-star recruit – is a high-flying outside capable of delivering highlight worthy kills. She takes a lot of important swings for Drive Nation and was key in its success. Grace Carroll RS Drive Nation 17 Red: Carroll – a 4-star recruit committed to Baylor – shined at the net. With Drive Nation forced to run a 5-1 this weekend due to injury, Carroll was invaluable to the attack. The lefty’s big swing brought instant offense to the court and Drive Nation made sure to feed her the ball. Brianna Watson OH Drive Nation 17 Red: A 3-star outside committed to LSU, Watson was another piece of the team’s success. She came through with plenty of clutch swings as she helped keep the offense powering along when she was in front. Caleigh King L/DS Drive Nation 17 Red: King – a 3-star recruit committed to UNLV – did a sound job in the back row. She covered well and was helping extend rallies. Jaidyn Jager OH Coast 17-1: A 5-star outside from the Class of 2025, Jager is a six-rotation player Coast relies on a lot. She’s a smart hitter who can hurt defenses with a variety of shots. She’s also a strong backrow defender and passer. Mackenzie Parsons MB Coast 17-1: A 3-star recruit, Parsons brings some physicality to the net. She puts up a big block and is definitely an offensive threat defenses need to be prepared for. Kiki Remensperger S Wave 17 Juliana: Remensperger did a nice job directing Wave’s attack as it ended Day 3 with a bid. The 3-star recruit is quick with nice hands and a consistent delivery. She did well connecting with her middles too. Jenna Hanes MB Wave 17 Juliana: Hanes – a 4-star Michigan commit – was lights out in the middle once more. She changes the dynamic when she’s in, both with her blocking and attacking. In system, Wave goes to Hanes a bunch and still defenses struggle to slow her down at all. Maya Evens L/DS Wave 17 Juliana: Evens – a 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – faced big-time hitters on the final day and didn’t blink. She more than held her own defensively with accurate passing and doing a great job digging balls. *** Camden Bolane RS Wave 17 Juliana: Bolane, a Yale commit, brought versatility to the lineup throughout the weekend as she played outside, middle and right side at times. On Day 3, she was mostly tasked with anchoring the right side across the front and she did great in her role. She came up with timely blocks and kills. Blaykli Bobik OH Arizona Storm 17 Thunder: A 4-star recruit committed to BYU, Bobik was a big part of Storm’s run to the semis as they knocked on the door for a bid. She has a whippy arm and carries a large portion of the attack on the left. Skyler Gartin MB Arizona Storm 17 Thunder: Gartin – a 3-star recruit – is someone defenses need to keep track of. Storm will get her the ball when in system because she knows how to end the point. Taylor Deckert L/DS SCVC 17 Roxy: Deckert – a 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – had her hands full facing both Wave and Hou Skyline in gold pool action. Both her passing and defending were on point as she owned the back row. Taylor Yu S SG Elite 17 Rosh: Yu – a 5-star recruit – is an effortless setter who is rarely off her mark. She puts her hitters in great situations consistently and is a big reason SG was in the hunt for a bid on Day 3. Sophia Wolfson MB SG Elite 17 Rosh: Wolfson was scoring well out of the middle for SG and giving Wu a reliable option she took advantage of. She gets up quickly and was putting balls down to the floor. Cleo Hardin RS Vision 17 Gold: A 3-star recruit committed to Yale, Hardin was bringing it on the attack. She’s an aggressive swinger who isn’t afraid of challenging blockers and seeing what happens, leading to big kills at times. Jaden Hendrickson RS Absolute 17 Black: Hendrickson is a solid pin hitter with a nice arm. She gives Absolute versatility and was swinging well from the right. Caelyn Emmerling OH TAV Houston 17 Adidas: A six-rotation outside, Emmerling is a featured part of the attack. She swings well and knows how to keep pressure on defenses. Kirra Musgrove S/RS Hou Skyline 17 Royal: Musgrove – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – was on it once again. She’s a smooth setter and locates well. Offensively, she’s long and has a very good arm to go at defenses with. *** Quinn Loper OH Wave 16 Kevin: Loper was a vital part of Wave’s run to the 16 Open gold medal. The 4-star outside has a fluid swing and hits with plenty of pace as she keeps coming at defenses. Ruby Hill S/RS Wave 16 Kevin: Hill – a 4-star recruit – brings her height to the front row as well as gives Wave another option on the right. Her versatility to remain in and set back row is also a

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Red Rock Rave: Gold Medal Rundown

March 14, 2023

This week’s edition of WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!? is brought to us courtesy of Wave 16 Kevin. At No. 26 in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50, Wave was the eighth highest-ranked team in 16 Open at the Red Rock Rave national qualifier in Las Vegas. Six teams ranked higher all finished above Wave at last month’s Triple Crown NIT. None of that would make Wave a favorite this past weekend to bid let alone earn the gold medal. But after going 7-3 and finishing on top of the 16 Open standings, the question had to be asked. What just happened? Las Vegas is becoming the place where this Wave group has breakthroughs. Last year as 15s, the team qualified for Open for the first time after finishing a surprise fourth. This year, Wave broke through and took it all. The field this go around featured top contenders like No. 1 Surfside 16 PV Legends, No. 3 Drive Nation 16 Red, No. 6 HJV 16 Elite and No. 7 Arizona Storm 16 Thunder, not to mention No. 10 TAV 16 Black and No. 13 Coast 16-1. It’s the reason why Wave retooled its roster though, in hopes of being able to take a step forward like it accomplished this past weekend. Outside Quinn Loper, setter/right side Ruby Hill and setter Emily Page were new additions who all played key roles in helping Wave win 16 Open. With returning players like outsides Nia Thompson and Mae Kordas and right side Keila Gabriel it’s given Wave more depth and roster flexibility. Wave needed to beat Rage 16 Garren in a crossover match on Day 1 to remain in contention. Wave lost to HJV and unranked A4 Volley 16 Cassie on Day 2 but managed to advance based on having the best set percentage in a three-way tie at 1-2 with A4 and AZ Rev 16 Premier. All that mattered though was Wave was positioned to take advantage of its luck and landed in a three-team pool with Surfside and Coast. For others, that might have doomed them. However, Wave was actually 2-1 on the year against Surfside before meeting in Monday’s gold pool and 0-1 against Coast, so there was familiarity. Wave pulled off two dramatic upsets, first edging Surfside 17-15 in the third before tackling Coast 15-10 in another Game 3. The feel-good story seemed to be in its last chapter though, with TAV on the horizon in the semifinals. Not only was TAV favored, but should Wave lose it would have to face the loser between Drive Nation and Arizona Storm in the third-place contest. Yet, Wave was not ready for the ride to end, first upsetting TAV in another wild conclusion, 16-14 in the third. That clinched the bid for Wave, so the pressure was off so to speak. But Wave wasn’t letting up and recorded another big upset in taking down Drive Nation in the final, 26-24, 26-24. That overshadowed what was an intense showdown for third place and the last remaining bid between TAV and Storm. Storm was able to survive, winning Game 3, 15-12. The qualifying action in 17 Open was a different type of thrilling. As highlighted on Day 2, with national No. 14 AZ Sky 17G and No. 15 Momentous 17 Dan out of contention and No. 13 Hou Skyline 17 Royal owning a bid, there was opportunity for others to capitalize. At the top of the list to do so was third-ranked Drive Nation 17 Red. The rest of the contenders included No. 16 Wave 17 Juliana, No. 18 Vision 17 Gold, No. 20 Coast 17-1, No. 22 SCVC 17 Roxy, No. 35 SG Elite 17 Rosh and No. 49 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder. Arizona Storm did its best to deliver another upset story, but it wasn’t meant to be. Storm advanced to the four-team gold bracket but lost to Coast in the semis. Drive Nation defeated Wave in the other semi before sweeping Coast in the final. Wave swept Storm for third place and the final bid. Wave had a tough gold pool with Hou Skyline and SCVC. Meanwhile, Storm beat both Vision and A4 Volley 17 Tyler in its gold pool. The bid chase in 18 Open ultimately boiled down to one three-team gold pool. Nine of the previously 11 qualified clubs advanced to the gold pools. As fate would have it, all nine were matched together in Pools 2-4. That left Pool 1 with three unqualified clubs in No. 2 Coast 18-1, No. 6 HJV 18 Elite and unranked TAV 18 Black. The first and second-place finishers in that pool were guaranteed bids through trickle down. Coast downed both HJV and TAV while TAV slipped past HJV to take second place and earn its bid. The final Open bid will go into the at-large pool.

