St. Francis Borgia Tournament Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Borgia Tournament has always been a top early-season test for teams in the STL Metro area. The preview of pools, players, and my picks for making the semifinal and finals follows.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>Gold Pool</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2^nd. Union 4-1-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>3^rd. Lutheran South 1-1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>4^th. Washington 1-0</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1^st. Timberland 0-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Timberland and Union should come out 1 and 2 in this pool and move on to the semifinals. Union is led by do-it-all all <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='168038' first='Sophia' last='Helling'] </strong>and 2028 6'3” <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='623081' first='Rilynn' last='Wingenbach']</strong> and combined 91 kills in the early season. Sensational setter <strong>Abby Schoene</strong>, middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='207713' first='Kennedy' last='Draggs']</strong>, and outside <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='174405' first='Abby' last='Chall']</strong> lead Timberland. Lilian Paul highlights the Lancers from Lutheran South but lacks the firepower to finish in the top 2. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><u>Blue Pool</u></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>4^th.&nbsp; Ste. Genevieve 1-1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>3^rd.&nbsp; Borgia 3-3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2^nd. Parkway West 0-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1^st. &nbsp;Westminster 6-1-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Blue Pool is the most challenging and will come down to Borgia, Parkway West, and Westminster for the top two to advance to the semifinals. Westminster is a well-balanced team with a lot of talented youth. Borgia played in the Brace for Impact tournament and got a lot of production from middles <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='218556' first='Joanna' last='Gillen']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='207296' first='Sophia' last='Hurst']</strong>. PW has played two five-setters, having split both. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='169899' first='Maddy' last='Bach']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='702728' first='Sophia' last='Licavoli']</strong>, and <strong>Hannah Jennings</strong> keep the Longhorns buzzing, and expect big performances from the three. Westminister has a great start to the season, with the only loss to IWA in 4. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='219782' first='Emma' last='Woll'], Emery Johnston</strong>, and <strong>Vivian Sharlow</strong> are the current statistical leaders for WCA. This pool will come down to winning the WCA and PW match. WCA will get the better of the Longhorns to come out on top in the Blue Pool.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Semifinals</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Timberland vs. <strong>Parkway West</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='222058' first='Katherine' last='Byergo']</strong>, the 6'5” middle for Parkway West, comes alive in the semifinals, helping her team out dual the Wolves. I will take the Longhorns in 3 to move to the title match.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Union vs. <strong>Westminster Christian</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>WCA is the more balanced team and will get big play from middles <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='493069' first='Myah' last='Derossett']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='549463' first='Emory' last='Freesmeier']</strong> and get the sweep over Union.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Championship</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Parkway West vs. <strong>Westminster Christian</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A rematch of the top two teams in the Blue Pool will meet in the championship match. Like the pool play meeting, this game will nip and tuck until the end. Parkway West will rely heavily on <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='222058' first='Katherine' last='Byergo']</strong> to make things difficult for the Wildcat attack. Both teams are highly talented and have two great liberos. Parkway West gets the advantage in the setter position, while WCA gets the advantage in the attack department. Ultimately, I have WCA taking the title in 3 tight sets, with libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='545026' first='Rachel' last='Buchanan']</strong> leading the team in digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->