VERA AI
SIGN UP

Chris Tobolski

Ann Kang Invitational: Day 2 Show Stoppers

August 12, 2023

The way Friday’s results played out set the stage for a frenzied finish to pool play before teams break out for the placement matches, including the four-team gold bracket, at the Ann Kang Invitational hosted by ‘Iolani in Honolulu. Only one team – Cornerstone Christian TX – remains undefeated. The Warriors are 6-0 and in control of Pool B. Cornerstone closes pool play against ‘Iolani, which is 5-1 and can still win the pool. Sierra Canyon CA, which defeated ‘Iolani on Day 2, is also 5-1 and still alive for the gold bracket. It’s possible that Pool A ends in a three-way tie. Mira Costa CA, Punahou HI and Los Alamitos CA are all 5-1 and none of those teams play each other in the final round. That means all three could finish at 6-1. Only the first and second-place teams advance to the semifinals, so if that scenario happens one team will miss out based on tiebreakers. Los Al set itself up by taking down Punahou on Friday to continue its strong performance. *** TEAM SPOTLIGHTS Mira Costa CA: The Mustangs have lots of young talent on the roster and are playing this week in Hawaii without senior 5-star S/RS Charlie Fuerbringer (Wisconsin). It makes it hard to gauge what the team will look like when she comes back, but it’s obviously going to improve the lineup with her presence. In her absence, the Mustangs have sophomore setter Reese Stringer, senior setter Hayden Lin and sophomore 4-star recruit Milly McGee as options. A key part is junior 5-star libero Taylor Deckert (USC). She has proven herself as one of the top at her position in the country. Mira Costa boasts yet another 5-star recruit in sophomore outside Audrey Flanagan. She teamed with sophomore outside Simon Roslon to anchor the left side. Senior Chloe Hynes, who along with Deckert was part of the SCVC 17 Roxy squad which captured 17 Open gold in Chicago, holds down the right side. Seniors Bryn Shankle and Rachel Moglia round out the lineup in the middle. Mira Costa is currently 5-1 after the first two days and wraps up pool play against Lovejoy on Saturday morning. Los Alamitos CA: The Griffins are coming alive in the early season. They too are 5-1 through six matches, including handing Punahou its only setback so far. Los Al doesn’t carry the 5-star recruits like Mira Costa but early success can boost confidence and help Los Al down the road. Senior S/OH Kaia Herweg is a key piece in her two-way role. Junior outside Ashley Repetti finishes her share of points taking big swings on the outside. Right side Kate Foley was getting in the mix with impressive kills as well while libero Noa Nuez was taking care of the defensive duties. We’ll see if Los Al can make some noise as the season moves along. Punahou HI: The coaching staff said the varsity team was just formed this week and there was no practice time leading into the tournament. Given that, Punahou’s 5-1 mark so far, including beating Mira Costa on Day 1, is noteworthy. This is a tough team to get a ball down on, as Punahou digs a ton of swings. A big arm on the outside is senior Haumea Marumoto. At 6-2, she’s tall and able to go over blocks. The squad also relies on seniors Rella Binney and Indigo Clarke both setting and swinging in dual roles. Senior libero Reese Teves is part of the defensive tenacity Punahou brings to the court. While those girls are seniors, junior Faatamalii Brown and sophomore Marley Nobriga line up in the middle. *** DAY 2 SHOW STOPPERS Kaia Herweg SR S/OH Los Alamitos CA: Herweg – a Grand Canyon commit – starred in her two-way role hitting and setting. Los Al runs a hybrid offense with Herweg hitting on the left and setting in the back. She’s a smart attacker with a variety of shots and does a nice job guiding the attack. Ashley Repetti JR OH Los Alamitos CA: Repetti – a 3-star recruit – shoulders a load on the left. She gets set a lot and takes strong, aggressive swings to help power the attack. Noa Nuez SR L Los Alamitos CA: Nuez did well in her role, passing well out of serve receive and getting touches on balls to help keep the rally going. Haumea Marumoto SR OH Punahou HI: Marumoto changes the dynamics of the offense when she comes in across the front row. She’s long at 6-2 and does well finding the open spots on the court and keeping pressure on the defense. Rella Binney SR S/RS Punahou HI: Binney – a 3-star Texas commit – is a well-rounded player. She was playing libero during club season and sets and hits for Punahou. She plays with lots of poise and confidence and is part of the reason for the team’s 5-1 showing so far. Indigo Clarke SR S/RS Punahou HI: Clarke is another two-way player who was holding it down and delivering in both roles. Reese Teves SR L Punahou HI: Teves was making impressive digs and keeping rallies going, as well as passing on point out of serve receive. Lulu Uluave SR OH Punahou HI: Uluave – a BYU commit – is another member of the roster who played libero in club but lines up on the left in high school. Given her time at libero, she’s a strong ball control player who also is a heady attacker who knows how to score against bigger blockers. Reese Stringer SO S Mira Costa CA: Stringer was performing well, setting a nice ball and giving her hitters favorable looks. Hayden Lin SR S Mira Costa CA: Lin brings tons of energy to the court. She’s quick and does well getting to balls and also has nice hands. *** Audrey Flanagan SO OH Mira Costa CA: Flanagan – a 5-star recruit – can crush it when the opportunity is there. She’s lanky,

Read More »

Ann Kang Invitational: Day 1 Show Stoppers

August 11, 2023

It was a great opening day for a pair of local high schools and one which made the trek to Honolulu for the first time as the Ann Kang Invitational kicked off Thursday in Hawaii. Host school ‘Iolani was one of three teams to post a 3-0 mark, with Punahou and Cornerstone Christian TX also making it out of Day 1 without a loss. Punahou arguably had the best day of the trio, as the Honolulu school upset Mira Costa CA – which is ranked No. 4 in vballrecruiter.com’s initial Top 50 National High School Rankings. Mira Costa is playing without setter and 5-star Wisconsin commit Charlie Fuerbringer, who is away playing with the U19 USAV squad. Punahou pulled out one of the more dramatic victories Thursday as it clipped Mira Costa in three, 15-25, 27-25, 18-16. Punahou also beat Oaks Christian CA and Baldwin HI to finish 3-0. Baldwin is located on Maui and was able to make it to O’ahu despite the wildfires devastating the island. Punahou, the only team in Pool A at 3-0, also narrowly escaped against Oaks Christian, winning in three, 25-16, 16-25, 16-14. Cornerstone Christian, which is making its Ann Kang debut, joins Mira Costa as another Top-10 school in the field. Cornerstone opened the season at No. 8 in our Top 50 National Rankings. The San Antonio school finished last season ranked No. 2 overall in the nation. Despite losing three high-level Division 1 players, the program remains strong with 5-star junior outside Megan Fitch (Texas AM) and 4-star senior right side Grace Carroll (Baylor) helping leading the charge. Cornerstone finished off its day with a tight victory over No. 17 Sierra Canyon CA in three, 26-28, 28-26, 15-12. ‘Iolani joined Cornerstone in going 3-0 in Pool B after beating Huntington Beach CA, Kapolei HI and Orange Lutheran CA. ‘Iolani and Cornerstone are not set to play each other however until the final match of pool play on Saturday morning. *** TEAM SPOTLIGHTS Cornerstone Christian TX: The Warriors were among the top teams in the country last year, winning both Volleypalooza and the Nike TOC Southwest tournaments. Their only loss came to Westminster Christian FL in the final of the Nike TOC Southeast tournament. The school also handed Prestonwood Christian TX – which opens this year ranked No. 1 in the nation – its only loss of the season. The team lost three key pieces in middle Nayeli Gonzalez, setter Taylor Anderson and libero Alyssa Manzitas, but as we stated above does have Fitch and Carroll back among others. Other contributors returning also include junior 3-star setter Kaia Thiele and junior 3-star right side Macey Hughes. Maria Avendano, a senior, was suiting up at a libero to help fill out the lineup, as well as junior 3-star outside Aniya Hall. Hall could be a key piece as she can really help elevate the attack. The Warriors used three players in the middle in seniors Savannah Smith and Olivia Parker and junior Elly Stewart. Thiele was running a 6-2 along with senior setter Natalia Jackson. Cornerstone might not quite be competing for a national championship last season, but with the schedule they are facing it’s not out of the question if they could somehow run the table. The program is not only playing here at Ann Kang, but is also set to travel to both Nike TOC events as well as the Durango Fall Classic, plus another yet-to-be-announced event. Not many schools can match that type of schedule. Sierra Canyon CA: The biggest loss for the Trailblazers from a season ago was 5-star right side Olivia Babcock, who is at Pitt. They also lost their other outside in Jaida Sione but mostly everyone else returns and that’s good news. The back row is anchored by 4-star libero Lauren Lynch (San Diego). The offense is still directed by 3-star setter Sade Ilawole, and the middle still has a key part in 3-star Hawaii commit Madeline Way. Also back is 3-star Boston College outside Danica Rach. That alone is enough to keep Sierra Canyon very competitive, but there’s more pieces that will play a role this fall. Among them are three newcomers in Halie and Hanna McGinest and Taylor Treahy. Hanna, a freshman, was playing Thursday on Day 1 on the outside and already making an impact. As for her older sister, Halie, the CIF Southern Section is still ruling on whether or not she’ll need to sit out the 30-day period or not. The CIF-SS office has already ruled that Treahy, a 6-4 lefty right side transfer, will need to sit out the 30 days and will be eligible on Sept. 12. No matter what happens with Halie, Sierra Canyon will have both available by then and will add plenty of depth to the roster. As for Thursday, senior Lola Brown was making contributions in the middle, and 6-0 sophomore right side Mia Stewart was making plays in her role too. Like Cornerstone, Sierra Canyon will also be attending the Durango Fall Classic next month. *** DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Keoni Williams SO MB Boswell TX: Boswell went 1-2 on the first day. Williams, a 5-star recruit who helped Skyline 15 Royal to the 15 Open USAV gold medal this summer, was impactful at the net. Boswell struggled passing at times and getting Williams clean looks, but she made up for it with her length and size to still be a factor with her blocking and out-of-system plays. Rylinn Roberts SO RS Boswell TX: Roberts was another bright spot for Boswell. The sophomore is lanky with a nice arm and was contributing nicely to the offense when called upon. Kennedy Caton SR S Boswell TX: Caton was showing she can move the ball around and put her hitters in a good spot when in system. Olivia Foye JR L Huntington Beach CA: Foye – a 3-star Princeton commit – is among the standout liberos in the field. She had a breakout club season starring