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Red Rock Rave: Day 2 Show Stoppers

March 12, 2023

The path to the Open bids is clear with just the final day remaining of the Red Rock Rave qualifier in Las Vegas. While the top-ranked teams are still in contention in 16 Open, the same can’t be said about 17 Open after the Day 2 results shook up the final-day pairings. We knew something had to give in Pool 1 in 17 Open, as national No. 3 Drive Nation 17 Red, No. 13 Hou Skyline 17 Royal and No. 14 AZ Sky 17G shared the same four-team pool. It came down to Hou Skyline sweeping AZ Sky for second place behind Drive Nation. AZ Sky is the highest-ranked team in 17 Open out of contention but not by much. Momentous 17 Dan – ranked No. 15 nationally – was upset by both unranked A4 Volley 17 Tyler and No. 35 SG Elite 17 Rosh and finished third in its pool. Momentous had a chance to advance after losing to A4 but fell to SG in three games. Had Momentous defeated SG it would’ve earned the second-place tiebreaker over A4 but instead joins AZ Sky in the exit line. The winners of Monday’s four three-team pools advance to the four-team gold bracket where the Open bids will be ultimately determined. Hou Skyline, the only team with a bid so far, is in Pool 4 with No. 16 Wave 17 Juliana and No. 22 SCVC 17 Roxy. If Hou Skyline wins its pool, the other three pool winners will pick up bids before playing a gold-bracket match. But if Hou Skyline fails to advance, then teams must win in the semifinals and/or third-place match to qualify. Drive Nation is matched with Absolute 17 Black and Seal Beach 17 Black in Pool 1. It’s Arizona Storm 17 Thunder, Vision 17 Gold and A4 in Pool 2. Pool 3 is likely to come down to SG Elite and Coast 17-1, but TAV Houston 17 Adidas is certainly capable of the upsets. It was calmer in 16 Open, at least in regards to the national rankings. On Day 1, No. 35 Absolute 16 Black was the highest-ranked team to be eliminated. On Sunday, it was No. 28 Madfrog 16 Green being shown the door after losing to No. 21 AVA TX 16 Adidas. In addition, No. 49 AZ Sky 16G was also eliminated Sunday. It leaves all the top-ranked teams in the hunt for Monday. Pool 1 is an all-So Cal fight between No. 1 Surfside 16 PV Legends, No. 13 Coast 16-1 and No. 26 Wave 16 Kevin. Coast was upset by Temecula Viper 16-1 Costa in pool play and needed to beat Muscle 16-1 in crossover action to advance. Wave, meanwhile, finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 with A4 Volley 16 Cassie and AZ Rev 16 Premier but managed to take second based on tiebreakers. Seventh-ranked Arizona Storm 16 Thunder is favored in Pool 2 with No. 27 ID Crush 16 Bower and unranked Vision 16 Gold. Vision took Drive Nation 16 Red to three games in pool play before falling Sunday and will look to play spoiler on Day 3. As for Drive Nation, the third-ranked team in the country is in Pool 3 with Temecula and AVA TX. The final pool is No. 6 HJV 16 Elite, No. 10 TAV 16 Black and unranked Club One 16 Platinum. HJV is 1-0 against TAV this season, so TAV will look to even the score and win the pool. There is no trickle down in 16 Open, so teams must win the pool and advance to the gold bracket to stay alive. *** DAY 2 SHOW STOPPERS Sophia Meyer L/DS Coast 17-1: Coast is still in the mix but worked for it after beating both Tx Peformance 16-1 and Club V 17 Ren Matthew in three games before losing to SCVC in crossover. Meyer was solid throughout, holding down the back row and consistently making plays. Makayla Gates OH Momentous 17 Dan: Gates is a six-rotation outside who gets off the ground well and has a fluid swing. The 6-0 outside was doing well tooling blocks. Cymarah Gordon RS Momentous 17 Dan: A 4-star right side, Gordon puts up a massive block! She gets her hands over the net and forms a wall. She can also turn it around and send down booming kills. Victoria Leyva L/DS TX Performance 17-1: Leyva helped TX Performance upset Club V in pool play but was eventually eliminated with a loss to Absolute 17 Black in crossover. She is an energetic libero who is fast and makes up ground quickly. Amar’e Stout RS TX Performance 17-1: Stout’s big arm is a key part of the attack. Defenders need to be ready because Stout will get the ball and isn’t afraid to go for it. Maya Evens L/DS Wave 17 Juliana: Evens was part of a perfect 3-0 day as Wave didn’t drop a set. The 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025 scoops up everything near her in the back row and is a lights-out passer in serve receive. Taylor Deckert L/DS SCVC 17 Roxy: Another 4-star recruit from the Class of 2025, Deckert is a cool character in the back row. She’s always under control and doesn’t rattle while making plays look effortless. Kendall Beshear OH SCVC 17 Roxy: A 3-star recruit, Beshear explodes on the attack and hits a heavy ball. Beshear carried a big load as SCVC went 3-0 on the day and remains in the running for a bid. Zada Sanger OH Absolute 17 Black: It was a tough go for Absolute in pool play with losses to SCVC and Vision but Sanger and company beat Tx Performance in crossover to stay alive. Sanger was taking aggressive swings and not backing down. Dylan Whisenant L/DS Absolute 17 Black: Whisenant was getting after it defensively with lots of hustle and keeping rallies going. *** Grace Carroll RS Drive Nation 17 Red: Drive Nation didn’t lose a set in going 3-0 and

