Complete Breakdown of Iowa Clubs at Triple Crown

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>What a weekend.&nbsp; I think everyone playing in a three day tournament over Presidents Day weekend is still in recovering mode.&nbsp; As we recover and gear up for the next tournament, here is a quick rundown of how Iowa clubs did at Triple Crown's NIT held in Kansas City, “Where the elite come to compete”.&nbsp; Before we break down the results, here is a little bit behind the scenes of what the Triple Crown tournament is and what makes it the top tournament to compete in over Presidents Day Weekend.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What Is the significance of Triple Crown?&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is an “Invite Only” tournament where clubs from across the country are invited to participate.&nbsp; This past year, 90 of the top 100 clubs from the US Club Rankings were in attendance.&nbsp; For teams in the top 15 in the country, they are able to bring their “2s” teams to the event. There is a laundry list of requirements in order to get in, but if teams qualify USAV Open (Highest Division) - they get a ticket to the event.&nbsp; Others are placed on a waitlist. This truly is the best of the best in the country which also brings a significant amount of college coaches there for recruiting as well.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What is “Battle To The Bartle”?&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The “Bartle” is the name of the convention center where Triple Crown is played in Kansas City.&nbsp; This year, Triple Crown had a play in tournament called “Battle To The Bartle” where teams got a chance to make it to the convention center, but had to win their first three matches at Bluhawk, a sports center located in Overland Park, Kansas. This would bring them to the “Select” Division of Triple Crown against teams that were part of the original field.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa was well represented with teams in “Battle to the Bartle” with Iowa United 141 Elite and Iowa Premier 15-1 were able to string some wins together to earn a spot to the Bartle Convention Center to compete in the Select Division Sunday and Monday.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Level of Divisions at Triple Crown:&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Elite - The top 32 teams of the age division</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Open - Top 33 - 64</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Select&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prime</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Aspire</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>14s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":752130,"width":"427px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"right"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/02/RG1A2754.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-752130" style="width:427px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Iowa Premier 15-1 at Triple Crown. </figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa United 141 Elite - Open - 53rd Overall - 7-2</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa Select 14 Mizuno - Aspire - 80th Overall - 5-2&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PowerPlex 14 Mendieta - Aspire - 89th Overall - 3-4&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>15s&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa Premier 15-1 - Select - 67th Overall - 6-2&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PowerPlex 15U Jackson - Aspire - 106th Overall - 8-2</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa United 151 Elite - Aspire - 127th Overall - 6-3</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa Select 15 Mizuno - Aspire - 131st Overall - 3-4</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>16s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa Select 16 Mizuno - Aspire - 117th Overall - 8-1</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PowerPlex 16U Brogean - Aspire - 119th Overall - 6-2</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>18s&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>PowerPlex 18U Rodriguez - Open - 61st Overall - 3-4&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>But wait, how does Iowa Select 16 Mizuno finish 8-1 and finish 117th? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Iowa Select 16 Mizuno was in “Battle To The Bartle” where they won their first two matches of the tournament, but unfortunately lost their crossover match against Shockwave out of Kansas to advance to a higher bracket.&nbsp; They would go on to win their next six matches over the weekend, including a battle against instate club PowerPlex 16U Brogean.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At a tournament like Triple Crown (which is not a qualifier to nationals), top programs are placed in power pools on day one and are guaranteed a spot into the top 32.  Many of these teams placed in a power pool are from California, Texas, and other major national metro areas. The finish at an event like this isn't as important as the overall experience of playing against other top teams from across the country and generating momentum for the regional tournament as well as national qualifiers. To make a comparison to mens and women's college basketball, club volleyball has “RPI” through the scheduling software many of these national events use to seed. The tougher competition teams play and succeed against, the higher the seed they will earn at national events. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For a team like Iowa Select 16 Mizuno and many of these Iowa clubs, if they do well at a tournament like this they will give themselves a chance to earn an invitation back. In 2019 [program_tooltip program_id='428935' first='Central' last='Iowa Select'] came out of a challenge match to finish second over in the 15s Division where the following year they came back in 2020 as Club Ignit 16 Select and won the entire tournament. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Throwback to 2020 when [program_tooltip program_id='428936' first='Club' last='Ignit Select'] won Triple Crown 16s Division: </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://prepdig.com/2020/02/club-ignit-selects-triple-crown-title-its-kind-of-a-big-deal/","type":"wp-embed","providerNameSlug":"prep-dig"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-prep-dig wp-block-embed-prep-dig"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://prepdig.com/2020/02/club-ignit-selects-triple-crown-title-its-kind-of-a-big-deal/ </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->