December 7, 2022

Last week we released our Senior Player of the Candidates. This week, we present our Senior Player of the Year Finalists. The award winner is set to be announced the following week. We began with roughly 120 candidates and it should make sense the field gets much more defined as we narrowed it down to under 20 finalists. Here’s what we are looking for in selecting our finalists and ultimately Player of the Year award. It contains three parts that are subjective by nature. One part measures the overall talent of a player. The next part takes into consideration the player’s overall impact on their team. The third part centers around the team’s overall success. In terms of Player of the Year finalists, it’s virtually impossible to make the list unless the player’s team won a state championship. It’s a big country with lots of talented players and at the same time we wanted to introduce a factor that includes the team element. Winning a state title is prestigious accomplishment that is the pinnacle of every program around the country. A player’s impact on their team can be subjective but if a player didn’t lead their team in their respective category – i.e. assists for setters, kills for setters or blocks for middles – then it’s reasonable to suggest their contributions weren’t as impactful as someone else’s on the team. Lastly, when it comes to a player’s overall talent, while it’s subjective as well, most can agree on who the top players are. Add all three together and these are what we are looking for. For example, let’s look at Chloe Chicoine from McCutcheon. No one is questioning Chicoine as a player. She’s a clear-cut 5-star recruit heading to Purdue. Her talent and her impact on the team was enough to get her on our candidates list. However, that McCutcheon lost in the quarterfinals of the Indiana state playoffs is the reason she’s not listed as a finalist. Some might argue she should still be considered as a finalist because she’s that good. While that is understood, we know based on our metrics she would not win our Player of the Year award so we truly tried to limit our finalists to players who could actually win the award. It’s also the reason you won’t see a player like Harper Murray (Skyline MI) or Jordyn Harvey (Bountiful UT) on the list. They are two more top-tier, 5-star recruits who were candidates but not finalists. Finally, we introduce our 2022 High School Senior of the Year Finalists (in alphabetical order). Ava Sarafa SR S Marian MI: The 4-star Kentucky signee was a huge reason Marian was part of the national championship conversation when the season kicked off. The Mustangs certainly had the ingredients for a spectacular season, one in which Marian came up one victory shy of going undefeated as they finished 49-1 after capturing the Michigan Division 1 state championship. Sarafa is a deceptive setter with the ability to dish from pin-to-pin effortlessly and she racked up 1,359 assists on the year, averaging 11.0 per set. With Marian finishing No. 5 in our final Top 50 national rankings, Sarafa is a clear-cut finalist who has definite case for winning Player of the Year, as she’s a fantastic player who had a tremendous impact on a really successful team. Avery Hobson SR OH Hamilton Southeastern IN: Much like Marian, the Royals were among the early-season contenders for the national championship as they boasted a talented roster that included Hobson, a 3-star Duquesne recruit. HSE had a successful season, going 34-1 and claiming the Indiana Class 4A state championship. The Royals avenged their only loss of the year by beating McCutcheon in the quarterfinals. Hobson left her mark to the tune of a team-high 446 kills, averaging 4.1 per set. She was also second in hitting percentage at .349 and second in digs with 278. No question Hobson’s contributions combined with overall success has her in the running for Player of the Year. Betsy Goodenow SR RS Aquinas KS: The Kansas 5A state champs went 40-3 overall. The Saints lost twice to 6A champs Washburn Rural and once to Liberty North MO. They also own victories over Missouri Class 5 champ Lafayette and Nebraska Class B champ Skutt Catholic. Goodenow – a Yale commit – was an impactful presence, leading the team in kills (386) and kills per set (3.7), as well as finishing second in hitting percentage at .352 and third in blocks. Brook Bultema SR MB Ursuline Academy OH: The 5-star Kentucky commit without a doubt left her mark on the Lions’ season. It was a successful one as Ursuline (25-3) captured the Ohio Division 1 state championship. Bultema was a force both offensively and defensively. She powered the offense with a team-high 376 kills, averaging 4.2 per set. On the other side, Bultema led the roster with 107 blocks, averaging 1.2 per set. Given Ursuline’s overall season and Bultema’s contributions, she’s a well-deserved finalist. Brooklyn DeLeye SR OH Washburn Rural KS: What a dominant season for the Blues, who took home the Kansas 6A state championship and finishing the season 45-1. The lone setback came against eventual 5A runner-up St. James Academy in the second match of the season. It was also the most victories in program history. DeLeye – another 4-star Kentucky commit – was a big-time outside who gave the Blues a reliable and consistent scoring threat. Caroline Jurevicius SR OH Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin OH: Jurevicius is in a different position than our other finalists so far in that her team was not nationally ranked. However, the Lions did capture the Ohio Division 2 state championship and we all know the caliber of player the 5-star Nebraska commit is. Though she’s not one of the favorites, she still qualified as a finalist because of a state title and dominant year, one in which she recorded 445 kills and averaged 4.9 per set while hitting .360. She