It’s Time: USAV Junior Championships 17O, 17N, and 17U

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We are days away from the USAV National Championships in the great state of Texas. We will still preview the teams that qualified from the state of Missouri, along with KC Metro, where players cross the state line to play for different clubs. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>17 Open</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two teams qualified in the Open division, both coming from the Kansas City area. [program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']'] 17 Stowell earned their bid at Lone Star with a fifth-place finish. Ball control and defensive play in the back row will play a big factor in allowing setter [player_tooltip player_id='355651' first='Neely' last='Leathers'] (Air Force) to find talented pins [player_tooltip player_id='222097' first='Taylor' last='Stanley'] (Kansas) and [player_tooltip player_id='222099' first='Ella' last='Stowell'] (Colorado State). They will start play in Pool 5 as the overall 19th seed. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Joining [program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last=''] will be the crosstown rival Mavs 17 Elite. Their journey to nationals made a big leap after falling short in a couple of qualifiers. Their breakthrough occurred in their hometown at the Show Me Qualifier, where they secured their place with a fifth-place finish. [player_tooltip player_id='222092' first='Willow' last='Weninger'] (Georgia Tech) has delivered for the Mavs this season on the right side. A key will be like many teams passing and allowing [player_tooltip player_id='523631' first='Catlin' last='Shao'] (Harvard) to get the middles involved early to free up the pins. [player_tooltip player_id='357591' first='Gillian' last='Walton'], the Northern Colorado commit, is active in the middle. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>17 National</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Three teams are slated to represent the coverage area in the National Division. The highest seed of the bunch will be [program_tooltip program_id='515466' first='Pohaku' last=''], from the Heart of America region. They will start as the 12th seed overall and second in their pool. They were competitive in the Open Division and could be a contender on the last day. One of the top setters in the state, [player_tooltip player_id='154038' first='Ella' last='Florez'] (Iowa State), will look to get attackers [player_tooltip player_id='222089' first='Grace' last='Martin'] (Arizona State) and [player_tooltip player_id='222086' first='Morgan' last='Sears'] (Florida International) involved early and often. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>St. Louis-based HPSTL 17 Royal earned the Gateway bid and will kick off play as the 21st seed and Pool 4. They played in their share of qualifiers in the Open Division. They have a talented veteran group led by middle [player_tooltip player_id='221230' first='Bennett' last='Raterman'] (Florida State). She draws a lot of attention, which can open up things for Kennesaw State pledge [player_tooltip player_id='223931' first='Ashley' last='Theiss'], along with [player_tooltip player_id='222069' first='Lauren' last='Ortwerth'] and [player_tooltip player_id='237014' first='Maeve' last='Rush']. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The final squad joining the fray will be [program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] 17 Elite in Pool 3. They qualified in the USA Division and moved up due to [program_tooltip program_id='430200' first='KC' last='[program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last='']'] securing an Open Bid. Defense is a strong suit for this team, with defenders Addison McNeive, [player_tooltip player_id='261112' first='Lauren' last='Fenemore'], and [player_tooltip player_id='355649' first='Gabi' last='Poeschl'], they are in good hands. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>17 USA</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 17 Elite is the top overall seed in the USA Division. They earned their bid back in February and from there started giving it a run in the Open Division. They came up just short of that bid after a fifth-place finish at Show Me. They enter as a strong favorite led by setter Abigail Scheone (Baylor). [player_tooltip player_id='207581' first='Jillian' last='Raterman'] on the outside and [player_tooltip player_id='220349' first='Teagan' last='Pocius'] (William and Mary) in the middle should draw attention. Pocius made her way onto the all-tournament team last summer. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two teams that we cover in Missouri will share a pool in Pool 4 with [program_tooltip program_id='428799' first='Rockwood' last='Thunder'] 17 Navy and Invasion 17 Black. Rockwood was the beneficiary of an at-large bid while Invasion received theirs courtesy of [program_tooltip program_id='428892' first='PVA' last=''] moving up. Rockwood had multiple top ten finishes in qualifier play. They have a duo of setters who run an efficient offense in [player_tooltip player_id='207580' first='Audrey' last='Hackney'] (Central Michigan) and Elizabeth Koening. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Invasion was close out of the gate in securing a bid at MLK with a fifth-place showing. They played well in the regional [program_tooltip program_id='428794' first='Power' last=''] league and have enough weapons to stay in the hunt after day one. [player_tooltip player_id='357615' first='Piper' last='Bahr'] (Emporia State), who has always been a fierce attacker, has developed into a solid six-rotation player. We continue to be impressed with the play of setter Kamryn Hinnekamp and her decision-making. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another team in the field teams don't want to sleep on down in Pool 6 will be the 7th seed, [program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] 17 Black. Their bid was captured in Salt Lake City with a second-place tournament closeout. [program_tooltip program_id='428889' first='Dynasty' last=''] coach Beau Barnthson is a veteran coach who has enjoyed a lot of success and will get the most out of the players on the court. They have a lot of arms to choose from, with [player_tooltip player_id='355660' first='Alyssa' last='Gray'], [player_tooltip player_id='222075' first='Sydni' last='Lafasciano'] (University of Colorado-Colorado Springs), and [player_tooltip player_id='261314' first='Phoenix' last='Fogel'] (East Tennessee State). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->