PD Champions Cup - 17/18s All Tournament Team

Heading into the 17/18s Division of the Champions Cup there were multiple teams who made a case to take the title. Wisconsin Flight 18 Black took home the title with a 20-18 third set win over I AM VBC 18 Red. There were plenty of standout athletes across the division, but here are some that rose to the top.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/PrepDig/status/1632492647687282690?s=20 </div></figure>   Emma Barton - WI Flight Elite 18 Black   Middle Blocker   Barton was extremely dynamic all weekend where she found multiple ways to score points.  I had seen Barton play before and have seen video, but this weekend really showed all the different ways she can contribute.  She's long and athletic with a high contact point.  Barton will be heading to UW-Stout where she could be a really nice impact player in the ultra competitive WIAC, one of the top D3 conferences in the country.    [player_tooltip player_id='149603' first='Alexis' last='Jonas'] - WI Flight Elite 18 Black   Setter   Jonas had a big championship match against I AM VBC where she found favorable matchups for her attackers and is pretty crafty with what she can do offensively.  She is able to keep the other side of the net off balance with how she is pretty deceptive offensively.  Even the small hesitations by the defense are enough for Jonas to find the deep corner or hold the defense to get a set to any of her attackers.    [player_tooltip player_id='119430' first='Caitlyn' last='Pernsteiner'] - WI Flight 18 Black   Outside Hitter   The future Lakeland University athlete had a big weekend where she showed her power from the pin.  Pernsteiner is another one who is very dynamic and can get it done from multiple positions in the front row.  She has a heavy swing and makes it tough for the other side of the net to get a clean pass in system.  Her performance in the championship was big, especially when they won the third set 20-18 against I AM VBC 18 Red to claim the title.    Izzy Jahr - Elite Alliance 17-1   Middle Blocker   Every time I saw Jahr approach and jump, I just said “Yep, there it is”. Jahr preps at Holmen High School out of the La Crosse area and I really think she could be a steal at the next level. Extremely physical and athletic, Jahr has a huge upside from really any position in the front row. She is extremely athletic where she can make a lot of positive plays for her side of the net. Elite Alliance is a scrappy team with a lot of fun athletes, they've always been a gold contender in Prep Dig Events.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/PrepDigChris/status/1632421415130394624?s=20 </div></figure>   Jennacy Wille - I AM VBC 18 Red   Outside Hitter   I haven't been able to see if Wille is committed anywhere, but she would be a really nice pick up where she could contribute as an outside hitter or ds at the collegiate level.  I was extremely impressed with her serve receive and defense over the weekend as well as someone who can score points from the outside and backrow.  She had a great career at Port Washington and was a big time player in the North Shore Conference.  She's electric and is also very efficient with how she can contribute in so many different ways.    Audrey Rosenbaum - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] 18 White   Outside Hitter   Rosenbaum is another 2023 athlete who could be a nice pick up at the next level.  She is long, athletic, and strong where she is a key point scorer for [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] 18 White.  She packs a punch with her swing and can handle her own in the backrow.  [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] 18 White had a really strong weekend before losing to WI Flight 18 Black in the semifinals.  There are plenty of dynamic athletes on this team where they are sneaky good.    [player_tooltip player_id='211464' first='Ella' last='Schumacher'] - 262 Attack 17 Savage   Outside Hitter   Absolutely electric, Schumacher is a key six rotation outside hitter for 262 Attack.  She is a junior out of Sussex Hamilton that is a high flyer on the pin.  262 had a tough quarterfinal loss to I AM VBC 18 Red after defeating them in a crossover on Saturday.  Schumacher was a key piece to their success over the weekend.     Brooke VandeHei - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] Flyers 17 Navy   Libero   The ball doesn't hit the floor very easily for the [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] Flyers 17 Navy squad where this team is comprised of mainly Luxemburg-Casco athletes. VandeHei is an All State libero who has quite a range and makes a lot of difficult plays look routine. She was one of the top liberos in the entire gym. Her counterpart in the backrow is Payton Kaminski who is another top tier defender for this team. They will wear teams down with their defense and clean ball control where they always seem to find their way in system.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/PrepDigChris/status/1632086529433563136?s=20 </div></figure>   Jacinda Bennett - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] Flyers 17 Navy   Right Side   Bennett is a 6'2 lefty who has shown great improvement for Flyers where she had some big time stuff blocks and was efficient with her heavy swing on the right side.  She is a tough matchup where she was able to neutralize the opposing outside hitter with her block.  Her teammates get fired up when she can score points and get the block at the right time.     [player_tooltip player_id='445365' first='Jillella' last='Smit'] - FDL Fusion 17 Purple   Setter/Right Side   Smit was cool, calm, and collected all weekend for Fusion where she is able to run a 5-1 or can run a 6-2 and swing from the right side. She was extremely dynamic with her play all weekend for her team who advanced to Gold Bracket play. Some of her top attackers were Kali Krumenauer, Averie Suprenand, and [player_tooltip player_id='122513' first='Addisyn' last='King']. This team is in line for a trickle down bid for USAV 17s Division. Smit preps at Fond du Lac High Schoolw here she has collected nearly 1500 assists with another season left.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/PrepDigChris/status/1632212010199908355?s=20 </div></figure>   Honorable Mention   [player_tooltip player_id='159655' first='Elise' last='Uphoff'] - WI Flight 18 Black    [player_tooltip player_id='119428' first='Mikaela' last='Marquardt'] - I AM VBC 18 Red    [player_tooltip player_id='178378' first='Alicia' last='Burgos'] - I AM VBC 18 Red   [player_tooltip player_id='149057' first='Grace' last='Rochon'] - I AM VBC 18 Red   Molly Frost - 262 Attack 17 Savage   Kathryn Fischer - 262 Attack 17 Savage   Miranda Schmidt - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] Flyers 17 Navy    Grace Graf - FVP 18 National    [player_tooltip player_id='91926' first='Elayna' last='Christensen'] - FVP 18 National    Kennedy Koehler - [program_tooltip program_id='428659' first='Wisconsin' last='Blaze'] 18 Black    [player_tooltip player_id='184804' first='Anna' last='Kudick'] - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] 18 White   [player_tooltip player_id='193021' first='Paige' last='Bosetski'] - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] 18 White   Jenna Soerens - I AM VBC 17 Red    Bryanna Kleuss - [program_tooltip program_id='428591' first='FC' last='Elite'] 17 Blue   Averie Suprenand - FDL Fusion 17 Purple   [player_tooltip player_id='122513' first='Addisyn' last='King'] - FDL Fusion 17 Purple   Kali Krumenauer - FDL Fusion 17 Purple   [player_tooltip player_id='178383' first='Sydney' last='Hoeft'] - I AM VBC 18 Red   [player_tooltip player_id='233106' first='Ava' last='Nault'] - [program_tooltip program_id='428659' first='Wisconsin' last='Blaze'] 18 Black   Natalie Bystol - [program_tooltip program_id='428641' first='Shawano' last='Storm']

Heading into the 17/18s Division of the Champions Cup there were multiple teams who made a case to take the title. Wisconsin Flight 18 Black took home the title with a 20-18 third set win over I AM VBC 18 Red. There were plenty of standout athletes across the division, but here are some that rose to the top.