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Red Rock Rave: Day 1 Show Stoppers

March 11, 2023

For many of the top-seeded clubs the opening day of the second weekend of the Red Rock Rave Qualifier in Las Vegas offered an easing-in period. But for some, the first day was truly a matter of survival as they found themselves locked in elimination matches. The highest-profile case came in 16 Open when AVA TX 16 Adidas and Absolute 16 Black were matched in a crossover in which the winner advanced to the Round 2 Division 1 pools while the loser would fall to the Round 2 Division 2 pools for Sunday. AVA entered ranked No. 21 in vballrecruiter.com’s 16s Top 50 National Rankings while Absolute sits at No. 35. This was a case where neither team expected to be knocked from contention on Day 1. Yet, Absolute was on the wrong side of the score as AVA TX prevailed in three, 25-17, 25-27, 15-8. Wave 16 Kevin – ranked No. 26 nationally – and unranked clubs in Forza1 North 16 One and Club One 16 Platinum joined AVA in capturing must-win crossover matches to move on as well. Two unranked teams in 16 Open which helped create some of the upheaval Saturday at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center were Forza1 16 One and AZ Rev 16 Premier. Forza began its day with an upset of Absolute while AZ Rev closed its three-team pool by upsetting AVA TX and finishing first. Forza lost its crossover to AZ Sky 16G while ID Crush 16 Bower defeated AZ Rev in another crossover. Both AZ Rev and Forza remain in the mix for Day 2. The only other real news out of 16 Open is Vision 16 Gold and Temecula Viper 16 both advancing as the No. 3 team in their respective pools. They each beat the No. 2 team in their pools, with Vision taking down Aspire 16 Adidas and Temecula upending Rage Westside 16 Jen. Of the top six-ranked teams in 16 Open from our Top 50, only No. 13 Coast 16-1 lost Saturday. Coast had already clinched first place in its pool when it fell to unranked Muscle VB 16-1. Meanwhile, No. 1 Surfside 16 PV Legends, No. 3 Drive Nation 16 Red, No. 6 HJV 16 Elite, No. 7 Arizona Storm and TAV 16 Black went a combined 15-0 with only Surfside dropping a set. All 12 teams in appearing in vballrecruiter.com’s 17s Top 50 National Rankings advanced in 17 Open. However, it wasn’t all smooth sailing. While the highest-ranked team in No. 3 Drive Nation 17 Red went 3-0, the next two highest in No. 13 Hou Skyline 17 Royal and No. 14 AZ Sky 17G lost. Hou Skyline earned its Open bid at NEQ last weekend but was uprooted by No. 49 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder in its three-team pool. AZ Sky was beaten by unranked TAV Houston 17 Adidas. It left both Hou Skyline and AZ Sky – which tied for third at Triple Crown – needing to win crossovers to remain in the mix. Both did. Wave 17 Juliana – ranked No. 16 nationally – No. 18 Vision 17 Gold and No. 20 Coast 17-1 didn’t lose a set on the day. Momentous 17 Dan – ranked No. 15 – finished 3-0 and but went three twice while No. 22 SCVC 17 Roxy ended 3-0 and dropped one set. DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Addison Massey OH TX Performance 16-1: Massey helped her team to an upset of No. 49 AZ Sky 16G. She’s a six-rotation outside and a big part of the attack. She swings front and back row and did well in helping carrying her share of the offense. Sarah Pfiffner S TAV 16 Black: Pfiffner is a 4-star recruit with soft hands and a smooth delivery. She did well mixing her sets up and utilizing all of her hitters.   Lauryn Mack OH TAV 16 Black: Mack is another 4-star recruit and you can see her next-level potential when she goes on the attack. She elevates quickly and can deliver rockets for kills. Justice Fuhrmann S Forza1 16 One: Fuhrmann is a bit undersized but she did a nice job running the attack and putting up a hittable ball. She located consistently. Miley Thunstrom OH Forza1 16 One: Thunstrom did well in her role in helping provide offense on the outside. She found gaps in the blocks for kills and even delivered a big block of her own. Kimanni Rugley MB AVA TX 16 Adidas: Rugley is an athletic middle who makes her presence felt in the middle. She gets up fast and has a good arm to punish opponents with. Sydney Black L/DS HJV 16 Elite: Black – a 4-star recruit – was sound in serve receive and doing well with her first-ball contact. Nicole Steiner OH Vision 16 Gold: Steiner was taking her share of cuts on the outside and was helping keep Vision in the game. She has a fluid swing and was mixing up her shots. Kendall Timme OH Arete 16 Navy Telos: Timme is a lanky outside and one of Arete’s best scoring threats. She’s an option both front and back row and can deliver. Rylee Smith MB Arete 16 Navy Telos: Smith has nice size and is a disrupter in the middle. She does well getting touches and blocks. *** Tenesyn Frye S ID Crush 16 Bower: A 4-star recruit, Frye has command of the offense and does well locating. She has a nice touch and with her size she’s a factor at the net too. Kiana Mark OH Rage 16 Westside Jen: Mark brings physicality to the attack. She hits with power and score a lot of points. Lilyana Kautai RS Rage 16 Westside Jen: Kautai is someone opponents need to keep eyes on when she checks in. Rage will set her. She gets up well and takes aggressive swings. Natalia Clifford OH Rage 16 Westside Jen: Another six-rotation outside, Clifford contributes both front row with her attacking and her strong defense in the

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Red Rock Rave Week 2: Preview And Predictions (FREE)

