by Kyle Koso
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Not every effective shot hit by the Arizona Sky 18 Gold on Saturday was delivered at 100 miles per hour, but they showed fast thinking is just as useful as fast swinging at the 2024 TC NIT. The Sky went 3-0 during pool play, capping their day with a 25-21, 25-21 victory over a tough and tricky Sports Performance-Kahl squad at the Kansas City Convention Center as the 18 Elite division kicked into gear at the event, produced by Triple Crown Sports. And while noisy kills were on the menu, the Sky mixed up flavors with accurate tips and well-placed directional shots that helped sway the result. That hunt for opportunities, wherever they might be found, guided the Sky to the lead in Set 1 after falling behind, with the team able to rebuild small leads on three occasions in Set 2 before walking off the court as victors. “In our timeout, the exact words we used were, you need to be intentional and know why you’re doing something, not just reacting,” said Arizona Sky coach Regina Mannix. “Be thinking why something should work and be ready to execute. Most of our players do a great job of that. “We did a great job running our middles; I think we had an advantage there. We say that you’re going to get better with each match, and hopefully the score will reflect a win, but sometimes it won’t. Every single match is about getting better, and if you can beat a team by 10, do it. Don’t be satisfied winning it by three.” Sports Performance had a 15-12 lead in Set 1, but the tide turned on a couple of big kills from Anne Brauckmiller, a Southeastern Louisiana commit who also had a key ace to make it 24-20. While middles Talea Mitchell and Elisa Saunders help steady the attack, the Sky found success earlier in Set 2 – Brauckmiller really had it going in terms of variety, polishing off a difficult leaping-but-gentle push shot to open space to make it 24-21 before Mitchell’s block capped the match. “We definitely believe in working smarter, not harder. When I see an open spot, whether I swing hard or not, that’s the thing you’re looking for,” Brauckmiller said. “I like both kills, either or … the big ones are more exciting, but either way. We didn’t play as well last year and were disappointed not to be in the Power Pools this time, so we want to prove ourselves again.” Another consequential piece of the Sky attack came from the service line. They had far fewer errors than Sports Performance but were still aggressive, with setter Vivianna Samaniego really jamming up the opposing offense with darting, difficult serves. “Last year I really learned with a coach from the club how to handle the ball, and this year I’ve continued to further that,” she said. “And this year my coach is also helping me. We come into every match with a game plan, and the goal is to get the other team out of system so we can control things on our side. I feel like if we see something open, we’ll go for it. I also feel that, if it’s not there, we can recycle and get them out of system. The Sky were one of three teams in the 18u division to not drop a set in Saturday’s action – they will take on North Kentucky (NKYVC) Tsunami on Sunday morning. |
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