MEQ Championship Sunday – What’s the Bid-ness in 17 Open?
One of the biggest tournaments of the qualifier season has come and gone. Some of the biggest names in the country put it all out on the line in Indianapolis. All for the hopes of grabbing their bid for the…
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Continue ReadingOne of the biggest tournaments of the qualifier season has come and gone. Some of the biggest names in the country put it all out on the line in Indianapolis. All for the hopes of grabbing their bid for the USAV Girls Junior National Championships in Chicago this July.
Coming into the 17 Open competition, we had three teams with their tickets already stamped for the GJNC in July, Metro, Dynasty and Triangle. With them, a slew of 17 National bids, including the MEQ Champs, Colorado Juniors.
Let’s check out the bid-ness in 17 Open this weekend at the Mid-East Qualifier.
17 Open
WOW! If you were looking for some of the best volleyball in the country, duking it out, you needed to be here! Both of the semi-final games went the distance and both matches could’ve went either way. Some of the biggest names of tomorrow, each and everyone, proved just why.
Colorado Juniors managed to scrap their way out of the brawl that was their semi-final game against Triangle. I had front row seats to this one, I couldn’t take my eyes off of this court. Between the booming swings, the soul-crushing blocks, the sprawl out digs. It was everything. This match was everything! Both Colorado and Triangle just ooze athleticism and are blessed with some serious height, it was a great match.
You’d think after a match like this, Juniors would be pretty fatigued going into the ‘ship. Quite the opposite. En route to their bid and eventual Mid-East Qualifier Championship, this crew was relentless. After making pretty quick work of Dynasty in the first set of the championship, Dynasty tried to fight back, but couldn’t contain the power. Colorado went an impressive 10-0 on the weekend with some pretty big names on their slate.
Runner-up Dynasty had another great outing here as well. Double-qualified now with this placement, this was another team that had a pretty smooth road to the the ‘ship going 9-1 on the weekend overall.
As touched upon, this championship match could’ve easily seen Triangle in the mix. Another double-qualifying team, this crew left it all out on the court during the semis versus Colorado. It was a block party for both sides. Ashlyn Philpot and company were relentless and it all came down to who could outlast the other. Such a great weekend for this team, going 8-1.
Lastly for 1st Alliance, this team managed to snag their ticket to USAs in July, placing third in the tournament. Their lone loss coming into the final was against fellow final four squad, Triangle.
Another bid was thrown out this weekend, given the trickle down, Boiler Juniors and Pohaku had to duke it out for the last bid. Juniors came out victorious in this one, just edging out the Hawaiian based team in a 15-12 decision in the third.
17 Open Final Four Dream Team
Kiarrah Horne – 6’3 OH – Triangle
Paityn Chapman – 6’3 OH – Colorado Juniors
Abigail Mullen – 6’3 OPP – Dynasty
Marae Reilly – 6’1 MB – Colorado Juniors
Jada Ingram – 6’0 MB – Dynasty
Izzy Starck – 6’2 S/OPP – Colorado Juniors
Ava Falduto – 5’6 L – 1st Alliance