March 9, 2023

Last week was split between multiple qualifiers and Bluegrass but the main focus this week is centered on Part 2 of the Red Rock Rave featuring 16s and up. There are no other qualifiers or major national tournaments. vballrecruiter.com is making the journey for the three-day event. This event usually takes place later on the calendar. With it getting moved up earlier, it’s going to change the trickle-down situation in 16 and 17 Open. There are usually multiple teams with bids in the field but since the tournament is early this season only one team across the two divisions is previously qualified in Hou Skyline 17 Royal. Let’s take a look at the Open divisions and how they might play out. 18 OPEN Number of Teams: 34 Number of Bids: 3 Previously-Qualified Teams (11): A4 Volley 18 Joaco; A5 18 Marc; Arizona Storm 18 Thunder; AZ Rev 18 Premier; AZ EVJ 18 Elite; Club V 18 Ren Reed; Hou Skyline 18 Royal; MAVS 18-1; Sunshine 18 LA; Tstreet 18 Chandler; Wave 18 Juliana vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (13): 2. Coast 18-1 4. MAVS 18-1 5. Sunshine 18-1 6. HJV 18 Elite 11. Wave 18 Juliana 12. Club V 18 Ren Reed 14. A5 18 Marc 18. AZ Rev 18 Premier 21. Hou Skyline 18 Royal 27. Arizona Storm 18 Thunder 28. Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar 44. Legacy Girls 18 Elite 50. Tstreet 18 Chandler   5-Star Athletes To Know: Noemie Glover RS Coast 18-1 (Oregon) Jurnee Robinson OH A5 18 Marc (LSU) Olivia Babcock RS Sunshine 18 LA (Pitt) Torrey Stafford OH Sunshine 18 LA (Pitt) Jordyn Harvey OH Club V 18 Ren Reed (Stanford) Julia Blyashov OH Wave 18 Juliana Taylor Harvey MB Club V 18 Ren Reed (2025) Alex Bower S ID Crush 18 Bower (BYU, 2024)   4-Star Athletes To Know: Brooklyn Briscoe MB Coast 18-1 (UCLA) Koko Kirsch L/DS Wave 18 Juliana (Stanford) Bianka Lulic MB Coast 18-1 (Miami) Claire Little OH Coast 18-1 (BYU) Ava Marie Lange OH/RS Sunshine 18 LA (Notre Dame) Tori Davis MB Legacy Girls 18 Elite (Baylor) Lois Hansen RS Tstreet 18 Chandler (UCSB) Eva Travis OH Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (UCSB) Mele Corral-Blagojevich OH Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (Oklahoma) Zoe Rachow S Coast 18-1 (Tulane) Makena Lim L/DS A4 Volley 18 Joaco (Georgia) Fatimah Hall S Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (San Diego State) Reagan Fox OH MAVS KC 18-1 (Rutgers) Betsy Goodenow RS MAVS KC 18-1 (Yale) Auburn Tomkinson RS Wave 18 Juliana (Yale) Arya Jue L/DS A5 18 Marc (Yale) Eva Rohrbach MB Wave 18 Juliana (Maryland) Cayla Payne MB Wave 18 Juliana (Colorado) Cindy Tchouangwa OH HJV 18 Elite Kendal Murphy OH AZ Rev 18 Premier (Baylor) Madison Maxwell S/RS Legacy Girls 18 Elite (Long Beach State, 2024) Evan Hendrix OH AZ Rev 18 Premier (TCU, 2024)   Outlook/Prediction: The 18s are in a different spot with qualifying going on since January. That’s why there are 11 teams already qualified. Trickle down can only go to eighth place, so it’s possible that no bids go out at all. Of course, I don’t think that’s going to happen. There are a couple highly-ranked teams in No. 2 Coast 18-1 and No. 6 HJV 18 Elite have yet to earn their bids and I’m going out on a limb to say both will place at least in the Top 8 to qualify. At No. 28, Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar is the only other team from Vballrecrutier.com’s Top 50 in the field without a bid. Considering the depth of field, it’s going to take work for Long Beach to crack the Top 8. Coast gets its bid by winning it all, downing MAVS 18-1 in the final. HJV also bids with the third going into the at-large pool. *** 17 OPEN Number of Teams: 39 Number of Bids: 3 Previously-Qualified Teams (1): Hou Skyline 17 Royal vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (12): 3. Drive Nation 17 Red 13. Hou Skyline 17 Royal 14. AZ Sky 17G 15. Momentous 17 Dan 16. Wave 17 Juliana 18. Vision 17 Gold 20. Coast 17-1 22. SCVC 17 Roxy 32. Club V 17 Ren Matthew 35. SG Elite 17 Rosh 46. AZ Rev 17 Premier 49. Arizona Storm 17 Thunder   5-Star Athletes To Know: Zoey Burgess MB Club V 17 Ren Matthew (Kansas) Jaela Auguste MB Hou Skyline 17 Royal (Florida) Taylor Yu S SG Elite 17 Rosh Ayden Ames MB Drive Nation 17 Red (Nebraska) Jaidyn Jager OH Coast 17-1 (2025) Taylor Deckert L/DS SCVC 17 Roxy (2025)   4-Star Athletes To Know: Taylor Williams OH Vision 17 Gold Jenna Hanes MB Wave 17 Juliana (Michigan) Isabel Clark OH Momentous 17 Dan (San Diego) Cymarah Gordon RS Momentous 17 Dan Lolo Lambert OH Drive Nation 17 Red (Arkansas) Bethanie Wu S Drive Nation 17 Red (Yale) Grace Carroll RS Drive Nation 17 Red (Baylor) Blaykli Bobik OH Arizona Storm 17 Thunder (BYU) Lillian Croshaw MB Drive Nation 17 Red Levani Key-Powell OH Club V 17 Ren Reed (Utah) Amanda Saeger S Wave 17 Juliana (DePaul) Camden Bolane MB Wave 17 Juliana (Yale) Shelby Burris MB Drive Nation 17 Red (2025) Lauren Lynch L/DS SG Elite 17 Rosh (2025) Maya Evens L/DS Wave 17 Juliana (2025) Maya Baker S Vision 17 Gold (2025)   Outlook/Prediction: By all indications, this division is going to be a wild ride. Hou Skyline 17 Royal, having qualified last weekend at NEQ, is safe from the chaos but could definitely factor into the final outcomes by creating trickle down to fourth place. Drive Nation 17 Red enters has the highest-ranked team in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50 yet is anything but a lock. While Drive Nation finished tied for third at Triple Crown, it has been vulnerable at times. It’s a tournament where I see nine of the ranked teams having a legit shot at earning bids, down to No. 35 SG Elite 17 Rosh. The final two Top-50 teams in No. 46 AZ Rev 16 Premier and

