MN Select 18-1 Earns 18 Open GJNC Bid in Omaha

<p>It was mission accomplished Sunday afternoon in Omaha, NE for MN Select 18-1 as they finished second in the Gold championship pool, earning one of two bids to the 2018 18 Open GJNC later this season in Anaheim, CA. Following Round 2 action four teams advanced to the Round 3 Gold group slated to take place in pool play format.</p> <p>MN Select finished the day with a 2-1 record as the final match of the event avoided a three-way tie and a playoff, giving them one of two bids on the line. In there first match of Round 3 they faced A4 Volley Purple winning in straight sets with identical 25-19 scores. Their second match was against Milwaukee Sting 18 Gold. MN Select opened up the match with a tight 25-23 set one win before dropping the next two sets 25-14, 15-11 to fall to 1-1 with one match to play. They controlled their final match against COAST 18 1 winning in straight sets 25-9, 25-21 keeping their hopes alive but forcing them to sit with their 2-1 record with one match left in the pool. With Sting at 2-0 and A4 at 1-1, an A4 win would create a three-way logjam. Sting pulled off a three-set win to finish as the Gold champion, dropping A4 to 1-2 and giving MN Select the coveted ticket to the national championship event.</p> <p>MN Select 18-1 finished the event at 8-2 overall, both losses coming as a result of a three-set battle. MN Select's roster has great depth and is highly touted, full of both 2018 and 2019 athletes that will advance to some of the nation's elite NCAA Division I programs at the conclusion of their respective prep careers. Included on this roster are <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="149" first="Eleanor" last="Holthaus"]</strong> (Rocori HS), Prep Dig's top-ranked Minnesota athlete in the class of 2018. She is joined by of Prep Dig top five athletes in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="152" first="Grace" last="Persson"]</strong> (#4 2018 | Eden Prairie HS), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="153" first="Kayla" last="Bair"]</strong> (#5 2018 |Prior Lake HS), and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="29852" first="Lauren" last="Clark"]</strong> (#3 2019 | Armstrong HS). MN Select 18-1's full roster is as follows (including future college program):</p> <p><strong>2018 –</strong></p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="153" first="Kayla" last="Bair"]</strong> – 6'2 MB | College: Michigan</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="149" first="Eleanor" last="Holthaus"]</strong> – 6'2 OH/RS | College: Iowa State</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="9726" first="Brynn" last="Paumen"]</strong> – 6'2 MB | College: Missouri</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="152" first="Grace" last="Persson"]</strong> – 6'2 OH | College: Michigan</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="9722" first="Kari" last="Zumach"]</strong> – 6'2 OH/RS | College: Creighton</p> <p><strong>2019 –</strong></p> <p><strong>Isabella Ashburn</strong> – 5'11 S | College: Wisconsin</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="29852" first="Lauren" last="Clark"]</strong> – 6'1 OH | College: Penn State</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="29868" first="Evie" last="Harrington"]</strong> – 5'11 MB | College: Uncommitted</p> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="9916" first="Emma" last="Schmidt"]</strong> – 6'1 OH | College: Northern Iowa</p> <p><strong>Kaitlyn Weimerskirch</strong> – 5'6 L | College: Illinois State</p> <p>A second bid for the North Country Region was nearly earned as Northern Lights 18 Black was defeated in a well-fought 18 American division championship match. After defeating PVA 18 ELITE, NL 18-B avenged their only loss of the event to that point with a semifinal win over Performance 18 NIKE, advancing them to the final match to face Nebraska Elite 18 Envy. NL 18-B took the first set 25-18 before Nebraska evened it at one set apiece with a 25-19 set two win before claiming the title and the lone bid up for grabs with a 15-13 third set victory. All North Country Region Minnesota U18 results from Omaha include the following:</p> <p><strong>18 Open</strong></p> <p>2^nd – MN Select 18-1 | 98-2 record; Bid earned)</p> <p>6^th - Northern Lights 18-1 (5-3 record)</p> <p>9^th - Northern Lights 17-1 (6-2 record)</p> <p>14^th – Northern Lights 18-2 (2-6 record)</p> <p><strong>18 American</strong></p> <p>2nd - Northern Lights 18 Black (7-2 record)</p> <p>10^th – Northern Lights 18 Red (6-3 record)</p> <p>13^th (tie) – Impact 18 Pink (2-5 record)</p> <p>19^th (tie) – Impact 18 Black (3-4 record)</p> <p><strong>18 USA</strong></p> <p>11^th – MN North 18-1 (6-2 record)</p>