Prep Dig Chris Gauntlet Takeaways from the Sting Center

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At club volleyball events, we see a lot in a short amount of time.&nbsp; From big plays, clutch performances, there are always plenty of stories that happen within a day and there were plenty from the morning at the Prep Dig Gauntlet at the Sting Center. Let's take a look.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Balance of 17 Elite</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At this tournament if you are in the elite field, of course there is going to be plenty of balance.  These teams are among the best in the country.  In Pool A we had a three way tie with 1st Alliance 17 Gold, Circle City 17 Purple, and Northern Lights 17-1 all going 2-1. Even Michio who was 0-3 still went to three sets with Circle City and Northern Lights.  The swings were big, there were plenty of moments where I just thought “How did they get that ball up?”.  Circle City 17 Purple libero Taylor Donovan, a Ball State commit was relentless.  Kaelyn Bjorklund for Northern Lights 17-1 was a true commander where she orchestrates a well balanced offense, the vibe of that team is so fun.  Dayton commit Ainsley Wilson for 1st Alliance 17 Gold is real tough out of the middle.  She has a bright career ahead of her as a Flyer.  [player_tooltip player_id='412536' first='Kyla' last='Mitchell'] who has been out with an injury was back and making a big impact for Michio, the Virginia commit just changes that game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":993279,"width":"452px","height":"auto","aspectRatio":"1.416342412451362","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/06/RG1A4178-e1780780547935.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-993279" style="aspect-ratio:1.416342412451362;width:452px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='546199' first='Katelyn' last='Beirne'] of 1st Alliance 16 Silver</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>The Depth of 1st Alliance 16s</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I was able to see 1st Alliance 16 Gold play quite a few times this season where they have a bid to the open field at USAV Nationals in Indy later this month.&nbsp; Their 16 Silver team took home two USA Division titles this season and flexed today going 3-0 in 16 Open pool play.&nbsp; Their pins were among the best in the gym. [player_tooltip player_id='546199' first='Katelyn' last='Beirne'] and Madelyn Maloney are high level. The two were scoring at will. They have a high contact point, a big swing that allows them to hit different angles and just found a way to get it done.&nbsp; They have a high ceiling of potential as well. Setter Tori Ryan is cool, calm, and collected where she was able to keep all of her attackers involved where they have a high efficiency.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":993278,"width":"395px","height":"auto","aspectRatio":"1.6151755505019691","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/06/RG1A4293-e1780780432408.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-993278" style="aspect-ratio:1.6151755505019691;width:395px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='545987' first='Gabriella' last='Bassett'] celebrating a timeout<br></figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Circle City 16 Purple vs. Northern Lights 16-1&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was one of the best matches of the morning.&nbsp; Circle City out of Indianapolis has been on of the top teams in the country all season and Northern Lights 16-1 has a real physical front line.&nbsp; This was a matchup of the championship at the 15s level at the Gauntlet in 2025.&nbsp; Northern Lights took set one, Circle City fought back in set two and Northern Lights jumped out to a fast start in set three.&nbsp; In true Circle City fashion they chipped away with tough serving, relentless defense, and big swings at key points.&nbsp; Gabrielle Bassett went on a big serving run in set three that was key for their rally, [player_tooltip player_id='880811' first='Gabriella' last='Gilliard'] had a huge kill from the right side to really get the momentum going, and one of the top outsides in the country in [player_tooltip player_id='807856' first='Audrey' last='Utterback'] scored a big kill out of the middle for match point.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":993277,"width":"578px","height":"auto","aspectRatio":"1.5014953078271631","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2026/06/RG1A4260.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-993277" style="aspect-ratio:1.5014953078271631;width:578px;height:auto"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St. Louis and Cincy, Welcome!&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We don't always get to see teams from St. Louis and Cincinnati in Wisconsin.&nbsp; Rockwood Thunder out of the St. Louis area and Elevation 16 Renfro out of Cincinnati were in the house.&nbsp; Rockwood Thunder is always in the hunt in every tournament they attend.&nbsp; Mo Wiezorek of Rockwood Thunder 17 Elite brought such a spark to her team.&nbsp; She's a setter, but also took some swings on the right side.&nbsp; She's a Virginia Tech commit where her vibe along adds points for her side of the net.&nbsp; Elevation 16 Renfro has an open bid to Indy and they have pins who swing big.&nbsp; Kelsey Green runs a great offense where the likes of Mina Radaszewski on the outside and backcourt were scoring plenty of points.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->