Stars and Stripes 16’s Breakdown – All Divisions
The Star and Stripes tournament is building a solid foundation with some of the top clubs out of the Midwest. Fusion out of Illinois, VC Nebraska out of Lincoln, as well as some of the top clubs out of Wisconsin…
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Continue ReadingThe Star and Stripes tournament is building a solid foundation with some of the top clubs out of the Midwest. Fusion out of Illinois, VC Nebraska out of Lincoln, as well as some of the top clubs out of Wisconsin and Minnesota provides a great way to kickoff summer and the push to nationals whether it may be heading to Orlando or Indianapolis. The 16s age group which is comprised of many athletes from the Class of 2021 have involved in the middle of plenty of rule changes in regards to Division 1 college coaches. As of May 1, all recruiting communication with a college coach will be put on hold until June 15 after their Sophomore year (which is only a few weeks away). For a lot of these athletes who were pretty heavy on the recruiting trail were able to take a break in April. Whether that is a good thing depends on the individual athlete. With Memorial Day marking the beginning of the end of the 16s club season, it will be interesting to see how the cards fall. Here is a quick breakdown of the 16s Division at the Stars and Stripes Classic in Minneapolis.
16 Open
Milwaukee Sting 16 Gold at the Northern Lights Qualifier.Northern Lights 16-1 and Sting 16 Gold have Open bids to the USAV National Tournament and have the top two seeds going into the weekend. Lights defeated Sting 16 Gold most recently at the Northern Lights Qualifier at the end of April. MN Select 16-1 and VC Nebraska will be other threats to make a run at a 16 Open title this weekend. However, Capital 16 Adidas, Northern Lights 16-2, and Sting 16 Black will be teams who have competed against some of the best and are not afraid to go against the top teams with plenty of power on their own. Here are some top players to watch that have not committed to a college program yet.
Lauren Crowl – Northern Lights 16-1
Erin Lamb – Northern Lights 16-1
Emma Torstenson – Northern 16-1
Lizzie Binder – Sting 16 Gold
Torstenson (Red Jersey) is a 5’10 libero for Northern Lights 16-1Alexis Boling – Sting 16 Gold
Morgan Yenter – Sting 16 Gold
Josie Halbleib – Capital 16 Adidas
Payton Addink – Capital 16 Adidas
Abby Thompson – MN North 16-1
Madison Gully – MVA 16 Elite
Randi Wellhoefer – STing 16 Black
Tatum Catalano – Sting 16 Black
Kayla Lewinski – Sting 16 Black
Ryley Frye – Northern Lights 16-2
Teagan Starkey – MN Select 16-1
16 Premier
Once again Northern Lights, MN Select, and Milwaukee Sting will have some of the top teams in this field. However, another couple teams that could make a push would be VC Nebraska 16 Black, Crossfire 16-1, and SMV 16-1. Here are some players to keep an eye that could have a big weekend.
Monica Lafleur – Sting 16 White
Mackenzie Leach – Sting 16 White
Martina McGrath – Sting 16 White
Elle Truckenbrod – Sting 16 White
Kiya Durant – Crossfire 16-1
Megan Liu – MN Select 16-2
Maddie Converse – SMV 16-1
Jolie Stecher – SMV 16-1
Aspen Jankowski – Sting 16 White
Brooke Anderson – 1W 16 National
16 Club
Northern Lights 16-R has the number one overall seed, but a close second will be Kandi Elite out of Willmar, Minnesota. With teams across the region this will bring some tight matches come Sunday afternoon setting up for an exciting championship Monday.
Olivia Albers – Northern Lights 16-R
Lainey Van Hecke – Northern Lights 16-R
Carli Vargason – Kandi Elite 16-1
Bailey Olson – Kandi Elite 16-1
Adisa Preston – Vital 16 Gold