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Red Rock Rave: Preview and Predictions (FREE)

March 2, 2023

It’s an earlier trip to Las Vegas than usual for those making their way to the Red Rock Rave taking place Saturday-Monday at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center. The qualifier usually falls in April but is among the first to be held this season. This coming weekend is the first of back-to-back weekends and it features the younger ages vying for their bids. Below, we run through the 14 and 15 Open divisions to see how they might play out. 15 Open Number of Teams: 38 Number of Bids Available: 3 Previously-Qualified Club: n/a vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (22): 1. Skyline 15 Royal 4. Madfrog 15 Green 5. TAV 15 Black 7. Arizona Storm 15 Thunder 10. SCVC 15 Roxy 12. Alamo 15 Premier 13. AZ Sky 15G 14. Hou Skyline 15 Royal 15. Wave 15 Brennan 18. Dynasty 15 Black 19. Forza1 North 15 One 21. HJV 15 Elite 23. Drive Nation 15 Red 29. SG Elite 15 Rosh 32. Actyve 15 Black 33. GP 15 Rox 34. Tstreet 15 Curtis 38. AZ Rev 15 Premier 39. Coast 15-1 41. Aspire 15 Premier 42. Club V 15 Ren Reed 46. MAVS 816 15-1   5-star Athletes To Watch Layla Austin OH Skyline 15 Royal Keoni Williams MB Skyline 15 Royal Kinsley Young MB TAV 15 Black Brooke Harwood RS Arizona Storm 15 Thunder Finley Krystkowiak OH Wave 15 Brennan Danielle Whitmire S/RS TAV 15 Black Audrey Flanagan OH SCVC 15 Roxy   4-star Athletes To Watch Erin Clark L/DS/S Aspire 15 Premier Anna Flores S TAV 15 Black Ava McBride S/RS Actyve 15 Black Paisley Pavliska OH Alamo 15 Premier Emmerson Champagne MB/RS Tstreet 15 Curtis Milly McGee S SCVC 15 Roxy Gabi Rodriguez L/DS Madfrog 15 Green Caroline Huseman OH TAV 15 Black Kylie Kleckner OH TAV 15 Black   Outlook/Prediction: With 20 teams in the field featured in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50 it makes for a loaded field. With the only path to qualifying coming with a top-three finish, there are going to be plenty of unhappy teams heading home. On the flip side, for the fortunate few who are able to secure bids there is no doubt it will be well deserved. Skyline 15 Royal enters fresh off of winning Triple Crown and looking to keep the momentum going. Triple Crown runner-up SCVC 15 Roxy is also searching for a bid and will carry the confidence of its performance in KC with them to Vegas. Madfrog 15 Green, TAV 15 Black, Arizona Storm 15 Thunder, Alamo 15 Premier and AZ Sky 15G all fared well at Triple Crown too and any of them could walk away with a bid. A team like SG Elite 15 Rosh is ranked No. 29 but can’t be overlooked. SG was close to knocking off Boiler Jrs 15 Gold at Triple Crown. It’s that type of field where the one thing for sure is plenty of unexpected results are going to take place. The final comes down to Alamo knocking off Wave. Skyline takes the final bid.   *** 14 Open Number of Teams: 26 Number of Bids Available: 3 Previously-Qualified Club: n/a vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (14): 2. Arizona Storm 14 Thunder 3. Tstreet 14 Carson 4. Madfrog 14 Green 5. Skyline 14 Royal 10. MAVS KC 14-1 11. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar 14. Forza1 14 One 15. Wave 14 Tammy 16. AZ Rev 14 Premier 19. Forza1 North 14 One 22. AZ Sky 14G 25. Club V 14 Ren Silver 33. HJV 14 Elite 47. Coast 14-1   Outlook/Prediction: Much like 15 Open, it’s going to take a special effort to come through with one of the three bids in play. There is no trickle down, so teams must place in the top three. That leaves very little if any wiggle room. Lots of eyes will be on the favorites like Arizona Storm 14 Thunder, Tstreet 14 Carson, Madfrog 14 Green and Skyline 15 Royal. All showed strong at Triple Crown and it’s hard envisioning not one in the group earning a bid. It’s possible three of the four get bids. Still, it’s volleyball. Wave 14 Tammy was close to upsetting Arizona Storm in KC and could surprise. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar is likely hungry to finish higher than it did at Triple Crown and get its bid out of the way. MAVS 14-1 can’t be forgotten about and certainly has what it takes to get the bid. It’s a tough field to predict, but the call goes to Tstreet beating Storm in the final. MAVS takes the third bid.

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Red Rock 17O: Coast Conquers; Tstreet, Wave Secure Bids As Well