Read More »

Ann Kang Invitational: Preview and Predictions (FREE)

August 8, 2023

The Ann Kang Invitational first took place in 1989. Since then, no school has brought home more tournament titles than Mira Costa of Manhattan Beach. The So Cal school – which is the defending champion – has racked up seven trophies and is favored as the top seed and highest-ranked squad in the 16-team field in this year’s edition. The three-day event is hosted by ‘Iolani and is set for Aug. 10-12. Below, we look at the nationally-ranked teams to watch for, our 3, 4 and 5-star athletes participated as well offer our outlook and predictions to how the results will pan out. vballrecruiter.com NATIONALLY-RANKED SCHOOLS (5): *** 5-STAR ATHLETES TO KNOW *** 4-STAR ATHLETES TO KNOW *** 3-STAR ATHLETES TO KNOW   OUTLOOK: A year ago, Mira Costa and Sierra Canyon CA played an epic pool-play match, with Sierra Canyon winning the third set going to 15, 25-23, in overscore. The two sides faced off later in the day for the championship match, with Mira Costa extracting revenge and winning its seven Ann Kang title. Mira Costa ended its season by becoming the only team to take a set off of eventual national champion Cathedral CA with its loss in the California Open Division state semifinals. While the Mustangs saw senior contributors graduate, they are primed for another strong year led by senior setter/right side and 5-star Wisconsin commit Charlie Fuerbringer. She’s one of three 5-star recruits on the roster, with the other two being junior libero Taylor Deckert (USC) and sophomore outside Audrey Flanagan. Sierra Canyon also figures to be in the mix once more for the tournament title, as well as a pair of Texas schools in Cornerstone Christian and Lovejoy. Cornerstone finished last season ranked No. 2 in the country. Like Mira Costa, the Warriors graduated key senior contributors but bring back enough to remain one of the top teams in the country. Among those returning are 5-star junior outside Megan Fitch (Texas AM) and 4-star senior right side Grace Carroll (Baylor). The full rundown of participating schools is: Pool 1   Pool 2   PREDICTION: With Mira Costa and Lovejoy the top seeds in Pool A, we expect those two to advance to the four-team gold bracket on Saturday. In Pool B, it’s Cornerstone Christian and host ‘Iolani the top two teams. However, we are looking at Cornerstone advancing along with the No. 3 team in the pool in Sierra Canyon. While a rematch from last year between Mira Costa and Sierra Canyon would be fun, it’s looking like a showdown between Mira Costa and Cornerstone Christian in the final. The two teams actually played last year in the final of the Nike TOC Southwest event, with Cornerstone winning in three. We like Cornerstone having Mira Costa’s number once more and going back to the mainland with its first-ever Ann Kang title.

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Player of the Week: Kayla Nwabueze (FREE)

August 8, 2023

We’re proud to be a part of an ongoing partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods, which is sponsoring our Player of the Week award. We’ll be releasing a featured vballrecruiter.com Player of the Week, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, on Tuesdays. Below is this week’s Player of the Week: Kayla Nwabueze. *** Our latest Player of the Week is coming off a breakout 15s club campaign in which she established herself as one of the top players in the country. Kayla Nwabueze – a 5-star middle blocker from the Class of 2026 – helped Legacy 15-1 Adidas to a fifth-place finish in 15 Open at the USAV Girls Junior National Championships this summer in Chicago, as well as finishing No. 4 overall in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50 National Rankings. With the club season being done for well over a month, Nwabueze has been gearing up for another high school season at Bloomfield Hills. She starred last season as a freshman in her role as a six-rotation middle. She finished the year leading the team in both kills (412) and blocks (155) as Bloomfield Hills lost in the district playoffs to eventual state champion Marian. It’s been a quick rise for the sophomore, as Nwabueze first started off her 12s season playing for Legacy. Her older sister, Ashlea, started playing volleyball in seventh grade and loved it so it wasn’t long after Nwabueze had her try. “My first time playing was at a club practice,” Nwabueze said. “I was really nervous at first. Everyone was really welcoming and knew each other and that made it more fun. I didn’t get how to play in rotations or anything like that. After about two weeks I started to get the hang of things. My 14s year I knew I wanted to do it as my main sport because I really loved it.” Nwabueze was part of a Legacy 14-1 Adidas team that earned a bronze medal in 14 Open at the 2022 AAU National Championships. Nwabueze and company repeated the feat this past season, leaving Orlando with another bronze before finishing tied for fifth at the USAV GJNC two weeks later. The gold-bracket losses were similar, with Legacy having a chance in both contests. At AAUs, Legacy fell in three sets to eventual champion Mintonette Sports m.51, 16-25, 36-34, 15-12, before facing the same fate against Hou Skyline 15 Royal in the quarterfinals in Chicago with another three-set loss, 18-25, 25-18, 15-12. “This 15s season was incredible,” Nwabueze said. “We have four amazing coaches. They are hard on us but discipline us to take accountability and make us better players. The team was so natural we had a flow like we had been together since babies. It made it really nice. I don’t remember a time when we got mad with each other or we weren’t all laughing. I’m looking forward to next club season being another great one.” As our featured Player of the Week sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, we recently spoke with Nwabueze about volleyball and more. Who is your role model or someone you look up to? Nwabueze: I have more than one. I really look up to outside of volleyball and some with volleyball is my older sister. When she was first playing I was watching her games and thinking I want to be that good. But outside of volleyball I really look up to her because overall she is a really great person. Also, academic wise, she graduated valedictorian. Personality wise, she gives off a really good vibe. She doesn’t get mad at you. She has good vibe about her and it makes her a good person. Another role model is my mom. She is very successful in my opinion. She likes to hold people accountable and she’ll tell you when you are not doing your best. She knows you can do better and she holds you to a standard. If she wasn’t here I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing without her. Someone in volleyball I look up to is Asjia O’Neal. She plays on Texas. She’s a great middle blocker. I was watching a couple of videos on her mastering the slide. She’s known for her notorious slides. On the court she’s in the zone, focused and ready to go. She’s one of my role models. What is your favorite food? Nwabueze: I love french fries. I could eat french fries without any sides. Or I love wings from Wingstop. Aside from necessities, what is one thing you could not go a day without? Nwabueze: It’s pretty bad to say but I can’t go a day without my phone. It has all my contacts. When I get bored on I’m on my phone. It would have to be my phone. Other than volleyball, what skill would you most like to learn and why? Nwabueze: I think what I would want to learn is to how to learn to play football. It’s a really big sport and I don’t really know what’s going on during the Super Bowl. What is one thing that instantly makes your day better or makes you smile? Nwabueze: My sisters, both of them. They really lighten my mood. They make me laugh a lot. They are my main source of whenever I’m laughing. If you could have any superpower what would it be and why? Nwabueze: It would definitely be reading people’s minds. I think because especially asking questions or when someone is telling me stuff and I’m trying to find out the truth I could read their minds so I know what they are keeping from me. Outside of volleyball what are you most passionate about and why? Nwabueze: I’m most passionate about my schoolwork and things that are academic based. I feel if I am good about academics and volleyball then I can be a really successful person in life. What is one thing that may surprise people about you? Nwabueze: That I play instruments. I don’t give off the

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Initial Top 50 National High School Rankings (2023)

