10 Squads That Impressed at Omaha Team Camp
OMAHA – There were some new wrinkles in the Omaha Team Camp this year, but the competition itself was of high caliber, as always, as the new Maverick coaching staff of Matt Buttermore, Maggie Baumert and Kelly O’Connor conducted its…
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Continue ReadingOMAHA – There were some new wrinkles in the Omaha Team Camp this year, but the competition itself was of high caliber, as always, as the new Maverick coaching staff of Matt Buttermore, Maggie Baumert and Kelly O’Connor conducted its first team camp.
There was no re-seeding or re-pooling as each of the 24 teams competing in the highest division at Sapp Fieldhouse were split into two groups with each team in Group A playing all 12 teams in Group B and vice versa. It was a nice change, in my opinion, as it prevented Omaha-area teams from playing each other – since they will MANY times during the season. And it also did the same for Lincoln-area teams.
Since every team in the same group played the exact same competition, the group standings wound up being a very fair assessment of how each team played over the two days. As the competition went along, it became apparent that Group B was the stronger group. As a result, the overall record of the teams in Group A was probably a lower indication of how good of a team they really are, meanwhile, the records of the Group B teams were probably a little inflated when compared to their Group B counter parts.
As a general rule, team camp results can be a little deceiving because there are a lot of factors at play. Many teams will play with different line-ups or try players at new positions since the emphasis is really on training and preparation and not wins and losses. There were also a lot of notable players absent over the weekend. A few that come to mind would be:
Alexis Markowski – Lincoln Pius X
Kyla Sealock – Lincoln Pius X
Bekka Allick – Lincoln North Star
Paige Fixemer – Millard South
Skylar McCune – Gretna
I’m sure there were many others missing that I just didn’t realize. That having been said, here are the 10 teams that impressed me the most over the past two days. Not the 10 BEST teams, but the 10 teams that impressed me the most. I’m only touching slightly on individual players today, I will write about the top individuals from the camp tomorrow.
Millard South
Yes, the Patriots finished with the best record in the tournament (22-2), so it’s no surprise that they were one of the most impressive teams. It’s really how they played more so than how much they won that was impressive. Missing both of its middles and being drastically undersized, the Patriots played with the intensity and scrappiness you expect to see from a Jaisa Poppleton-coached team. Maggie MacTaggert was unstoppable most of the weekend on the outside. Libero Sam Steele, right side Maddie Madej and setter Makalya Fleming and a group of most inexperienced other players stole the show at Sapp Fieldhouse.
Papillion-LaVista
The Monarchs won the Creighton Team Camp title when it played without both of its middles a couple weeks ago (maybe that’s the key to winning these camps – not having your starting middles). I still see the Monarchs as the team to beat in Class A this year and when they were on this weekend, they were really fun to watch. A shout-out to Emily Gilbert, a senior for Papillion-LaVita who broke her leg on Friday evening while playing in a match. She didn’t mess around, either, it was a doozy. Best wishes for a speedy recovery!
Lincoln Lutheran
Prior to this weekend, I have very low expectations for Lincoln Lutheran. Yes, the Warriors return Marriah Buss, but no other returning player had more than 70 kills last season and they also have to replace All-Nebraska performers at setter and Libero. But, dang, the Warriors looked pretty sharp and had some new wrinkles this weekend. Will Lutheran be able to keep it up during the season in the rugged Centennial Conference? That’s a question that just got a whole lot more interesting based on what I saw. They played St. Paul basically even, so early indications are the Warriors are capable of being a state-tournament team again this fall.
Columbus
I talked a little about how impressed I was with Columbus at the Wayne State camp and again this past weekend, the Discoverers showed they are a program on the rise. Columbus hasn’t been to state since it lost to Bellevue West in the Class A finals in 2004. If the Discoverers were in Class B this year, I would give them a better than 50-50 chance of breaking that streak this season. But, as one of the smaller Class A programs, it will have its work cut out for it to make it to Lincoln. But, this is no longer a team that you can pencil in as a W. Head coach Jeri Otten and her assistant – former Scotus head coach Joe Held – are doing an amazing job and the fact that they went 10-14 against a brutal schedule this weekend shows that.
