Nationals On Deck For Kansas 18s

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Girls 18u Junior National Championships are here! The next chapter will look different for thousands of volleyballers and this weekend brings a close to a chapter that included years of traveling and building relationships with their teammates. Here are the teams coming from Kansas to Ohio.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Open</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One team from Kansas earned an open bid in 2023 and that would be <strong>Mavs KC 18-1. </strong>They took care of business early in the year with a championship at MLK. They would go on to play well enough to qualify in a few more tournaments as the season progressed. Well rested, they could be in the hunt for a title as the fourth overall seed. [player_tooltip player_id='150076' first='Betsy' last='Goodenow'] has been great from the right pin all year and the addition of [player_tooltip player_id='120010' first='Sawyer' last='Thomsen'] has paid dividends. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>National</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two bids emerged from the Heart of America (HOA) Power League and they went to <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] 18 Elite</strong> and <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='Power'] 18 Black</strong>. [program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] wasn't too far off from grabbing a bid in Kansas in January with a fifth-place showing. They also competed well at Triple Crown, finishing 21st. The middle combination of [player_tooltip player_id='150075' first='Jaya' last='Johnson'] and [player_tooltip player_id='171295' first='Elinor' last='Engel'] complements each other well. As the twelfth overall seed, they were tabbed for Pool 6.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='Power'] 18 Black showed they were still a team to contend with in 2023. They finished just ahead of [program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] at MLK. A mixture of new and returning faces was key in keeping the team steady over the season. Pin Ashlyn Bellamy was a good addition to the team and setter Sydney Draper ran the offense smoothly. They will be the top seed in Pool 5. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>USA</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A very dangerous <strong>Topeka Impact 18-1 </strong>team will be in the USA Division in Pool 3. They grabbed their bid early in the qualifying season at the Northern Lights Qualifier. They also had a good showing at Triple Crown, ending up 35th. We know [player_tooltip player_id='120008' first='Brooklyn' last='DeLeye'] is a monster but they've also received good play from [player_tooltip player_id='120044' first='Taylor' last='Russell'] at the net. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Liberty</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='432164' first='Fight' last='Club'] 18-1</strong> was another team who knew their national status early in the year after winning the Liberty division at MLK. [player_tooltip player_id='120021' first='Payton' last='Benoit'] is a high-level defender and [player_tooltip player_id='122207' first='Maliyah' last='Johnson'] can fill it up from the left pin. They will start play as the sixth overall seed. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Florida was good to <strong>Mavs KC 18-3</strong> as they traveled to the sun and returned with a bid. When play kicks off Friday you can find them in Pool 5. Karsyn Stehlik and Jessi Ritchhart are a couple of players to name. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] 18 Black</strong> had a rebuilding year with players moving on to college early but accepted the challenge and will find themselves as the third overall seed in the division. Brooklyn Young is a dynamic middle who can affect the games in many ways. Brynne McGhie has been strong in the setter role.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>American</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The third team from the Mavs family, <strong>Mavs KC 18-2 </strong>will be the lone state representative in this division as they picked up their bid from the region. [player_tooltip player_id='152173' first='Rachel' last='Bingham'] has been good on the right side and [player_tooltip player_id='171296' first='Raven' last='Boone'] is a difference-maker in the middle. They will be the top seed in Pool 13. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->