Nationals On Deck For Kansas 18s
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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…
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Continue ReadingThe 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.
Open
One team from Kansas earned an open bid in 2023 and that would be Mavs KC 18-1. 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. Betsy Goodenow Betsy Goodenow 6'0" | RS St. Thomas Aquinas | 2023 State #92 Nation KS has been great from the right pin all year and the addition of Sawyer Thomsen Sawyer Thomsen 6'2" | MB Free State | 2023 State #145 Nation KS has paid dividends.
National
Two bids emerged from the Heart of America (HOA) Power League and they went to PVA 18 Elite and KC Power 18 Black. PVA 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 Jaya Johnson Jaya Johnson 6'2" | MB Olathe South | 2023 State #116 Nation KS and Elinor Engel Elinor Engel 6'1" | MB Shawnee Mission Northwest | 2023 State KS complements each other well. As the twelfth overall seed, they were tabbed for Pool 6.
KC Power 18 Black showed they were still a team to contend with in 2023. They finished just ahead of PVA 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.
USA
A very dangerous Topeka Impact 18-1 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 Brooklyn DeLeye Brooklyn DeLeye 6'2" | OH Washburn Rural | 2023 State #30 Nation KS is a monster but they’ve also received good play from Taylor Russell Taylor Russell 6'0" | OH Washburn Rural | 2023 State KS at the net.
Liberty
Fight Club 18-1 was another team who knew their national status early in the year after winning the Liberty division at MLK. Payton Benoit Payton Benoit 5'7" | DS/L Wichita Northwest | 2023 State KS is a high-level defender and Maliyah Johnson Maliyah Johnson 5'8" | OH Hutchinson | 2023 State KS can fill it up from the left pin. They will start play as the sixth overall seed.
Florida was good to Mavs KC 18-3 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.
Dynasty 18 Black 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.
American
The third team from the Mavs family, Mavs KC 18-2 will be the lone state representative in this division as they picked up their bid from the region. Rachel Bingham Rachel Bingham 6'0" | RS Shawnee Mission East | 2023 State KS has been good on the right side and Raven Boone Raven Boone 6'0" | MB Gardner Edgerton | 2023 State KS is a difference-maker in the middle. They will be the top seed in Pool 13.