August 7, 2023

Are we in for a repeat of sorts when it comes to the 2023 high school season and the national championship race? The first-ever vballrecruiter.com high school rankings last year saw Cathedral Catholic CA open the year in the No. 1 spot before going undefeated – dropping just one set – and ending the season on top as the undisputed national champion. The wire-to-wire performance was an impressive feat. It takes an effort on that level to beat out all the other teams in the country to earn the label as national champion. It’s not always so simple as having a team like Cathedral Catholic dominate so handily where the choice becomes such an obvious and clear one. However, we could be in for another majestic season when it comes to this year’s fall campaign. All eyes begin on Prestonwood Christian TX, which is stacked with Division 1 athletes. Among them are 5-star junior outside and last season’s HS Sophomore of the Year Cari Spears, 5-star senior right side Jadyn Livings (USC), 5-star senior setter Camille Edwards (Michigan), 4-star senior middle Kennedy Washington, 5-star junior libero Gillian Pitts (Houston), 4-star senior outside Mikala Young (TCU) and newcomer in 4-star junior right side Taylor Clarke. On top of that, Prestonwood is challenging itself with a beefed-up schedule that includes traveling to the prestigious Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas in September. Prestonwood is also competing in Volleypalooza in Austin in August. That tournament features California powers Mater Dei and Cathedral Catholic making the trek. Playing a national schedule is an important element when it comes to winning a national championship. Not only are we looking for teams to make it through the year undefeated, but doing so playing against other top teams in the nation is one of the best measurements of a team’s strength. There’s no doubt that if Prestonwood Christian runs the table like Cathedral Catholic accomplished a season ago the school is going to finish No. 1 in the nation. The biggest question would be what if Prestonwood losses and/or no other team is able to go undefeated playing against a national schedule? There are certainly programs worthy of winning the national championship that will go undefeated without playing a national schedule. In that case, anointing a national champion becomes much more subjective, as we use our knowledge from the club season about individual players to select which team we think is most deserving. All we have to do now is wait and see which scenario plays out. We’ll release our next Top 50 rankings update at the beginning of September, as teams will have time to get their seasons underway and the Top 50 can start to be formed based off results rather than speculation. By then, a few major tournaments will have taken place, as well as lots of local ones. Among the biggest tournaments scheduled for August include the Ann Kang Invitational in Honolulu as well as the previously-mentioned Volleypalooza, both of which vballrecruiter.com will be on hand covering. Looking ahead to September, the calendar is packed with more national events with the Nike TOC Southeast (Sept. 1-2) and Southwest (29-30) events, the Louisville Invitational Volleyball Tournament (Sept. 8-9), and of course Durango (Sept. 22-23). All these events will heavily influence the Top 50. Until then, you can find our initial Top 50 National Rankings below. vballrecruiter.com TOP 50 NATIONAL HS RANKINGS 1. Prestonwood Christian TX 2. Mater Dei CA 3. Mother McAuley IL 4. Mira Costa CA 5. Notre Dame Academy KY 6. St. James Academy KS 7. Cathedral Catholic CA 8. Cornerstone Christian TX 9. Papillion-La Vista South NE 10. Prosper TX *** 11. Hamilton Southeastern IN 12. St. Francis Mountain View CA 13. Divine Savior Holy Angels WI 14. St. Thomas Aquinas KS 15. Benet Academy IL 16. Assumption KY 17. Sierra Canyon CA 18. Marymount CA 19. Dripping Springs TX 20. Wayzata MN *** 21. Marian MI 22. Millbrook NC 23. Washburn Rural KS 24. Yorktown IN 25. Lovejoy TX 26. Torrey Pines CA 27. Oconomowoc WI 28. Westminster Christian FL 29. Colleyville Heritage TX 30. Corona del Sol AZ *** 31. Bishop Gorman NV 32. Liberty North MO 33. Ursuline Academy OH 34. Lafayette MO 35. McCutcheon IN 36. Keller TX 37. Marist IL 38. Horizon AZ 39. Byron Nelson TX 40. Palos Verdes CA *** 41. Flint Hill VA 42. Clearwater Central Catholic FL 43. Mount Notre Dame OH 44. Cleveland TN 45. Millennium AZ 46. Magnificat OH 47. Liberty MO 48. St. Ursula Academy OH 49. Iolani HI 50. Lake Highland Prep FL *** ON THE CUSP Valor Christian CO Santa Fe FL Northville MI Timpview UT Redondo Union CA Archbishop Mitty CA Ridge Point TX Lambert GA Pace Academy GA North Gwinnett GA Boca Raton FL Hagerty FL Ankeny IA Bridgeland TX Cinco Ranch TX Southlake Carroll TX Mountain View UT Middle Creek NC Cardinal Gibbons NC Barrington IL Branson CA Lakewood CA Eureka MO Walton GA Brebeuf Jesuit IN Dike-New Hartford IA North Raleigh Christian Academy NC Tompkins TX Venice FL The Woodlands TX Lake Travis TX Boswell TX Rouse TX Wakeland TX Appleton North WI Buford GA Punahou HI

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Player of the Week: Maya Evens (FREE)

August 1, 2023

We’re proud to be a part of an ongoing partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods, which is sponsoring our Player of the Week award. We’ll be releasing a featured vballrecruiter.com Player of the Week, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, on Tuesdays. Below is this week’s Player of the Week: Maya Evens. *** Last year Cathedral Catholic capped a perfect season by sweeping St. Francis of Mountain View in the CIF Open Division state championship match to finish the high school season as undisputed national champions. Mira Costa was the only opponent which managed to take even a set off the Dons, with it coming a round before in the state semifinals. While Cathedral Catholic loses 10 seniors – including 5-star recruits Julia Blyashov (Stanford) and Noemie Glover (Oregon) – the cupboard is hardly empty. Part of the returning core includes Class of 2025 4-star recruit Maya Evens, who was the starting libero last fall for Cathedral Catholic and spent this past club season playing up in the same role for Wave 17 Juliana – which finished ninth in 17 Open at the USAV Girls Junior National Championships last month in Chicago. “I think that was the most surreal experience being an underclassmen playing alongside some of the biggest names in Noemie and Julia,” Evens said. “I played with them in club and in open gym, but being part of that team with them helped change my perspective on how to act and what I should be doing as a teammate. They definitely inspired me and would help me when I was feeling down on myself. They were always like ‘You got this.’ It was awesome. They felt like big sisters.” Evens’ mom – Juliana Conn – coaches at both Cathedral Catholic and Wave and is the reason her daughter started playing volleyball in the first place. With her mom coaching, Evens grew up in a gym but wasn’t exactly begging her mom to play at first. She would pepper and mess around with the ball at times, but Evens needed to be pushed to get her true start. “I know this might sound bad and it’s not meant to, but I didn’t have a super big choice if I wanted to participate,” Evens said. “I’m so happy my mom opened my horizon and had me try it. She said maybe I would love it. I did a few camps and tried it out. There was something about it where I absolutely fell in love. I’m not sure how to explain it, but it’s a different feeling than I ever had.” A parent coaching their child means not only navigating their relationship but the coach-player one as well. Evens said her and her mom have always done well being able to separate the two. “We do a really good job at keeping it separate,” Evens said. “She’s a respectable coach. I really enjoy having her as a coach. I have friends who say they could never have their mom as their coach but we have separated the two really well. If I mess up (playing) she’ll treat me like any other player during the games. After that, she’s my mom and she does a really good job supporting me and being there for me. She’s a really good coach and has 100 percent made me into the player I am and I couldn’t do it without her.” From her first season playing club until now, Evens has always played up at least one age group. She was part of a Wave team which lost just one outing in Chicago, with it coming against Metro 17 Travel in challenge play as Wave finished No. 6 in vballrecruiter.com’s final Top 50 National Rankings. “I have no regrets. That was the most fun tournament of any of my seasons,” Evens said. “We were undefeated until the challenge match and we went undefeated after that. We just had this vibe and were playing with so much passion and effort. We played the best volleyball of the entire season. It was so much fun. Everyone would stop and watch us play. It was the most incredible feeling.” Part of Wave’s run included beating eventual fifth-place finisher Drive Nation 17 Red, 35-33, 25-20, to close out the first round of pool play. The opening set of that contest was arguably the most entertaining one of the entire 10-day tournament in Chicago. “There is no other word to describe it other than fun,” Evens said. “You live for those games. I would so much rather play a team to 35 than to beat them 25-15. Especially a team like Drive Nation with so much hype and which was (the) No. 3 (seed) going in. We are an under-rated small team so it was so much fun.” With the high school season rapidly approaching, Evens’ focus has shifted. Along with her, Cathedral Catholic brings back 4-star senior middle Jenna Hanes (Michigan), 4-star senior setter Amanda Saeger (DePaul), 3-star senior outside Niki Egan (Washington beach) and 3-star junior outside Mae Kordas. While another national championship might be a stretch, together they should help Cathedral Catholic remain as one of the top programs in the country and capable of defending its California Open Division state title. The Dons are facing another challenging schedule, one that includes playing in two prestigious tournaments in Volleypalooza in Austin and the Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas. “We lost 10 seniors so that is a lot of loss,” Evens said. “Still, we have a couple of freshmen who I’m super excited about plus our returning players are absolute beasts so I’m super excited about it. We won’t be as big and as physical but we are still going to be super fun to watch. We have gotten together running high school camps. We are bonding and making new friendships. We haven’t talked too much about goals or results but we all have the same goal in that we want to win.” As our featured Player

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s 14s Final Club National Rankings (2023)

