Review of American Division DMV Clubs for the 16-17 Age Group

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Breaking down the 13 DMV teams qualifying for the American Division was just too big a haul. So we broke it out into two different posts. Below are the seven DMV under 16-17 Clubs who will compete in the American Division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":1} --> <h1 class="wp-block-heading">American 16</h1> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Metro National</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AES Ranking</strong> - 15th regionally and 480 nationally</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There</strong> - Metro National was not one of the 12 teams qualifying to compete for a bid in the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships. This forced them to qualify for a bid the hard way. Consider their effort a success. They took first in the American Division at the Northeast Qualifiers. There were a total of 117 teams in that division and they came out on top. The two other qualifiers they competed in, Sunshine and Show Me did not go as well. Both were middle of the pack finishes playing in the USA Division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player to Watch</strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["739977"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2ae337e71e9"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Always good to keep your eye on those 6'0" setters. The first time I watched her set was at a Prep Dig Showcase. During the six person play she volunteered to set. Almost two years have passed since. Now, with Metro National a new opportunity arose. The fact that she is playing with new players who have never been teammates before may be a good thing.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">She does a good job of pushing the ball out. The quickness is also there to get to the ball. As with all first year setters she needs to work on her consistency with location and the timing when it comes to the quick tempo sets. The skills are there. Now she just needs to gain the experience.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Claire Mo has graduated from Langley. The Saxons will need to work in a new setter next year. Elizabeth appears the best option. As an added bonus, she puts the ball away hitting from the right side so she can stay in the front row when setting a 6/2.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other top ranked players to watch</strong> - middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='545725' first='Abisola' last='Adeyemo']</strong> (19), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='545726' first='Miley' last='Keyes'] </strong>(46), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='731631' first='Zalikah' last='Pabalan']</strong> (56), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='749358' first='Eva' last='Bujanauskas'] </strong>(84), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='623092' first='Anwuli' last='Okafor']</strong> (115), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='960051' first='Caroline' last='Freeman']</strong> (190).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Liberty Elite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AES Ranking </strong>- 5th regionally and 351 nationally</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There </strong>- They finished fourth in the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships, which would qualify them for a Freedom Division bid. When [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] beat [program_tooltip program_id='494409' first='Blue' last='Ridge'] in the finals of the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships [program_tooltip program_id='494409' first='Blue' last='Ridge'] kept their USA bid allowing Liberty Elite to bump up one level. During the club season they competed in two Qualifiers, finishing 5th in the Sunshine Classic Liberty Division and 9th in the Northeast Qualifier American Division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player to Watch</strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["617087"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2ae337e7275"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">At 5'9" she is a little undersized for playing middle. Despite her lack of length she was able to hit some balls well in the middle, showing good timing to hit the quick tempo sets. She still needs a little work to gain more consistency on her timing.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Her best bet would be to slide to a pin. She can hit outside, showing the quickness to hit the floor when playing defense. More work is needed to get that explosiveness with the jump and the arm swing. Ideally she needs to grow a little to stay at middle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Ranked Players to Watch</strong> - setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='889251' first='Mia' last='Johnson']</strong> (113), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='764683' first='Naomi' last='McNeal']</strong> ((114), pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='933340' first='Maliyah' last='Coleman'] </strong>(148), right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='764664' first='Sloane' last='Dunn']</strong> (149), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='764676' first='Isabella' last='Spinelli']</strong> (183), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='933348' first='Tenley' last='Yost']</strong> (201), pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='933345' first='Ava' last='Dahn']</strong> (WL), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='933349' first='Reese' last='Topper']</strong> (WL).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Libero Huskies</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AES Ranking</strong> - 7th Regionally, 341 nationally</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There</strong> - After getting crushed by [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] in the semifinal of the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championships the Libero Huskies bounced back to beat Liberty Elite to take third place. If [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] had earned an Open bid they would be the first to bump up to the USA Division, a level that Libero has yet to see in their club history. That never came to pass. They did play at three different Divisions in three Qualifiers but fell far short from earning a bid. Regardless, it was still quite a year for Libero.