Show Me Qualifier

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

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

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

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

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

The one downside to the opening weekend of the Show Me Qualifier in Kansas City is that it had to end. The vballrecruiter.com team really enjoyed its time there this past weekend. We already released our daily Show Stoppers, featuring the top players we saw in action from Days 1, 2 and 3 (part 1 and part 2) and are Gold Medal Rundown. It brings us to our All-Tournament Team selections, which you can find below. We listed the top standouts in our estimation in each Open division based on our observations throughout the weekend. 15 OPEN OUTSIDES Kylie Kleckner TAV 15 Black Addison West Premier Nebraska 15 Gold Malia Miller Integrity 15 Intense Blue Skylar Jackson Skyline 15 Royal Leah Robinson MAVS 816 15-1 Skylar Brady OP2 15-1 MIDDLES Keoni Williams Skyline 15 Royal Kinsley Young TAV 15 Black Paighton Erb Premier Nebraska 15 Gold RIGHT SIDES Taylor Clarke Skyline 15 Royal Willow Weninger Pohaku 15-1 SETTERS/RIGHT SIDES Danielle Whitmire TAV 15 Black Anna Flores TAV 15 Black Rayna Christianson Northern Lights 15-1 SETTERS Olivia Branum OP2 15-1 LIBEROS/DSs Julianna Hernandez TAV 15 Black Kiley Brooks Skyline 15 Royal *** 16 OPEN OUTSIDES Sydnee Peterson TAV 16 Black Parker Duncan AJV 16 Adidas Bella Ocampo Skyline 16 Royal Mesaiya Bettis Northern Lights 16-1 Anna Jelinek Nebraska One 16 Synergy MIDDLES Natalie Wardlow Nebraska One 16 Synergy Keira Schmidt Northern Lights 16-1 Kennedy Washington TAV 16 Black Claire Anna Brown AJV 16 Adidas SETTER/RIGHT SIDE Logan Parks MAVS KC 16-1 SETTERS Sarah Pfiffner TAV 16 Black Malorie Boesiger Nebraska One 16 Synergy Reese Axness Northern Lights 16-1 LIBEROS/DSs McKenna Garr Northern Lights 16-1 Keri Leimbach Nebraska One 16 Synergy Sophia Armstrong TAV 16 Black Dakota Mitchell Six Pack 16 *** 17 OPEN OUTSIDES Cari Spears TAV 17 Black Lauren Medeck Premier Nebraska 17 Gold Skyler Pierce Dynasty 17 Black Fallon Stewart OT 17 Felix MIDDLES Favor Anyanwu TAV 17 Black Cy Rae Campbell Dynasty 17 Black Ayden Ames Drive Nation 17 Red Mia Tvrdy Premier Nebraska 17 Gold RIGHT SIDES Jadyn Livings TAV 17 Black Abigail Mullen Dynasty 17 Black Grace Carroll Drive Nation 17 Red SETTERS Janelle Green KC Power 17 Black Reese Messer Dynasty 17 Black Malayah Long VCNebraska 17 Elite LIBEROS/DSs Gillian Pitts TAV 17 Black McKenna Brand Skyline 17 Royal Faith Frame Premier Nebraska 17 Gold