April 7, 2022

The 17 Open division at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas had all the makings of being able to deliver an entertaining three days of qualifying action. Still, the unpredictable results produced a level that exceeded expectations. Drive Nation 17 Red, AZ Rev 17 Premier, Club V 17 Ren Reed and ID Crush 17 Bower all came into the event already holding bids. All were in play during Day 3 gold pools to create the possibility of trickle down. But no one foresaw how it eventually played out. Coast 17-1 outlasting Drive Nation for the 17 Open title and earning its bid didn’t so much turn heads as what happened behind the pair of finalists that did. It was two surprise semifinalists that did in Legacy Girls 17 Pyramid and Tstreet 17 Naseri. That’s where it got even more interesting. As it looked like Legacy and Tstreet rounded out the qualifying clubs, it was found out Legacy actually declined its Open bid. That brought Wave 17 Juliana back into the fold. Wave was in the silver bracket with Club V, AZ Rev and ID Crush. Since all three already had bids, the one Legacy declined fell to Wave. Below, we write about how the teams which qualified got there. COAST 17-1 (FIRST, 10-0) Day 1: d Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar 25-19, 25-20; d United 17 Arete 25-12, 25-11; d Forza1 17 UA 25-18, 25-23 Day 2: d Excel 17 National Red 25-16, 25-9; d Supernova 17 All Stars 22-25, 25-22, 15-9; d Aspire 17 Premier 25-16, 25-16 Day 3: d OJVA 17 Gold 25-8, 25-12; d Wave 17 Juliana 25-16, 27-25; d Legacy Girls 17 Pyramid 25-21, 25-21; d Drive Nation 17 Red 25-13, 16-25, 15-10   After Coast made the gold pools last month at the Salt Lake City showdown but was on the wrong end of tiebreakers and wasn’t able to qualify, you could say the So Cal club came to Las Vegas on a mission. Coast certainly performed like it. It went through the field unscathed, going 10-0 and dropping only two sets. One came against Drive Nation in the final. It was the second time this season Coast downed Drive Nation after picking up a victory over the Texas club at Triple Crown. “There has been huge improvement from Salt Lake City,” Coast setter Zoe Rachow said. “In Salt Lake City, we had a dip of emotion and play on the third day. This tournament we kept a level head and steady pace and we were able to keep pushing through together.” Coast opened up the third day with a dominating sweep against OJVA 17 Gold that put it on the cusp of qualifying. Up next was rival Wave with the winner earning a spot in the final four and almost assuredly a bid. Coast rallied from a five-point deficit midway through the second set to sweep, 25-16, 27-25. Once Drive Nation won its pool to create trickle down to at least fourth place, Coast had its bid for sure before playing and sweeping Legacy in the semis. The roster is built to be able to compete with anyone. Rachow has options all around her and gets everyone involved. Claire Little is the big arm on the left, while Milan Bayless is a feisty outside with smarts. Brooklyn Briscoe is a physical presence in the middle and combines with Jasmine Saran to give Coast two reliable scorers. Noemie Glover can be electric at times on the right. Then there’s libero Sydney Bold and DS Brooklyn Yelland making up a strong defensive backrow. Even with all the pieces, Coast doesn’t plan on settling anytime soon. “We can get better in every aspect,” Rachow said. “Passing, digging, hitting, setting, emotionally. Everything.” *** TSTREET 17 NASERI (FOURTH, 7-3) Day 1: d Flyers 17 APX 25-15, 27-25; d Aspire 17 Premier 25-22, 25-23; d Club Cactus 17 Mizuno 25-6, 25-9 Day 2: d Club V 17 Ren Matthew 25-21, 23-25, 15-11; d SynergyForce 17 Jeff 25-19, 27-25; d Drive Nation 17 Red 25-22, 13-25, 16-14 Day 3: d Omni 17 Rick 25-18, 25-17; d ID Crush 17 Bower 25-17, 25-19; l Drive Nation 17 Red 25-23, 25-21; l Legacy Girls 17 Pyramid 25-21, 28-26   There are different ways of looking at Tstreet’s quest to qualify in Open. As the No. 11 overall seed to start Tstreet should have been among the 12 teams divided up into four, three-team gold pools on Day 3. From there, taking advantage of trickle down seemed realistic so qualifying shouldn’t have seemed like that much of a longshot. However, Tstreet wasn’t really on the bid radar. Mostly because Tstreet went after its USA bid in Salt Lake City, where it finished on top of the 17 USA division. Red Rock was Tstreet’s last qualifier of the season so going for Open was an easy call in hopes of improving its bid. Tstreet lost on Day 1 to Aspire 17 Premier but that didn’t derail the So Cal club. From there, Tstreet caught fire and rolled off six consecutive victories. It included beating Drive Nation on Day 2. That victory helped place Tstreet in a more manageable pool on Day 3 with ID Crush and OMNI 17 Rick instead of in one with AZ Rev and Sunshine 17 LA. Tstreet came out strong, sweeping both OMNI and ID Crush to make the top four and eventually secure its bid when Drive Nation joined the top four. Tstreet fought Drive Nation in a rematch in the semis before falling in two and wound up in fourth place after going down to Legacy in the third-place match. It didn’t matter at that point. “I thought our girls really, really played hard and battled every match,” Tstreet coach Naseri Tumanuvao said. “We took a huge leap in the right direction in terms of establishing a level of performance. I’m really proud of them.” It was an unbelievable run to be sure. Outside Eva Travis had

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Red Rock 16O: Wave Rolls; Vision, Drive Nation Find Ways To Bid

April 7, 2022

Coast 16-1 and Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar already had bids. Everyone else in 16 Open arrived at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas in hopes of joining them. One question was would the two previously-qualified clubs play a part in others bidding through trickle down or not? It was answered on Day 3 when both Coast and Long Beach had roles in trickle down going to fifth place and setting up an exciting conclusion in a winner-take-all match for the last bid between Drive Nation 16 Red and Seal Beach 16 Black. When that one was over – with Drive Nation prevailing in three sets to qualify – Wave 16 Brennan followed with a sweep over Long Beach to bring home the tournament title (and having qualified as well). Meanwhile, Vision 16 Gold also secured a bid by making the third-place contest, where it ended its weekend with a three-game victory over Coast. Below is how the bid winners’ weekend played out. WAVE 16 BRENNAN (FIRST, 10-0) Day 1: d SynergyForce 16 James 25-16, 25-22; d Idaho One 16 Blue 25-10, 25-9; d AZ Rev 16 Premier 25-23, 25-11 Day 2: d Club V 16 Ren Matt 25-13, 25-20; d Seal Beach 16 Black 25-20, 25-15; d SG Elite 16 Rosh 25-22, 25-18; d Momentous 16 Dan 20-25, 25-23, 15-8 Day 3: Drive Nation 16 Red 25-21, 33-31; d Vision 16 Gold 25-14, 25-16; d Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar 25-12, 25-15 Wave was deserving of the No. 1 seed. The SCVA region club has proven itself the best in the Premier Volleyball League so far featuring the best teams in So Cal. And Wave placed better than anyone in the Red Rock Rave 16 Open field back in February at Triple Crown. It seemed like a mere formality Wave would qualify in Las Vegas. Then again, much stranger things have happened and everyone knows nothing is a given. Wave’s performance though left nothing to chance. It went 10-0 and dropped one set in three days and concluded with an impressive victory in the final over Long Beach, which qualified the weekend before at PNQ. “Only dropping a set is something I’m really happy with,” Wave coach Brennan Dean said. “Seeing the consistency the team was able to show over the three days is really something we’ve been stressing and being prepared on Day 3 to show up.” Wave showed up all weekend. Not just on Day 3. The only time Wave appeared vulnerable was at the start of gold pools Sunday evening. Momentous 16 Dan grabbed the opening set and was neck-and-neck down the stretch of Game 2 before Wave forced a third set and rolled from there. Wave went on to sweep both Drive Nation and Vision to clinch its bid and reach the final. “I couldn’t be happier,” Dean said. “These girls are such a special group. They are really well-rounded and have a lot of different ways to score.” Setter Amanda Saeger, middles Camden Bolane, Jenna Hanes and Sara Dahl, outsides Niki Egan and Charlee Ellena, right sides Sinclaire McComic and Ayva Moi, as well as defenders Maya Evens and Dakota Conway were all part of the roster last summer when Wave placed tied for 13th in 15 Open. Though the team doesn’t have much height other than in the middle, Wave can pass and defend and Saeger can distribute the ball around making Wave tough on any opponent it faces. “It’s a fun group to coach,” Dean said. “It’s not surprising to find success right now but they want to be on top at the end of the year. They know they need to get back in the gym and keep getting better. There are bigger teams out there that we need to figure out how to beat.” *** VISION 16 GOLD (THIRD, 8-2) Day 1: d Aspire 16 Premier 25-16, 25-21; l SG Elite 16 Rosh 25-22, 25-23; d SF Elite 16 Saga 25-14, 25-14 Day 2: d City Volleyball 16 Gold 25-18, 25-22; d Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar 25-23, 19-25, 15-7; d OP2 16-1 19-25, 25-19, 16-14; d Drive Nation 16 Red 25-16, 25-15 Day 3: d Momentous 16 Dan 25-23, 25-19; l Wave 16 Brennan 25-14, 25-16; d Coast 16-1 19-25, 25-19, 15-13 Vision spent the previous weekend in Spokane trying to earn a bid at PNQ before heading to Vegas for yet another chance. Having missed out on the gold pools there, the first logical step forward for the Nor Cal club was to at least put itself in a position to make something happen in the desert by getting in one here. Vision ran into SG Elite 16 Rosh on Day 1 and dropped the meeting in straight sets. From there, however, Vision closed by winning seven of its final eight matches. The only loss in that stretch came to Wave in gold pool play. Vision managed to make it that far after outlasting City Volleyball 16 Gold, Long Beach and OP2 16-1 on Day 2. Vision then really helped its cause by handling Drive Nation to open gold pools Sunday evening. With a victory over Momentous to start Day 3, Vision was playing for a spot in the final. The loss to Wave bumped Vision to the third-place match, where Vision downed Coast for an impressive showing. “We did well,” Vision coach Ron Whitmill said. “We played a lot better than we played at Spokane. Some of the girls really stepped up. The team looked good. I was really happy with the way they played.” Addison Carbonara, Katelyn Cook, Amaya Kuchibhotla, Allison Legates, Erika Maas, Michael Torkaman and Taylor Williams were part of the group that finished 33rd in 15 Open a season ago. Two key additions to the roster this year include setter Maya Baker and outside Cleo Hardin. “We were disappointed with how we performed in Spokane,” Whitmill said. “Not with not getting a bid but we just didn’t feel we played well.

