Metro 17 Takes Charm City Challenge Gold
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After the first day results it appeared the finals for Sunday in the 15-17 age groups would see Triangle play Metro for all the gold. Before Sunday closed there were a number of surprises. Only the 15 age group created…
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Continue ReadingAfter the first day results it appeared the finals for Sunday in the 15-17 age groups would see Triangle play Metro for all the gold. Before Sunday closed there were a number of surprises. Only the 15 age group created a final between Triangle and Metro. You never know where that ball bounces once you play the game.
As Sunday closed East Coast Power Kop took the gold in the 18 open, Metro snagged a gold in the 17 open and the 16 and 15 opens were secured by Triangle. In the 18 Club American took Gold, while 540 volleyball club captured the gold in the 16 and 15 age groups. The 15 Premier was won by Northeast. A high five to Metro 14 and 13 for taking the open divisions in their age group.
We focused our attention on the Open Divisions. Below is a summary of the 17 to 18 groups. The 15 and 16 will come out in the next post.
18 Open
Virginia Elite came one set away from making it back to back tournament championships. Last weekend they won the National Harbor. This weekend they fell short in Baltimore, finishing just one set short of winning the gold.
Virginia Elite took the first set off East Coast Power Kop 25-18. They failed to repeat that success in the next two sets, falling 25-20 and 15-7. Despite the loss they had a very good tournament. They won their first four matches without losing a set, then came back to win two sets against Blue Ridge 16 after losing the opening set.
With Chloe Hokenson Chloe Hokenson 6'1" | S Langley | 2024 State VA setting she chose her many weapons wisely. The easiest choice for this day appeared to be the 6’5″ left side Azavia Thomas Azavia Thomas 6'5" | OH Archbishop Carroll | 2024 State VA . To think that three years ago she played for an MVSA third team. Now, she rifles kills over the blocks of drifting middles. Her five kills against Blue Ridge 16 in the third set of the semifinals eased them to a 15-8 match win. Another choice the smaller left side Aaliyah Howell Aaliyah Howell 5'9" | OH Georgetown Day | 2024 State VA who at 5’8″ relies more on placement to spray the ball around the court to achieve her kills. She also plays an excellent back row and has yet to commit.
One reason the offense runs on all cylinders relies on the steady back row play of libero Elle Jubeck Elle Jubeck 5'8" | DS/L St Mary Ryken | 2024 State VA (pictured above), who has committed to Mary Washington and Karen Cao Karen Cao 5'4" | DS/L Montgomery Blair (MD) | 2024 State VA , who has yet to commit. Elle also contributed a number of aces with her tough serve, accumulating four against Richmond Volleyball Club in the quarter final gold match. Another Mary Washington commit contributing to the offense is middle Alice Holoubek Alice Holoubek 6'3" | MB Bishop O'Connell | 2024 State VA . She plays a cerebral game anticipating where the sets will travel to successfully put up a double block. The harder the hit the greater the rejection as the ball hits the floor.
A player who opened my eyes was outside Claire Burducea. While not an explosive player she plays a solid all around game. Her hits from the left side found the floor, she plays a strong back row and finds success with attacks from behind the three meter line. Claire has committed to Franklin and Marshall College.
A surprise team in the 18s was the Blue Ridge 16 team, entering the tournament as the number 20 seed out of twenty teams. They blew that low seeding up, sweeping the number one seed Synergy Kryponite 25-21, 25-23 while finishing the first day undefeated in pool play. They failed to lose a set until their last two against Virginia Elite in the semi-finals.
Their most impressive player Kennedy Spaid Kennedy Spaid 5'11" | OH James Wood | 2026 State VA may not have the most explosive jump in the gym and at 5’11” some believe she lacks the height for an outside. However, her right arm fires bullets that frequently find the empty areas of the court. Her frosh and sophomore years in high school she led her team to two state championships, winning player of the year in the process both years. Whoever she plays for does not lose often. An avid beach player, it would not surprise me to see her play beach in college. Prep Dig ranks her as the number two player in the class of 2026.
