GJNC Heart of America 15 USA, Freedom, and American

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We look at the teams from the Heart of American region set to compete in the 15s division in USA, Freedom, and American at the upcoming Girls Junior National Championships.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">USA</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='432164' first='Fight' last='Club'] 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='432164' first='Fight' last='Club'] will enter the dance after earning their bid at the Northeast Qualifier. They walked away with the championship after going 9-0 over the weekend. [player_tooltip player_id='222564' first='Brooklyn' last='Benoit'] is a player to keep your eye on as she looks to fill up the stat sheet from the pin.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']'] 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A second-place finish at Show Me put [program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']'] 15-1 into the postseason after a competitive season. They finished out the qualifying season going 4-4 at Lone Star. [player_tooltip player_id='357545' first='Jade' last='Xu'] is a good prospect after having a strong debut season at Emporia. A setter to check out is [player_tooltip player_id='355651' first='Neely' last='Leathers'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mizuno Club North 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>15 Sam had a busy spring getting game action in between qualifiers and tournaments. Their bid came courtesy of a third-place showing at Show Me. They had a couple of runs trying to get Open bids at Sunshine and Windy City. [player_tooltip player_id='219763' first='Peyton' last='Liming'] is a 2025 who plays on this team and really broke out halfway thru the high school season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Freedom</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Midwest Blitz 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Freedom bids come from region allocation and Blitz was able to get one of the two after region bid play competition. They completed an 8-0 weekend taking down Central Missouri in the finale. For good measure, they had a 9th place performance at Show Me in the American division in April. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='430559' first='Central' last='Missouri Volleyball Club'] 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As mentioned above, CMVBC are here after a good run at the region bid tournament. They went 7-1, dropping only three sets along the way. They attempted to get American bids in the qualifying rounds and had a couple of 9th place finishes. [player_tooltip player_id='357622' first='Sophie' last='Verslues'] is a standout in the libero jersey. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">American</span></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>417 Juniors 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>MEQ was good for 417 Juniors where they walked away where they walked away with their national ticket. They completed a 10-1 weekend. They were active this season playing in numerous tournaments and qualifiers to stay sharpened. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] grabbed their bid in their own backyard at Show Me in April. They were the tournament champions going 10-0. [player_tooltip player_id='261112' first='Lauren' last='Fenemore'] is really good defensively for this team and is one of a few defenders who gets the offense in motion. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Mavs KC 15-2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mavs KC 15-2 were able to get their bid in their regional competition after a few teams upgraded their bid. This is why we always say finishing your tournaments strong are important. They only dropped one match at regionals and should be able to compete well in this division at Nationals. [player_tooltip player_id='355660' first='Alyssa' last='Gray'] is a pin I remember watching at regionals who can score all over the court. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Invasion 15-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rounding out the bunch is Invasion 15-1 who also benefited from the trickle down to earn a spot. They finished 4th in regionals just ahead of Mavs KC. They will rely on the tandem and connection between [player_tooltip player_id='357616' first='Kamryn' last='Kinnenkamp'] to [player_tooltip player_id='357615' first='Piper' last='Bahr'] to make a splash. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->