Handicapping the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships 14-17

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Chesapeake Regional Bid Championship will be this weekend. Below are my favorites to capture bids. Of course, if the results end up anything like the Chesapeake 18 qualifier expect a lot of chaos.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>17 Age Group</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":411681,"width":"225px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/07/96-Laila-Chadwick.jpg?w=597" alt="" class="wp-image-411681" style="width:225px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">laila chadwick</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>National - <strong>Metro,</strong> American - <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last='']</strong>, <strong>Premier Edge</strong>, Freedom - <strong>Virgnia Juniors</strong>, <strong>Columbia Red</strong>, upset candidate -<strong> Volley Viet</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Chesapeake picked up a re-allocated American bid from the New England Region. That means five bids for 12 of the teams competing.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Metro </strong>- To date, they have only captured one first place finish at the Capitol Hill Classic. On the bright side they have reached the finals in four tournaments, falling just short of winning. In the Sunshine and Northeast Qualifiers, they strung together fifth place finishes, falling just short of earning an Open bid. As a result of their success Advanced Event System (AES) gives them a national ranking of 19.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three Prospects</strong> - left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='303701' first='Caydence' last='Doolan']</strong> (2), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='227251' first='Morgan' last='Williams']</strong> (4), right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='301696' first='Nadiya' last='Johnson'] </strong>(1) and class of 2027 libero <strong>layer_tooltip player_id='265167' first='Laila' last='Chadwick']</strong> (4). .</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] </strong>- Paramount has captured gold in a couple local tournaments. In the Mid Atlantic Power League (MAPL) they finished fifth, taking a loss to Metro 17 in the process. In the Triple Crown they were able to get a 45th place finish out of 108 teams. A 14th place finish in the Northeast Qualifier, where they also lost to Metro 17 for a second time, left them far from qualifying for a bid. Despite some of these struggles their national AES ranking still falls in the top 100 at 91.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top three prospects - Middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='325603' first='Parker' last='Sutherland']</strong> (7), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='325599' first='Raegan' last='Lentz']</strong>((10) and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='238356' first='Morgan' last='Reeves']</strong>(11)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Premier Edge</strong> - The Delaware team has no ranked players from the DMV. They have won two local tournaments where they defeated Columbia while finishing in 17th place in the Liberty Division at the Sunshine Classic. All this success puts their AES national ranking at 150.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Virginia Juniors</strong> - This team can run hot and cold. At the Capitol Hill Classic they earned their way into the gold bracket but lost in the first round of the playoffs to finish in 9th place. They also have ninth place finishes in the City of Oaks Challenge and the Sunshine Classic in the USA Division. They did finish in third place in the National Harbor, losing to Premier Edge twice while defeating MVSA Blaze and Maryland Juniors. Despite losing to Premier Edge twice they have an AES national ranking of 132, which gives them a higher seed than Premier Edge. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three prospects </strong>- <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='322107' first='Eden' last='Tardy']</strong>(14), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='333651' first='Sydney' last='Ray']</strong> (19), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='479659' first='Eliza' last='Lowe'] </strong>(44).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Columbia Red</strong> - Columbia always remains competitive. They have won their last two tournaments, the AAU Virginia Grand Prix and their own 17 Columbia Open. They would like to forget their 27th place finish in the Capitol Hill Classic, where they lost to Metro and [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] Marissa. Overall, the sum of their results gives them an AES national ranking of 287.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Three Prospects</strong> - Setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='525341' first='Genevieve' last='Willis']</strong> (39) and class of 2025s <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='525343' first='Terry' last='Spring'] </strong>and middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='477146' first='Aaliyah' last='Williams']</strong>(181).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>16 Age Group </strong> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":589325,"width":"455px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/08/Olivia-Garey.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-589325" style="width:455px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Olivia garey</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>National - <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last='']</strong>(Nick), American - <strong>Metro</strong>, Freedom - <strong>Virginia Juniors</strong>, <strong>MVSA Sparks</strong> Upset candidate - <strong>[program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] Josi</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last='']</strong> - They normally finish first in every tournament they play in, except the Triple Crown. A first place finish in the MAPL Hampton is their crown jewel when they downed Metro 16 and 17. They also beat the [program_tooltip program_id='494409' first='Blue' last='Ridge'] 17 and 18 teams. The only disappointment came at Triple Crown when they found themselves 53rd out of 156 teams. This puts their AES national ranking at 43, a number strongly influenced by their showing at Triple Crown.