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Red Rock 15O: Tstreet, TAV, Wave Gain Bids

April 7, 2022

Arizona Storm 15 Thunder made it two-for-two on the season. After winning and qualifying by taking first at the Salt Lake City Showdown last month, Storm was back at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas and was just as dominate. Storm lost just one set in both Salt Lake and Vegas, where Storm went 10-0 and bested the 32-team field. Storm topped upstart Tstreet 15 Curtis. While Storm had another outstanding outing, we want to focus on the teams that qualified in this story. Tstreet was one along with TAV 15 Black and Wave 15 Scott joining in on the bid action. Here’s how their weekends played out. TSTREET 15 CURTIS (SECOND, 5-5) Day 1: d Laguna Beach 15 Mark 25-7, 25-9; d APAC 15 Courtney 25-10, 25-10; l Club V 15 Ren Adam 25-23, 25-23 Day 2: l Aspire 15 Premier 25-19, 21-25, 17-15; l AZ Storm 15 Thunder 25-22, 25-16; d Rage Westside 15 Jen 25-12, 29-27; d Club V 15 Ren Adam 25-16, 25-13 Day 3: l Wave 15 Scott 25-16, 23-25, 15-13; d Drive Nation 15 Red 25-22, 25-15; l AZ Storm 15 Thunder 25-12, 25-10   Most know the adage. These tournaments are not about the number of matches a team wins but more about winning at the right time. Tstreet 15 Curtis is the perfect example of it. Though Tstreet – which opened as the No. 3 overall seed – finished 5-5 on the weekend, it placed ahead of everyone else not named Arizona Storm. Storm downed Tstreet, 25-12, 25-10, in Monday’s 15 Open final but it didn’t matter much to Tstreet at that point. The bid was in hand and that was anything but a guarantee when the season kicked off months ago. “It’s a really big deal for us,” Tstreet coach Curtis Yoder said of qualifying. “This is a team early in the season where we weren’t quite sure of how we would measure up in Open. We have a lot of great pieces but we were figuring things out so for us to get a bid is huge.” One setback early on this season was the loss of setter/right side Ruby Hill to injury but she’s since been back and helped stabilize the rotation running a 6-2 with Sophia Saad in Vegas. Tstreet was also down to two middles before calling up Maya Brown to help out and Yoder praised her play over the weekend. Combined with Memphis Burnett, they provided scoring options out of the middle so Tstreet wasn’t so pin heavy with outsides Quinn Loper and Brianna Brewer, as well as right side Lola Padilla. With Kyra Zaengle at libero, Tstreet also played defense well at times. “We’ve just been getting better every single day at practice and just chipping away,” Yoder said. “This team has huge upside. I’m excited to get back into the gym and keep working with them.” Tstreet’s timing helped out tremendously, winning when it needed to. After starting Day 1 by winning its first two matches, Tstreet fell to Club V 15 Ren Adam and was knocked into the same Day 2 pool as Storm. When Tstreet lost to Aspire 15 Premier first and then Storm it was sitting at 0-2 and looking at an exit from contention. However, Tstreet swept Rage Westside 15 Jen in a key result. That forced a three-way tie at 1-2 with Rage and Aspire, but it was Tstreet sweeping Rage that allowed Tstreet to take second and advance. A victory in three sets would’ve obviously still force the three-way tie, but it would’ve been Rage advancing instead in that scenario. Alive for gold pools, Tstreet capitalized. First, Tstreet downed Club V on Sunday evening in a rematch. But, Tstreet stumbled against Wave and was 1-1 with a clash against Drive Nation 15 Red – a team already qualified – waiting. Tstreet sprung the upset and eventually finished in a three-way tie with Drive Nation and Wave at 2-1. Tstreet owned the first-place tiebreaker to move onto the final and face Storm. Tstreet still would’ve had a path to the bid had it lost to Drive Nation. Yet, in that scenario Tstreet would have been the third-place team and faced Coast 15-1 for the last bid in the fifth-place match. As it happened, Coast didn’t get that opportunity as trickle down only went to fourth place. “I thought it was a really good weekend for our team,” Yoder said. “We are learning what it takes to play at this level. We were a little bit fortunate but we did the job to get here to the final. That was not our best match but we were here to see how we measure up against the best in the nation so we can get to work on things and get better.” *** TAV 15 BLACK (THIRD, 8-2) Day 1: d Vinaka 15-1 25-12, 25-18; d Over The Top 15 Blue 25-15, 25-11; d SG Elite 15 Rosh 30-28, 25-19 Day 2: d ARVC 15 Adidas 26-24, 25-15; l Wave 15 Scott 17-25, 25-22, 16-14; d AZ Rev 15 Premier 25-17, 25-23; d Excel 15 National Red 25-20, 25-21 Day 3: l AZ Storm 15 Thunder 25-19, 25-16; d Coast 15-1 25-21, 25-16; d Wave 15 Scott 20-25, 25-16, 15-11   It’s been a quiet season to date for TAV 15 Black. The North Texas region squad didn’t attend Triple Crown in February and didn’t play in a qualifier in March. That meant TAV was making its first national appearance in Las Vegas. Though TAV accomplished what it came for in qualifying, perhaps expectedly it wasn’t an overly sharp performance. “I don’t think we played very well all weekend for what our standards are,” TAV coach Arthur Stanfield said. “We struggled. We won matches but we struggled.” It’s not a knock really. Most everyone knows the lofty expectations of TAV but in reality TAV only lost one match that it probably shouldn’t have. It came on Day 2 when

