Northern Lights Qualifier Preview 17s

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Qualifier season is officially here for the 17s and Minneapolis has no shortage of teams ready to bring home the first bids to their regions. Here are the Kansas and Missouri teams taking aim for a spot at nationals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Open</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Well, I said I was going to back off on my pressure of <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] 17 Black</strong> this season. It didn't last long as the second overall seed will have targets on their backs all season. We haven't done our preview yet of this team but we know they are loaded across the board with [player_tooltip player_id='119226' first='Carlie' last='Cisneros'] and [player_tooltip player_id='119707' first='Skyler' last='Pierce'] as six rotation pins. [player_tooltip player_id='154039' first='Reese' last='Messer'] is one of the top setters in America. [player_tooltip player_id='153930' first='Abigail' last='Mullen'] plays up on this team and has developed into a nice six-rotation pin herself. This year [player_tooltip player_id='119704' first='Cy' last='Rae Campbell'] is playing with her age group for the first time in years. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pool 3 features <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 17 Elite</strong>. We just talked about them yesterday in our 17s club previews. Their team has pretty much stayed intact for the last few years with a few additions and subtractions. [player_tooltip player_id='153929' first='Maya' last='Witherspoon'] plays up and holds her own well. [player_tooltip player_id='153933' first='Jordan' last='Smith'] is another player who plays up and provides good size to the front line. The team is in good shape with dynamic setters Morgan Dumm and [player_tooltip player_id='124219' first='Alyssa' last='Nelson']. They will be the second seed in their pool behind a strong Nebraska Premier team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Pohaku 17-1</strong> is making a run in the open division and will be in pool 4. [player_tooltip player_id='119718' first='Ava' last='Spachek'] is one of the better pins in the city in this age group after having a good year at St. James. [player_tooltip player_id='152833' first='Riley' last='Ourth'] and [player_tooltip player_id='119689' first='Ava' last='Martin'] are two plays we also feel you need to keep an eye on heading into the weekend. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction</strong>: [program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] gets their bid and walks away top dog.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>USA</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sevens pools are the game plan in the USA division. <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] 17 Blue</strong> will be in pool 1. They went 3-4 in the 17 club division at MLK in Kansas City. [player_tooltip player_id='261101' first='Addisen' last='Horn'] and [player_tooltip player_id='154036' first='Geneva' last='Musolf'] are a couple of the many names to know. The highest-seeded team from our coverage area will be <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 17 Navy</strong> in pool 6, where they sit as the top team. They had a strong showing in Gateway [program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last=''] League. [player_tooltip player_id='216428' first='Aaliyah' last='Elliott'], [player_tooltip player_id='207275' first='Megan' last='Skaggs'], [player_tooltip player_id='150041' first='Madison' last='Swehla'], [player_tooltip player_id='207282' first='Lily' last='Schnuck'], and [player_tooltip player_id='124223' first='Laila' last='Person'] have been killing it too. :)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SKC 17-1 </strong>is in pool 3 and is an up-and-coming team. [player_tooltip player_id='172456' first='Fisayo' last='Afonja'] is a talented player who will take her talents to Brown after high school. Defender Hallee Shepherd is a standout in the back row. <strong>Invasion 17 Black</strong> will be in pool 7. We discussed their team earlier today in our club preview and their third-place finish in the 17 club grouping in Kansas City a couple of weekends ago. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Prediction:</strong> [program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 17 Navy will succeed and grab a bid. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>Liberty</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] 17 Gold</strong> has the second seed in pool 1 entering the tournament after a 5-2 showing in the 17 club division in Kansas City. In the same position in the next pool, you will find <strong>Club North Mizuno 17 Jessen</strong>. Tatianna Murray is an explosive middle to keep an eye on after a strong season for Platte County. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mavs 816 17-1</strong> made the HOA [program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last=''] League and will make the journey to Minnesota starting off the action in pool 4. Eva Dominguez and Gabriella Morgan are a couple of talented players on this roster. <strong>Mavs 816 17-2</strong> decided to carpool and join the action with their sister team and will be one pool away to start the tournament. They went 5-3 in the MLK tournament. Londyn Cage has looked good on the right side and Kinsley Patton and Elise Lewis have shown they can be key players. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>417 Juniors 17-1</strong> draws a high seed and will be on top of pool 6. [player_tooltip player_id='150036' first='Reagan' last='Baade'] and [player_tooltip player_id='124850' first='Rilynn' last='Finley'] are household names to know. <strong>Mizuno Club North 17 Ang</strong> gets the number one seed in pool 7. [player_tooltip player_id='216471' first='Autumn' last='Erickson'], Jarangelie Ayala, and company should be in the mix for a bid. The final pool will house <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last='']' last=''] 17 Elite</strong>. [player_tooltip player_id='150069' first='Fiona' last='Vandyke'] had a good high school season and will be key to this team's success this weekend. [player_tooltip player_id='124217' first='Gretel' last='Robbins'] and [player_tooltip player_id='152837' first='Lauren' last='Croom'] should be factors as well. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2>American</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We have quite a few teams heading north for bids in the American division. We won't be able to go into great detail but here is what we have to start off. <strong>417 Juniors Columbia </strong>will be on top of pool 4. We highlighted their team today in our 17s club preview. They went 4-4 in Kansas City at MLK. <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last='']' last=''] 17 National</strong> will be in pool 5 as the second seed.<strong> Mizuno Club North 17 Ana </strong>is the top seed in pool 7. Pool 9 will feature <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428884' first='Kansas' last='United Volleyball'] 17-1.</strong> They were 4-3 over the MLK weekend. <strong>Summit Volleyball 17-1</strong> will be in the mix coming from pool 10. <strong>Adidas Legacy Jrs. 17-1</strong> will round out the bunch in pool 12. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->