The First Batch of 17s Ready to Take on Vegas

<p>We are still early in the qualifier tournament season. Many of the early tournaments have only consisted of the 18s division. Northern Lights made the change last year to add the 17s into the mix, therefore one Missouri team was dominant enough to grab an American bid in Omaha in late January. Since then, the Heart of America region has concluded their Power League, which means two more teams have earned the right to spend some days in the sun in Las Vegas this summer. Let’s take a look at the teams and some of the players making it happen thus far. For those not as familiar with the national format and divisions we will share in order of what is deemed as the toughest competition level. Open, Nationals, USA, American, and Patriot. Teams do not have to qualify for the Patriot Division</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>National Division</strong></span></p> <p>The national bids in this region emerge from the Power League competition in HOA. You will typically see Open Division teams grab these spots as they proceed in their journey to capture an open bid. Those national bids then trickle down within the region to the next team in line. We have been following these teams this year and we wouldn’t be honest if we didn’t admit we were shocked by who walked away as the Power League champion. We talked about <strong>Dynasty 17 Academy</strong> after their time in Omaha during the MLK Classic and Northern Lights. We weren’t surprised based on talent, as we mentioned they are an open-level team but we thought there were a few teams stronger. However, it comes down to who is playing the best on a given day and Dynasty Academy battled through numerous 3 set matches en route to the top prize. They would finish 8-1 over the course of the two playdates. Uncommitted OH <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="99217" first="Madi" last="Corf"]</strong> was on fire the few matches we checked out, especially a 2-1 win over KC Power. She would be a great grab for a top mid-major program. The team recognized the hot hand and kept feeding her the ball. This takes us to setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="123106" first="Caitlin" last="Bishop"]</strong>. She may be viewed as undersized by some standards but she is the definition of a leader and good decision-maker. She keeps the defenders on the front line off balance by using all of her options and doesn’t settle for the easy play. <strong>Abigail Chambers</strong> continues to shine defensively and brings a lot of spark to this team. </p> <p>Also finishing 8-1 was the runner-up and sister program, <strong>Dynasty 17 Black</strong>. They lost the second head-to-head match up to 17 Academy in 3 to earn their national bid. Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="41799" first="Addison" last="Beagle"]</strong> is still uncommitted and playing good volleyball for this team. Her blocking while in the front row has continued to get stronger and has shown she is more than capable of running a 5-1 in the right program. <strong>Taylor Roberts</strong> has also stood out with her play from the pin. She is a player who could play on either the left or right side in the right system. She has good power behind her swings and also good in the blocking department. Athletic defender <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="105633" first="Jasmine" last="Dulan"]</strong> is a player who can do many things on the court. She is a high riser who we have seen also hit on the left side and set over the last couple of years. As a defender, she is capable of bringing a viable back row attack to a college. </p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>American Division</strong></span></p> <p><strong>Mizuno Club North 17 -1</strong> was looking to upgrade their bid after claiming an American bid at Northern Lights last month. They battled and finished 5th in a loaded HOA Power League. The 5th place included a 6-3 record, with their defeats coming from the hands of Dynasty 17 Academy, Dynasty 17 Black, and 3rd place finisher PVA. During their Northern Lights run they finished 10-0, which puts them 16-4 against some high-quality competition. We are always impressed with walking away from a qualifier with an American bid since typically you have to win the championship to win the one and only bid in play. They will definitely be a favorite to compete for a championship in Las Vegas. They are a complete team with good first contact from uncommitted players like libero <strong>Lia Graham</strong> and defensive specialist <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="119195" first="Rebecca" last="Wright"]</strong>. Both are vocal floor leaders and are pinpoint in their passing. They are scrappy in rally sequences and often give their teams opportunities to steal a point. Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="119201" first="Autumn" last="Kaderly"]</strong> continues to impress and shine with her play. On the pins, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="122726" first="Yanni" last="Washington"]</strong> has shown good spurts, along with <strong>Gracie Painter</strong> who has jumped on our radar. </p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Gateway Region</strong></span></p> <p>They play their bid event in May. </p>