Club Team Spotlight: OJVA 18-1 Gold & OJVA 17-1 Gold

OJVA 18-1 Gold The OJVA 18-1 National team is filled with lots of 2022 talent. Head coached by Kalani Efstathiou and assisted by Kasey Schlatter, this team is poised to do very well in the region. This group is filled with only one new OJVA addition, so most of this group has been playing with each other since 15U. Having performed very well together at CEVA Regionals last season, finishing #2 in the region, it will be exciting to watch them compete for their final club season. Recently, the team attended the Music City Qualifier in Nashville, where they finished an admirable 15th in the top 18 Open division. [caption id="attachment_140526" align="alignleft" width="90"]<img class="wp-image-140526 " src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/04/Megan-X-Laila-e1642901717247-141x300.png" alt="" width="90" height="191" /> Photo: Coach[/caption] SETTING The only new OJVA athlete to this team is setter [player_tooltip player_id="91233" first="Laila" last="Leaks"] {pictured}, the Mountain Valley Player of the Year. Having previously played club for NPJ, she is coming into this club season tasked with running the offense as the lone setter on the roster. So expect Leaks to be running a 5-1 most of this season, if not the entire season.     [caption id="attachment_159188" align="alignright" width="194"]<img class="wp-image-159188 " src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/09/emily-w-action-260x300.png" alt="" width="194" height="224" /> Photo: Fanta Mithmeuangneua[/caption] FRONT ROW The front row for this team is absolutely stacked, with no position short of offensive power. On the pins they have #1 2022 recruit [player_tooltip player_id="91205" first="Emily" last="Warmenhoven"] {pictured}, the recent 6A Player of the Year and Belmont University commit, and Washington athlete Tyra Schaub, Gonzaga commit. Both are expected to take on a good amount of the offensive load. In the middle, they will be bolstered with size, rostering 6’3” middle blockers [player_tooltip player_id="91207" first="Tess" last="Masingale"], a three-year varsity starter at Jesuit High School, the Metro League Player of the Year, and a Cal Poly commit, as well as [player_tooltip player_id="91209" first="Sophie" last="Scott"], a four-year varsity starter at Catlin Gabel who is returning to the court after rehabbing a serious knee injury, and a recent Cal Berkley commit. They also have leftie [player_tooltip player_id="116494" first="Jaydan" last="Sahlin"], who can play in the middle or on the right side, and middle blocker [player_tooltip player_id="91237" first="Rayna" last="Reynolds"]. [caption id="attachment_165518" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-165518" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/11/untitled-38-e1636948246592-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Photo: Hunter Newton[/caption] BACK ROW With three incredibly talented primary passers on the team, they are not short of talent there either. [player_tooltip player_id="91211" first="Maisie" last="Alexander"], the three-time libero for Jesuit High School and recent Notre Dame commit, [player_tooltip player_id="91214" first="Hannah" last="Nguyen"] {pictured}, a three-year varsity starter for Jesuit High School and recent Harvard commit, and [player_tooltip player_id="91229" first="Sophie" last="Biehler"], a four-year varsity starter at Tualatin High School, are all in the running for the libero spot. OJVA 17-1 National The OJVA 16-1 National team was so dominant last season, finishing #1 in the CEVA Region and 5th at AAU Nationals. This team has now become the OJVA 17-1 National team. They will be returning all but four athletes to the team, and have added a few other studs. Sharing coaching duties for this team are Steve Suttich and Jeannette Lee, and I would not be surprised if this team was able to reach the same level of dominance as last season. This past weekend the team competed in the 18U Division at the Matt Hartner Memorial Classic and won the whole thing! [caption id="attachment_138703" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-138703" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/04/mia-starr-action-shot-serving-150x150.png" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Photo: @ssvisualworks[/caption] SETTING The team looks to [player_tooltip player_id="91309" first="Mia" last="Starr"] {pictured} to run the offense and has been doing so since 12U. Running a 5-1 or a 6-2 with [player_tooltip player_id="91330" first="Grace" last="Wollmuth"] (although given her height, she could step into an attacking position). Starr comes off an excellent high school season with the Central Catholic High School Rams, who finished 4th in the 6A State tournament, sharing setting duties with 2022 [player_tooltip player_id="91212" first="Lauren" last="Stemple"]. [caption id="attachment_176136" align="alignright" width="214"]<img class="wp-image-176136 " src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/01/mia-fedota-actionm-e1642903249927-253x300.png" alt="" width="214" height="254" /> Photo: Seth Colner[/caption] FRONT ROW The front row of this team is an incredibly impressive one, loaded with D1 talent. Their pin hitters bring size and power, with [player_tooltip player_id="91306" first="Sophie" last="Gregoire-Salagean"], the #1 2023 recruit and a recent University of Oregon commit, and Lauren Dreves, a top Washington 2024 prospect. Both are rarely seen off the court, playing all six rotations (watch out for the BIC from these two). The middle blockers on the roster are [player_tooltip player_id="91357" first="Mia" last="Fedota"] (a new addition to the team, playing on 16-2 last season) and [player_tooltip player_id="91273" first="Morghn" last="Monahan"] (2022 Hawaii Pacific commit) put up big blocks and take big swings. They also have [player_tooltip player_id="91328" first="Sofia" last="Cooper"], a utility player that can attack from anywhere, and a Mt. Hood 1st Team All-League, who was the starting middle blocker for Central Catholic High School. [caption id="attachment_137321" align="alignleft" width="150"]<img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-137321" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/03/elsa-action-shot-150x150.jpg" alt="" width="150" height="150" /> Photo: Kenny Nguyen[/caption] BACK ROW Their primary libero from last season has returned: [player_tooltip player_id="91335" first="Elsa" last="Mcdermott"]. She spent the high school season for Catlin Gabel as a six-rotation outside hitter. With club season now in full swing, she will be back to honing in her back row play. The team also has defensive specialist [player_tooltip player_id="91349" first="Sidney" last="Knowles"], another new addition to the team.