Champions Report: SVA 16, Oly Reign 15, KC Thunder 15
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The West side of the state featured two Presidents Day weekend tournaments and three local squads walked away with the champion’s hardware in separate divisions. At the NW Juniors Presidents Weekend, Seattle Volleyball Academy 16 took home first place in…
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Continue ReadingThe West side of the state featured two Presidents Day weekend tournaments and three local squads walked away with the champion’s hardware in separate divisions. At the NW Juniors Presidents Weekend, Seattle Volleyball Academy 16 took home first place in the 18U Division, and KC Thunder 15 Blue went undefeated to win the 15’s title. It was an Oly Reign party in the 16U Division at the NPJ and WVBA President’s Day Tournament, with the Oly 15 team coming out on top over the 16’s team. Here are several impact players who helped their teams to big wins last weekend.
SVA 16 is a team that will beat you with skilled, athletic players at every position, volleyball IQ and competitive spirit. They wont ever win the height contest, but what they will do is play to their strengths, remaining low error while staying aggressive throughout a match. The team will face a challenging Open 16 Division at PNQ at the end of March.
SVA has Terry soaring out of the middle, and it’s not unusual for the super bouncy attacker to crush a ball at the 10-foot line to start a match. She will set the tone early, establishing the middle as a must-defend position. Setter Maya Quitiquit makes it a priority to get Terry attempts, opening up the rest of the offense for SVA. Her quickness and vertical set her apart along the front line, Terry is up and blocking easily on time against opponents running the middle.
Highlights
Strom is a serve-receive machine, locating her passes accurately and on time. When she is passing medium to medium-fast balls to her setters, SVA speeds up the offense to their athletic attackers and creates huge seams in the block. Strom will cushion a hard swing to keep the pass low and off the net, and her platform is quiet and calm when she plays.
Oly Reign 15 currently stands at 4th in the PSR Power League 16U standings. This team is talented and developing at a rapid pace. Having a tournament win to build up confidence should continue to propel the squad forward to a great season.
Destiny Mars
Destiny Mars
The Timberline freshman has been patrolling the right side primarily for the Reign, and she has the quick arm and excellent blocking skills to make it work. Versatile enough to attack from the outside as well, Mars has good footwork getting herself off the net in transition. Quick off her feet, she will put up a strong block on the right side, hustle in transition to be available, then whip a cross-court kill with a compact, efficient swing.
Kinley Smith
Kinley Smith
Smith is a 2027 who is already a difference-maker for her Oly Reign team. Strong from the service line, she puts excellent pace on the ball and her serve will eat up the back row if she gets on a run. On the outside she has a smooth arm swing and a good approach, she will terminate a point when given the opportunity. A player to watch!
Ellie Johnson Ellie Johnson 5'7" | OH Olympia | 2026 State WA is an exciting, athletic outside for the Oly Reign 15. She has a vertical that lets her play a high flying, attacking style offensively. She moves around the court effortlessly, and is a hard working defender in the middle back.
Johnson Highlights http://www.hudl.com/v/2KTygm
Lalie Betschart Lalie Betschart 5'6" | DS/L Tumwater | 2026 State WA gives the team a two libero backline, even if she isnt wearing the jersey. An excellent server as well, Betschart is all grit and hustle defensively. http://www.hudl.com/v/2KTzCs Betschart Highlights
Aubrey Roseberry
Aubrey Roseberry
Roseberry is all over the court and has a great read for tips and off-speed shots. She runs right through, playing the ball up accurately for her teammates to set. Roseberry attacks as outside and opposite when she isn’t setting and has a good arm and a well-developed array of shots for a 2026 prospect. As a setter, she is very solid, with the good feet to get to a tough pass and the hands to throw a well-located set to the pins. Constant talk and communication are not something you always see from a freshman, Roseberry is excellent in that extremely important facet of the game.
She has an excellent connection with her middle Hadley Potts, an excellent defender and growing offensive threat with terrific length.
Musser has good size for a young outside hitter and is already cutting the ball to the angle when she attacks. Her hands are strong when she blocks, and she will attempt to swing for the corners when given an open seam. Ellensburg looks to be in a very good spot with an excellent group of athletes representing the Bulldogs on this KC Thunder team.
Other standouts include setter Sarah Stueckle, attacker Lydia Simmons, and spark plug libero Ashlee Shilley.
The KC Thunder 15 team has been building towards a breakthrough tournament. Solid showings at the Evergreen Region Power league playing in the 16U Division, and a third-place finish at the NE Juniors MLK Tournament laid the foundation for the Presidents Weekend win. The team only goes none players deep, with everyone having to make a big contribution to a victory. Rolling to a 9-0 record overall, the Thunder were pushed by a game SIVA team to a three-set final match. After dropping their first set of the tournament 23-25 in the second set of the final, KC rallied for a final set 15-11 victory.