2023 GJNC’s Overachieving Teams: 17 Open

Let's bring some 17 Open teams into the mix.   Earlier, we covered some 16 Open teams that performed above and beyond their initial seeding at USAV Nationals. Some teams find a new gear late in the season or perform best on the biggest stages, and these features are for them. Since I jumped around between the 16s and 17s during my stay in Chicago, it's only fair to bring the "overachievers" series to 17 Open.   Here are the breakthrough teams that caught my eye.     SCVC 17Roxy   There's no doubt about this one. It's the national champs!   SCVC 17Roxy, representing the Southern California region, started GJNC as the 11th overall seed and the #2 seed in 17 Open's first pool. Aside from a narrow three-set loss against Colorado Juniors, SCVC roared through the rest of its opening pool with four sweeps--including over top-seeded Dynasty 17 Black. This was a legit contender.   The good times rolled into Round 2 as 17Roxy was reseeded to the #1 spot in the division. A big comeback was required to dispatch OT 17 T Aaron, but SCVC's clutch factor emerged yet again. A sweep over Pohaku put 17Roxy in the crossover round.   A bracket spot was assured after SCVC took care of Triple Crown champion NKYVC in straight sets.   Like the Round 2 match against OTVA, 17Roxy needed some incredible resilience to fight through the bracket. SCVC dropped the opening set against TAV before rallying back to earn a quarterfinal victory. The same template applied in the semifinals, as 1st Alliance dominated the opening set but watched as SCVC forged a response to win in three.   On to the finals. Dynasty 17 Black was back on the menu. These two pool partners rehashed old memories and, fittingly, went the distance in a three-set thriller. In the end, the California challengers would not be denied.   Outside hitter Kendall Beshear garnered much-deserved 17 Open MVP honors. Her ability to score at will was nearly unparalleled. She rips the cover off the ball while still finding ways to place it in indefensible seams and angles. What a week.   Sarah Hom and Taylor Deckert joined Beshear as all-tournament honorees. Collectively, this group has helped bring California back to the forefront of the club volleyball conversation. The Golden State is letting up anytime soon, of course.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1677029557856075776?s=20 </div></figure>     Metro 17 Travel   Metro has always flashed the potential to be a serious title competitor. It almost happened, too.   17 Travel started as the 16th seed at the #3 spot in Pool 4. Metro promptly took that seeding and ran away for first place. Four consecutive sweeps to start the tournament put everyone on notice. The DC-area team was serious.   From there, Metro fell to Momentous in Round 2 but picked up a win against Premier Nebraska to advance.   This is where we get to what was perhaps the match of the tournament. Metro was slated to play a winner-take-all challenge match against WAVE 17-Julianna. WAVE had been absolutely shredding through the tournament at this point and had not dropped a single set in the first two rounds. 17 Travel changed that, however, with a 25-22 win in the first.   The teams went back and forth as WAVE responded to win the second, 28-26. A dramatic, emotional tiebreaker ensued as Metro eventually pulled the upset of the tournament with a 16-14 win. Bring on bracket play.   Things didn't get easier as Metro was tabbed to play Dynasty 17 Black in the quarterfinals. That matchup was about as tense as the WAVE contest, but Metro came up just short in this one by another 16-14 score line.   Few players at GJNC had a bigger impact than outside hitter Emerson Sellman. The Ohio State commit earned all-tournament honors after putting together some of the greatest individual performances we saw all week. Libero Mailinh Goschall joined Sellman on the all-tournament team after locking down the end line throughout GJNC. Of course, we can't forget about the twin duo of Renee and Ryla Jones that made Metro's frontcourt among the most intimidating in 17 Open.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1676678358984278017?s=20 </div></figure>     Miami Hype 17N Emilio   The giant slayers were at it again.   Miami Hype 17N Emilio started to capture some attention back in February with a shocking Triple Crown NIT bracket victory over Dynasty 17 Black, the defending champions of the event. The team has seemingly made these upset victories a calling card of its success, and that trend continued at GJNC.   17N Emilio joined the 17 Open fray courtesy of an at-large bid and was seeded 20th overall in the field. These unlikely underdogs immediately put their stamp on the 17 Open race with a 4-1 record in the opening round to finish second in the group. It all started with a statement victory over NKYVC as Miami Hype added another colossal victory to its year-long tab.   In the following wave, Miami Hype scored a monumental win over Vision that eventually served as the team's ticket into the challenge round. 17N Emilio fell just short against a talented TAV team but left little doubt about the worthiness of that at-large bid.   This squad gets so much from its middle blockers. Izabella Molina and Jacqueline Taylor surely could have earned all-tournament honors if Miami Hype had broken into the final bracket. Julia Lewkowitz and Sarah Schnell are two more athletes to keep an eye on, and this club surely won't be overlooked anymore.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1676586751874179077?s=20 </div></figure>     SG Elite 17 Roshambo   Another SoCal team makes the cut.   SG Elite 17 Roshambo started GJNC in the #4 slot of Pool 2, which equates to the 23rd seed overall. What followed was a remarkable defiance of this seeding and another incredible set of results thereafter.   A tough matchup awaited SG Elite right out of the gates, and the California team was defeated by #2 overall seed A5. But an extraordinary turnaround followed as 17 Roshambo pieced together four consecutive victories to finish 4-1 in Round 1 and assure a spot in the next wave.   Fate decided that SG Elite would reside in a Round 2 pool featuring two more Southern California Region representatives: COAST 17-1 and Mizuno Long Beach 17 Rockstar. A long gauntlet ensued as SG Elite went the distance with both of its neighborly foes. Two remarkable three-set wins closed out SG Elite's run to the challenge round.   Though 17 Roshambo fell just short of the final bracket, the team made a lasting impression on Chicago onlookers. Superstar setter Taylor Yu has long been the catalyst for this team's success at prominent events like GJNC. Sophia Wolfson was impressive in the middle, as was outside hitter Gabrielle Destler. Next-level impact is a sure bet on this roster.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1676635987428929536?s=20 </div></figure>     AVC CLE 17 Red   There's just something about AVC 17 Red in McCormick Place.   I immediately think back to early April, when 17 Red made a heroic run to a 17 Open bid at Chicago's Windy City Qualifier. It was a weekend in which AVC's intensity, competitive fire, and fundamentally sound volleyball were squarely in focus. Those traits would make a return trip to McCormick Place for GJNC, and the big wins kept rolling in.   17 Red was seeded 35th in 17 Open--the penultimate seed in the 36-team field. The Ohio Valley crew was placed in Pool 1 featuring the eventual tournament champion and runners-up. That didn't stop AVC from making the next round.   AVC's Chicago breakthroughs have been anchored by dynamic pin attackers like Julia Sprecher and Alexa Strandberg. We've also watched Avery Anders take a huge step forward at the libero spot, allowing 17 Red's offense to run at maximum efficiency.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/KingsleyATK/status/1676254571365113856?s=20 </div></figure>

Let's bring some 17 Open teams into the mix.