USA and National Division Teams from Kansas and Missouri GJNC

<p>There are many teams in this division many expected to see in the open division this week. A tough qualifier season has these teams in USA and National, which makes them favorites in our eyes to compete for championships.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>USA</strong></span></p> <p><strong>Mavs KC 17-1</strong></p> <p><em><strong>How did they get here? 3rd at Colorado Crossroads</strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Other Notes: 8th in HOA Power League, 4th at Regionals, 5th at Show Me</strong></em></p> <p>The one thing we must say about this team and their coaching staff is they earned our respect. It is often teams who have always labeled their top teams as "open level" teams that keep them in those divisions regardless of the outcome or their talent level. The coaches realized early in the year this wasn’t an open team this year and instead of playing at that level all season, they pivoted to where they can find success, and that they did by earning a trip to nationals. They have high-level players and should be able to spice things up a little in Las Vegas. Setter <strong>Madison Freed</strong> has been key to this team’s success this season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="120079" first="Brooke" last="Leiker"]</strong> and <strong>Jadyn Befort</strong> have been consistent this year. <strong>Vivan Kieffer</strong> is a quick-footed defender. <strong>OH Kellyn McCabe</strong> and <strong>MB [player_tooltip player_id="119193" first="Kaelyn" last="McDonald"]</strong> have been high performers. </p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>National</strong></span></p> <p><strong>Dynasty 17-1</strong></p> <p><em><strong>How did they get here? 2nd Place in HOA Power League</strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Other Notes: 10th Northern Lights, 11th Show Me, 17th at Colorado Crossroads</strong></em></p> <p>Dynasty is a team that has been together for years and hopes to build on this cohesiveness at the national tournament. They are very solid with the first pass with <strong>L Gracey Janes</strong> and <strong>OH/DS [player_tooltip player_id="41818" first="Chloe" last="Kaminski"]</strong> leading the way. Pin <strong>Taylor Roberts</strong> came on as the season progressed with her play along the front row, Middles <strong>Morgan DeBow</strong> and Iyanna Jackson have been a strong presence at the net defensively and have done enough offensively to keep teams honest. Missouri Gatorade Player of the Year Setter<strong> [player_tooltip player_id="41799" first="Addison" last="Beagle"]</strong> has played well and will look to feed pins, <strong>Mikayla Benanti</strong> and <strong>Brylee Peterson</strong>.</p> <p><strong>KC Power 17-1</strong></p> <p><em><strong>How did they get here? Trickle Down after 4th Place Power League finish</strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Other Notes: 11th Northern Lights, 8th Show Me</strong></em></p> <p>Like Dynasty, Power is a team used to open play in their higher age divisions and have a team capable of winning the National Division. <strong>S [player_tooltip player_id="98678" first="Sydney" last="Draper"]</strong>, who as a reminder plays up a year is among the top setters in her class and is the floor general coaches love to have. She has many weapons on the pin starting with  RS and Auburn commit <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="41825" first="Isabel" last="Zimmerman"], </strong>six rotation pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="41813" first="Sydney" last="Handel"]</strong> and Pin <strong>Ashlyn Berning</strong>. The middle play has been impressive this year with<strong> Olivia Mae VanDerWerff</strong> and recent Illinois State pledge <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="105632" first="Lauren" last="Schutter"]</strong>, <strong>L/DS [player_tooltip player_id="105685" first="Kamryn" last="Farris"]</strong> is a lengthy defender with a strong serve game. </p> <p><strong>Rockwood Thunder 17 Navy</strong></p> <p><em><strong>How did they get here? Gateway League Bid</strong></em></p> <p><em><strong>Other Notes: 4th at Sunshine, 23rd Windy City, 23rd MEQ, 9th Show Me</strong></em></p> <p>17 Navy started the year strong with a 4th place finish at Sunshine Qualifier. They went through a rough patch at Windy City and MEQ but are equipped for strong play this week. <strong>MB Anna Sommer</strong> and <strong>OH Caroline Glastetter</strong> are two players who have been on our radars this season. They have impressed me in the matches we’ve been able to capture. <strong>RS [player_tooltip player_id="102447" first="Emmalyn" last="O’Keefe"]</strong> provides a threat from the opposite pin and has shown the ability to get touches and blocks.  <strong>Libero [player_tooltip player_id="41800" first="Nora" last="Belden"]</strong> is among the top defenders in the state. <strong>MB [player_tooltip player_id="102452" first="Kennedy" last="Lane"]</strong> is another middle who has played well. <strong>S [player_tooltip player_id="102453" first="Rachel" last="Schipper"]</strong> does a tremendous job of leading this team and will look to do it well in this final week of play. </p>