Lions 15-1 leapfrogs SPVB 15 Elite, Michio Chicago 15 National joins rankings

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Michio Chicago 16 National’s Camryn Hannah of Marist and Izabela Gorys of Providence.

The Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open division provided a few surprises over the weekend, while IL STLHP 18 Elite avenged an earlier loss in the Gateway League only to lose to Rockwood Thunder 18 Mizuno. Cyclones 16 Black is in the spotlight this week.

 (Week No. 2 ranking in parenthesis)

18s

1. Sports Performance 18 Elite (1)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. 1st Alliance 18 Silver at 9:15 a.m. on Court 1 on Saturday, January 27.

2. Michio Chicago 18 National (2)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. SPVB 18 Kahl at 9:15 a.m. on Court 2 on Saturday, January 27.

3. Uno Girls 18 Elite (3)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Sky High Adidas 18 Black at 7:45 a.m. on Court 1 on Saturday, January 27.

 4. IL STLHP (Illinois St. Louis High Performance) 18 Elite (4)
Note: IL HPSTL 18 Elite avenged an earlier loss to H2 STL 18 Under Armour Cyclones at the 18 Gateway League 25-20, 25-23 on Saturday, but dropped a 25-16, 30-28 decision to Rockwood Thunder 18 Mizuno to finish 5-1 on the weekend.
Next: Northern Lights Qualifier on January 26-28 in Omaha, Nebraska.

5. Sky High Adidas 18 Black (5)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Uno Girls 18 Elite at 7:45 a.m. on Court 1 on Saturday, January 27.

Other teams to watch: ESVBC (Eastside) Ninjas 18U, 1st Alliance 18 Silver, Sports Performance 18 Kahl, Illini Elite 18 Cardinal, Michio Chicago 18 Premier, Rolling Thunder 18 Blue, Adversity G18 Purple.

17s

1. Michio Chicago 17 National (1)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Fusion 17 Red at 7:45 a.m. on Court 2 on Saturday, January 27.

2. Club Fusion 17 Red (2)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Michio Chicago 17 National at 7:45 a.m. on Court 2 on Saturday, January 27.

3. 1st Alliance 17 Silver (3)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Epic United Elite ROX at 9:15 a.m. on Court 8 on Saturday, January 27.

4. Illini Elite 17 Cardinal (4)
 Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Michio Chicago 18 Premier at 7:45 a.m. on Court 3 on Saturday, January 27.

5. 1st Alliance 17 Black (5)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18s vs. SPVB 18 Navy at 4:00 a.m. on Court 3 on Saturday, January 27.

Other teams to watch: IL STLHP 17 Elite, Illini Elite 17 Black, Uno Girls 17 Elite, Rolling Thunder 17 Blue, Northside Out Chicago 17U, Big Dog 17 Black, Sky High Adidas 17 Black.

16s

1. Sports Performance 16 Elite (1)
Note: SPVB 16 Elite went 6-0 over the first weekend of the Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open division, the only Illinois team to do so, beating Midwest Penguins 16 Black 25-19, 25-21 in its final match Sunday.
Next: 18 Central Zone Invitational in Indianapolis, Indiana, on February 3-4.

2. Michio Chicago 16 National (2)
Note: Michio Chicago 16 National fought off a match point in the second set to defeat Michio Chicago 15 National 22-25, 27-25, 15-11 and finish second in its pool in the Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open division.
Next: Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open vs. TBA on February 10-11.

3. 1st Alliance 16 Silver (3)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Cyclones 18 Black Adidas at 9:15 a.m. on Court 8 on Saturday, January 27.

4. Sky High Adidas 16 Black (4)
Next: Great Lakes Power League 18 Super Open vs. Wildcat Jrs. 18 Black at 7:45 a.m. on Court 6 on Saturday, January 27.

