January Thaw 18 Open Features Plenty of Drama

<p><em><strong>Lauren Clark of Minnesota Select 181 goes up for attack against the block of Milwaukee Sting 18 Gold's Karli Graham during a match on Saturday. (Photo by Berk Brown)</strong></em></p> <p>OMAHA – Pressure, drama and intensity were all at palpable levels during competition in the 18 Open division of the January Thaw USAV Qualifier Saturday, and there’s still another day to go.</p> <p>A4, Coast 181, Milwaukee Sting 18 Gold and Minnesota Select 181 all advanced to Sunday’s championship pool where the top two placers will earn bids to the USAV GJNC.</p> <p>A4 is the only team without a loss, but it took some extra effort to stay that way in its final two matches. After beating Club ONE AZ 18 Platinum 25-17, 25-19 to start the day, A4 survived against Coast 181 25-19, 24-26, 16-14.</p> <p>Then, in need of a win over Northern Lights 181 to secure its place in the championship pool, A4 again had to go to a third set and was able to sneak out with a 25-21, 19-25, 17-15 victory.</p> <p>That win for A4 also secured Coast 181’s trip into the championship pool.</p> <p>Meanwhile, in the other pool KC Power 181, Minnesota Select 181 and Milwaukee Sting 18 Gold all finished at 2-1 with Milwaukee Sting winning the three-way tie breaker to advance to the championship pool. Minnesota Select 181 then defeated KC Power 181 25-16 in a one-set playoff to earn the final spot in the championship pool.</p> <p>In the consolation portion of the 18 Open division, 18 MOAB defeated 17 TKO 25-18, 25-19 in a battle between a pair of Nebraska Elite teams. MOAB finished 1-2 on the day while 17 TKO went 0-3.</p>