July 31, 2023

The final 14s Club National Rankings had quite the anomaly that we may never see again as long as we do our lists. With the top teams clearly establishing themselves in 14 Open at the USAV Girls Junior National Championships in Chicago, there was no movement with the top six teams. TAV 14 Black brought home the gold medal and ends the season where it started – at No. 1. Arizona Storm 14 Thunder captured the silver medal after falling to TAV in the championship match and ends at No. 2 – the same spot Storm entered at. The same goes for Nos. 3-6 as well. Tstreet 14 Carson was knocked out of contention with its quarterfinal loss to Storm and stayed put at No. 3. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar lost to TAV in the quarterfinals and remained at No. 4. With Madfrog 14 Green and Skyline 14 Royal also tying for fifth, niether moved and end at No. 5 and 6 respectively. There was no change until No. 7, as Drive Nation 14 Red made a modest climb up three spots from No. 10. Club V 14 Ren Silver was among the biggest movers. With Club V making the Top 8, the Utah club rose up from No. 29 to No. 8. You can view the full rankings below. There are lots of factors to take into consideration when formulating a list like this. It leaves plenty of room for debate as these rankings are ultimately subjective. There are power league results, qualifier results, national tournaments like Triple Crown and of course the USAV Girls Junior Nationals and AAU national championships. All these come into play. We put more weight on what happened at Junior Nationals than a qualifier because the whole season is built toward peaking at JN’s. We also had one steadfast rule we didn’t break no matter the circumstances. That rule was if Team A defeated Team B in a gold challenge match or gold bracket match at JN’s, Team A is always going to be ranked ahead of Team B. That’s because everyone comes to JN’s to win a gold medal and if Team A eliminates Team B from contention, it won at the absolute right time. It can make for some skewed overall rankings as a team might be too high or low overall but what’s the point if the biggest head-to-head matches of the season aren’t the most important ones? vballrecruiter.com FINAL TOP 50 NATIONAL RANKINGS 1. TAV 14 Black (TX) (1 – previous ranking) 2. Arizona Storm 14 Thunder (AZ) (2) 3. Tstreet 14 Carson (CA) (3) 4. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar (CA) (4) 5. Madfrog 14 Green (TX) (5) 6. Skyline 14 Royal (TX) (6) 7. Drive Nation 14 Red (TX) (10) 8. Club V 14 Ren Silver (UT) (29) 9. Forza1 North 14 One (CA) (7) 10. AP 14 Adidas (TX) (17) *** 11. OT 14 Laura (FL) (8) 12. Absolute 14 Black (CA) (21) 13. Legacy 14-1 Adidas (MI) (27) 14. AZ Sky 14G (AZ) (18) 15. A5 14 Helen (GA) (13) 16. Forza1 14 One (CA) (24) 17. Top Select 14 Elite (FL) (34) 18. Adidas KiVA 14 Red (KY) (11) 19. Munciana 14 Chipmunks (IN) (16) 20. HPSTL 14 Royal (MO) (15) *** 21. Lions 14-1 (IL) (35) 22. Tribe 14 Elite Cardinal (FL) (23) 23. MAVS KC 14-1 (KS) (9) 24. Rage 14 Garren (CA) (40) 25. Elevation 14 Molly (OH) (12) 26. GP 14 Rox (FL) (30) 27. Wave 14 Tammy (CA) (25) 28. Hou Skyline 14 Royal (TX) (14) 29. Excel 14 National Red (TX) (26) 30. Tejas 14 Black Mauro (TX) (n/r) *** 31. PVA 14 Elite (KS) (22) 32. SA Junior 14 Adidas (TX) (n/r) 33. Academy 14 Diamond (NC) (43) 34. Vision 14 Gold (CA) (20) 35. Mintonette Sports m.41 (OH) (37) 36. NKYVC 14-1 Tsunami (KY) (36) 37. Premier Nebraska 14 Gold (NE) (39) 38. KC Power 14 Black (KS) (45) 39. Northern Lights 14-1 (MN) (42) 40. Kairos 14 Alpha (SD) (50) *** 41. Mauloa 14 Green (HI) (32) 42. Tri-State Elite 14 Blue (OH) (33) 43. Miami Hype 14 Nekane (FL) (n/r) 44. WPVC 14 Armour Black (FL) (44) 45. Far Out 14 Black (MI) (41) 46. AZ Rev 14 Premier (AZ) (18) 47. Rockwood Thunder 14 Elite (MO) (47) 48. Kokoro 14-1 (MN) (n/r) 49. AVC Cle 14 Red (OH) (n/r) 50. FC Elite 14 Navy (WI) n/r) *** ON THE CUSPSASVBC 14-1 (HI)Austin Skyline (TX)United 14s Evren (CA)HJV 14 Elite (TX)Aspire 14 Premier (AZ)Iowa Rockets 14R (IA)ID Crush 14 Bower (ID)Paramount 14 VBC (VA)Lions 14 Red (IL)Coast 14-1 (CA)HPSTL 14 Royal (MO)1United 14 Bill (TX)Adversity 14 Adidas (IL)Drive Nation 14 Black (TX)WF Waves 14 King (FL)Alliance 14 Ren (TN)Arete 14 Navy Telos (TX)Vaqueras 14-1 (PR)Lex United 14 Adidas (KY)

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s 15s Final Club National Rankings (2023)

July 27, 2023

There was no doubt which teams separated themselves from the rest this year when it came to the 15s division. The 15 Open championship matches at both AAUs and USAV featured the same two sides squaring off for gold. It was a split decision, with Mintonette Sports m.51 grabbing first in Orlando and Skyline 15 Royal earning gold in Chicago. It left a tiny amount of room for debate as to which deserved to be the top team in our final national rankings, but not very much. There’s no denying that Chicago featured a much deeper field than Orlando, and with Skyline winning out there it was an easy decision to keep Skyline at No. 1. The North Texas Region club has occupied that spot since winning Triple Crown back in February, when it replaced Mintonette. Since then, the two have remained at Nos. 1 and 2 respectively and now end the season there too. There was some significant movement inside the Top 10 behind them, as five teams climbed inside the Top 10 in the final update. Arizona Storm 15 Thunder jumped from No. 12 to No. 5. Pohaku 15-1, by virtue of its upset of SCVC 15 Roxy in the challenge round, shot up from No. 18 to No. 6. SCVC is right behind at No. 7, moving up from No. 14. Wave 15 Brennan, after upsetting TAV 15 Black in challenge play as well, went from No. 15 to No. 8. Lastly, Forza1 North 15 One moved a few spots from No. 13 to No. 10. None of those clubs made a leap like AVC Cle 15 Red though. AVC was at No. 31 but finishes at No. 13 after ending tied for fifth in Chicago. You can check out the full rankings below. There are lots of factors to take into consideration when formulating a list like this. It leaves plenty of room for debate as these rankings are ultimately subjective. There are power league results, qualifier results, national tournaments like Triple Crown and of course the USAV Girls Junior Nationals and AAU national championships. All these come into play. We put more weight on what happened at Junior Nationals than a qualifier because the whole season is built toward peaking at JN’s. We also had one steadfast rule we didn’t break no matter the circumstances. That rule was if Team A defeated Team B in a gold challenge match or gold bracket match at JN’s, Team A is always going to be ranked ahead of Team B. That’s because everyone comes to JN’s to win a gold medal and if Team A eliminates Team B from contention, it won at the absolute right time. It can make for some skewed overall rankings as a team might be too high or low overall but what’s the point if the biggest head-to-head matches of the season aren’t the most important ones? vballrecruiter.com’S TOP 50 NATIONAL RANKINGS 1. Skyline 15 Royal (TX) (1 – previous ranking) 2. Mintonette Sports m.51 (OH) (2) 3. Hou Skyline 15 Royal (TX) (4) 4. Legacy 15-1 Adidas (MI) (8) 5. Arizona Storm 15 Thunder (AZ) (12) 6. Pohaku 15-1 (KS) (18) 7. SCVC 15 Roxy (CA) (14) 8. Wave 15 Brennan (CA) (15) 9. TAV 15 Black (TX) (7) 10. Forza1 North 15 One (CA) (13) *** 11. AZ Sky 15G (AZ) (5) 12. Madfrog 15 Green (TX) (6) 13. AVC Cle 15 Red (OH) (31) 14. Boiler Jrs 15 Gold (IN) (3) 15. Austin Skyline 15 Royal (TX) (9) 16. Aspire 15 Premier (AZ) 22) 17. NKYVC 15-1 Tsunami (KY) (10) 18. Elevation 15 Tony (OH) (16) 19. Alamo 15 Premier (TX) (17) 20. Tribe 15 Elite Cardinal (FL) (19) *** 21. Far Out 15 Black (MI) (26) 22. WPVC 15 Armour Black (FL) (28) 23. GP 15 Rox (FL) (21) 24. Team Pineapple 15 Black (IN) (29) 25. Tri-State Elite 15 Blue (OH) (25) 26. Academy 15 Diamond (NC) (34) 27. Club V 15 Ren Reed (UT) (27) 28. Top Select 15 Elite (FL) (33) 29. AP 15 Adidas (TX) (11) 30. Metro 15 Travel (DC) (n/r) *** 31. Dynasty 15 Black (KS) (20) 32. Premier Nebraska 15 Gold (NE) (43) 33. SG Elite 15 Rosh (CA) (38) 34. Michio 15 National (IL) (24) 35. Academy HP 15 Danielle (CA) (47) 36. Triangle 15 Black (NC) (32) 37. MKE Sting 15 Gold (WI) (39) 38. 1st Alliance 15 Gold (IL) (44) 39. Mauloa 15 Green (HI) (n/r) 40. TVC 15 Black (OH) (40) *** 41. Mizuno Long Beach 15 Rockstar (CA) (n/r) 42. Vision 15 Gold (CA) (37) 43. Tstreet 15 Curtis (CA) (45) 44. TAV Houston 15 Adidas (TX) (48) 45. HJV 15 Elite (TX) (23) 46. Drive Nation 15 Red (TX) (35) 47. Arete 15 Navy Telos (TX) (n/r) 48. A5 15 Bob (GA) (36) 49. Jupiter Elite 15E (FL) (30) 50. Circle City 15 Purple (IN) (n/r) *** ON THE CUSP High Tide 15 Elite (FL)Northern Lights 15-1 (MN)MN Select 15-1 (MN)1st Alliance 15 Silver (IL)Iowa Select 15 Mizuno (IA)Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite (MO)HPSTL 15 Royal (MO)AZ Rev 15 Premier (AZ)MJVA 15 Elite (TN)Sunshine 15 Westside (CA)JJVA 15 Teal (FL)Co Jrs 15 Sherri (CO)OJVA 15-1 Gold (OR)MAVS 816 15-1 (KS)A5 15-1 Victor (GA)Actyve 15 Black (CA)STVA 15 Mizuno (TX)Circle City 15 Black (IN)305 15 (FL)KC Power 15 Black (KS)LAV 15 National Black (AL)OP2 15-1 (OK)Coast 15-1 (CA)

