St. Louis President’s Day Classic

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If you weren't in Kansas City or Omaha, you were probably in St. Louis for the President's Day Classic. A big weekend of volleyball across the Midwest and with all of the hype surrounding the Triple Crown, there was no letdown in play on the state's East side.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>18s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>HPSTL 18 Royal</strong> was the top finisher amongst Missouri or Kansas teams in the open division. They fought to a second-place finish behind a 7-3 record. A 2-1 record in the first two days of pool play allowed them to advance to the gold bracket, where they ran off three straight wins to advance to the championship match. In those three matches, two went to three sets ending in 16-14 wins. The run came to an end, losing VC United in straight sets. [player_tooltip player_id='150037' first='Grace' last='Killion'] continued to be a steady contributor, along with [player_tooltip player_id='152583' first='Isabella' last='Bray']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 18 Navy</strong> was one of the casualties to HPSTL, losing to them in the semifinal round to finish tied for third. They went 6-3 over the weekend. Their results resembled that of HPSTL, going 2-1 in pool play and grabbing wins in the first couple of bracket matches before losing to the local foe. [player_tooltip player_id='184059' first='Jayden' last='Wiese'], [player_tooltip player_id='150043' first='Sophia' last='Gagnepain'], and Addison Normile were a few players noted as playing well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Jumping quickly to the club division, <strong>BSVBC</strong> out of the gateway region was a perfect 9-0 to win the title. They moved through the tournament with little adversity until the final day where they had to win two tough three-set matches to get to the final match. Kylie Stover and Brooke Miller joined their teammates with effective play over three days. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>17s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 17 Club division saw <strong>STL Crossfire 17 SP</strong> finish in a tie for fifth place. They went 2-1 on the first day before going perfect on day two. Two of those second wins were three-set contests. On Championship Monday, they won the opener over C2 17 Blue in straight sets before being toppled by 1st Alliance 17 Red. Katelyn Swfit, Delaney Fitzgerald, and Lacey Myers are a few players who make up the roster.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>16s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']'] 16 Red</strong> and <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 16 White</strong> both tied for fifth place. [program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last=''] made the trip from Kansas City and went 5-3, while Rockwood went 4-4. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>15s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>HPSTL 15 Orange</strong> played in the open division and finished the weekend tied for fifth place after going 4-4. They went 2-3 in pool play but won the crossover match to earn a spot in the gold pools where they would go 1-1. Over in the premier division, <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']'] 15</strong> <strong>Red</strong> had a strong 7-2 record, good for third place. They started the tournament with five straight wins before going 2-2 in the final four. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->