The final day of competition of the Show Me Qualifier brought out another level as teams chased bids and gold medals. We already highlighted the first set of our Show Stoppers featuring the ones who caught our attention the most. Below, we present Part 2 of our Day 3 Show Stoppers. DAY 3 SHOW STOPPERS (Part 2) Aspen Nelsen OH Iowa PowerPlex 16 515: Nelsen and teammates were out to surprise on Day 3 and nearly pulled off qualifying. She’s an aggressive, fearless attacker who plays a key role in the attack. Abbey Hayes OH Six Pack 16: Hayes is a lanky outside with the ability to let loose. She has a nice arm and has lots of upside. Ella Rogers S Six Pack 16: Rogers caught our attention with her setting. She showed nice hands and the ability to locate on the regular. Parker Duncan OH AJV 16 Adidas: The 3-star outside was powering the AJV attack. She’s a wirey outside who gets off the floor and has a fluid swing. Claire Anna Brown MB AJV 16 Adidas: Brown was effective in the middle when called upon. She’s a physical hitter who hits a heavy ball and forces defenses to keep track of her. Cari Spears OH TAV 17 Black: Spears – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – and her TAV teammates were lights on Day 3 in winning 17 Open. Spears’ length and athleticism is a nightmare for opponents. When she gets up and unloads it’s game over. Favor Anyanwu MB TAV 17 Black: Favor – a 5-star USC commit – commanded the middle like no else. Her strength and power takes over at the net as she powers down kills and shuts down attacks. Jadyn Livings RS RS TAV 17 Black: Livings – a 5-star USC commit as well – was strong on the right side, as she also passed at times in serve receive. Her blocking was key at the net in slowing down opposing outsides while bringing her big arm to attack. Gillian Pitts L/DS TAV 17 Black: Pitts – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – did it all on the defensive side. She read and reacts well and has great range when it comes to covering. Alea Goolsby OH KC Power 17 Black: A 3-star recruit, Goolsby and KC Power earned an Open and took home the silver medal. She can crush balls at times when she springs off the ground and lets it fly. *** Janelle Green S KC Power 17 Black: A 4-star Cincinnati commit, Green is the sparkplug and leader of the attack. Her quickness is an asset, as she can get turn bad balls into hittable sets and keep KC Power in system like few can. Mya Bolton L/DS KC Power 17 Black: Bolton – a 3-star Michigan State commit – was another defender who took care of business in the back row. She’s a solid passer out of serve receive and is rarely off target. She also does well picking up balls and keeping rallies going. Reese Messer S Dynasty 17 Black: A 5-star recruit from the Class of 2025, Messer was doing what she always does – commanding the offense. She’s a difficult setter to read with a smooth, quick release with great accuracy to boot. Abigail Mullen RS Dynasty 17 Black: Mullen – another 5-star recruit from the Class of 2025 – is such a powerful hitter it seems like she scores every time she swings. She can go through or around blocks and sees the court very well. Cy Rae Campbell MB Dynasty 17 Black: Campbell – a 5-star Wake Forest – is such a difficult cover with her speed and quickness. She runs the slide exceptionally. She gets off the ground in a hurry and has a whippy arm and gave Dynasty tons of offense. McKenna Brand L/DS Skyline 17 Royal: Brand – a 3-star Connecticut commit – was a big part of Skyline qualifying and earning its Open bid. She’s a strong presence in the back row with spot-on passing and lots of range. Lauren Perry OH Skyline 17 Royal: Perry – a 3-star UT-El Paso commit – was an integral piece of Skyline’s success as well. She’s a six-rotation mainstay and is a high-IQ hitter who can score with various shots. Lillian Croshaw RS Drive Nation 17 Red: Croshaw – a 4-star recruit – performed well on the right side. She put up a strong block and also gave Drive Nation points with consistent scoring. Malayah Long S VCNebraska 17 Elite: Long – a 4-star Marquette commit – and VCNebraska were on the edge of qualifying in a strong performance overall. Long has great hands and is very accurate spotting the ball. Mallorie Meyer L/DS VCNebraska 17 Elite: Meyer, a Pitt commit, was yet another backrow standout. She’s a scrappy defender with good first-contact skills. *** Tia Traudt OH VCNebraska 17 Elite: A 3-star recruit from the Class of 2025, Traudt is a six-rotation outside with nice passing skills and a sense for scoring. She’s a heady attacker with a nice arm and helped carried the offensive load. Fallon Stewart OH OT 17 Felix: Stewart – a 4-star Cincinnati commit – was among the outsides bringing the heat. She’s long and her extension makes her tough as she can hit tough angles. A’siya Magazine RS OT 17 Felix: Magazine – a UNC-Wilmington commit – was contributing on the right side with her blocking and scoring. She can get up well and get in the way of attackers. She also has a good arm and was providing a scoring punch. Faith Frame L/DS Premier Nebraska 17 Gold: Frame – a 4-star Cincinnati commit – is a smooth defender with great touch. She covers a wide range of court and moves well too. Lauren Medeck OH Premier Nebraska 17 Gold: Medeck – a 5-star South Dakota commit – is a six-rotation, do-it-all outside. She has a big arm

