By Phil Brozynski
Illprepvb.com Editor
From non-qualifier at the 2026 Windy City Girl’s 18’s National Qualifier in January to fifth in the nation …
1st Alliance 18 Gold concluded its roller coaster ride of a season from the bottom of the dip to the top of the climb last weekend, finishing fifth in the 18 Open division at the 2026 USAV Girls 18s Junior National Championship at the Reno Sparks Convention Center in Nevada.
“It’s hard to put into words what this journey was like for 1st Alliance 18 Gold this season,” said 1st Alliance 18 Gold coach Meghan Keck.
“In my 20 plus years of coaching college and club, this had to be one of the most special experiences I’ve ever been a part of. From the parents to the players to our staff, each and every person involved in this journey was truly selfless and allowed for an underdog team to do things that far exceeded our expectations.
“We gritted out wins throughout the season finishing fourth, second and fifth in our three Open qualifiers and finishing ninth at the NIT Triple Crown in February,” she added. “Coming off spring break, the team struggled at the 2026 JVA/AAU 18U National Championship (going 2-5 and placing 20th), and we feared we had lost our identity.
“As a staff, we were determined to find the team’s magic again. The team worked really hard for the three weeks prior to Reno. After dropping our first match on day one, things still didn’t seem to be clicking. We gained some momentum as the day went on with a big (25-17, 25-23) win over Sunshine 18 LA and a tight loss (25-23, 23-25, 15-12) to a great Arizona Storm 18 Thunder team.
But 1st Alliance 18 Gold was still not out of the woods yet.
“With our back against the wall on day two, this gritty team seemed to find it’s flow again,” Keck said. “Playing it’s best volleyball of the season, the team came out of the pool and proceeded to grind out two, three-set victories in the challenge rounds to make it into the top eight on day three.”
That’s where 1st Alliance 18 Gold’s journey ended, with a 25-15, 25-17 loss to eventual 18 Open champion SC Rockstar LOVB 18-Amir (Gardena, California).
“With a final finish of 5th place in the 18 Open national championships, the comeback kids put their final checkmark into what is hopefully one of their most memorable seasons of volleyball for them so far,” Keck said.
1st Alliance 18 Gold (40-21) featured 5-11 junior setter opposite Peyton Heatherly (Mother McAuley), 5-11 outside hitter/defensive specialist Caroline Impey (Naperville Central), 6-2 junior middle hitter Moira Quirk (Montini), 5-5 defensive specialist/libero Lucy Maloney (Mother McAuley) and 6-3 middle hitter Molly Welge (Benet Academy).
Also, 5-3 defensive specialist Isabella Del Real (Crown Point, Indiana), 5-9 junior outside hitter Taylor Berg (Marist), 5-11 junior setter Peyton Heatherly (Mother McAuley), 5-10 outside hitter Leah Oehmke (Plainfield South), 6-0 setter/rightside Caitlin Leddy (Hinsdale Central) and 6-0 middle blocker Zion Palmer (Kenwood Academy).
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Reno, 1st Alliance 18 Silver finished 7-2 and in second place in the 18 National division.
The Woodridge crew started 1-2 in its day one pool before reeling off six consecutive victories to reach the national championship match, where 18 Silver’s season ended with a 25-19, 25-19 loss to NORCO 18 Black (Loveland, Colorado).
Coached by Alexandra Preuss, 1st Alliance 18 Silver (41-14) featured 6-0 outside/opposite Cayla Prohaska (Mother McAuley), 5-7 libero Morgan Begley (Sandburg), 5-5 libero Elise Bocanegra (Marist), 5-7 setter Mary Kate Bradley (Loyola Academy) and 6-2 leftside hitter Lily Goyer (Lincoln-Way West).
Also, 6-3 middle hitter Ihuoma Ozoh (Homewood-Flossmoor), 5-9 setter Brooklyn Ritter (Lincoln-Way East), 5-11 leftside hitter Rachel Smith (Wilmington) and 5-11 middle hitter Kayla Street (Glenbard West).
Rounding out the local top finishers in Reno was Michio Chicago 18 Blue Smoke (41-11), which finished third in the 18 Liberty division. Michio ran off seven consecutive victories to open the tournament before falling to Dynasty 18 Black, 25-22, 25-17, in a Gold bracket semifinal.
Coached by Melanie Touchette and Carrie Berry, Michio Chicago 18 Blue Smoke featured 5-10 middle hitter Maryam Hussein (Oak Lawn) setter Neve Hayes (Evergreen Park), 5-5 libero Mollie Berry (Marist) and 6-0 rightside hitter Gabby Diener (Kankakee Valley, Wheatfield, Indiana),
Also, 5-10 outside/rightside hitter Savannah Weathers (Marist), 6-0 outside hitter Abbie Henson (Valparaiso, Indiana), 5-8 middle hitter Bridget O’Connell (Andrew) and 5-8 outside hitter/defensive specialist L’Rae White (Chicago Christian).
Meanwhile, several local clubs’ 18s team wrapped up their 2026 seasons at the 2026 JVA/AAU 18U National Championship on April 10-12 at the Kentucky Exposition Center in Louisville.
That’s where Sports Performance 18 Kahl (19-11) ran off eight consecutive victories before running into eventual champion A5 18 Boba (Roswell, Georgia) in the semifinals of the 18 Premier division. Kahl took A5 down to the wire in a 25-17, 22-25, 15-13 loss to place third.
Eric Nore’s Kahl team featured 6-1 junior middle hitter Sofia Popov, 5-9 junior opposite Ava South (Oswego East), 5-5 defensive specialist Natalie Zepeda (Yorkville), 6-0 middle hitter Olivia Stewart (Metea Valley) 5-9 outside hitter Kyra Jordan (Plainfield East) and 5-10 setter Lina Govoni (Joliet West).
Also, 5-11 outside hitter Kotryna Melstad (Hinsdale South), 6-1 outside hitter Gabriella Schemidt (Plainfield East), 5-8 outside hitter Ryleigh Springborn (Yorkville), 6-2 middle hitter Maggie Rankin (St. Ignatius) and 5-6 libero/defensive specialist Laila Mossey.
A5 defeated 1st Alliance 18 Silver, 25-21, 25-20, in the championship match.
Also in Louisville, 1st Alliance 18 Black (45-13) went 9-0 to win the Aspire division.