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s 16s Final Club National Rankings (2023)

July 26, 2023

There’s little doubt the powerhouses came to play during the 16 Open division at the USVA Girls Junior National Championships earlier this month in Chicago. Five of the Top 10 teams from our prior rankings reached the final eight, including the then-No. 1 team in the nation in 1st Alliance 16 Gold and then-No. 2 Drive Nation 16 Red in the mix. Also in contention was eventual gold-medalist Arizona Storm 16 Thunder, which took home the gold medal after downing 1st Alliance in the championship match. A year ago, Storm was a heavy favorite and top seed in 15 Open but was ultimately upset in the final by at-large recipient Alamo 15 Premier and left Indianapolis with a silver medal. While Storm put together a regular season most any other club would dream of, it did not enter this year’s national championship as the same favorite as a season ago. Storm showed more vulnerability during the spring campaign this go around but when it came down to it there was no opponent getting in the way of finishing on top, which Storm did with a perfect 11-0 record. It made Storm, which was No. 6 in our previous release, the clear-cut pick to finish the season as the No. 1 ranked team in our final Top 50 National Rankings. The other four teams also residing in the previous Top 10 remained there in 1st Alliance, Drive Nation, Hou Skyline 16 Royal and Nebraska One 16 Synergy. One of the big movers was Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal, which climbed from No. 16 to No. 5 in our final rankings. Also cracking the Top 10 was Mich Elite 16 Mizuno. The club received one of the two at-large bid and made great use of it, finishing tied for ninth and landing at No. 10 in our last update. There are lots of factors to take into consideration when formulating a list like this. It leaves plenty of room for debate as these rankings are ultimately subjective. There are power league results, qualifier results, national tournaments like Triple Crown and of course the USAV Girls Junior Nationals and AAU national championships. All these come into play. We put more weight on what happened at Junior Nationals than a qualifier because the whole season is built toward peaking at JN’s. We also had one steadfast rule we didn’t break no matter the circumstances. That rule was if Team A defeated Team B in a gold challenge match or gold bracket match at JN’s, Team A is always going to be ranked ahead of Team B. That’s because everyone comes to JN’s to win a gold medal and if Team A eliminates Team B from contention, it won at the absolute right time. It can make for some skewed overall rankings as a team might be too high or low overall but what’s the point if the biggest head-to-head matches of the season aren’t the most important ones? vballrecruiter.com’S FINAL TOP 50 NATIONAL RANKINGS 1. Arizona Storm 16 Thunder (AZ) (6 – previous ranking) 2. 1st Alliance 16 Gold (IL) (1) 3. Drive Nation 16 Red (TX) (2) 4. Nebraska One 16 Synergy (NE) (7) 5. Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal (FL) (16) 6. Hou Skyline 16 Royal (TX) (4) 7. OT 16 JP (FL) (10) 8. HJV 16 Elite (TX) (5) 9. Adidas KiVA 16 Red (KY) (14) 10. Mich Elite 16 Mizuno (MI) (19) *** 11. Circle City 16 Purple (IN) (9) 12. Northern Lights 16-1 (MN) (22) 13. SPVB 16 Elite (IL) (13) 14. A5 16 Gabe (GA) (8) 15. MKE Sting 16 Gold (WI) (12) 16. AVC Cle 16 Red (OH) (28) 17. TAV 16 Black (TX) (11) 18. Surfside 16 PV Legends (CA) (3) 19. GP 16 Rox (FL) (25) 20. Austin Skyline 16 Royal (TX) (17) *** 21. Madfrog 16 Green (TX) (27) 22. ID Crush 16 Bower (ID) (23) 23. Legacy 16-1 Adidas (MI) (18) 24. NorCal 16-1 Black (CA) (31) 25. MAVS KC 16-1 (KS) (26) 26. Coast 16-1 (CA) (20) 27. OT 16 Roberto (FL) (39) 28. HPSTL 16 Royal (MO) (15) 29. Wave 16 Kevin (CA) (21) 30. Alamo 16 Premier (TX) (33) *** 31. Co Jrs 16 Shannon (CO) (41) 32. AJV 16 Adidas (TX) (36) 33. Excel 16 National Red (TX) (n/r) 34. Skyline 16 Royal (TX) (32) 35. KC Power 16 Black (KS) (n/r) 36. No Name 16 Sarah (FL) (34) 37. Dynasty 16 Black (KS) (29) 38. Tri-State Elite 16 Blue (OH) (24) 39. Munciana 16 Blaze (IN) (30) 40. Vegas Aces 16 UA (NV) (n/r) *** 41. Triangle 16 Black (NC) (45) 42. Premier Nebraska 16 Gold (NE) (37) 43. Oaks 16 Gold (CA) (n/r) 44. Vision 16 Gold (CA) (44) 45. Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar (CA) (38) 46. Absolute 16 Black (CA) (n/r) 47. Metro 16 Travel (DC) (n/r) 48. Team Pineapple 16 Black (IN) (40) 49. Vaqueras 16-1 (PR) (n/r) 50. Kairos 16 Alpha (SD) (47) *** ON THE CUSP AVA TX 16 Adidas (TX)USA South 16 Premier Purple (FL)Boiler Jrs 16 Gold (IN)EliteVBTC 16 Black (OH)CUVC 16 Beast (NC)1st Alliance 16 Silver (IL)A4 Volley 16 Cassie (CA)NKYVC 16-1 Tsunami (KY)MN Select 16-1 (MN)Rockwood Thunder 16 Elite (MO)Mintonette Sports m.61 (OH)Rancho Valley 16 Premier (CA)AZ Rev 16 Premier (AZ)FC Elite 16 Navy (WI)Adrenaline 16 Doug (IA)ARVC 16 Adidas (NM)SASVBC 16-1 (HI)

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Player of the Week: Emma Parks (FREE)

July 25, 2023

We’re proud to be a part of an ongoing partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods, which is sponsoring our Player of the Week award. We’ll be releasing a featured vballrecruiter.com Player of the Week, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, on Tuesdays. Below is this week’s Player of the Week: Emma Parks. *** When it comes to our recent featured Player of the Week highlights sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, we have encountered athletes who have grown up either immersed in volleyball or ones who started late in the game and have blossomed quickly. What those two dynamics share in common however are all were in love with volleyball from their introduction to the sport. Emma Parks has a different tale. She didn’t grow up loving volleyball or falling in love with it at first sight. She was focused on playing basketball and determined to continue on as long and as far as she could in that sport. It’s not that she was totally opposed to volleyball. She spent her first year playing on a regional team in fourth grade. “I was definitely super into basketball growing up before I started volleyball,” Parks said. “I didn’t want (volleyball) to interfere with basketball when I first started. I transitioned to only playing volleyball in eighth grade.” Growing up participating in multiple sports brought out Parks’ competitive spirit. Having older sisters helped too, as they were also competitive and she would naturally challenge herself against them. While giving up basketball wasn’t easy, she did find herself drawn more and more to volleyball. “I think volleyball is really different than everything else,” she said. “Especially having new sets where you can win one set and then the next set is anyone’s game. That’s what’s really cool about it. You have to have team work and work as a team.” Parks started out as a middle blocker before spending this past season with Rock City 16-1 playing outside. Her position change started in high school last fall when her coach moved her to the pin and she remained on the left during club. At 6-1 and touching 10-feet, Parks is a rising 4-star recruit who is planning on suiting up for AVC Cle next club season. “I loved playing six rotations and being part of the game the whole time,” Parks said. “The biggest adjustment for me was passing. I didn’t have to pass as a middle. I stayed in to serve but came out for serve receive. So I just didn’t do that as a middle and that’s been the hardest adjustment for me.” This recent club season ended on a high note. Parks and her Rock City teammates earned the silver medal in 16 Club at the AAU Girls National Championships in Orlando. The squad went 13-1, falling to MVVC 16 Red in the gold-medal match. Rock City was the only opponent to take a set off of MVVC as Parks was selected to the AAU All-Star team for the division. “We played at Bluegrass and won the Club division,” Parks said. “Winning the tournament was really good for our team and we really started playing at a higher level.” Up next for Parks is her junior year of high school playing for Meadville. The switch from club to high school offers a different experience, one she enjoys just as much. “I think it’s different going to high school from club,” Parks said. “It’s different but really exciting. We are hoping to have a good season. We only had one senior last year so we are getting the whole team back. I’m really looking forward to it and hopefully winning district.” As our featured Player of the Week sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, we recently spoke with Parks about volleyball and more. Who is your role model or icon you look up to? Parks: I would say I look up to my sisters (Maddie and Hannah) the most. I spent a lot of time watching them play when I was younger. They are the ones who got me interested in the game. I learned a lot from them how hard they worked, how they played and how they responded when things got hard. They are my biggest supporters and they are really important to me. What is your favorite food(s)? Parks: My favorite food is mac and cheese. Specifically, my grandma’s mac and cheese. I love cooking with her. It’s super important to spend time with her. I feel like we have a family recipe in that nobody else makes it the same way. What is your favorite tournament of the season? Parks: My favorite tournament was AAUs. Going into it we were really excited. We got a house all together as a team. That was super fun to be with everyone. Competing at a high level against teams which are really good was fun. We finished pretty well. It was also our last tournament so I think that was fun. What is your favorite team bonding event? Parks: My favorite was when we were in Florida at AAUs. We got ice cream and then we came back to the house and went swimming. It was really fun. The water was really warm. What is your favorite quote? Parks: My favorite quote is by Simone Biles. It’s ‘I’d rather risk that it didn’t work out than the chances that I didn’t take at all.’ What is your go to song to warm up to? Parks: I don’t usually listen to music before games. In high school, we play music before games from our team playlist. If you could have any super power what would it be and why? Parks: I would want telekinesis like in Stranger Things. The main character El (Eleven) has it and it’s useful. I would like to use it in volleyball I guess or really anything. Life would be simpler and it would be really cool. What do you like to do outside of volleyball? Parks: I’d say I