With the stakes elevated on the final day of the Show Me Qualifier in Kansas City, the play certainly followed suit. There were plenty of impressive standout efforts as athletes laid it all on the line. Below, is Part 1 of the players who stood out to us the most on Day 3 with our Show Stoppers. DAY 3 SHOW STOPPERS (Part 1) Danielle Whitmire S/RS TAV 15 Black: Whitmire – a 5-star recruit – was part of a perfect weekend as TAV ended 9-0 in winning 15 Open. The long setter/right side performs both roles at a high level. She has a smooth release and locates well setting. She’s also an above-average hitter on the right side who earns her team points scoring. Kylie Kleckner OH TAV 15 Black: A 4-star recruit, opponents struggled to slow Kleckner and her powerful arm. Her strength was too much, as she powered through blocks or crushed balls around them as a key piece in the attack. Kinsley Young MB TAV 15 Black: Young – a 5-star recruit – was dominant in the middle. Her physicality showed on both sides of the ball as she delivered resounding stuff blocks or slammed down big swings. Julianna Hernandez L/DS TAV 15 Black: Hernandez – a 3-star recruit – brings a lot of energy to the defensive side. She was passing and defending very well. Keoni Williams MB Skyline 15 Royal: A 5-star recruit, Williams is going to get the ball as much as Skyline can feed her. She’s a force at the net with her length and reach. She can easily go over blocks and score from angles that are tough to defend and cover. Kiley Brooks L/DS Skyline 15 Royal: Brooks was strong in the back row, giving Skyline a defensive edge with her passing and covering. Taylor Clarke RS Skyline 15 Royal: Clarke – a 4-star recruit – is capable of taking matches over with her scoring ability. She can get up and hit hard cross-court angles or turn it up the line and tool blocks, making a very difficult attacker to stop. Skylar Jackson OH Skyline 15 Royal: Jackson – a 3-star recruit – held it down as a six-rotation outside passing and swinging away. She was a key piece of Skyline’s second-place finish as she helped carry the offense in stretches. Willow Weninger RS Pohaku 15-1: A 4-star recruit, Weninger and Pohaku had a strong weekend, finishing third and earning an Open bid. She’s a big part of the offensive and becomes the go-to hitter when she checks in across the front row with her strong arm. Grace Martin OH Pohaku 15-1: Martin was an integral part of the lineup with her passing and attacking. She was going for it with her swings, staying aggressive and challenging the defense to stop her. *** Addison West OH Premier Nebraska 15 Gold: West – a 3-star recruit – and her Premier Nebraska teammates earned the other 15 Open bid. West is a go-to attacker with nice length and extension. Combined with a nice swing, she’s a capable scorer. Kami Dyrstad L/DS Premier Nebraska 15 Gold: Dyrstad was another libero who stood out with her defensive presence. She’s a scrappy libero who was making plenty of hustle plays. McKenna Garr L/DS Northern Lights 16-1: Garr – a 3-star recruit – and her Northern Lights teammates took home the gold in 16 Open with an impressive performance. Garr took care of the back row, passing sharply and defending with reckless abandon. Reese Axness S Northern Lights 16-1: Axness and her hitters were clicking on Day 3. She did well getting them all going and keeping defenses on guard. Mesaiya Bettis OH Northern Lights 16-1: Bettis – a 4-star recruit – brought the punch to the lineup with her ability to get up and send it down. She gets off the ground well and extends nicely, which leads to impressive kills at times. Keira Schmidt MB Northern Lights 16-1: Schmidt – a 3-star recruit – was a presence at the net with her blocking and hitting. She was frustrating opponents who had trouble getting around her big block. The same opponents also struggled slowing her down as she was able to exploit open spaces in the defense. Olivia Cohee RS TAV 16 Black: A 3-star recruit, Cohee had a great day on the right side. She provided valuable offense and helped open the attack by scoring consistently anytime she was front row. Sydnee Peterson OH TAV 16 Black: Peterson – a 4-star recruit – helped TAV reach the championship match and qualify for Open. She carries a powerful arm and was attacking defenses with hard swings. Sarah Pfiffner S TAV 16 Black: Pfiffner – a 4-star recruit – was running the show effectively. She was getting all her hitters involved and showed a nice, consistent touch locating. Lauryn Mack OH TAV 16 Black: Mack – a 4-star recruit – was yet another piece defenses needed to be worried about. She can bring it at times with booming kills and bouncing balls down. *** Sophia Armstrong L/DS TAV 16 Black: Armstrong is a gamer who did well on Day 3. She was passing well and making plays in helping TAV finish second overall. Logan Parks S/RS MAVS KC 16-1: Parks – a 5-star recruit – and her MAVS teammates earned one of the three 16 Open bids with a great day of volleyball. Parks is an athletic two-way player. She’s a strong setter who moves and gets to the ball well. When hitting, she flies and unloads with more than enough pace to punish defenses. Maddie Mitchell S/RS MAVS KC 16-1: Mitchell was a key piece in MAVS’ success as well. She was also playing a dual role setting and hitting. She did well keeping the offense churning when dishing and was also able to provide her share of scoring to help boost the offense. Ashlyn Blazer OH MAVS KC 16-1: Blazer brings height to the