5. Uno Girls 16 Elite (5)
Note: Uno Girls 16 Elite went 2-1 in the Silver bracket of the Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open division to finish 3-3 on the weekend.
Next: Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open vs. TBA on February 10-11.

Other teams to watch: 1st Alliance 16 Red, SPVB 16 Red, Fusion 16 Red, New WAVE 16 Tsunami, Rolling Thunder 16 Blue, Adversity G16 Purple.

15s


1. Lions 15-1 (2)
Note: Lions 15-1 went 5-1 on the first weekend of seeding at the Great Lakes Power League in the 16 Super Open division, beating SPVB 15 Elite 23-25, 25-13, 15-5 on Saturday and Michio Chicago 16 National 25-23, 29-27 in both teams’ finale Sunday.
Next: The Central Zone Invitational in Indianapolis, Indiana, on February 3-4.

2. Sports Performance 15 Elite (1)
Note: Luke Stapleton’s juggled lineup, prompted by injuries to 6-1 setter Zayna Meyer and  6-1 outside hitter Emily Wilson, went 4-2 on the first weekend of seeding at the Great Lakes Power League in the 16 Super Open division, losing to Lions 15-1 and Iowa Rockets 16R, both in three sets.
Next: The Central Zone Invitational in Indianapolis, Indiana, on February 3-4.

3. Michio Chicago 15 National (NR)
Note: Michio Chicago 15 National had match point at 24-23 of the second set of its game against Michio Chicago 16 National in Pool C, but Michio Chicago 16 National rallied to defeat the club’s top 15s team  22-25, 27-25, 15-11.
Next: Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open vs. TBA on February 10-11.

4. Club Fusion 15 Red (4)
Note: Dave Soller’s Fusion 15 Red team went 4-2 on the first weekend of seeding at the Great Lakes Power League in the 16 Super Open division. One of the losses was to powerful Iowa Rockets 16R, which won Gold division Pool B.
Next: Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open vs. TBA on February 10-11.

5. Uno Girls 15 Elite (5)
Note: Uno Girls 15 Elite went 3-3 on the first weekend of seeding at the Great Lakes Power League in the 16 Super Open division. All three losses were to 16s teams.
Next: Great Lakes Power League 16 Super Open vs. TBA on February 10-11.

Other teams to watch: Wildcat Jrs. 15 Black, SPVB 15 C-Fed, Chicago Elite 15 Elite, Lions 15 Red, SPVB 15 Red, Ultimate G15 Gold, Adversity G15 Purple, Celtic Force 15 Green.

In the spotlight:

Cyclones 16 Black

Cyclones Volleyball is a club in Aurora founded by Tolis Koskinaris, boys varsity head coach at West Aurora and head women’s coach at the College of DuPage. The club’s 16 Black team is comprised of girls from Aurora and the western suburbs. Cyclones 16 Black bested 47 other teams to win the Energy VBC “Recruit Me” Tournament January 13-15, going 9-0 and defeating SPVB 16 White 25-20, 25-18 in the semifinals and Team One 16 Zen 25-19, 25-14 in the finals. Last weekend at the Great Lakes Power League in the 16 Super Open division, Cyclones 16 Black went 3-3 in the first round of seeding. Team members are 5-11 middle hitter Claire Sweeney from Aurora Christian, libero Amanda Darling from Oswego, outside hitter Grace Franz from Kaneland, 5-11 middle hitter Celeste Cozzoni from Rosary, and 5-8 setter Jenna Millen, outside hitter Ava Riggs, setter Mackenzie Hall, 6-foot rightside Kendra Battle, defensive specialist Allison Voris and 6-1 outside Chloey Myers from West Aurora. The team is coached by Mike Schwerdtfeger, a former player at West Aurora who currently teaches math at Waubonsie Valley. “My coaching style balances having fun and having high expectations for my players,” Schwerdtfeger said. “This is a well-balanced group. We don’t really have one person that stars, we have a whole bunch of stars. It’s fun playing volleyball that way.”

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