Up next in the 18s qualifying season is the Salt Lake Showdown. A change from the last couple of years is the 18s splitting off into its own weekend instead of being attached with other age groups. Let’s take a look at 18 Open below, where you can see which teams are already qualified, the nationally-ranked teams competing, as well as 4 and 5-star athletes in the mix.
SALT LAKE SHOWDOWN 18s
Number of Teams: 24
Number of Bids: 3
Previously-Qualified Teams (1): KC Power 18 Black
vballrecruiter.com Nationally-Ranked Teams (7):
- 5. KC Power 18 Black KS
11. Wave 18 Brennan CA
13. SCVC 18 Roxy CA
15. Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar CA
23. Club V 18 Ren Reed UT
36. Momentous 18 Dan CA
39. AZ Rev 18 Premier AZ
5-Star Players in the Field:
- Charlie Fuerbringer S Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (Wisconsin)
Taylor Harvey MB Club V 18 Ren Reed (2025, Texas)
Taylor Deckert SCVC 18 Roxy (2025, USC)
4-Star Players in the Field:
- Janelle Green KC Power 18 Black (Cincinnati)
Isabel Clark OH Mizuno Long Beach 18 Rockstar (San Diego)
Elina Mortensen OH Club 18 Ren Reed (BYU)
Heidi Devers L/DS Dynasty 18 Black (Kansas)
Evan Hendrix OH AZ Rev 18 Premier (TCU)
Jenna Hanes MB Wave 18 Brennan (Michigan)
Amanda Saeger S Wave 18 Brennan (DePaul)
Maya Evens L/DS Wave 18 Brennan (2025, Maryland)
Outlook: There are two storylines that stand out this coming weekend. The first is KC Power chasing its third qualifier victory of the season after already earning golds at the KC MLK and Northern Lights events. Winning two qualifiers is already an impressive feat, but winning three is something very few teams ever accomplish in the same season. KC Power also happens to be the only team in the field with a bid and given its success at the past two qualifiers, there is a strong possibility of KC Power factoring into the top three and creating trickle down to fourth place. Teams are working to make one of the two, three-team gold pools on Day 3. If KC Power can finish in the top three – really top four – it will eliminate the pressure of the third-place match and needing to win that to secure the final bid. The other storyline is the amount of teams playing in their first qualifier. We’ve already had six qualifiers but with them mostly in the Midwest or East Coast, it’s kept the So Cal teams away. That changes this weekend when Wave, Long Beach, SCVC, Momentous, SG Elite and Rancho Valley enter the mix. OJVA is also making the trip from Oregon. Then there is the hometown club in Club V’s top 18s team finally playing in its first qualifier as well.
Prediction: The pick is for SCVC to beat KC Power in the final and denying KC Power its third qualifier victory. That leaves SCVC with one of the three bids. We aren’t predicting anything too crazy with the last two bids, as Wave and Long Beach finish tied for third and both qualify.