Open bids were awarded across 15, 16 and 17s on Monday at the Show Me Qualifier in Kansas City. Let’s get to it and look at how those divisions played out on the final day of competition. 17 OPEN The most dramatic bid chase played out in 17 Open, and not because second-ranked Dynasty 17 Black, No. 3 Drive Nation 17 Red and No. 4 TAV 17 Black were in the same pool with No. 20 OT 17 Felix. While the volleyball was epic in that pool, Dynasty, Drive Nation and OT already owned bids. It meant all that TAV had to do to qualify was not finish last in its pool, but that was of course easier said than done given the stiff competition. However, once TAV downed Drive Nation in its pool opener, it was looking bright for TAV. TAV clinched its bid by downing OT Felix in its next outing before beating Dynasty to win the pool and eventually sweep KC Power 17 Black for the gold medal. It was OT Felix which kept TAV from qualifying at Sunshine, so there was a measure of payback extracted there. With KC Power wrapping up its bid and winning its pool before playing its final match, it really left all the bid drama to the 3 v 4 contest in Pool 2. That paired Skyline 17 Royal and VCNebraska 17 Elite for a winner-take-all match for the final bid. Both were 1-1 at the time, with the winner moving to 2-1 and guaranteed second place and the last remaining bid. The drama didn’t disappoint, as Skyline finally prevailed in the back-and-forth contest. It was looking dire for Skyline as VCNebraska crept ahead 11-8 in Game 3. But, Skyline went on a remarkable 6-0 run to gain match point at 14-11. VCNebraska stalled Skyline’s celebration for one more point before Skyline closed it out 15-12 and began jumping up and down. It was a big deal for Skyline, which tried qualifying previously at both Sunshine and MEQ but came up short. Show Me wasn’t Skyline’s last chance, but probably its best chance with Lone Star on tap and the difficult field there. VCNebraska coach Blake Rawlins said the club was seeking its first Open bid. KC Power bounced back from a tough time in Indy. KC Power positioned itself to qualify at MEQ by reaching the fifth-place bracket but was eliminated in the first match by Pohaku 17-1. KC Power took care of Pohaku on Day 2 here before upsetting Drive Nation and taking over the No. 2 seed on Day 3. KC Power outlasted Skyline in three sets in its opener before rallying past VCNebraska to move to 2-0. When Premier Nebraska 17 Gold – which was already qualified – fell to 0-2, it meant KC Power clinched the pool before facing Premier. Meanwhile, there was no let up for TAV after clinching its bid. The Texas club turned in one of the best days any teams had this season. TAV entered Day 3 holding a 1-1 mark against Drive Nation and was 0-1 against both Dynasty and OT Felix. TAV not only qualified but showed it’s as good as anyone in the country when it’s on its game. 16 OPEN Much of the bid hunt on Day 3 in this division hinged on Nebraska One 16 Synergy. The top seed in Pool 2 was the only team already qualified and so it was a question of would Nebraska One help create trickle down to fourth place or not? Nebraska One opened with victories over both Skyline 16 Royal and Six Pack 16 to move to 2-0. That assured Nebraska One of finishing in the top four and gave much more clarity to the rest of the results. Once TAV 16 Black beat Skyline in the 2 v 3 outing to also get to 2-0, the bid was clinched for TAV. TAV and Nebraska One then faced off for a spot in the final. It’s always interesting to see how a team performs once it knows it has its bid and TAV deserves a lot of credit for beating Nebraska One and reaching the championship match. TAV faced a match point against at 24-23 in Game 2 but Sydnee Peterson’s stuff block erased it before TAV forced a third set and eventually prevailed in three. However, the day did not belong to TAV. Not in this division. That honor belongs to Northern Lights 16-1, which turned in a big-time performance on the final day to not only qualify, but take home the gold medal after sweeping TAV in the final. The matches in Pool 1 were intense because the teams knew what was at stake and that finishing first and second was likely good enough to qualify considering the strength of Nebraska One in the other pool. Northern Lights earned a key victory right out of the gate by taking down AJV 16 Adidas in straight sets. MAVS KC 16-1 followed by outlasting Iowa PowerPlex 16 515 in three sets before then sweeping AJV. At 2-0, MAVS was in a great spot but could quite count itself qualified just yet. At that moment it was still possible for a three-way tie to occur, but once Northern Lights beat Iowa PowerPlex, both Northern Lights and MAVS could celebrate. It wasn’t quite that simple though as Northern Lights needed a little extra volleyball to get past the pesky PowerPlex squad and win in three, 26-24, 20-25, 17-15. That put Northern Lights and MAVS each at 2-0 and about to play for first place in the pool and spot in the championship game. Northern Lights swept that one. With sixth-ranked Nebraska One and No. 9 TAV the only teams in the Top 10 and Top 20 from our Top 50, I knew Show Me represented a great opportunity for two other clubs to get it done. Northern Lights was actually the third-highest ranked team in the field at No. 26, so