Read More »

Ann Kang Invitational: Day 2 Show Stoppers

August 12, 2023

The way Friday’s results played out set the stage for a frenzied finish to pool play before teams break out for the placement matches, including the four-team gold bracket, at the Ann Kang Invitational hosted by ‘Iolani in Honolulu. Only one team – Cornerstone Christian TX – remains undefeated. The Warriors are 6-0 and in control of Pool B. Cornerstone closes pool play against ‘Iolani, which is 5-1 and can still win the pool. Sierra Canyon CA, which defeated ‘Iolani on Day 2, is also 5-1 and still alive for the gold bracket. It’s possible that Pool A ends in a three-way tie. Mira Costa CA, Punahou HI and Los Alamitos CA are all 5-1 and none of those teams play each other in the final round. That means all three could finish at 6-1. Only the first and second-place teams advance to the semifinals, so if that scenario happens one team will miss out based on tiebreakers. Los Al set itself up by taking down Punahou on Friday to continue its strong performance. *** TEAM SPOTLIGHTS Mira Costa CA: The Mustangs have lots of young talent on the roster and are playing this week in Hawaii without senior 5-star S/RS Charlie Fuerbringer (Wisconsin). It makes it hard to gauge what the team will look like when she comes back, but it’s obviously going to improve the lineup with her presence. In her absence, the Mustangs have sophomore setter Reese Stringer, senior setter Hayden Lin and sophomore 4-star recruit Milly McGee as options. A key part is junior 5-star libero Taylor Deckert (USC). She has proven herself as one of the top at her position in the country. Mira Costa boasts yet another 5-star recruit in sophomore outside Audrey Flanagan. She teamed with sophomore outside Simon Roslon to anchor the left side. Senior Chloe Hynes, who along with Deckert was part of the SCVC 17 Roxy squad which captured 17 Open gold in Chicago, holds down the right side. Seniors Bryn Shankle and Rachel Moglia round out the lineup in the middle. Mira Costa is currently 5-1 after the first two days and wraps up pool play against Lovejoy on Saturday morning. Los Alamitos CA: The Griffins are coming alive in the early season. They too are 5-1 through six matches, including handing Punahou its only setback so far. Los Al doesn’t carry the 5-star recruits like Mira Costa but early success can boost confidence and help Los Al down the road. Senior S/OH Kaia Herweg is a key piece in her two-way role. Junior outside Ashley Repetti finishes her share of points taking big swings on the outside. Right side Kate Foley was getting in the mix with impressive kills as well while libero Noa Nuez was taking care of the defensive duties. We’ll see if Los Al can make some noise as the season moves along. Punahou HI: The coaching staff said the varsity team was just formed this week and there was no practice time leading into the tournament. Given that, Punahou’s 5-1 mark so far, including beating Mira Costa on Day 1, is noteworthy. This is a tough team to get a ball down on, as Punahou digs a ton of swings. A big arm on the outside is senior Haumea Marumoto. At 6-2, she’s tall and able to go over blocks. The squad also relies on seniors Rella Binney and Indigo Clarke both setting and swinging in dual roles. Senior libero Reese Teves is part of the defensive tenacity Punahou brings to the court. While those girls are seniors, junior Faatamalii Brown and sophomore Marley Nobriga line up in the middle. *** DAY 2 SHOW STOPPERS Kaia Herweg SR S/OH Los Alamitos CA: Herweg – a Grand Canyon commit – starred in her two-way role hitting and setting. Los Al runs a hybrid offense with Herweg hitting on the left and setting in the back. She’s a smart attacker with a variety of shots and does a nice job guiding the attack. Ashley Repetti JR OH Los Alamitos CA: Repetti – a 3-star recruit – shoulders a load on the left. She gets set a lot and takes strong, aggressive swings to help power the attack. Noa Nuez SR L Los Alamitos CA: Nuez did well in her role, passing well out of serve receive and getting touches on balls to help keep the rally going. Haumea Marumoto SR OH Punahou HI: Marumoto changes the dynamics of the offense when she comes in across the front row. She’s long at 6-2 and does well finding the open spots on the court and keeping pressure on the defense. Rella Binney SR S/RS Punahou HI: Binney – a 3-star Texas commit – is a well-rounded player. She was playing libero during club season and sets and hits for Punahou. She plays with lots of poise and confidence and is part of the reason for the team’s 5-1 showing so far. Indigo Clarke SR S/RS Punahou HI: Clarke is another two-way player who was holding it down and delivering in both roles. Reese Teves SR L Punahou HI: Teves was making impressive digs and keeping rallies going, as well as passing on point out of serve receive. Lulu Uluave SR OH Punahou HI: Uluave – a BYU commit – is another member of the roster who played libero in club but lines up on the left in high school. Given her time at libero, she’s a strong ball control player who also is a heady attacker who knows how to score against bigger blockers. Reese Stringer SO S Mira Costa CA: Stringer was performing well, setting a nice ball and giving her hitters favorable looks. Hayden Lin SR S Mira Costa CA: Lin brings tons of energy to the court. She’s quick and does well getting to balls and also has nice hands. *** Audrey Flanagan SO OH Mira Costa CA: Flanagan – a 5-star recruit – can crush it when the opportunity is there. She’s lanky,

Read More »

Ann Kang Invitational: Day 1 Show Stoppers

August 11, 2023

It was a great opening day for a pair of local high schools and one which made the trek to Honolulu for the first time as the Ann Kang Invitational kicked off Thursday in Hawaii. Host school ‘Iolani was one of three teams to post a 3-0 mark, with Punahou and Cornerstone Christian TX also making it out of Day 1 without a loss. Punahou arguably had the best day of the trio, as the Honolulu school upset Mira Costa CA – which is ranked No. 4 in vballrecruiter.com’s initial Top 50 National High School Rankings. Mira Costa is playing without setter and 5-star Wisconsin commit Charlie Fuerbringer, who is away playing with the U19 USAV squad. Punahou pulled out one of the more dramatic victories Thursday as it clipped Mira Costa in three, 15-25, 27-25, 18-16. Punahou also beat Oaks Christian CA and Baldwin HI to finish 3-0. Baldwin is located on Maui and was able to make it to O’ahu despite the wildfires devastating the island. Punahou, the only team in Pool A at 3-0, also narrowly escaped against Oaks Christian, winning in three, 25-16, 16-25, 16-14. Cornerstone Christian, which is making its Ann Kang debut, joins Mira Costa as another Top-10 school in the field. Cornerstone opened the season at No. 8 in our Top 50 National Rankings. The San Antonio school finished last season ranked No. 2 overall in the nation. Despite losing three high-level Division 1 players, the program remains strong with 5-star junior outside Megan Fitch (Texas AM) and 4-star senior right side Grace Carroll (Baylor) helping leading the charge. Cornerstone finished off its day with a tight victory over No. 17 Sierra Canyon CA in three, 26-28, 28-26, 15-12. ‘Iolani joined Cornerstone in going 3-0 in Pool B after beating Huntington Beach CA, Kapolei HI and Orange Lutheran CA. ‘Iolani and Cornerstone are not set to play each other however until the final match of pool play on Saturday morning. *** TEAM SPOTLIGHTS Cornerstone Christian TX: The Warriors were among the top teams in the country last year, winning both Volleypalooza and the Nike TOC Southwest tournaments. Their only loss came to Westminster Christian FL in the final of the Nike TOC Southeast tournament. The school also handed Prestonwood Christian TX – which opens this year ranked No. 1 in the nation – its only loss of the season. The team lost three key pieces in middle Nayeli Gonzalez, setter Taylor Anderson and libero Alyssa Manzitas, but as we stated above does have Fitch and Carroll back among others. Other contributors returning also include junior 3-star setter Kaia Thiele and junior 3-star right side Macey Hughes. Maria Avendano, a senior, was suiting up at a libero to help fill out the lineup, as well as junior 3-star outside Aniya Hall. Hall could be a key piece as she can really help elevate the attack. The Warriors used three players in the middle in seniors Savannah Smith and Olivia Parker and junior Elly Stewart. Thiele was running a 6-2 along with senior setter Natalia Jackson. Cornerstone might not quite be competing for a national championship last season, but with the schedule they are facing it’s not out of the question if they could somehow run the table. The program is not only playing here at Ann Kang, but is also set to travel to both Nike TOC events as well as the Durango Fall Classic, plus another yet-to-be-announced event. Not many schools can match that type of schedule. Sierra Canyon CA: The biggest loss for the Trailblazers from a season ago was 5-star right side Olivia Babcock, who is at Pitt. They also lost their other outside in Jaida Sione but mostly everyone else returns and that’s good news. The back row is anchored by 4-star libero Lauren Lynch (San Diego). The offense is still directed by 3-star setter Sade Ilawole, and the middle still has a key part in 3-star Hawaii commit Madeline Way. Also back is 3-star Boston College outside Danica Rach. That alone is enough to keep Sierra Canyon very competitive, but there’s more pieces that will play a role this fall. Among them are three newcomers in Halie and Hanna McGinest and Taylor Treahy. Hanna, a freshman, was playing Thursday on Day 1 on the outside and already making an impact. As for her older sister, Halie, the CIF Southern Section is still ruling on whether or not she’ll need to sit out the 30-day period or not. The CIF-SS office has already ruled that Treahy, a 6-4 lefty right side transfer, will need to sit out the 30 days and will be eligible on Sept. 12. No matter what happens with Halie, Sierra Canyon will have both available by then and will add plenty of depth to the roster. As for Thursday, senior Lola Brown was making contributions in the middle, and 6-0 sophomore right side Mia Stewart was making plays in her role too. Like Cornerstone, Sierra Canyon will also be attending the Durango Fall Classic next month. *** DAY 1 SHOW STOPPERS Keoni Williams SO MB Boswell TX: Boswell went 1-2 on the first day. Williams, a 5-star recruit who helped Skyline 15 Royal to the 15 Open USAV gold medal this summer, was impactful at the net. Boswell struggled passing at times and getting Williams clean looks, but she made up for it with her length and size to still be a factor with her blocking and out-of-system plays. Rylinn Roberts SO RS Boswell TX: Roberts was another bright spot for Boswell. The sophomore is lanky with a nice arm and was contributing nicely to the offense when called upon. Kennedy Caton SR S Boswell TX: Caton was showing she can move the ball around and put her hitters in a good spot when in system. Olivia Foye JR L Huntington Beach CA: Foye – a 3-star Princeton commit – is among the standout liberos in the field. She had a breakout club season starring

