Top Players to Watch from 16U Teams in Junior Nationals
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No open teams in this bunch. Two National teams and a total of nine teams in this age group, four more than in the 17U Division. Premier Edge will play in the Freedom Division but they are a club from…
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Continue ReadingNo open teams in this bunch. Two National teams and a total of nine teams in this age group, four more than in the 17U Division. Premier Edge will play in the Freedom Division but they are a club from Delaware. Beach Elite Black (National), Beach Elite Red (American) as well as East Coast Volleyball Club Black (Freedom) play in the Old Dominion Region. Below are some of the top players from the five teams in the Chesapeake Region competing in the 16U in Chicago.
Highlights
Metro (National)
General Info – They had some rough luck in the Open Division Qualifiers. Middle of the pack finishes that kept them from earning an open bid. In their most recent tournament they earned a third place finish in the JVA Summerfest. They are due for something big.
How They Qualified – They won the Chesapeake Regional Qualifier to earn the National Division bid.
Top Players to Watch – Prep Dig came out with their class of 2025 National Rankings. 6″2″ setter Isabelle Bardin Isabelle Bardin 6'3" | S Flint Hill | 2025 State #121 Nation VA (108) and 6’0″ middle/left side Leni Stanton-Parker Leni Stanton-Parker 6'0" | OH Langley | 2025 State #116 Nation VA (100) were the two players from this group to make the top 115. Isabelle has the ability to both hit and set so she stays right side to give the team some offense. Metro does not normally leave setters to play in the front row but Isabelle is one of those rare exceptions. Leni brings the flexibility to hit left side or middle. At this point her best position is middle where she only needs to rely on her athleticism to block or put the ball to the floor on a quick set. She brings an approach jump that reaches 10’6″.
At 6’1″ Madison Smith Madison Smith 6'1" | OH Homeschool | 2025 State VA has grown an inch or two from last year. She uses more of the court and appears to have some extra juice on the ball when she hits. When Leni moves to middle the smaller Baylee Doolan Baylee Doolan 5'8" | OH North Hagerstown | 2025 State VA plays left side. Metro uses her as a defensive specialist when not playing left side. At 5’8″ she brings a good vertical and consistently puts the ball to the floor.
At right side Jada Aksu Jada Aksu 6'0" | RS Georgetown Day | 2025 State VA brings some pop and enthusiasm to the court. She stands 6’0″, swings lefthanded and comes in for setter Ryan Hicks Ryan Hicks 5'11" | S Broad Run | 2025 State VA in the front row. Libero Evie Huang Evie Huang 5'6" | DS/L Flint Hill | 2026 State VA belongs to the class of 2026 but can hang with the 16s. She brings a good serve, passes well and knows where to play on defense.
Finally, lots of depth and length fill the middle with the 6’5″ Caitlin Johnson Caitlin Johnson 6'5" | MB Freedom | 2025 State VA and the 6’2″ Kristen Moore Kristen Moore 6'2" | RS Virginia Academy | 2025 State VA plugging the holes with their blocks. The 6’2″ Sierra Evans Sierra Evans 6'2" | MB John F. Kennedy (MD) | 2024 State VA is another option.
Highlights
Paramount (USA)
General Info – They fell just short of qualifying for the National Division with a second place finish in the Chesapeake Qualification Regional. In the Windy City Qualifier they finished 21st out of 32 teams while playing in Open. In their most recent tournament, the JVA Summerfest they also played in Open and finished 32nd out of 36 teams.
How They Qualified – In the Sunshine Qualifier they finished second out of 64 teams in the USA Division.
Top Players to Watch – Love their libero Sadee Gedse Sadee Gedse 5'6" | DS/L Oakton | 2025 State VA . She is so consistent in the back row, passing nails, hustling down balls and making the plays to put her team on the offensive. She comes in for two very strong middles in the 5’10” Simone Schaefer Simone Schaefer 5'11" | OH Riverside | 2025 State VA and the 6’2″ Brianna Holladay Brianna Holladay 6'2" | MB Riverside | 2025 State VA . These two are adept at hitting the quicks and putting up solid blocks. All three players fall within the top 20 for the class of 2025.
Setter Claire Mo Claire Mo 5'10" | S Langley | 2026 State VA belongs to the class of 2026. She set as a frosh for Langley, where they advanced to the Class 6D Regional finals. Sharing the setting role with her is Abigail Litonjua Abigail Litonjua 5'9" | S West Potomac | 2025 State VA . Don’t be surprised to see either one set a 5/1. Abigail hits lefthanded, a nice attribute for the right side.
Paramount comes at you with two lethal pin hitters. First, teams have to contend with the length of 6’0″ left side Zoe Ryu Zoe Ryu 6'2" | OH Georgetown Day | 2025 State VA . She gets good arm extension on her hits giving her the ability to hit the ball high off the blocks. Second, comes the smaller Adriana Perodin Adriana Perodin 5'9" | OH Riverside | 2024 State VA , who stands just 5’8″ but brings terrific velocity to her hits. Adriana belongs to the class of 2024.