Lincoln Pius X
The defending Class A runners-up showed this weekend they are going to be right in the mix of things again this fall. Missing the aforementioned players, the Thunderbolts were still one of the best teams at UNO. There still seems to be a battle unfolding for how the Bolts will replace setter Gracie Gokie and Nebraska recruit Emma Gabel at libero, but by all accounts the last couple days, they have some really good options at both positions. This should be one of the deepest groups of top teams in Class A in quite some time, but I can easily see Pius X making a strong run at getting back to The Bob Devaney Sports Complex for the final Saturday of the season this fall.
Wahoo
The two-time defending Class C-1 champs won the Omaha Team Camp last year and were right in the thick of it again this season. When you lose a middle to Illinois and an outside to Wayne State, though, you have to expect a little bit of a transition period in the off-season.There were some other really good Class C-1 teams at the camp as well, but I still consider Wahoo the early favorite in that class simply based on the incredible talent the Warriors bring back and their history of developing and improving as the season goes along.
Gretna
First off, It would be a mistake to not talk about how good it was to see Mike Brandon on the sideline and coaching. I’m sure the gym and his team is therapeutic for him. One of the very best coaches in the state – and an even better person – there was a lot of love being sent in the direction of him, the Gretna volleyball team and the community as a whole at the camp. As much as all the Dragons appreciated it, I’m sure, it didn’t stop them from wanting to beat the tar out of you when this whistled blew. The setter position still needs to sort itself out for Gretna, but the Dragons will – as always – be relentless and well-rounded.
St. Paul
There is so much to like about the Wildcats. St. Paul has one of the most consistently successful programs in the state and it all starts with their incredible ball control and the fact that they absolutely refuse to give you an easy or free point. I think St. Paul’s overall athletic ability caught teams off guard and they really act like they could care less who is on the other side of the net, they just play their style, make really goo decisions and generally walk off the court with wins.
Lincoln Southeast
At first glance, you see that Lincoln Southeast went 13-11 over the two days and think that it’s nothing special to write home about. But, in her second year know as head coach, Paige Hubl is really putting her stamp on the program. You can tell there is an emphasis on ball control and the Knights were a team that a lot of coaches pointed to as one of the more improved and surprise teams at the camp. Again, as wide open as Class A is likely to be this year, Lincoln Southeast could easily find itself in contention for a trip to state.
Bellevue West
I will admit that maybe I need to pump the brakes a little bit on the Bellevue West bandwagon thing, but gosh, there is SO much to like about the T-Birds. The two big questions I had about Bellevue West was its setter and libero positions. I’m no longer of the thought that libero could be an issue and clearly the T-Birds have their setter (more on that tomorrow) and I walked away even more impressed than I initially was with their front row. This is going to be a really, really fun team to watch!
Here is a look at the final standing from the Omaha Team Camp in each group.
Group A
Sioux Falls O’Gorman – 17-7
Lincoln Pius X – 15-9
St. Paul – 14-10
Lincoln Southeast – 13-11
Lincoln East – 11-13
Columbus – 10-14
Aurora – 7-17
Hastings – 7-17
Sioux Falls Roosevelt – 7-17
Sioux Falls Lincoln – 6-18
North Bend – 5-19
Lincoln North Star – 2-22
Group B
Millard South – 22-2
Papillion-LaVista – 20-4
Lincoln Lutheran – 19-5
Wahoo – 18-6
Gretna – 16-8
Bellevue West – 15-9
Elkhorn – 15-9
Lincoln Christian – 15-9
Seward – 12-12
Platteview – 9-15
Omaha Burke – 7-17
Sioux City North – 7-17