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Red Rock Rave: Top Outside Hitters

April 6, 2022

It was a great three days of action at the Red Rock Rave in Las Vegas! We spent our time observing as many teams and players as possible. Here are the outsides who stood out the most to us while we were watching 15, 16 and 17 Open. 15 Open Ava Poinsett, Coast 15-1 – Poinsett is a vital piece of the Coast attack. This 5-11 pin hitter can play on either the left or the right. She brings consistent and reliable scoring as is always an option. Mae Kordes, Wave 15 Scott – When Kordes is front row and Wave needs a kill, there’s little doubt they are looking for her to deliver. At 6-2, she’s tall and hits a heavy ball. She has lots of kills ahead of her! Ella Duong, Vision 15 Gold – At 5-9, Duong is a bit undersized but she passes very well out of serve receive. She also jumps well which helps make her a threat in the Vision attack. Karli Jordan, Drive Nation 15 Red – Jordan is a high-octane outside. She plays with tons of energy. At 5-8, she’s undersized but gets up in the air and doesn’t back down from big blockers. Lauryn Mack, Drive Nation 15 Red – We’ll definitely be following Mack! She’s a 5-10 three-star recruit with huge potential. She can leap and has a smooth swing. Watch out for her! Teraya Sigler, AZ Storm 15 Thunder – There’s no one in the division quite like this 6’0 five-star recruit! Sigler is a force who can carry the offense if needed. She’s physical and brings some serious heat. But she can pass and defend too! Brianna Brewer, Tstreet 15 Curtis – This 5-9 three-star recruit makes up for being a bit undersized with a strong jump. She’s has a physicality to her attacking. Quinn Loper, Tstreet 15 Curtis – There’s lots of upside with Loper. She’s lanky at 6-1 and can hit from either pin with her smooth swing. She’s a four-star recruit who obviously is going to continue to develop. Nia Thompson, Wave 15 Scott – Thompson is cool on the court. She doesn’t try to overdo it when attacking. And she’s really solid in the back row with both her defending and passing. She could be a future libero at the next level! Cecilia Vance, ARVC 15 Adidas – We like the spirit and upbeat attitude this 5-11 freshman displays. She’s quick and has a fast arm swing. She lets it fly on the attack! Delany Harrington, Excel 15 National Red – Another outside who is a bit undersized. But Harrington has an aggressive approach to her attacking and isn’t afraid to challenge blockers. Alyssa Aguayo, Aspire 15 Premier – This 6-0 wirey outside is a three-star recruit. She carries an offensive load for Aspire. She has a quick swing and can whip it down. 16 Open Suli Davis, Drive Nation 16 Red – College coaches certainly know Davis! She’s a freshman playing up for Drive and has tremendous potential. She’s 6-1 and a five-star recruit. She’s physical and plays with real determination to succeed. Sofia Williams, Wave 16 Brennan – A steady six-rotation player, Williams knows how to score against big blockers. She’s good at taking what the block and defenses are giving her. Niki Egan, Wave 16 Brennan – This 5-7 outside is a spitfire and full of energy. She plays fast and bigger than her height. It’s a mistake to underestimate this three-star recruit who passes and defends very well too! Babi Gubbins, Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar – A 6-2 five-star recruit, Gubbins is asked to carry a load for Beach. She has a lot of shots in her bag that she can pull from and it keeps defenses guessing what’s coming next. Gabriella Destler, Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar – There’s nothing flashy about Destler and that’s meant in a good way. She just gets the job done being steady and consistent. She has good ball skills and uses her smarts to be a reliable scorer. Madison Triplett, Coast 16-1 – It was a big weekend for Triplett. Coast was without Jaidyn Jager for the last two days and this 5-9 outside really stepped up and was playing very well. It’s part of the reason why Coast still finished fourth.   Isabel Clark, Momentous 16 Dan – This 6-0 four-star recruit was one of the more powerful hitters in the division. When she gets up and gets a hold of one there’s no stopping her. We watched her bounce more than a few balls! Morgan Graves, Rancho Valley 16 Premier – This 5-10 freshman has a high ceiling! And the way she jumps, she needs it. Graves is the go-to hitter for Rancho Valley and she gets off the ground quickly. Madison Mosley, Arete 16 Navy – Mosley is 5-7 but don’t be fooled. She reads well and has a great timing which makes her an adequate blocker. She also has a quick swing and is fearless on the attack. Brianna Hamilton, Arete 16 Navy – Hamilton is someone to put on your radar! She’s 6-0 and touches 10-0. She could be moving up as she continues to progress. Taylor Williams, Vision 16 Gold – Williams is a valuable six-rotation outside for Vision. She’s long and wirey with a solid swing. She has definite upside to her! Cleo Hardin, Vision 16 Gold – We’ll be seeing more of Hardin down the road. This 6-2 outside has next level written all over her. She can let loose when she’s in the front row and adds a different dimension to the Vision offense. 17 Open Eva Travis, Tstreet 17 Naseri – We have lift off! Travis hits like she’s jumping off a trampoline. She’s 5-10 but touches 10-2 and absolutely explodes on the attack. She was a big reason Tstreet picked up its bid this weekend. Claire Little, Coast 17-1 – This 6-2 five-star recruit is committed to BYU. Because of

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