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player to Watch</strong> -</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["623088"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2b510053111"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">The top player to watch on this team is probably the 6'0" setter [player_tooltip player_id='536729' first='Katelyn' last='Rolph']. Because I evaluated her three weeks ago I decided to choose the most interesting player in their 5'6" left side [player_tooltip player_id='623088' first='Irina' last='Padden'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">She will not impress you with her height or her vertical. The velocity on her hits will also leave you unimpressed. What you will find when you watch her play is the ball tends to find the empty area of the court after she hits it. Her serves also finds the seams. And her defensive play will prevent most balls from hitting the floor on her side of the net. Her future may lay in the libero position but right now she is enjoying herself scoring points with intelligent hits.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">For her success she likes using the block or hitting it deep in areas 1 or 5.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other ranked players to watch</strong> - setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='536729' first='Katelyn' last='Rolph']</strong> (36), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='934826' first='Victoria' last='Liakos']</strong> (170), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='947242' first='Alexa' last='Balgavy']</strong> (WL), pin hitter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='754951' first='Milica' last='Marden'] </strong>(2029, 124), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='888041' first='Sophia' last='Chan']</strong> (2027, 198), right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='934828' first='Madelyn' last='Denny']</strong> (2027, 208)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">540 Volleyball Elite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AES Ranking</strong> - 5th regionally and 398 nationally. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There</strong> - 540 finished second in the Old Dominion Regional Bid Championships. They defeated [program_tooltip program_id='450416' first='East' last='Coast Volleyball Club'] Black in pool play but lost to them in the finals of the bracket play 25-23, 25-18. They played in two Qualifiers, the Liberty Division at the Sunshine and Northeast but fell far short of a bid.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player to Watch</strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["609590"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2b510053150"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Leah won a top performer award a year ago at our Prep Dig Showcase. She drove a number of balls to the floor and impressed me with her attitude on the court. Her twin sister Alexa feeds her the ball as the setter for both club and high school. Leah is a bit undersized for a left side at 5'8" but a couple inches of growth would solve that.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Regardless, her small stature did not prevent her from leading her high school in kills. A true battler on the court.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Ranked Players to Watch</strong> - Libero/DS <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='602392' first='Elise' last='Nair']</strong> (76), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='466369' first='Cailin' last='Connors']</strong> (81), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='587035' first='Maggie' last='Race']</strong> (82), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='627365' first='Alexa' last='Eggleton']</strong> (98), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='664973' first='Annalese' last='James']</strong> (122), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='937250' first='Joy' last='Fawole'] </strong>(128), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='601748' first='MaKennah' last='Dovel']</strong> (172), middle<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='918806' first='Abigail' last='Rexrode']</strong> (178), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='990529' first='Cass' last='Shockey']</strong> (WL) </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":1} --> <h1 class="wp-block-heading">American 17</h1> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Virginia Elite</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AES Ranking</strong> - 9th Regionally and 267 nationally</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There </strong>- Finished in fourth place in the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championship. A loss to MVSA Blaze in the third place match, losing the third set 15-13 prevented them from bumping up to the National Division. Just as well, since their top left side will not be available because of injury. It appears they played in just one qualifier in Salt Lake, a 31st place finish in the USA Division.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player to Watch</strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["582293"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2b510053178"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">This team carries a lot of talent, especially at the middle position with [player_tooltip player_id='488812' first='Olivia' last='Boggs'] and [player_tooltip player_id='720348' first='Milena' last='Kibret']. Of the three Shannon may be the more compete player with solid blocking and effective hitting. Olivia is the top offensive player while Milena may be the best blocker, but Shannon does both skills well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As you can see from the picture she is an intense player. She does have an advantage with her hitting the quick middles since her setter at Virginia Elite [player_tooltip player_id='325403' first='Annabelle' last='Kim'] also sets her at her high school Heritage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At 6'2" she brings good length to the middle. She moves well to the pins giving me an indication that she reads the setters well. She has committed to Trinity College in Connecticut. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Ranked Players to Watch </strong>- middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='488812' first='Olivia' last='Boggs']</strong> (34), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='720348' first='Milena' last='Kibret']</strong> (New York, 37), pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='359401' first='Chloe' last='Barth']</strong> (38), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='437448' first='Eva' last='Collingham']</strong> (39), right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='465321' first='Marissa' last='Turek']</strong> (54), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='325403' first='Annabelle' last='Kim']</strong> (55), pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='530363' first='Adelyn' last='Pye']</strong> (69), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='485504' first='Sydney' last='Miller']</strong> (97), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='520868' first='Caroline' last='Semko']</strong> (113), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='568220' first='Madalyn' last='Norgart']</strong> (162), pin <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='742633' first='Olivia' last='Cypcar']</strong> (177), libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='521323' first='Ilana' last='Collingham']</strong> (2028, 58)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite'] Quintin</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>AES Ranking</strong> - 5th regionally and 275 nationally</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There</strong> - They finished fifth in the Chesapeake Regional Bid Championship that qualified them for the Freedom Division. [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] winning an Open Bid and MVSA Blaze snagging a reallocated National Bid bumped them up to the American Division. Playing in the Sunshine Qualifier they finished fifth in the American Division falling just short of earning them a bid but they still got there eventually by trickling up.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player to Watch</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["536741"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2b51005319b"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">As [player_tooltip player_id='536741' first='Lacey' last='Bogues'] goes so to go [program_tooltip program_id='498081' first='Loudoun' last='Elite']. Her 5'8" stature is undersized for a left side, but when you see her 36 inch vertical and 10'1" approach jump she flies over some of her taller blockers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">She does seem to carry that sixth sense of where to hit the ball. She turns down the line when the blockers are giving her line, buries the ball through the middle if the middle blocker is late getting to the pin. Smaller hitters with big jumps like Lacey sometimes carry an advantage as blockers tend to go up too early for them. While the blocker is coming down Lacey is still on the rise.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">She plays six rotations, attacking the ball well from the back row. If you want to add excitement to your gym she can amp up the volume with some impressive hits. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Ranked Players to Watch</strong> - right side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='941998' first='Olivia' last='Stroupe']</strong> (110), middle <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='445966' first='Emerson' last='Barbrow']</strong> (114), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='444617' first='Kamilla' last='Hendrix'] </strong>(132), setter <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='778213' first='Ellie' last='Nguyen']</strong> (150), outside <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='763215' first='Kaylee' last='Mehta']</strong> (Virginia Wesleyan, 186), left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='937494' first='Delia' last='Brooks Terceros']</strong> (194), Libero/ds <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='754934' first='Addison' last='Lopez']</strong> (197), <strong>Era Rruka-Stanton</strong> (Ithaca 2026, WL)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">[program_tooltip program_id='450416' first='East' last='Coast Volleyball Club'] Black</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>AES Ranking - 2nd Regionally and 699 Nationally</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>How They Got There </strong>- They finished second in the Old Dominion Regional Bid Championship, losing to 540 Volleyball Club Elite twice. East Coast played in the USA Division in the Sunshine and Northeast Qualifiers, falling far short of earning a bid. They did finish first in their last tournament, the Coastal Clash.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Top Player on the Roster </strong>-</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["887042"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a2b5100531c0"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">I first saw Madalyn play for Stonebridge high school when they finished the season undefeated. They won the Division II VISAA state championships going 38-0. Madalyn earned player of the year for Division II. She smacked down 23 kills in the finals with an end of the year hitting percentage of .425.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At 6'0" she brings good length to the pins. Her arm extension also helps her put the ball away. A six rotation player she was home schooled until her junior year in high school when she won the MVP of the conference. Don't know if the coach knew about her when she walked into the gym during tryouts, but if not that had to be a pleasant surprise.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>She led the team in kills, falling 25 short of 500. That stat total was second in the state of Virginia, just ahead of <strong>Kennedy Spaid</strong> and behind [player_tooltip player_id='752075' first='Julia' last='Kinney'] in kills.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other ranked players to Watch</strong> - left side <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='608979' first='Mia' last='Schmidt']</strong> (155). A number of ranked players for [program_tooltip program_id='450416' first='East' last='Coast Volleyball Club'] played for the Pink team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->