What New or Improved 16s Squads Turned Heads At MEQ?

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>What is exciting for me when coming to MEQ (besides the breadsticks at Kilroys and the reuben sandwich at Kilroys) is getting a chance to see teams I don't always get to see often in the Midwest.&nbsp; Or the Midwest teams that I am familiar with getting a chance to show the country what they are capable of.&nbsp; Here are five teams that I saw a big improvement from the last time I saw them take the court, proved they are among the top squads, or made a statement in the 16 Open Division at MEQ.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Adidas KiVA 16 Red </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":306552,"width":290,"height":193,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/01/DSC09306.jpg?w=1024" alt="[player_tooltip player_id='274410' first='Addison' last='Makun']" class="wp-image-306552" width="290" height="193"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='274410' first='Addison' last='Makun']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The kids from Louisville are such a tough matchup.  They have so many weapons, but above anything else is their relentless defense and tempo they play with.  They actually started the tournament with a three set win over FC Elite 16 Navy which could have gone either way and had losses to Boiler Juniors and Michigan Elite.  It wasn't always smooth sailing.  However, they caught fire starting with a win over A5 and Union to finish day two and didn't look back.  Their championship match was a battle which came down to a matter of points, defeating host Circle City 25-23 and 28-26. <strong> [player_tooltip player_id='198544' first='Isabela' last='Haggard'] </strong>is a really dynamic athlete where she can set, swing, and defend. There aren't a lot of athletes at the 16s level who are as well rounded as Haggard. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='274410' first='Addison' last='Makun']</strong> out of the middle is rising as one of the top middle blockers in the Class of 2025.  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/PrepDigChris/status/1636705314236948480?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/PrepDigChris/status/1636705314236948480?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Adrenaline 16 Doug</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Adrenaline comes out of Cedar Rapids, Iowa and when I saw them seeded 32 in the field, I had a feeling they would be turning some heads with the type of athletes they have on this team.  <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215385' first='Chloe' last='Meester'] </strong>will be a highly recruited outside hitter in the Class of 2025 where she is long, athletic, and extremely terminal as a 6'2 six rotation outside hitter.  Another extremely dynamic athlete is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215389' first='Sydney' last='Maue']</strong> who is a left handed right side where she is touching extremely high, a definite fllyer.  I saw her in the high school season, again at the Iowa Top 250, and this past weekend and each time she takes the court she continues to get better.  This will be a team to watch throughout the qualifier season.  The Iowa Class of 2025 in general is extremely deep. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Colorado Juniors 16 Shannon </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":351142,"width":282,"height":188,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/03/DSC01249.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-351142" width="282" height="188"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Sayer</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I saw a lot of these athletes compete at the Colorado State Tournament this past November and when I saw the combination of athletes I knew this would be a team to watch all season.  They may not have the height of their 17s team, but wow - the athleticism is real.  <strong>Erika Sayer</strong> in the middle is touching extremely high and is a fast twitch middle that plenty of college coaches are going to be watching.  She is a really tricky matchup with how she can score off one foot and can score in so many ways.  <strong>Avery Gibbs</strong> is another middle blocker for this team who has an absolute hammer.  She can thump on ten foot line where she can hurt someone.  And when she gets a chance off one foot - forget about it.  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>EliteVBTC 16 Black </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I had no seen this team play at all before day three of MEQ.  On day one, they had a rough finish losing 25-23 and 25-8 to A5, but day two was all about Elite going 3-0 with wins over Boilers, Colorado Juniors, and Adversity.  This team has a lot of great balance all around, but I was really impressed by their two middle blockers in<strong> London Johnson and Kylie Sharp</strong>.  If this team can be in system, run their quick tempo, and get these middles involved they are a really tough matchup for anyone.  The speed of middle blockers at this level is at an elite level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CUVC 16 Beast</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":351143,"width":360,"height":240,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/03/DSC01293.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-351143" width="360" height="240"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='178225' first='Jumana' last='Martin']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Carolina Union comes out of Charlotte, North Carolina and being based out of the Midwest I don't always get a chance to see these teams from the Southeast Region.  This is a really fun team with so many positive intangibles and a very positive parent group that was fully engaged, very supportive of their team.  This team advanced to day three of gold pools before running into Milwaukee Sting 16 Gold and Michigan Elite 16 Mizuno.  <strong>Maria Nix i</strong>s an outside hitter who brings a big arm, she packs a punch with her swing and has a ton of athleticism.  Another hammer of an arm comes out of the middle with <strong>Caroline Noonan</strong>.  She doesn't need much of a window to get solid hand contact on her swing where she can find the deep corners to score points.  Another athlete who is actually familiar to me is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='178225' first='Jumana' last='Martin']</strong>.  Martin is the younger sister to Florida Gator Kennedy Martin where the Martin family was in Wisconsin the past two years while their father Ruvell Martin was on staff for the Green Bay Packers. Jumana was an All Tournament Team pick for FC Elite 15 Navy in 2022 when they were runner up in the 15 National Division.  She is going to be a 2025 libero to keep tabs on with her ability to read, anticipate, and has a very quiet and controlled platform.  She could be big time. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->