While Kennedy remains the favorite target for setter Lauren Hobbs Lauren Hobbs 5'7" | S North Hagerstown | 2025 State VA middles Tenley Mattison Tenley Mattison 5'10" | MB James Woods | 2026 State VA and Dreu Patterson Dreu Patterson 5'11" | MB Millbrook | 2026 State VA brought success with her sets and also blocked well. They tend to run a more conservative game, with higher sets to the middles. Ava Barvick Ava Barvick OH Chelsea | 2026 State VA , the younger sister of Greta played some middle at Volley by the James. For the Charm City Challenge she created more offense as a right side. Another beach player Brenna Corbin Brenna Corbin 5'5" | DS/L James Wood | 2026 State VA covers the back row well with her libero play. Her and Kennedy play for the same championship James Wood high school team and sometimes partner up on the beach.
East Coast Power Royal Kop brought a talented roster to the tournament as the second seed. They have good length and speed failing to lose a set until they lost the opener 25-18 to Virginia Elite in the finals. The King of Prussia recovered quickly by winning the final two sets 25-20 and 15-7.
It all begins with their setter Carly Campbell, who disguises her dumps well when she plays the front row. She lists at 6’0″ which allows her to reach high over the net. She made excellent choices with the weapons at her disposal, dishing the ball off to her outsides Jane Nelson and Alexa Mork while also not ignoring her middles Breelyn Bender or Molly Mishinkash. At one point in the finals Alexa strung together six consecutive points with her serve. Finally, Elly Painter really impressed with her tremendous libero play creating pristine passes for Carly to run her offense. The harder the hit the greater the dig. Elly also brought a tough serve to the floor.
Other Notes: The Virginia Cavaliers appear to have picked up a pretty good player in Reagan Ennist. She plays left side for LVC Black out of New York, is listed at 6’2″ and can play six rotations. Initially, she committed to West Virginia but changed that to Virginia after a change in coaches. She would fit into our top twenty rankings for the DMV area….American won the Club Division, losing only two sets, both by scores of 25-23. They are led by an undersized left side 5’7″ Taelin Connolley Taelin Connolley 5'7" | OH Battlefield | 2024 State VA , who also led Battlefield to the semi-finals in the class 4 Virginia high school state championships. Some Division III school might want to take a look at her.
17 Open
Highlights
Metro swept through the Charm City Championship, validating their position as the number one seed. This team is so much improved from last year when they struggled with bouts of inconsistency. While they have made some roster changes the core of the team remains the same. They were challenged a few times in this tournament, winning three sets 25-23, including the first set of the finals against Blue Ridge . Last year winning those 25-23 were more of a challenge.
The 6’3″ Isabelle Bardin Isabelle Bardin 6'3" | S Flint Hill | 2025 State #121 Nation VA has shown massive improvement in her setting that Metro has entrusted her to run the offense in a 5/1. That is something Metro does not do often. They prefer bringing in taller right sides for their setters to create more offense. At 6’3″ Isabella is one of their strongest blockers on the team when she plays front row. On free balls the passers like to pass high to give her an opportunity to blister one over the net. With her height it doesn’t take much for her to power one down. Her tempo and location for her sets have also improved.
Another player showing massive improvement is Michigan commit Leni Stanton-Parker Leni Stanton-Parker 6'0" | OH Langley | 2025 State #116 Nation VA . Early in her career she blocked middle because of her height. She also carries an incredible approach jump reaching 10’6″. She lists at 6’0″ so she can fly. Last her she converted from middle to left side. She showed difficulty timing the higher sets. This does not seem to be an issue this season. She still plays three rotations but that is because a number of strong back row players fill the roster. Her back row play is not weak.
Some argue that tall setters do not run quicks well. That does not seem to be the case with Isabelle. One of her strengths rides with how easily she connects 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 in the middle. With her height Caitlin can hit it over many of the late blocks. She made a big block to finish off the first set against Blue Ridge 25-23. Prior to that it got a little explosive with the coach earning a yellow card for arguing with the down referee.
Not many can hit the ball harder than the 6’0″ right side Jada Aksu Jada Aksu 6'0" | RS Georgetown Day | 2025 State VA . The Lafayette commit hits bullets with her left handed swing and doesn’t get fazed when some of those bullets get rejected. She keeps on swinging with velocity that appears greater than last year.
