Feb Fiesta 16s Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Tulsa plays host to the February Fiesta each year with a solid turnout. Just shy of 40 different clubs will be in attendance. Let's take a look at some of the teams and players in the 16s division. The four teams listed are the four highest seeded teams from Oklahoma.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Charge South 16-1: </strong>They received the 7th overall seed in the tournament. They had a strong finish at Redlands Rendezvous early in January. They ended with a 4-1 record and 9th overall. They have already beat Virago 16-1 this season and their only loss that weekend was to the eventual runner up, Manhattan Mamba 16-1. <strong>Sophia Lynch</strong> and <strong>Addyson Schier</strong> both were strong performers for their team. Look for them to be playmakers this weekend. Their pool play match with TPV 16-2 should be an exciting one!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Elevate 16.1:</strong> They received the #1 overall seed in the tournament. They finished 5th at Tulsa Attack and 45th at the always tough Kansas City MLK Tournament. They already have a handful of solid wins this season, such as Rise 16-2, Powerplex 16-3, ACA 16-1, and Charge 16-3. Players to keep an eye on are <strong>Ava Harnish</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='759072' first='Sarah' last='Sixkiller']</strong> and <strong>Isabella De Le Torre</strong>. All 3 players can make plays and really get the ball rolling for Elevate 16.1. This team is chosen to win the tournament and they have the capability to do just that.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Virago 16-1:</strong> They received the 2nd overall seed in the tournament. They have 3 top 5 finishes already this season along with a silver championship at Redlands. Will this be the tournament where they get over the hump and make it to the championship? Players like <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='285769' first='Grace' last='Baughman']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='734999' first='Makenna' last='Layton']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='764331' first='Maggie' last='Leach']</strong> have all been big contributors while playing 6 rotations. Two sneaky good players to watch is right side hitter, [player_tooltip player_id='736660' first='Emma' last='DeArmond'], and DS, [player_tooltip player_id='736675' first='Madison' last='Godding'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>TPV 16-2:</strong> They received the 4th overall seed in the tournament. They have a 5th place finish at Tulsa Attack and a 45th place finish at MLK. They finished Tulsa Attack with a solid consolation match win over Kaizen 16 Black. They have a strong offense led by <strong>Avery Thiessen</strong> and <strong>Hamsa Salha</strong>. They have a tough draw for pool play with the likes of Charge South 16-1, Velocity U16-2 and Virago 16-2. If they can come out on top they will likely have to see NWAJS or Ozark 16-3 in the quarterfinals. Although a tough route, they are definitely good enough to get it done.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If you are not playing this weekend, this is the place to be. The 16s division is chock full of quality Oklahoma teams and plenty have a chance at winning. Club Velocity U16-1 out of Fort Smith and NWAJS 16-1 are both really good and could make some waves. Velocity is coming off a runner up finish at Battle at the Fort and NWAJS is coming off a top 10 finish at MLK. It should be a fun and competitive tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->