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players</strong> - middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='296486' first='Taylor' last='Harrington']</strong> (1), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='435745' first='Alyssa' last='Kumah']</strong> (3) and left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='528707' first='Annika' last='Dandridge']</strong> (6) and class of 2028 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536716' first='Diane' last='Nzoupet'] </strong>(4). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Metro </strong>- The challenge for this team is bringing consistency to the court. While their AES national ranking is 18 they have lost to Paramount when playing in a head to head battle at MAPL. They do have three first place finishes that include Charm City and City of Oaks Challenge. A win over Virginia Juniors in the finals of the City of Oaks puts a shiny notch on their belt. Unfortunately, a ninth place finish at Capitol Hill as well as a 29th place finish in the Sunshine Classic were two big disappointments. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players</strong> - middle [player_tooltip player_id='437441' first='Hunter' last='Ross'] (5), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='385968' first='Macie' last='Murray']</strong>(7), right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='290176' first='Kieran' last='Rhoton']</strong>(10). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Virginia Juniors</strong> - They won the National Harbor tournament but stumbled in the Capitol Hill Classic where they failed to earn a spot in the gold bracket. Bouncing back to get a ninth place finish in the Sunshine Classic brings some of that pride back. It shows how competitive this age group is when an AES national ranking of 45 only puts them as a third seed in this tournament.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players</strong> - Class of 2026 setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='206729' first='Megan' last='Phan']</strong>(13), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='357402' first='Coco' last='Lewis']</strong> and right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='484960' first='Kinsley' last='Zebatto']</strong> (8). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MVSA Sparks</strong>- A big drop to 327 in the AES national rankings. While they have two local first place finishes to their credit, they also stumbled in the Capitol Hill Classic to a 29th place finish. They did finish third in National Harbor where they lost to [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] Josi in the semi-finals.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players</strong> -Libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='491007' first='Ana' last='Djordjevic']</strong> (17), middle<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='465322' first='Siyena' last='Fitsum']</strong> (30) and left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='438097' first='Haile' last='Ma']</strong> (32). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>15 Age Group</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":745860,"width":"365px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/01/image0-7.jpeg?w=768" alt="" class="wp-image-745860" style="width:365px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: Metro 15</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>National - <strong>Metro</strong>, American - <strong>Paramount</strong> (Maureen), Freedom - <strong>Virginia Juniors</strong>, <strong>Maryland Juniors</strong> Upset candidate - <strong>MOCO Menace</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Metro</strong> - Every tournament they play they seem to win. Exceptions to that include the Charm City Challenge where they finished second to Triangle Black in the finals in addition to a ninth place finish at the Sunshine Classic. First place finishes include the Capitol Hill Classic, where they beat Virginia Juniors, MAPL where they beat both Paramount teams and a local tournament where they beat MVSA Wild. All this success puts them at 18 in the AES national ranking.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players </strong>- Left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536719' first='Katherine' last='Mitchell']</strong> (2), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536727' first='Chika' last='Onukwugha']</strong>(3), and right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536721' first='Ana' last='Woods']</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Paramount</strong> - Their one big loss came against Metro in the finals at the MAPL in the Blue Division (14-16). The two local tournaments they have won, defeating the Libero Huskies and Columbia in the process. At the Triple Crown they finished 50th out of 148 teams. All of this success places them at number 47 in the national rankings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players </strong> - left side [player_tooltip player_id='554770' first='Rujuta' last='Singh'] (10), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='569865' first='Eireni' last='Scott']</strong> (12) and right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='550688' first='Sienna' last='Mitchell']</strong> (14). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Virginia Juniors</strong> - To date, the big knock on Juniors is their lack of a first place finish. They did place second at National Harbor, losing twice to Maryland Juniors 14. However, they did beat Maryland Juniors 15 in that tournament. At Capitol Hill Classic they finished fifth, defeating Maryland Juniors 15 again and Columbia but losing to Metro. They recently finished second in a local tournament where they defeated MVSA in the process. However, their lack of overall success places Juniors at 352 nationally.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players </strong>- Left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='587876' first='Ariana' last='White']</strong> (13), libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='558212' first='Violet' last='Zimmitti']</strong> (27) and defensive specialist/right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536731' first='Rawan' last='Salem']</strong> (31). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Maryland Juniors</strong> - Juniors has won a couple local tournaments and placed third in another. They have split with MVSA Charge in those three tournaments. At Capitol Hill they finished 23rd, taking a loss to Virginia Juniors. They also lost to Virginia Juniors at National Harbor in a third place run, defeating MOCO Menace and Premier Edge 15 in the process. Nationally, AES ranks them at 203.