MN Select 18-1 Earns 18 Open GJNC Bid in Omaha
It was mission accomplished Sunday afternoon in Omaha, NE for MN Select 18-1 as they finished second in the Gold championship pool, earning one of two bids to the 2018 18 Open GJNC later this season in Anaheim, CA. Following…
Access all of Prep Dig
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingIt was mission accomplished Sunday afternoon in Omaha, NE for MN Select 18-1 as they finished second in the Gold championship pool, earning one of two bids to the 2018 18 Open GJNC later this season in Anaheim, CA. Following Round 2 action four teams advanced to the Round 3 Gold group slated to take place in pool play format.
MN Select finished the day with a 2-1 record as the final match of the event avoided a three-way tie and a playoff, giving them one of two bids on the line. In there first match of Round 3 they faced A4 Volley Purple winning in straight sets with identical 25-19 scores. Their second match was against Milwaukee Sting 18 Gold. MN Select opened up the match with a tight 25-23 set one win before dropping the next two sets 25-14, 15-11 to fall to 1-1 with one match to play. They controlled their final match against COAST 18 1 winning in straight sets 25-9, 25-21 keeping their hopes alive but forcing them to sit with their 2-1 record with one match left in the pool. With Sting at 2-0 and A4 at 1-1, an A4 win would create a three-way logjam. Sting pulled off a three-set win to finish as the Gold champion, dropping A4 to 1-2 and giving MN Select the coveted ticket to the national championship event.
MN Select 18-1 finished the event at 8-2 overall, both losses coming as a result of a three-set battle. MN Select’s roster has great depth and is highly touted, full of both 2018 and 2019 athletes that will advance to some of the nation’s elite NCAA Division I programs at the conclusion of their respective prep careers. Included on this roster are Eleanor Holthaus Eleanor Holthaus 6'0" | S Rocori | 2018 State MN (Rocori HS), Prep Dig’s top-ranked Minnesota athlete in the class of 2018. She is joined by of Prep Dig top five athletes in Grace Persson Grace Persson 6'1" | OH Eden Prairie | 2018 State MN (#4 2018 | Eden Prairie HS), Kayla Bair Kayla Bair 6'1" | MB Prior Lake | 2018 State MN (#5 2018 |Prior Lake HS), and Lauren Clark Lauren Clark 6'1" | OH Champlin Park | 2019 State MN (#3 2019 | Armstrong HS). MN Select 18-1’s full roster is as follows (including future college program):
2018 –
Kayla Bair Kayla Bair 6'1" | MB Prior Lake | 2018 State MN – 6’2 MB | College: Michigan
Eleanor Holthaus Eleanor Holthaus 6'0" | S Rocori | 2018 State MN – 6’2 OH/RS | College: Iowa State
Brynn Paumen Brynn Paumen 6'2" | MB Maple Lake | 2018 State MN – 6’2 MB | College: Missouri
Grace Persson Grace Persson 6'1" | OH Eden Prairie | 2018 State MN – 6’2 OH | College: Michigan
Kari Zumach Kari Zumach 6'2" | OH Buffalo | 2018 State MN – 6’2 OH/RS | College: Creighton
2019 –
Isabella Ashburn – 5’11 S | College: Wisconsin
Lauren Clark Lauren Clark 6'1" | OH Champlin Park | 2019 State MN – 6’1 OH | College: Penn State
Evie Harrington Evie Harrington 5'11" | MB St. Michael-Albertville | 2019 State MN – 5’11 MB | College: Uncommitted
Emma Schmidt Emma Schmidt 6'1" | OH Champlin Park | 2019 State MN – 6’1 OH | College: Northern Iowa
Kaitlyn Weimerskirch – 5’6 L | College: Illinois State
A second bid for the North Country Region was nearly earned as Northern Lights 18 Black was defeated in a well-fought 18 American division championship match. After defeating PVA 18 ELITE, NL 18-B avenged their only loss of the event to that point with a semifinal win over Performance 18 NIKE, advancing them to the final match to face Nebraska Elite 18 Envy. NL 18-B took the first set 25-18 before Nebraska evened it at one set apiece with a 25-19 set two win before claiming the title and the lone bid up for grabs with a 15-13 third set victory. All North Country Region Minnesota U18 results from Omaha include the following:
18 Open
2nd – MN Select 18-1 | 98-2 record; Bid earned)
6th – Northern Lights 18-1 (5-3 record)
9th – Northern Lights 17-1 (6-2 record)
14th – Northern Lights 18-2 (2-6 record)
18 American
2nd – Northern Lights 18 Black (7-2 record)
10th – Northern Lights 18 Red (6-3 record)
13th (tie) – Impact 18 Pink (2-5 record)
19th (tie) – Impact 18 Black (3-4 record)
18 USA
11th – MN North 18-1 (6-2 record)