HPSTL 17 Royal Gets Second in 17 National

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We highlighted 17 Open in our previous article and the success of [program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last='']' last=''] 17 Black over the years. They aren't the only team to have consistent podium success over the last few years. The St. Louis area High-Performance St. Louis program had a third-place finish followed by a fifth place. They circle the wagons to go 9-2 for a second-place showing in the national division. The national group consists of many teams who play a heavy open qualifier schedule, as well as teams who earn their bids from their region. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>HPSTL 17 Royal started off the tournament hot from Pool 4 winning their first four matches in straight sweeps. Their first loss of the tournament came in the final pool play match against Texas Performance 17s. The close contest ended in a -23, -22 sweep. The defeat didn't affect their pool finish as they still sat atop after two days. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Day three saw 17 Royal get back to their winning ways with some close battles along the way. The 10 o'clock match saw Absolute 17 Black and Royal compete in two highly contested sets where the latter got the -22, -24 sweep. Minnesota Select was next in the pool and they were able to get a few runs in both sets to get the sweep. The Crossover round match was high-level and the difference between advancing for a chance to play for a championship or to the silver bracket. Like the first match, this one consisted of big plays back and forth on both sides of the net. Every time Ultimate Asics G17 Gold thought they had some momentum, HPSTL would put their foot on the gas. A highly entertaining match saw HP win in two, -23, -23. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Every win up to championship day was done in two sets and things didn't change in the quarterfinals and semifinals with two sweeps. The championship match was one of midwest flare with [program_tooltip program_id='430218' first='Six' last='Pack'] out of Iowa. [program_tooltip program_id='430218' first='Six' last='Pack'] was fast out the gate and took the first set -21. The Missouri team swung back in the second and took it running away -19. The third was tight early but [program_tooltip program_id='430218' first='Six' last='Pack'] found some breathing room to win the national title 15-9. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This team has been a fun one to watch. Kalei Edson, [player_tooltip player_id='150035' first='Audrey' last='Small'], and [player_tooltip player_id='150037' first='Grace' last='Killion'] were all named to the All-Tournament team. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']' last='']'] 17 Red</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']' last=''] had a 6-4 run over the four days, good for 21st place. They dropped their first match of the tournament before racking up four straight wins to finish second in their pool. Unfortunately, they dropped both matches on day three of pool play followed by dropping their crossover match for Group 2. This defeat sent them Flight 1 where they would defeat fellow HOA team Shockwave 17 Black in three sets. They would then go on to win the final match over TAV Houston 17 Adidas. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Shockwave 17 Black</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Wichita area team was just two spots behind [program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']' last=''] in 23rd, after a 5-4 tournament. The tournament started hot going 5-0 in opening pool play. They had a tough day 3, dropping all three matches that included two in pool play and one in crossover play. As mentioned above, they would face off with [program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']' last='']'] 17 Red and lose a tough three-setter. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->