Iowa Regional 17s - Teams, Top Players, and Storylines To Know

Iowa Regionals at Drake University are two weeks away and there will be an energy that is just different compared to other tournaments. Many of these athletes have competed against each other for years on the high school and club courts. The combination of teams for this event has plenty of top athletes who will go head to head in order to snag a bid to Vegas at the USAV National Junior Championships in late June.   Future Missouri Valley Conference Athletes For [program_tooltip program_id='431948' first='Iowa' last='Rockets'] 17-R This group of 17s for [program_tooltip program_id='431948' first='Iowa' last='Rockets'] have been playing together for years. They have a team chemistry and cohesiveness that is tough to match. For many of these athletes, they will continue their volleyball careers in the Missouri Valley Conference. [player_tooltip player_id="17323" first="Macy" last="Daufeldt"] - Drake [player_tooltip player_id="103703" first="Gabbie" last="Schroeder"] - Drake [player_tooltip player_id="17325" first="Kora" last="Ruff"] - Evansville [player_tooltip player_id="17332" first="Calia" last="Clubb"] - Illinois State [player_tooltip player_id="17336" first="Ella" last="Ramsay"] - Loyola-Chicago Another commit who is heading to the Summit League is [player_tooltip player_id="17327" first="Alexis" last="Moses"] who will play for South Dakota. There are still available athletes on this squad in [player_tooltip player_id="79238" first="Ella" last="McLaughlin"], [player_tooltip player_id="79243" first="Kelsey" last="Drake"], and [player_tooltip player_id="79233" first="Meredith" last="Bahl"]. This team is coming off a huge event in St. Louis for Presidents Day where they defeated some of the top clubs in the country in the 17 Open Division which included Milwaukee Sting, Michio (Chicago), and Rockwood Thunder out of St. Louis.   On The Rise Iowa Select 17 Mizuno was another team to have some statement wins in St. Louis and will be heading into Iowa Regionals with a full squad. They have had a balancing act of basketball athletes on their squad which includes one of the top 2023 prospects in [player_tooltip player_id="79708" first="Ava" last="Schubert"] who will play in the state basketball tournament next week for Davenport Assumption. After a tough day one in St. Louis, which included a narrow loss to Milwaukee Sting 17 Gold 19-17 in three sets, they finished the weekend with four straight wins. They will look to [player_tooltip player_id="79247" first="Ella" last="Caffery"], a recent commit to Northwest Missouri State to run the show as well as big time attackers in Schubert, [player_tooltip player_id="103715" first="Morgan" last="Barker"], and [player_tooltip player_id="103704" first="Hannah" last="Copeland"] out of the middle. [caption id="attachment_133785" align="aligncenter" width="524"]<img class="wp-image-133785" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/02/DSC05387.jpg" alt="" width="524" height="349" /> Street #18[/caption] Powerful Pin Combo CIA 17 Black has a new compared to prior years with new athletes and combination that will be fun to watch in Des Moines. Iowa State commit, [player_tooltip player_id="79239" first="Kiersten" last="Schmitt"] is playing on the outside, a new position for her where she will be able to score points in a hurry. A big time jumper, she can hit over most blocks. [player_tooltip player_id="79244" first="Maddie" last="Harris"] is another outside hitter who brings a powerful swing and has a major impact at the net. [player_tooltip player_id="79248" first="Meredith" last="Street"], a UNI commit, can play anywhere from libero to right side or outside. She packs a punch with her aggressive style and knows how to compete at a high level. Schmitt and Street will both be looking to have a stellar track season as well. <img class=" wp-image-133784 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/02/DSC04715.jpg" alt="" width="465" height="310" /> Ready To Break Through Iowa PowerPlex, IPVA, Six Pack, Adrenaline, and Platform Elite are on the cusp of breaking through and are more than capable of knocking off plenty of teams who will be in the 17s Division at Iowa Regionals. PowerPlex has played an Open level schedule and are accustomed to seeing the power teams in a big atmosphere. IPVA won their last four of five matches at the Omaha Presidents Day Classic and with a setter who can run the show and score points from the right side in [player_tooltip player_id="79246" first="Madison" last="Geise"], there is always a chance. Six Pack is still a little bit of a question mark, but with a full squad after basketball season it will be interesting to see how they come together heading into Regional/Qualifier season. They do have a solid first two contacts in [player_tooltip player_id="79256" first="Alivia" last="Bronner"] (UNI) and [player_tooltip player_id="79236" first="Morgan" last="Brandt"] (Iowa State) who will lead the way. Adrenaline will be fun to watch with a setter who can run the show in [player_tooltip player_id="79259" first="Madison" last="Maahs"] and dynamic attackers in [player_tooltip player_id="79263" first="Chloe" last="Van Etten"] and [player_tooltip player_id="79249" first="Faith" last="Freshwater"]. Platform Elite has a long, athletic lineup where they will look to [player_tooltip player_id="132854" first="Arra" last="Cottrell"] from the pin and [player_tooltip player_id="132691" first="Carly" last="Rolf"] who can set and also hit on the right side when needed. <img class=" wp-image-133783 aligncenter" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/02/DSC04974.jpg" alt="" width="486" height="324" /> Don't Sleep On These “Two” [program_tooltip program_id='431948' first='Iowa' last='Rockets'] 17-1 and [program_tooltip program_id='428936' first='Club' last='Ignit Select'] 17 Green are the second team within their club, but these two squads can compete with anyone in the region. The 17s at [program_tooltip program_id='428936' first='Club' last='Ignit Select'] are extremely deep with their 17 Blue team being one of the top teams in the country and will not be playing at Iowa Regionals. Both of these teams had a big weekend over Presidents Day where they finished second in the club division with an overall record of 9-1 with their only loss coming to Missouri Juniors in the championship. [program_tooltip program_id='431948' first='Iowa' last='Rockets'] 17-1 finished in the top eight of the Premier Division in St. Louis with an overall record of 5-3. They have plenty of big swings with Katy Stephens, [player_tooltip player_id="79266" first="Carly" last="Puffer"], and [player_tooltip player_id="132864" first="Alexis" last="Richards"].