There are different ways at looking at an event like the Sunshine Classic. One way is coming off the Triple Crown weekend two weeks ago and with no events in between, the opening day here in Orlando could feel like somewhat of a letdown. On the other hand, the results on the first day of Triple Crown didn’t really matter to those in power pools and the same couldn’t be said at Sunshine.
Plenty of hopefuls arrived aiming for one of the three available Open bids in the 16s and 17s division and of those 48-team fields, already half have been eliminated. One of the most entertaining and toughest pools on Day 1 came In Pool 1 for 16 Open.
It featured nationally-ranked teams in No. 24 GP 16 Rox, No. 26 Academy 16 Diamond and No. 32 Metro 16 Travel. That’s a brutal pool for the first day and it was Academy Diamond paying the price by going 1-2 and missing out on moving on. GP went 3-0, while Metro went 2-1.
Not all was well for another No. 1 seed in their respective pool in TVC 16 Black. Coming off its third-place finish at Central Zone in early February, No. 35 TVC was the No. 5 overall seed but fell to STVA 16 Mizuno and Mobile Storm 16 Nat Black won’t be advancing.
Those were the only two No. 1 seeds in their pools not to advance. Both No. 41 Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal and No. 25 Vision 16 Gold both went 2-1. Tribe was upended by No. 22 AZ Sky 16G while Vision was topped by No. 30 HJV 16 Elite.
Vballrecruiter’s top-ranked team in Legacy 16-1 Adidas, as well as No. 2 Skyline 16 Royal, No. 3 Mintonette Sports m.61, No. 10 Arizona Storm 16 Thunder, No. 13 WPVC 16 Armour Black, No. 14 A5 16-1 Gabe, No. 34 TAV Houston 16 Adidas and No. 47 Team Indiana 16 Elite all went 3-0.
In 17 Open, only one No. 1 team in its pool was eliminated from bid contention. That was No. 30 HPSTL 17 Royal. The Gateway Region club went 1-2 on Saturday with losses to Tx Performance 17s and USA South 17 Premier Purple. Another higher-seed not advancing is No. 13 Metro 17 Travel, which finished in a three-way tie at 1-2 with No Name 17 Sarah and Mintonette Sports m.71. Mintonette earned the tiebreaker to move on as the No. 4 team.
Nationally-ranked No. 21 Madfrog 17 Green and No. 28 Sky High Adidas 17 Elite both went 2-1 as a No. 1 team and finished second. Excel 17 National Red, ranked No. 7 nationally, also went 2-1 as a No. 1 team but still won its pool.
Ranked teams going 3-0 on Day 1 included No. 2 Arizona Storm 17 Thunder, No. 8 Skyline 17 Royal, No. 9 Legacy 17-1 Adidas, No. 10 Tribe 17 Elite Cardinal, No. 15 TAV 17 Black, No. 17 Circle City 17 Purple, No. 23 OT 17 Aaron, No. 33 Triangle 17 Black and No. 37 GP 17 Rox.
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There was plenty of action to get through in the Open divisions as the Sunshine Classic kicked off Saturday at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando. Coming off covering both Tour of Texas stops, Central Zone and Triple Crown, we turned our attention on Day 1 on teams and players we have yet to cover and/or write about. You can see those who stood out the most to us below with our Day 1 Show Stoppers.
DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS
Isabelle Bardin S/RS Metro 17 Travel: A 3-star Purdue commit, Bardin plays a vital role for Metro. While the team finished 1-2 and failed to advance, she was dynamic in her play setting and hitting. She’s a smooth disher with nice hands. She’s also a heady attacker who sees the court well.
Lydia Chinchar RS No Name 17 Sarah: Chinchar – a 5-star recruit from the Class of 2027 – is playing up two age groups but you wouldn’t know unless you checked. She has a strong arm, a wide range of shots and is relentless on the attack.
Mattea Casale L/DS No Name 17 Sarah: Another Purdue commit, Casale is a 3-star L/DS who brings a lot of tenacity and presence to the back row. She reads and reacts well and is a sound passer out of serve receive.
Ella Duong OH Vision 17 Gold: Duong is a bit undersized on the outside but she’s a fun player to watch regardless. She’s a quick jumper with a fast arm and she’s fearless in attacking the block.
Emelyn Stettin S/RS Sky High Adidas 17 Elite: Stettin – a Baylor commit – is a two-way contributor. She does well delivering a hittable ball while also being a factor with her scoring prowess.
Alexa Haley L/DS PVA 17-B: A Florida Gulf Coast commit, Haley helped PVA go 2-1 and remain in the hunt for a bid. She plays under control and stays calm in tight situations, as well as putting the ball on target out of serve receive.
