16 Open Standouts: Nike Classic Edition

The Nike Classic tournament was a mix of teams coming mostly from the midwest or east coast regions. There was definitely some talent, but I would say there were more surprises from me than anything else. The predicted the winner of this tournament to be Legacy out of Michigan, and while they did make it to the gold bracket on day three. Tri State Elite took home the first place trophy defeating Elevation 16-1’s in the finals. I thought all teams played well and there was a lot of fun 3 set thrillers going on especially on day 3. Although I wasn't able to be there in person I did have some input from people there and I got to watch a whole bunch of games from home! Here are some overall thoughts on the 16’s division at the Nike Classic:

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Let's start with the winners: Tri-State Elite 16 Blue. This is a very strong club out of the Northern Kentucky/ Greater Cincinnati area. There were lots of things that stood out to me and being a setter myself their setter was definitely one to catch my eye. #11 on their roster Penelope Reisman is a 2028 setter and she did an impressive job running their offense and she was really strong defensively especially on her block. I loved her sets to the middles in uncomfy or out of system situations. Speaking of those middles, Charley Moeddel and Jillian Forest were two class of 2027 stand out middle attackers that helped this tri state team win.

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Elevation 16-1’s had a strong showing. Their OH stood out to me especially #9 Morgan Meiring. She was a high point scorer for her team this past weekend and helped them be successful offensively. I had the chance to chat with one of their setters, Kendall Hubbard, heading into the weekend and I thought she did a great job both setting and attacking. The Elevation libero also stood out to me. Ali Strange did a fantastic job keeping her team in system on first balls and was gritty on defense. I also thought her team scored well when she was setting out of system balls. Overall this team came home with the silver medal and had a very good showing. 

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Legacy 16-1’s finished tied for third this past weekend. They are a very strong team and I don't think one third place finish will discourage this group. I love how Marlie Smith is running her offense. She is quick and hustles around the court better than most. I loved how often she used the back row attack as well. Bryn Meyer had her debut with her new team this season and played well from what I saw. Her team did a great job covering her and keeping them involved! Cynthia Ockerman stood out to me offensively. I thought she was up and available for Smith to set and did a great job finding angles. And as always, Frankie Ramsdell-Washington was a huge threat on offense, ALWAYS being up and hustling in transition. 

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The other 3rd place team was NKYVC 16 Tsunami. I loved the hustle of their libero! Ariana Furuta was all over the place and made some big time plays last weekend. I would argue a lot of their success was thanks to this. I loved getting to watch Teagan Kondik play. She is long and covers some serious ground on defense. Then in the front row she is high and aggressive. She is a fun player to watch. I loved her rallying her team and celebrating! I was also loving the spunk from Isabel O’Brein on the outside. She was springy and fun to watch as well.

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The final team I really had to do a write up on is AVC 16 Red. This group finished tied for 9th place at the Nike Classic. After going 2-1 on day one they found themselves in first place in their pool on day two sending them to gold! Unfortunately the team lost a heart breaker to Carolina Union Volleyball Club. Although that one match sent them in a different direction on day 3 this is a team that has a ton of spunk and a lot of strong players. Leading the way and catching my eye immediately is Kyla Williams. She runs the slide like a pro and is so aggressive swinging both line and angle. Her movement laterally on the block is way beyond her years. She is a huge asset to this team! I also thought that in a couple of the games that I got to watch, their offense was powered by two strong Outside hitters in #12 Anne Culkar and #10 Payton Beard. These two do a really strong job at passing to attack and have powerful cross court swings. I can't wait to keep watching this team because I anticipate some top finishes for them.

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There was really so much more to watch and so many standout players in the 16's age group at this tournament. I think the volleyball level was pretty good and I enjoyed getting to watch a lot of matches from home. As always, since I can't be there in person, this was just some overall thoughts about the tournament and what I saw from watching from home. I am positive I missed some really strong players and some really great teams. So, let me know what I missed... send all the film my way and I'll be better next time:) and while you're at it... make a player profile!