Read More »

Ann Kang Invitational: Preview and Predictions (FREE)

August 8, 2023

The Ann Kang Invitational first took place in 1989. Since then, no school has brought home more tournament titles than Mira Costa of Manhattan Beach. The So Cal school – which is the defending champion – has racked up seven trophies and is favored as the top seed and highest-ranked squad in the 16-team field in this year’s edition. The three-day event is hosted by ‘Iolani and is set for Aug. 10-12. Below, we look at the nationally-ranked teams to watch for, our 3, 4 and 5-star athletes participated as well offer our outlook and predictions to how the results will pan out. vballrecruiter.com NATIONALLY-RANKED SCHOOLS (5): *** 5-STAR ATHLETES TO KNOW *** 4-STAR ATHLETES TO KNOW *** 3-STAR ATHLETES TO KNOW   OUTLOOK: A year ago, Mira Costa and Sierra Canyon CA played an epic pool-play match, with Sierra Canyon winning the third set going to 15, 25-23, in overscore. The two sides faced off later in the day for the championship match, with Mira Costa extracting revenge and winning its seven Ann Kang title. Mira Costa ended its season by becoming the only team to take a set off of eventual national champion Cathedral CA with its loss in the California Open Division state semifinals. While the Mustangs saw senior contributors graduate, they are primed for another strong year led by senior setter/right side and 5-star Wisconsin commit Charlie Fuerbringer. She’s one of three 5-star recruits on the roster, with the other two being junior libero Taylor Deckert (USC) and sophomore outside Audrey Flanagan. Sierra Canyon also figures to be in the mix once more for the tournament title, as well as a pair of Texas schools in Cornerstone Christian and Lovejoy. Cornerstone finished last season ranked No. 2 in the country. Like Mira Costa, the Warriors graduated key senior contributors but bring back enough to remain one of the top teams in the country. Among those returning are 5-star junior outside Megan Fitch (Texas AM) and 4-star senior right side Grace Carroll (Baylor). The full rundown of participating schools is: Pool 1   Pool 2   PREDICTION: With Mira Costa and Lovejoy the top seeds in Pool A, we expect those two to advance to the four-team gold bracket on Saturday. In Pool B, it’s Cornerstone Christian and host ‘Iolani the top two teams. However, we are looking at Cornerstone advancing along with the No. 3 team in the pool in Sierra Canyon. While a rematch from last year between Mira Costa and Sierra Canyon would be fun, it’s looking like a showdown between Mira Costa and Cornerstone Christian in the final. The two teams actually played last year in the final of the Nike TOC Southwest event, with Cornerstone winning in three. We like Cornerstone having Mira Costa’s number once more and going back to the mainland with its first-ever Ann Kang title.

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Player of the Week: Kayla Nwabueze (FREE)

August 8, 2023

We’re proud to be a part of an ongoing partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods, which is sponsoring our Player of the Week award. We’ll be releasing a featured vballrecruiter.com Player of the Week, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, on Tuesdays. Below is this week’s Player of the Week: Kayla Nwabueze. *** Our latest Player of the Week is coming off a breakout 15s club campaign in which she established herself as one of the top players in the country. Kayla Nwabueze – a 5-star middle blocker from the Class of 2026 – helped Legacy 15-1 Adidas to a fifth-place finish in 15 Open at the USAV Girls Junior National Championships this summer in Chicago, as well as finishing No. 4 overall in vballrecruiter.com’s Top 50 National Rankings. With the club season being done for well over a month, Nwabueze has been gearing up for another high school season at Bloomfield Hills. She starred last season as a freshman in her role as a six-rotation middle. She finished the year leading the team in both kills (412) and blocks (155) as Bloomfield Hills lost in the district playoffs to eventual state champion Marian. It’s been a quick rise for the sophomore, as Nwabueze first started off her 12s season playing for Legacy. Her older sister, Ashlea, started playing volleyball in seventh grade and loved it so it wasn’t long after Nwabueze had her try. “My first time playing was at a club practice,” Nwabueze said. “I was really nervous at first. Everyone was really welcoming and knew each other and that made it more fun. I didn’t get how to play in rotations or anything like that. After about two weeks I started to get the hang of things. My 14s year I knew I wanted to do it as my main sport because I really loved it.” Nwabueze was part of a Legacy 14-1 Adidas team that earned a bronze medal in 14 Open at the 2022 AAU National Championships. Nwabueze and company repeated the feat this past season, leaving Orlando with another bronze before finishing tied for fifth at the USAV GJNC two weeks later. The gold-bracket losses were similar, with Legacy having a chance in both contests. At AAUs, Legacy fell in three sets to eventual champion Mintonette Sports m.51, 16-25, 36-34, 15-12, before facing the same fate against Hou Skyline 15 Royal in the quarterfinals in Chicago with another three-set loss, 18-25, 25-18, 15-12. “This 15s season was incredible,” Nwabueze said. “We have four amazing coaches. They are hard on us but discipline us to take accountability and make us better players. The team was so natural we had a flow like we had been together since babies. It made it really nice. I don’t remember a time when we got mad with each other or we weren’t all laughing. I’m looking forward to next club season being another great one.” As our featured Player of the Week sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, we recently spoke with Nwabueze about volleyball and more. Who is your role model or someone you look up to? Nwabueze: I have more than one. I really look up to outside of volleyball and some with volleyball is my older sister. When she was first playing I was watching her games and thinking I want to be that good. But outside of volleyball I really look up to her because overall she is a really great person. Also, academic wise, she graduated valedictorian. Personality wise, she gives off a really good vibe. She doesn’t get mad at you. She has good vibe about her and it makes her a good person. Another role model is my mom. She is very successful in my opinion. She likes to hold people accountable and she’ll tell you when you are not doing your best. She knows you can do better and she holds you to a standard. If she wasn’t here I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing without her. Someone in volleyball I look up to is Asjia O’Neal. She plays on Texas. She’s a great middle blocker. I was watching a couple of videos on her mastering the slide. She’s known for her notorious slides. On the court she’s in the zone, focused and ready to go. She’s one of my role models. What is your favorite food? Nwabueze: I love french fries. I could eat french fries without any sides. Or I love wings from Wingstop. Aside from necessities, what is one thing you could not go a day without? Nwabueze: It’s pretty bad to say but I can’t go a day without my phone. It has all my contacts. When I get bored on I’m on my phone. It would have to be my phone. Other than volleyball, what skill would you most like to learn and why? Nwabueze: I think what I would want to learn is to how to learn to play football. It’s a really big sport and I don’t really know what’s going on during the Super Bowl. What is one thing that instantly makes your day better or makes you smile? Nwabueze: My sisters, both of them. They really lighten my mood. They make me laugh a lot. They are my main source of whenever I’m laughing. If you could have any superpower what would it be and why? Nwabueze: It would definitely be reading people’s minds. I think because especially asking questions or when someone is telling me stuff and I’m trying to find out the truth I could read their minds so I know what they are keeping from me. Outside of volleyball what are you most passionate about and why? Nwabueze: I’m most passionate about my schoolwork and things that are academic based. I feel if I am good about academics and volleyball then I can be a really successful person in life. What is one thing that may surprise people about you? Nwabueze: That I play instruments. I don’t give off the

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Initial Top 50 National High School Rankings (2023)