Highlights
Blue Ridge (American)
General Info – In the Advanced Event System local rankings Blue Ridge sits at number one in the Chesapeake Region. They have beaten all the top teams in their region and Beach Elite Black from the Old Dominion Region. In the only qualifier they entered Blue Ridge finished 9th out of 60 teams in the USA Division of the Northeast Qualifier. Without a doubt, this team will surprise a lot of people.
How They Qualified – A third place finish in the Chesapeake Regional Qualifier, where their only loss was against Metro.
Players to Watch – Possibly the two most talented players are from the class of 2026. Kennedy Spaid Kennedy Spaid 5'11" | OH James Wood | 2026 State VA ranks number one from that class. The 5’11” left side plays all six rotations. As a frosh she led her high school James Wood to the Class 4 Virginia State championship, leading the team in kills. Second on the team in kills was Brenna Corbin Brenna Corbin 5'5" | DS/L James Wood | 2026 State VA , who only stands 5’5″. She plays libero for Blue Ridge. There may not be a player who covers more court than Brenna.
Ada McCoy Ada McCoy 5'11" | OH Musselman (WVA) | 2025 State VA gives Blue Ridge a potent one/two punch from the left side. Another six rotation player who plays for West Virginia State champion Musselman. In total Blue Ridge has four players on their roster who play for state champions, with Musselman setter Kendall Watcher the fourth player.
The 5’11” Ava Dickerson plays middle like an outside. She doesn’t bother with the quick sets. She hits the two sets and goes left or right without being blocked. A tough player to contain even when you know she is being set.
Highlights
MVSA Sparks (American)
General Info – They have done well in the tournaments they have played in, finishing in the top ten. A ninth place finish in the Northeast Qualifier out of 87 teams in the Liberty Division attests to their strong play.
How They Qualified – They finished fourth in the Chesapeake Regional Qualifier, earning them a Freedom bid. It was reallocated up to American.
Players to Watch – The left handed swinging Ema Djordjevic Ema Djordjevic 6'0" | OH Richard Montgomery | 2025 State VA is the player all the teams key on. Rarely does she hit against one block. The 6’0″ left side sometimes moves to the right side to hit, where her lefthanded swing can do more damage. The USA national team has invited Ema to multiple NTDP training sessions. Ema plays all six rotations.
The 5’11” Jordyn Palazzo Jordyn Palazzo 5'11" | OH Watkins Mill | 2025 State VA plays the other left side. She often gets overlooked as teams key on Ema for the back row attack. Jordyn can also put the ball to the floor with a powerful righthanded swing. Caroline Kaye Caroline Kaye 6'1" | MB Richard Montgomery | 2025 State VA is a 6’1″ middle that sweeps in for the quicks when teams focus too much on the outsides. She also covers a lot of territory with her blocks, moving fluidly from pin to pin. If they can get Corinne Howard Corinne Howard 5'11" | MB Richard Montgomery | 2025 State VA off the basketball courts she is a fun player to watch. She can dominate the game from the middle or the outside.
Finally, the Sparks have two quality back row players in Kareena Rathnam Kareena Rathnam 5'3" | DS/L Winston Churchill | 2025 State VA and Sherry Ye Sherry Ye 5'3" | DS/L Winston Churchill | 2025 State VA . Kareena can string together points with a bullet serve that teams find a challenge to pass.
Virginia Juniors (Freedom)
General Info – They played in the USA Division in the Northeast and Mideast Qualifiers. In the Northeast they had an impressive 9th place finish out of 60 teams. Not so impressive in the Mideast with a 52nd finish out of 96 teams. In the latest tournament, the JVA Summerfest they claimed the 29th spot out of 36 teams in the Open Division.
How They Qualified – It did not look good after they finished fifth in the Chesapeake Regional Qualifier. MVSA got bumped up from Freedom to American and Virginia Juniors got a reallocated Freedom bid.
Players to Watch – Alexis Ewing Alexis Ewing 6'3" | OH Bullis | 2025 State VA is the daughter of professional basketball player Patrick Ewing and Cheryl Weaver, who played on the U.S. national volleyball team. Tremendous potential exists for the 6’4″ left side hitter who reaches close to 11 feet with her approach jump. Once she gains confidence in her ability she has the potential to rise to the top of the 2025 class.
Other pin hitters who can make a difference include Destini Pickett Destini Pickett 5'10" | OH Forest Park | 2025 State VA , Racquel Frazier Racquel Frazier 6'1" | OH St. Johns | 2025 State VA , Angelique Desamours Angelique Desamours 5'9" | OH bullis | 2025 State VA and Zoe Strachan Zoe Strachan 6'0" | RS Forest Park | 2024 State VA . With Alexis filling one of the left sides, these four players share the other three pins. Destini stands out as the best back row player of the group but stands just 5’8″.
The 5’6″ setter Megan Phan Megan Phan 5'7" | S Bullis | 2026 State VA is the lone class of 2026 player on the roster. She sets a 5/1 for Bullis High School, the same school attended by Alexis. For Virginia Juniors they run a 6/2 to accommodate all their pin hitters. Daisy Pentorn Daisy Pentorn 5'9" | S Arundel | 2025 State VA is their second setter.