Texas Take Over of PNQ

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Pacific Northwest Qualifier took place last weekend and FIVE, that's right, FIVE Texas teams got a bid for the first time this season. Another two teams qualified for the second time this season. Texas teams really do it best! Below we will talk about those teams who made us proud.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Katy United 17 Adidas - 17 Liberty Bid - Champions</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Katy United 17 Adidas won the 17 Liberty Division after 3 long days of play. The game-winning kill coming from stud outside hitter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='254303' first='Sophie' last='Corbeil']</strong> sealed the deal. Sophie has been getting more powerful by the week and really packs a punch with her swing. She is an unstoppable force once she gets in rhythm. Libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='186678' first='Sophie' last='Ilagan']</strong> took over the backcourt for her team. With tons of energy and communication, she led the way defensively. Setter [player_tooltip player_id='189645' first='Leah' last='Hoss'] dished out the game-winning set off a tough serve, and made very good setting decisions in the championship game. Other big playmakers for Katy United 17 Adidas were <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='177534' first='Makenna' last='Loo']</strong> and <strong>Addison Oglesby</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/SophieCorbeil3/status/1640504092635312130?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/SophieCorbeil3/status/1640504092635312130?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Arete 17 Navy Telos - 17 USA Bid - Champions</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another champion in the 17s division, this time in USA is Arete 17 Navy Telos! This team was on my original watchlist to bring home the gold and they did not disappoint. Outside hitter <strong>Brianna Hamilton</strong> looked stellar all the way around and hit some amazing shots from the back row! Right-side <strong>Madison Mosley</strong> came up huge in the blocking category and made some big blocks at crucial points. The double libero option of <strong>Madison Marshall</strong> and <strong>Anika Malapati </strong>proved to be the right choice as both passers did their job on the back row and allowed their team to stay in system more often than not.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/arete_athletics/status/1640487949295910915?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/arete_athletics/status/1640487949295910915?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">United 17 Purple - 17 USA Bid</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>United 17 Purple secured their USA bid after finishing 3rd in their division. They were offensively very sound and they had several hitters that were on for them over the weekend. Outside hitter<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='312592' first='Ryan' last='Drury']</strong> was bouncing balls from the outside and right side. She seemed unstoppable at times. The 6'2 right-side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='185848' first='Taylor' last='Helms']</strong> joined right in on the smash fest and was phenomenal from the pin. Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='124134' first='Kamrynn' last='Clay']</strong> fed Helms the ball a majority of the time. Setter <strong>Sala Nu'u</strong> had the game-winning ace on a fantastic serve to finish it off. Other huge playmakers were outside <strong>Desiree Beverley</strong>, middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='186236' first='Lusia' last='Langi'],</strong> and libero <strong>Evyn Clark</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/MelisaNuu17/status/1640484548038516736?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/MelisaNuu17/status/1640484548038516736?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Flyers 16 Apx-Jose - 16 USA Bid</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Finishing 3rd in the USA division was Frisco Flyers 16 APX-Jose. A dominant performance by libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='206616' first='Jordyn' last='Wacaster']</strong> helped propel the team to success. Defensively, Jordyn was lockdown all weekend. <strong>Alexis Alley</strong> showed great poise from the setting position, and she was able to find the right hitters at crucial moments. The duo of outside hitters <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='253968' first='Amy' last='Hernandez']</strong> and <strong>Parker Fitzgerald</strong> was solid all the way around over the 3-day span. Amy really showed her athleticism on the front row with her elevation over the block. As a team, they really gelled together to combine for some amazing plays to secure the bid.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/JordynW2025/status/1640511517564235776?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/JordynW2025/status/1640511517564235776?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Austin Juniors 17 Adidas - 17 Open Bid </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was just a matter of time before this team qualified in open. They are stacked in every position. They have size, strength, speed, and agility all the way around. Libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='124160' first='Reese' last='Emerick']</strong> was solid per her usual, but even more so during this qualifier, especially in those final games. Defensively, she just took over the court. Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='124128' first='Savannah' last='Skopal']</strong> spent the weekend dishing dimes to middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='177532' first='Jadyn' last='Wilgus']</strong>. Some other hitters were impressive as well. Middle <strong>Gabriella Spellings</strong> stepped up offensively, blasting through triple blocks and taking heavy swings. Six rotation outside <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='177544' first='Avery' last='Hamlin']</strong> came up big offensively and defensively as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/AustinJuniors/status/1640470348679217152?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/AustinJuniors/status/1640470348679217152?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Other Qualified Teams:</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">AJV 16 Molten - 16 USA Bid - Double Qualified</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">MADFROG 18 NATIONAL BLACK - 18 USA Bid</h3> <!-- /wp:heading -->