USAV 15 Open Gold Bracket Standouts

Watching these athletes compete, I still can't believe they are 15 years old.  Their athleticism, physicality, swagger, the whole package is so mature for someone who doesn't have their drivers license.  Here are 30 athletes I'm still blown away by their performance this past week at 15 Open who are going to be fun to track not only at the club level, but as they progress through the recruiting process as well as what they can do on USA Youth National teams.     I mean, WOW. Wave “crested” at the right point of the season. I just couldn't avoid the pun. This team was on fire. I know they had an amazing season, but they were a machine this week enroute to a 15 Open title. [player_tooltip player_id='700675' first='Baylee' last='Wilson'] is a special talent where I'm not really sure how to slow her down. In their semifinal match against AJV she went in for a high two ball against a triple block and still found a way to score. Aside from her scoring ability is her defense and passing. She is so smooth, making something that looks hard seem effortless.     For being 15 years old, her fundamentals are on point when it comes to her footwork, hands, location, everything it takes to be an elite setter. That is no surprise coming from a program like Wave where many of their athletes have that foundation for skills. To see it be at the highest level competition this past week in Indianapolis was exciting. She knew when to feed the hot hitters while also find the middles for a wide open matchup. I was also really impressed with her defense where she could just do everything really well. Skills like this don't just happen, there are thousands of reps behind those clean sets that are on the money with the right tempo.     So much explosiveness. I got one swing from her that went viral (at least for me) with 60k views yesterday. There may be a dent in the floor. However, watching her the rest of the time, I was so impressed with how she used the hands of the block that was in front of her on the pin. Multiple times the block was set up against KC Power where if she doesn't use the hands the right way its a point for KC Power. She changes the game with creative ways to score points.     I saw OTVA 15 Randy play at Triple Crown and then again this week. Wow. Her physicality at the net is special. She moves well, gets her hands to the ball and if the defense sleeps on her she is going to throw it down on the ten foot line. She was one of the top setters I saw this week in 15 Open where she has all the tools to compete at an extremely high level. I know USA Volleyball has her on the radar, but she will be one of the top setting recruits out of the Class of 2029.     [player_tooltip player_id='912003' first='Lucie' last='Amonett'] is going to break a nose of a defender at some point. She has such a fast arm and hits it so square every time. Her performance was so key for OTVA where her efficiency out of the middle put a lot of stress on the other side of the net. She was also one who could run the slide and take it anywhere on the court. She's posted on camps at North Carolina and Georgia Tech. As her game continues to evolve she is going to be an attacker who can score anywhere on the net and will be an exciting 2029 to track.     Watching [player_tooltip player_id='770397' first='Sienna' last='Cicero'] play for [program_tooltip program_id='876208' first='SC' last='Rockstar'] 15 Carlos, I thought “I bet she plays beach”, and yep she does REALLY WELL. The six rotation outside hitter has a complete game where she can serve receive, pass, and attack. She has a mature court vision that allows her to score with power, finesse, and using the block to her advantage. [program_tooltip program_id='876208' first='SC' last='Rockstar'] advanced to the gold bracket to knock off the top seed in [program_tooltip program_id='431200' first='Madfrog' last=''] and nearly advanced to the championship, but lost a tight one to OTVA. Cicero will be fun to track as her volleyball career progresses. Will she go the beach or indoor route? Or both?     [player_tooltip player_id='952570' first='Sayge' last='Chandler'] was a highlight reel out of the middle for [program_tooltip program_id='431200' first='Madfrog' last=''] 15 National Green. Whenever I watched [program_tooltip program_id='431200' first='Madfrog' last=''] and had the video going, they seemed to find her with multiple tempos. The setter could be pulled away from the net and Chandler still would find a way to swing and score points to the deep corner. She was also really lethal on the side where her hitting efficiency had to be video game like. This was a fun [program_tooltip program_id='431200' first='Madfrog' last=''] team who dropped a tough quarterfinal match to [program_tooltip program_id='876208' first='SC' last='Rockstar'], but they have a roster built for championships, especially with the likes of Chandler in the middle.     Austin Juniors 15 adidas was such a treat to watch! They dominated pool play going 5-0, not dropping a set. I was able to really watch their semifinal match against Wave where Wave was just too much for any team the past few days. [player_tooltip player_id='952593' first='Jennah' last='Lee'] of AJV was someone you had to be aware of anywhere on the court. The way she could score points on the outside was easy to see right away, her contact point is high which allows her to adjust her angles mid air. I was impressed with how she could handle the ball in serve receive and could score out of the backrow as well.     I really enjoyed watching this KC Power 15-1 squad compete this week. They have so many weapons and everyone on this team can handle the ball, their serve receive and passing was on point. Unfortunately for Power they ran into Wave in the quarterfinals. An outside hitter who was able to do a little bit of everything really well was Brylie Milo. Aside from her physical abilities, she just seems to bring great vibes to the court. She has positive body language, connects well with her team, and seems to make everything better around her.     Metro 15 Travel was a tough match up this past week. However, it was a grind to get to the gold bracket. They went 3-2 in pool play, 1-1 in gold pools, but then knocked off a high powered Dallas Skyline 15 Royal Ryan team which I don't think many people saw coming. Carolyn Maria just makes things run as the team's setter. She receives the ball high, she is tough to read for the defense the way she remains neutral with location and tempo, and if you sleep on her in the front row shes going to throw it down in the middle of the court. I really liked her connection with right side Scarlett Netherton. I see Maria has done camps at Pitt, Penn State, and Kentucky - she's in good company.     Boiler Juniors 15O Gold continued to chip away at teams and landed in the 15 Open quarterfinals. They have a ton of ball control and balance and an outside named Gia Stokes. Stokes moves effortlessly on the court where in the backrow she can serve receive, pass, and attack and on the outside she is able to use her athleticism and physicality to score in multiple ways. Indiana is stacked with this Class of 2029 and Stokes will be one for schools to track this next year heading into June 15, 2027.

Watching these athletes compete, I still can't believe they are 15 years old. Their athleticism, physicality, swagger, the whole package is so mature for someone who doesn't have their drivers license. Here are 30 athletes I'm still blown away by their performance this past week at 15 Open who are going to be fun to track not only at the club level, but as they progress through the recruiting process as well as what they can do on USA Youth National teams.