Mariyana Cardwell RS Wildfire 17 Open: Cardwell is a high-flying lefty who can entertain at times with her ability to send one down in impressive fashion.
Addison Pollock L/DS Wildfire 17 Open: A 3-star Penn commit, Pollock brings a lot of fire to the defensive side of things. She does well extending rallies and keeping her team in the point.
Nenu Kpea MB Madfrog 17 Green: Kpea was holding it down in the middle on both sides. She brings athleticism to the position. She moves well and does a nice job getting touches at the nt.
Greer Chambless OH Excel 17 National Red: Chambless – a Cal commit – was getting after it on the outside. She has a solid arm and wasn’t go right at blockers and tooling consistently.
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Asia Harvey OH 575 17-1 Ella: A 5-star Missouri commit, Harvey has the wow factor. She can get up and do things other hitters simply can’t. The way she can go wrist-away at such a sharp angle is a nightmare for defenders to cover.
Averie Summerlin S/OH H2 STL 17 UA: We really liked Summerlin’s versatility. She’s a strong setter with a clean release who locates well. She can also hit across the front row, as well as line up and block out of the middle.
Anne Makowski OH H2 STL 17 UA: Makowski was unleashing at times. When the opportunity presented itself, she didn’t hold back and showed she can really connect and let it fly.
Karis Sullivan RS Jupiter Elite 17E: It was a tough day for Jupiter Elite in going 0-3. Still, Sullivan stood out with her offensive play. The lefty right side is a key part of the offense who takes a lot of swings and provides a scoring punch.
Victoria Hill OH GP 17 Rox: A 3-star Appalachian State commit, Hill was lighting it up at times. She’s an athletic outside with a quick jump and quicker arm who can bring the heat.
Kayla Ostovar L/DS Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar: Ostovar did her part as Beach finished 2-1 and moved on. She’s a vocal defender who doesn’t flinch or back down against big hitters.
Maya Flemister MB Elevation 17 Peak: Flemister has a presence in the middle for Elevation. Though the team finished 0-3 on the opening day, she made a mark with her blocking and attacking and providing Elevation with a scoring option when she was front row.
Nadiya Johnson RS Metro 16 Travel: A 5-star recruit, Johnson gets way, way up on the right side. She’s still figuring it out some and she’s going to be downright scary when she does, but in the meantime she can still hammer it straight down.
Natalie Langston OH Academy 16 Diamond: Langston, a 3-star recruit, has a heavy arm and can put it on defenders in a hurry. She a steady scoring option and delivers her share of kills.
Ava Wilkerson MB Academy 16 Diamond: Another 3-star recruit, Wilkerson’s size and length in the middle change the make up of the front row when she’s in. She has a solid arm and when in system teams need to be ready to try and stop her.
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Camille Huff MB LAV 16 National Black: Huff is an under-the-radar middle. She’s an effective scorer, plus she moves well at the net and can make an impact blocking.
Jenna Hunt MB Vision 16 Gold: Hunt is another different maker in the middle. The 3-star recruit can make defenses pay with her ability to score. She also puts up a solid block.
Eva Smith MB Triangle 16 Black: Continuing with are standout middles is Smith. She has a lot of upside. Her length in the middle can be a big disrupter at times blocking. She can also hit over blocks without much trouble.
Simisola Elliott MB AVA TX 16 Adidas: Elliott’s strength comes from her speed and quickness. She can get up and swing before blockers are in the air and that gives her a real advantage.
Emory Harper OH AVA TX 16 Adidas: Harper was showing off a powerful arm. She was taking big, hard swings on the outside and producing pounding kills.
Gabby Emch L/DS A5 16-1 Gabe: A 3-star defender, Emch just gets the job done. She’s a stoic libero who is calm under pressure and knows how to put the ball on target.
Brylee Moore OH Arete 16 Navy Telos: Moore – a 3-star recruit – can bring the goods on the outside. She has a lively arm and when she catches on, watch out because it’s coming in hot.
Molly Drake OH Jersey Jrs 16 National: Drake – a 6-4 outside – is a presence on offense. She shoulders quite the load and does well handling the responsibility. She can go right over blocks at times.
Jillian Young S CUVC 16 Open: Young is fun to watch guide the attack and move the ball around. She has a soft touch and sets a clean ball. She also can keep defenses guessing with her choices.
London Adkins MB GP 16 Rox: Adkins can be an influence on both sides of the ball. She puts up a wall of a block and can really hype of her teammates when delivering a resounding roof.
Elle Mottola S WPVC 16 Armour Black: With Mottola guiding the attack, WPVC went 3-0. The 4-star setter has great touch and placement and puts her hitters in nice situations.
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Amelia Mancino OH WPVC 16 Armour Black: A 3-star outside, Mancino is a bit undersized but has a strong arm and the smarts to back it up with.