Metro has a number of choices in the back row with Sadie Gladhill Sadie Gladhill 5'6" | DS/L Linganore | 2025 State VA and Evie Huang Evie Huang 5'6" | DS/L Flint Hill | 2026 State VA rotating at the libero position while the other comes in as a defensive specialist for one of the left sides. Sadie strung together a number of aces against Blue Ridge , including an ace that put them ahead 24-23 in the first set. Others who can play back row can also hit front row are Destini Pickett Destini Pickett 5'10" | OH Forest Park | 2025 State VA and Sarah Jeremias Sarah Jeremias 5'11" | OH Holy Cross | 2025 State VA . The advantage having them play back row comes with the offense they can create from their back row attacks. Destini at 5’8″ does not hold back in her swing and hits high off the hands. Her back row attacks fly like missiles.
Blue Ridge surprised me by beating a very strong Triangle team in the semi-finals. While they came into the tournament as the third seed, Triangle earned the two seed. Blue Ridge seems to go underappreciated on the National stage. Triangle is rated in the top 100 in AES (81) while Blue Ridge sits at 135. That may change after their 25-22, 25-21 sweep of Triangle in the semi-finals.
Blue Ridge carries on their roster perhaps two of the strongest left sides in the 17 age group in the 5’11” Ada McCoy Ada McCoy 5'11" | OH Musselman (WVA) | 2025 State VA and the 6’1″ Berkeley Konrady Berkeley Konrady 6'1" | OH Millbrook | 2025 State VA . Max Preps voted Ada the top player in West Virginia. Berkeley stands out with her length and powerful swing. When she hits the ball you have to be impressed by the bounce off the floor after she makes contact. Both play six rotations and contribute to the back row attack.
While Ada and Berkeley prefer the indoor game Emma White Emma White 5'6" | DS/L Legacy Christian Academy | 2025 State VA prefers the sand for her volleyball. She ranks as one of the top liberos in the Virginia area but Blue Ridge needed help in setting and Emma answered the call. Even at 5’6″ Blue Ridge plays her some in the front row. She clearly knows how to use the block, tooling a couple players when playing front row. Having the ability to spike when she plays front row does not fails to happen when she suits up as the libero, Emma has committed to playing beach at North Alabama.
The 5’11’ Ava Dickerson Ava Dickerson 5'11" | MB Warren County | 2025 State VA plays outside for her high school team but plays middle for Blue Ridge . In high school she was voted player of the year for her region while providing offense from the left side. For Blue Ridge she hits twos in the middle and can go right or left with her hits. A team that puts just one block against her will lose most of those battles. Even though she plays middle Blue Ridge used her in the back row instead of the libero at many times in the game. They even used her in the passing rotation when she played the front row.
The 6’3″ right side Samantha Stephens Samantha Stephens 6'3" | RS Spring Mills | 2025 State VA has a powerful left handed swing. Last year she played down at the 15 level. This year she plays equivalent to her high school age. With Emma now setting the libero role has been taken up by Isabella DeWan Isabella DeWan 5'6" | DS/L Loudoun County | 2026 State VA . With a strong beach program Blue Ridge builds stellar liberos. If indoor colleges can convince these players to play hardwood at the collegiate level they could find some pretty good liberos for their program by watching Blue Ridge .
Triangle out of North Carolina is a team loaded with talent. Before being upset by Blue Ridge they just powered past opponents, not allowing teams to reach 20 points against them.
BreAnna McMillan impresses at the setter position, remaining in the front row to play right side. Her favorite targets appear to be right side Lindley Miller and middle Gabrielle Nichols. Points came easily after their attacks. There was even a play where both went up for quick sets with Lindley crushing the quick back set to the floor. Taiia Francom also provides additional length in the middle. Carys Kerr climbs high with her kills from the left side.
Other Notes: 540 Volleyball Elite swept Triangle Blue in the Premier Division 25-18, 25-22. They lost just two sets during the tournament. They are led by the 6’3″ James Madison commit Peri Linterman Peri Linterman 6'3" | MB Riverbend | 2025 State VA in the middle. Peri ranks number 8 in the class of 2025 DMV rankings. She would have been difficult to stop even in the open division.
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