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top three ranked players</strong> - Middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='545725' first='Abisola' last='Adeyemo']</strong> (11), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='587884' first='Charlotte' last='Dittmar']</strong>(26) and left side [player_tooltip player_id='545726' first='Miley' last='Keyes'] (41)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>14 Age Group</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":754566,"width":"421px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2025/02/md-juniors-earns-bid.jpg?w=640" alt="" class="wp-image-754566" style="width:421px;height:auto" /><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Photo: maryland Juniors 14</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>National - <strong>Metro</strong>, American - <strong>Maryland Juniors</strong>, American - <strong>Virginia Juniors,</strong> <strong>Paramount</strong> (COZAD), Freedom - <strong>MVSA Force</strong>,<strong> Paramount </strong>(Anderson) Upset Candidate -<strong> Libero Huskies</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One American bid was reallocated from the New England Region. Also, Maryland Juniors has already qualified for the USA Division, so if they do not win National bid (first place) from this tournament a trickle down will occur. This could mean seven of the 12 teams playing in this age group could receive bids. Rankings have not yet been given to players from the class of 2029.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Metro </strong>- Metro got to face Maryland Juniors in a head to head finals battle at Capitol Hill Classic taking the match 25-23, 23-25, 15-11. They also beat BAVA and Virginia Juniors at Capitol Hill. In addition to taking first at Capitol Hill, they have also won Charm City, City of Oaks Challenge and a local tournament. Their only stumble was a 13th place finish at MAPL where their only loss was to SERV 16 Select. AES ranks them 15th nationally.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Possibly top three players</strong> - Setter/right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='746506' first='Carolyn' last='Maria']</strong>, class of 2028 middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='746330' first='Hannah' last='Keating'] </strong>(47) and middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='750047' first='Caroline' last='Conroy']</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Maryland Juniors</strong> - Juniors is the one team that has earned a bid after finishing third in the USA Division in the Sunshine Classic. They have won every other tournament except a second place finish at Capitol Hill Classic where they lost to Metro in the finals. The first place finishes includes wins at the 15 Open at National Harbor and a local 16 Mixed division tournament. AES ranks them 14th Nationally, which is why they are the number one seed.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Possibly top three players - class of 2028 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='622282' first='Emerson' last='Wolfe']</strong> (9), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='748487' first='Sierra' last='Thomas']</strong>and right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='748513' first='Scarlett' last='Netherton']</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Virginia Juniors </strong>- They won the National Harbor tournament, defeating the Libero Huskies along the way. A 13th place finish at Capitol Hill included a loss to Metro. A lower finish at Sunshine Classic (25th) put their AES national ranking at 216.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Possibly top three players - left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='754650' first='Madison' last='Meiring']</strong>, right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='754655' first='Bella' last='Pereyra']</strong> and right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='748006' first='Alaenah' last='Frank']</strong>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Paramount </strong>(Cozad) - They have captured two local tournaments, defeating Virginia Elite twice while finishing eighth in the Blue Division (14-16) at MAPL. Interesting note is they were able to beat SERV 16 at MAPL, the one team that beat Metro. At Triple Crown they were 66 out of 106 teams. Their AES national ranking sits at 178. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Possibly top three prospects </strong>- Left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='747560' first='Elliot' last='Dorgan']</strong>, class of 2028 middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='746620' first='Sahana' last='Cushman']</strong>(76) and Libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='747458' first='Angelie' last='Rose Carrasco']</strong>. .</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Paramount </strong>(Anderson) - For a second team they do quite well. They have one first place finish and two second place in local tournaments where they beat Virginia Elite but lost in the championship to Paramount (Cozad). They finished seventh at MAPL Red (13-15 age group). AES ranks them nationally at 408.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Possibly top three prospects</strong> - Left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='755848' first='Mihika' last='Mamidi']</strong> and middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='772034' first='Giselle' last='Conley']</strong>. .</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>MVSA Force</strong> - This is a team I have not seen play. They finished third in a local tournament, splitting with BAVA but losing to Maryland Juniors. Low to middle of the road finishes at Charm City, Capitol Hill and MAPL Red puts them at 391 nationally per AES.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>BAVA</strong> - Another team I have not seen play. They have done well in five tournaments where they have finished in the top five, taking first in two of them. A 53rd place finish out of 60 teams in the USA Division in a Mideast Qualifier is their one disappointment. AES ranks them nationally at 413, but they were at 162 until the Mideast Qualifier finish.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->