Who's Going Bid-Hunting at the Windy City 18s Qualifier?

Be sure to follow @lshotvb on <a href="https://www.instagram.com/lshotvb/">Instagram</a>, <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@lshotvb?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc">Tik Tok </a>and <a href="https://x.com/LineShotVBall">Twitter</a> for all things volleyball!   –   It's the last of the firsts for many of these teams.   First qualifier of the season and the last for many of these top teams in the 2025 class. The Windy City is a perennial force with opening up the season with top notch talent going head to head.   This qualifier features the best of the best out of the midwest. Windy City will feature six teams that nabbed a bid to 17 Open last year, with three of those teams palcing within the top five; 1st Alliance, Michigan Elite and Circle City.   Let's take a look at some of the biggest contenders to grabbing the first official invites to the USA Girls Junior Nationals in Salt Lake City, UT, in April.   <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/01/aniya-warren.jpeg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-306400" style="width:264px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Chris Fitzgerlad Prep Dig</figcaption></figure>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">1st Alliance 18 Gold</h2>   This is squad that was a mere two points away from sweeping the 17 Open Semifinals and appearing in the championship in July. 1st Alliance loses a lot of firepower but still remains one of the biggest teams in the country, coming into Windy City as the No. 1 overall seed.   Despite the losses of [player_tooltip player_id='203428' first='Abby' last='Vander Wal'] (Texas), [player_tooltip player_id='288633' first='Addison' last='Horner'] (Wisconsin), and [player_tooltip player_id='288634' first='Hannah' last='Kenny'] (Louisville); they still remain a powerful team on all fronts. At the net, Aliiance will be led by the play of Gabrielle Stasys (Yale) and [player_tooltip player_id='288649' first='Sydney' last='Buchanan']. Even more crucial, they'll be led by one of the top defenders in the country with [player_tooltip player_id='288647' first='Aniya' last='Warren'] (Wisconsin) in the back court. Even with the loss in setting and offensive production, Warren's ability to take over the match from a defensive and control standpoint will be a huge difference maker.   This group comes in as the overall top seed, however, I am curious to see this team maneuver without the power of the early grads. This is still very much a team you do not want to come across the other side of the net though.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Circle City 18 Purple</h2>   Unlike 1st Alliance, Circle City is coming into the 18s season with a very familiar looking roster as years past. And for those that know, know this is a dangerous team. Coming off of a season that saw them amongst the top of the country, Circle City finished fifth at USAV Nationals in July. Not only are they a favorite for a bid this weekend, they are an early national championship favorite.   One of the biggest reasons that put Circle City into the driver's seat is their retention of their entire team from a season ago. Led by Reese Dunkle (Stanford) and Logan Bell (Oregon), this team not only retains a mass chunk of their offensive production, but a huge bout of ball control with Bell in the back court.   This crew comes into the fold as a No. 2 overall seed, but is the favorite to win this weekend.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Michigan Elite 18 Mizuno</h2>   Perennially, Michigan Elite's 2025 class has been at the forefront of the top teams in the country. Last year saw MiElite as the only team in the country to place top five in BOTH AAU and USAV 17 Open. Similar to Alliance though, they are without key players from the last few seasons, Isabelle Busignani (Cincinnati) and McKenna Payne (Utah). What seems to be a big blow to their ball control and a bit to their offense, Elite has brought on Molly Reck (Oakland) and Mallory Reck (Marist). A duo that has proven critical to the success of Legacy's squads over the past few years.   What looks to give Michigan Elite one of the biggest advantages over their counterparts this weekend is the play at the setter's position. Ella Craggs (Illinois State) is one of the very few elite level setters to have remained with her club team for the 18s year, and it'll make the difference. Craggs is coming off of a ginormous high school season and wouldn't mind kicking off her last club season with the same bang she ended her final high school season with.   If not Circle City, Michigan Elite is not only very much within the mix of going home with a bid, but more so winning WCQ.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">OTVA 18 Tony</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/07/DSC00115.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-573241" style="width:285px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Izzy Mogridge</figcaption></figure>   Another high level returner from last season's 17 Open, OTVA comes into the 18s campaign with a mission to finish where the left off last year. This is a group of players that broke into the Top 5 at AAU Nationals and found themselves Top 20 at USAVs. A similar scenario to Circle City, this team has seemingly retained a bulk of the power players that catapulted them into the top of the crop at 17s.   With an undeniable trifecta on the court, this team can become quite unstoppable at times. Starting off with Lily Hayes (Florida) to Izzy Mogridge (Oregon) and then to Maggie Dostic (Tennessee); this team has a practical cheat code to winning. All three are touted as some of the top of the class in their respective positions. Mogridge is coming off of an impressive outing at the Under Armour All-America Game as the setter for Team Icon.   If I was a betting man, I would put my money on OTVA coming out of this weekend with a bid. With it's bulk of returners and found chemistry from the years together, this should be a good opener for the Florida based team.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">MKE Sting 18 Gold</h2>   Rounding out this list, it would be a crime to not showcase MKE Sting and their potentials of playing spoiler to one of these top teams in the hunt for a bid in Chicago. This group was seemingly at the top of every gold bracket last season in the 17 Open and they ended out the season placing Top 20 at USA Nationals. They are without their leading scorer, Madison Quest (Wisconsin) due to early grad, but they return a bunch of high level talent and bring on top tier young guns.   This team will look to their power in the middle Gabriella Pitcel (Illinois) to take a huge step up in offensive production. Pitcel is one of the most electrifying middles in the class with her speed and dynamic play and she can be a big time side out machine. This will rely on Olivia Durst (Michigan State) to also keep Pitcel as involved as possible with her ball control in the back court. Sting will add on Allie Beer (Marquette) from the 2026 class to fill in the gap of production left out on the pins from Quest's departure as well.   MKE is always one of those teams that can sting ya when it matters most. They're scrappy and they're feisty on the court and it powers them a long way. I wouldn't be surprised to see this group to play spoiler to one of the projected favorites.

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