What Wisconsin Athletes Stood Out At MEQ 16 USA?

I always look at MEQ as the midpoint of the club seasons. Most clubs start tournaments early January and will end in June or July at nationals. The middle of March is when teams really start finding their groove. The early season wrinkles are ironed out at the competition is heavy where teams are grabbing bids at regional and national qualifiers. This past weekend at MEQ, 16 USA was loaded with teams who will be making a statement at their national tournaments. The USA Division is the step right below the highest division (Open), but some of these top teams in USA are right there with some of those open level teams. I was able to see the 16 USA group all of Saturday and part of Sunday. I focused heavily on the Upper Midwest teams to see who is up and coming in the Class of 2026. Let's take a look at the Wisconsin athletes.   [program_tooltip program_id='428672' first='Milwaukee' last='Sting'] 16 Black Takes The Crown   Aggressive serving, clean ball control, and a lot of balance is the recipe for success for MKE Sting 16 Black. They came in as the 16 seed on Sunday, starting their day off with a three set win over SynergyForce out of California followed by two wins over perennial Midwest powers in 1st Alliance 16 Silver and Circle City 16 Black. Their final match was a three set win over A5 16 Stephen, upgrading their bid to USAV Nationals from 16 American to 16 USA. The two outside hitters on this squad are the “Mia's” with [player_tooltip player_id='209368' first='Mia' last='Jannazzo'] and [player_tooltip player_id='240999' first='Mia' last='Hudson']. They bring a complete game where they can score plenty of points in multiple ways. Middle blocker, [player_tooltip player_id='388457' first='Eden' last='Roethel'] has been an emerging 2026 middle blocker where she has a high touch and a major presence at the net. [player_tooltip player_id='249645' first='Callie' last='Carr'] is a force to be reckoned with on the right side. She has great hand contact and each time I see her play she is touching at a higher point. There is so much talent on this squad. Their next national qualifier will be in Philadelphia.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/DSC06612-crop-4800x3152-1710788754.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-521367" style="width:573px;height:auto" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='376276' first='Morgan' last='Bentel'] - Madtown 161 National   Libero   So solid from the libero who commands the court for Madtown 161 out of Madison. She has a great court presence where she is connecting with all of her teammates and provides a quiet platform. Extremely dependable in serve receive, Bentel is also really solid with her second contact and cleaning up any chaos on the court. Bentel is a sophomore at DeForest High School.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/DSC06614-crop-4800x3152-1710788817.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-521369" style="width:564px;height:auto" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='504461' first='Penny' last='Schell'] - Madtown 161 National   Outside Hitter   Schell attends Abundant Life High School and is a six rotation outside hitter for Madtown 161 National.  She has a lot of length and there is a huge upside to her game.  When I saw her play, she showed she could provide a dependable first contact and score points from the outside or on the right side out of serve receive. She has a variety of shots to score from with a swing down the line, hard cross, or using the block to her advantage.    [player_tooltip player_id='453628' first='Lucy' last='Sarna'] - [program_tooltip program_id='432160' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432076' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430137' first='[program_tooltip program_id='429142' first='MVP' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] 16 Blue   Middle Blocker   Impact player with everything she does.  Sarna makes a major impact out of the middle for [program_tooltip program_id='432160' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432076' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430137' first='[program_tooltip program_id='429142' first='MVP' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] where she is extremely quick to the ball where she doesn't need much of a window to score points.  She isn't afraid to take a rip at the ball and can really create chaos on the front line.  She scores points from the service line as well and is someone the other side of the net always needs to be aware of.    [player_tooltip player_id='452262' first='Grace' last='Burton'] - [program_tooltip program_id='432160' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432076' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430137' first='[program_tooltip program_id='429142' first='MVP' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] 16 Blue   Right Side   At 6'1, Burton provides a solid block on the right side and she is someone who can play in the middle as well. She has a heavy swing from the right side where I was able to see her notch a few clutch kills on Saturday. She preps at Hartford High School and will be one to have on the radar from the Class of 2026. This [program_tooltip program_id='432160' first='[program_tooltip program_id='432076' first='[program_tooltip program_id='430137' first='[program_tooltip program_id='429142' first='MVP' last='']' last='']' last='']' last=''] is a well balanced squad where many of these athletes will be key contributors to their high school programs as upperclassmen this fall.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/DSC06646.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-521365" style="width:656px;height:auto" /></figure>   [player_tooltip player_id='217332' first='Anabelle' last='Cerny'] - [program_tooltip program_id='431479' first='Wisconsin' last='Juniors'] 16-1   Setter   For Cerny, it all starts with her footwork.  Cerny moves so smoothly across the court and is able to get her hands high to receive the ball where she can use all the tempos and take it to any of her attackers. She can jump set and put it on point for any of her attackers.  Cerny has to be near 6'0 tall and can handle her own at the net where she can swing and block with the best of them.  She is definitely a 2026 to put a star next to in UA as one of the top setters in her class in Wisconsin.    [player_tooltip player_id='376273' first='Audrey' last='Johnson'] - [program_tooltip program_id='431479' first='Wisconsin' last='Juniors'] 16-1   Outside Hitter   The hammer was brought. [player_tooltip player_id='376273' first='Audrey' last='Johnson'] is explosive from the outside where she can score a lot of points. I really enjoy an attacker who isn't afraid to take a big rip and that was [player_tooltip player_id='376273' first='Audrey' last='Johnson']. She wasn't afraid to go for the big swing and create some havoc on the other side of the net.   <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/03/DSC06655-crop-4800x3152-1710788463.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-521364" style="width:587px;height:auto" /></figure>   Madison [player_tooltip player_id='324002' first='Maddie' last='Mauser'] - [program_tooltip program_id='432009' first='Sky' last='High'] 16 Elite   Libero   I was able to see Mauser in a couple matches this weekend for [program_tooltip program_id='432009' first='Sky' last='High'], one where she was battling a bloody nose after an attack to the face. In true gritty libero fashion, The sophomore from Westosha Central (WI) got back on the court and really competed. She is one who can make the difficult play look routine and is also one to avoid serving at where she is nearly automatic. Another strength to her game is how she can read and take the right angles to cut the ball off at the right point to put a really clean ball for her setter to run the show.   [player_tooltip player_id='547199' first='Jamie' last='Isome'] - [program_tooltip program_id='432009' first='Sky' last='High'] 16 Elite   Right Side   Isome really stepped up in the first match I saw them play where she was scoring plenty of points from the right side. She does a nice job getting herself into the right position to attack with her footwork coming out of transition. With that positioning, she is able to get a heavy swing on the ball instead of tipping. She had plenty of aggressive swings that lead to positive things for her side of the net. She will be a key piece to the success of Kenosha Indian Trail High School.

I always look at MEQ as the midpoint of the club seasons. Most clubs start tournaments early January and will end in June or July at nationals. The middle of March is when teams really start finding their groove. The early season wrinkles are ironed out at the competition is heavy where teams are grabbing bids at regional and national qualifiers. This past weekend at MEQ, 16 USA was loaded with teams who will be making a statement at their national tournaments. The USA Division is the step right below the highest division (Open), but some of these top teams in USA are right there with some of those open level teams. I was able to see the 16 USA group all of Saturday and part of Sunday. I focused heavily on the Upper Midwest teams to see who is up and coming in the Class of 2026. Let's take a look at the Wisconsin athletes.