Ohio Teams and Athletes Among Windy City’s Best

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A lot of success was achieved for Ohio teams and athletes over the past three days in Chicago. Here are some of the highlights.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Mintonette m.51 Wins 15 Open Gold</em></strong><br>This is a juggernaut of a team at this age level. They have a complete package in their various offensive tools, great ball control and defense, and one of the smoothest 15U setters in the country. With a perfect 9-0 record, they lost just two sets on their way to a 2-1 title match win over Austin Skyline, their toughest contest on the weekend. Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227802' first='Mallory' last='Matheny']</strong> (*pictured) is a 5'11 setter that has all the tools to be elite and creates a very challenging offensive display given the range of attackers this team can deploy. At 6'1, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227807' first='Mackenzie' last='Palumbo']</strong> is a big factor on both pins. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227629' first='Alia' last='Schoonover']</strong> is an active middle and makes herself available and relevant often in the transition game, and she is especially dynamic overhead off of one foot. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='192132' first='Sara' last='Snowbarger']</strong> is 5'11 and has really good shot selection that scores and keeps the defense off balance. The defense and ball control is anchored by <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227636' first='Emma' last='Cugino']</strong> who plays with a lot of grit and confidence in her role to initiate their offensive opportunities. This team also won the Sunshine Qualifier while finishing 5th at MEQ.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>AVC CLE Qualifies Two at Open Level</em></strong><br>AVC's 17U and 15U teams both scrapped their way into trickle down position earning the club two open-level bids on the weekend. Playing in the final bid playoff match of the weekend, their 17 Red squad dismantled HJV 17 Elite 2-0 to earn the third available bid among a handful of teams already qualified and among the gold pools on day three. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='139302' first='Sydney' last='Waller']</strong>, a 6'2 opposite, is a big factor as she has point scoring ability and can contribute defensively with a big block. Middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114591' first='Emily' last='Ragon']</strong> competes through an aggressive offensive style and is effective at each contact point around the setter.<br>With two Silver Bracket wins on day three, AVC's 15 Red team earned a trickle down bid as they finished in 8th place overall with six previously qualified teams finishing 1st through 6th ahead of them. They lost their final match to Michio, who also earned an open-level bid. <strong>D'Aira Whitner </strong>is an athletic and physical middle that can do big things when they can get her involved. Pins <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='401341' first='Londyn' last='Stone']</strong> and <strong>Sydney Bowory</strong> provide a lot of offense around the floor as they see a lot of opportunities between the two of them. Stone can generate big pace as Bowory has good contact point. This team is next in action at the end of April in Cleveland. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"justify"} --> <p class="has-text-align-justify"><strong><em>NKYVC 17-1 Tsunami Double Qualifies with Bronze Medal</em></strong><br>This team continues to compete well following their silver medal one weekend following their Atlanta finish. With a similar record at 8-1 in Chicago to earn the bronze podium finish, they had some good wins early over fellow day-three power pool competitors in FC Elite and MAVS KC. MAVS finished strong and tied for third with NKYVC earning their open-level bid. The most significant win of the weekend for NKYVC though may have been against fellow Cincy area rival [program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='Elevation' last='']' last='']' last=''] as NKYVC earned a statement 2-1 win with a 19-17 third set victory to eliminate [program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='Elevation' last='']' last='']' last=''] from the advancing to bid contention on the final day. These teams battle well every time they are on the court together and [program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='Elevation' last='']' last='']' last='']'s star <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114584' first='Elise' last='Marchal']</strong> (Appalachian State), who produced the majority of their offense, did all she could to keep this team close but her final swing was dug cleanly by NKYVC's star libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='107422' first='Elizabeth' last='Tabeling']</strong> (Ball State). Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='107418' first='Macy' last='Lentz']</strong> (uncommitted) dished another dime to pin hitter<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='107423' first='Alivia' last='Skidmore']</strong> (Western Kentucky) who delivered one of several bombs off her arm that [program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='Elevation' last='']' last='']' last='']'s defense could not handle. Skidmore earned the final two kills of the match with big authority as the previous attempt found the floor untouched to set up match point. This win sent NKYVC to the semifinal round where they battled well against Rockwood Thunder (who earned their open-level bid at this event), which ended with a tough 2-1 loss at 15-13 in the third set. With a 42-5 match record for NKYVC stemming back to their NIT gold medal in February, Rockwood has now beaten NKYVC twice during that stretch. Also doing big things for NKYVC was outside hitter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114565' first='Sydney' last='Barrett']</strong> who has a complete arsenal of skills including her ability to score with her arm both at the net and from the service line. Barrett recently reopened her recruiting and is garnering a lot of attention as one of the elite prospects remaining in the 2024 class. Also uncommitted are Lentz and middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='107434' first='Lilly' last='Hamburg']</strong>, both with skills to contribute well at the next level. Lentz with her well-rounded tools and competitive drive and Hamburg primarily through her contributions as a great defender at the net followed by her improving offensive quality around the setter. Indy Cup in May is the next event for NKYVC. [program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='Elevation' last='']' last='']' last=''] will next take the court at the OVR Bid event later this month where they should be among the favorites along with Rock City and Mintonette m.71 in the 17 National division. Keep an eye on libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='114570' first='Kenzie' last='Cogan'] </strong>and middles <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='196364' first='Dakota' last='Spurrier'] </strong>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='239172' first='Kate' last='Noschang']</strong> for [program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431827' first='Elevation' last='']' last='']' last='']. Cogan can make big plays in the back row as Spurrier and Noschang showed signs of scoring capabilities over the Chicago weekend perhaps will see more opportunities going forward to help create a more balanced attack for this team.<br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->