August 7, 2023

Are we in for a repeat of sorts when it comes to the 2023 high school season and the national championship race? The first-ever vballrecruiter.com high school rankings last year saw Cathedral Catholic CA open the year in the No. 1 spot before going undefeated – dropping just one set – and ending the season on top as the undisputed national champion. The wire-to-wire performance was an impressive feat. It takes an effort on that level to beat out all the other teams in the country to earn the label as national champion. It’s not always so simple as having a team like Cathedral Catholic dominate so handily where the choice becomes such an obvious and clear one. However, we could be in for another majestic season when it comes to this year’s fall campaign. All eyes begin on Prestonwood Christian TX, which is stacked with Division 1 athletes. Among them are 5-star junior outside and last season’s HS Sophomore of the Year Cari Spears, 5-star senior right side Jadyn Livings (USC), 5-star senior setter Camille Edwards (Michigan), 4-star senior middle Kennedy Washington, 5-star junior libero Gillian Pitts (Houston), 4-star senior outside Mikala Young (TCU) and newcomer in 4-star junior right side Taylor Clarke. On top of that, Prestonwood is challenging itself with a beefed-up schedule that includes traveling to the prestigious Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas in September. Prestonwood is also competing in Volleypalooza in Austin in August. That tournament features California powers Mater Dei and Cathedral Catholic making the trek. Playing a national schedule is an important element when it comes to winning a national championship. Not only are we looking for teams to make it through the year undefeated, but doing so playing against other top teams in the nation is one of the best measurements of a team’s strength. There’s no doubt that if Prestonwood Christian runs the table like Cathedral Catholic accomplished a season ago the school is going to finish No. 1 in the nation. The biggest question would be what if Prestonwood losses and/or no other team is able to go undefeated playing against a national schedule? There are certainly programs worthy of winning the national championship that will go undefeated without playing a national schedule. In that case, anointing a national champion becomes much more subjective, as we use our knowledge from the club season about individual players to select which team we think is most deserving. All we have to do now is wait and see which scenario plays out. We’ll release our next Top 50 rankings update at the beginning of September, as teams will have time to get their seasons underway and the Top 50 can start to be formed based off results rather than speculation. By then, a few major tournaments will have taken place, as well as lots of local ones. Among the biggest tournaments scheduled for August include the Ann Kang Invitational in Honolulu as well as the previously-mentioned Volleypalooza, both of which vballrecruiter.com will be on hand covering. Looking ahead to September, the calendar is packed with more national events with the Nike TOC Southeast (Sept. 1-2) and Southwest (29-30) events, the Louisville Invitational Volleyball Tournament (Sept. 8-9), and of course Durango (Sept. 22-23). All these events will heavily influence the Top 50. Until then, you can find our initial Top 50 National Rankings below. vballrecruiter.com TOP 50 NATIONAL HS RANKINGS 1. Prestonwood Christian TX 2. Mater Dei CA 3. Mother McAuley IL 4. Mira Costa CA 5. Notre Dame Academy KY 6. St. James Academy KS 7. Cathedral Catholic CA 8. Cornerstone Christian TX 9. Papillion-La Vista South NE 10. Prosper TX *** 11. Hamilton Southeastern IN 12. St. Francis Mountain View CA 13. Divine Savior Holy Angels WI 14. St. Thomas Aquinas KS 15. Benet Academy IL 16. Assumption KY 17. Sierra Canyon CA 18. Marymount CA 19. Dripping Springs TX 20. Wayzata MN *** 21. Marian MI 22. Millbrook NC 23. Washburn Rural KS 24. Yorktown IN 25. Lovejoy TX 26. Torrey Pines CA 27. Oconomowoc WI 28. Westminster Christian FL 29. Colleyville Heritage TX 30. Corona del Sol AZ *** 31. Bishop Gorman NV 32. Liberty North MO 33. Ursuline Academy OH 34. Lafayette MO 35. McCutcheon IN 36. Keller TX 37. Marist IL 38. Horizon AZ 39. Byron Nelson TX 40. Palos Verdes CA *** 41. Flint Hill VA 42. Clearwater Central Catholic FL 43. Mount Notre Dame OH 44. Cleveland TN 45. Millennium AZ 46. Magnificat OH 47. Liberty MO 48. St. Ursula Academy OH 49. Iolani HI 50. Lake Highland Prep FL *** ON THE CUSP Valor Christian CO Santa Fe FL Northville MI Timpview UT Redondo Union CA Archbishop Mitty CA Ridge Point TX Lambert GA Pace Academy GA North Gwinnett GA Boca Raton FL Hagerty FL Ankeny IA Bridgeland TX Cinco Ranch TX Southlake Carroll TX Mountain View UT Middle Creek NC Cardinal Gibbons NC Barrington IL Branson CA Lakewood CA Eureka MO Walton GA Brebeuf Jesuit IN Dike-New Hartford IA North Raleigh Christian Academy NC Tompkins TX Venice FL The Woodlands TX Lake Travis TX Boswell TX Rouse TX Wakeland TX Appleton North WI Buford GA Punahou HI

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Player of the Week: Maya Evens (FREE)

August 1, 2023

We’re proud to be a part of an ongoing partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods, which is sponsoring our Player of the Week award. We’ll be releasing a featured vballrecruiter.com Player of the Week, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, on Tuesdays. Below is this week’s Player of the Week: Maya Evens. *** Last year Cathedral Catholic capped a perfect season by sweeping St. Francis of Mountain View in the CIF Open Division state championship match to finish the high school season as undisputed national champions. Mira Costa was the only opponent which managed to take even a set off the Dons, with it coming a round before in the state semifinals. While Cathedral Catholic loses 10 seniors – including 5-star recruits Julia Blyashov (Stanford) and Noemie Glover (Oregon) – the cupboard is hardly empty. Part of the returning core includes Class of 2025 4-star recruit Maya Evens, who was the starting libero last fall for Cathedral Catholic and spent this past club season playing up in the same role for Wave 17 Juliana – which finished ninth in 17 Open at the USAV Girls Junior National Championships last month in Chicago. “I think that was the most surreal experience being an underclassmen playing alongside some of the biggest names in Noemie and Julia,” Evens said. “I played with them in club and in open gym, but being part of that team with them helped change my perspective on how to act and what I should be doing as a teammate. They definitely inspired me and would help me when I was feeling down on myself. They were always like ‘You got this.’ It was awesome. They felt like big sisters.” Evens’ mom – Juliana Conn – coaches at both Cathedral Catholic and Wave and is the reason her daughter started playing volleyball in the first place. With her mom coaching, Evens grew up in a gym but wasn’t exactly begging her mom to play at first. She would pepper and mess around with the ball at times, but Evens needed to be pushed to get her true start. “I know this might sound bad and it’s not meant to, but I didn’t have a super big choice if I wanted to participate,” Evens said. “I’m so happy my mom opened my horizon and had me try it. She said maybe I would love it. I did a few camps and tried it out. There was something about it where I absolutely fell in love. I’m not sure how to explain it, but it’s a different feeling than I ever had.” A parent coaching their child means not only navigating their relationship but the coach-player one as well. Evens said her and her mom have always done well being able to separate the two. “We do a really good job at keeping it separate,” Evens said. “She’s a respectable coach. I really enjoy having her as a coach. I have friends who say they could never have their mom as their coach but we have separated the two really well. If I mess up (playing) she’ll treat me like any other player during the games. After that, she’s my mom and she does a really good job supporting me and being there for me. She’s a really good coach and has 100 percent made me into the player I am and I couldn’t do it without her.” From her first season playing club until now, Evens has always played up at least one age group. She was part of a Wave team which lost just one outing in Chicago, with it coming against Metro 17 Travel in challenge play as Wave finished No. 6 in vballrecruiter.com’s final Top 50 National Rankings. “I have no regrets. That was the most fun tournament of any of my seasons,” Evens said. “We were undefeated until the challenge match and we went undefeated after that. We just had this vibe and were playing with so much passion and effort. We played the best volleyball of the entire season. It was so much fun. Everyone would stop and watch us play. It was the most incredible feeling.” Part of Wave’s run included beating eventual fifth-place finisher Drive Nation 17 Red, 35-33, 25-20, to close out the first round of pool play. The opening set of that contest was arguably the most entertaining one of the entire 10-day tournament in Chicago. “There is no other word to describe it other than fun,” Evens said. “You live for those games. I would so much rather play a team to 35 than to beat them 25-15. Especially a team like Drive Nation with so much hype and which was (the) No. 3 (seed) going in. We are an under-rated small team so it was so much fun.” With the high school season rapidly approaching, Evens’ focus has shifted. Along with her, Cathedral Catholic brings back 4-star senior middle Jenna Hanes (Michigan), 4-star senior setter Amanda Saeger (DePaul), 3-star senior outside Niki Egan (Washington beach) and 3-star junior outside Mae Kordas. While another national championship might be a stretch, together they should help Cathedral Catholic remain as one of the top programs in the country and capable of defending its California Open Division state title. The Dons are facing another challenging schedule, one that includes playing in two prestigious tournaments in Volleypalooza in Austin and the Durango Fall Classic in Las Vegas. “We lost 10 seniors so that is a lot of loss,” Evens said. “Still, we have a couple of freshmen who I’m super excited about plus our returning players are absolute beasts so I’m super excited about it. We won’t be as big and as physical but we are still going to be super fun to watch. We have gotten together running high school camps. We are bonding and making new friendships. We haven’t talked too much about goals or results but we all have the same goal in that we want to win.” As our featured Player

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s 14s Final Club National Rankings (2023)

July 31, 2023

The final 14s Club National Rankings had quite the anomaly that we may never see again as long as we do our lists. With the top teams clearly establishing themselves in 14 Open at the USAV Girls Junior National Championships in Chicago, there was no movement with the top six teams. TAV 14 Black brought home the gold medal and ends the season where it started – at No. 1. Arizona Storm 14 Thunder captured the silver medal after falling to TAV in the championship match and ends at No. 2 – the same spot Storm entered at. The same goes for Nos. 3-6 as well. Tstreet 14 Carson was knocked out of contention with its quarterfinal loss to Storm and stayed put at No. 3. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar lost to TAV in the quarterfinals and remained at No. 4. With Madfrog 14 Green and Skyline 14 Royal also tying for fifth, niether moved and end at No. 5 and 6 respectively. There was no change until No. 7, as Drive Nation 14 Red made a modest climb up three spots from No. 10. Club V 14 Ren Silver was among the biggest movers. With Club V making the Top 8, the Utah club rose up from No. 29 to No. 8. You can view the full rankings below. There are lots of factors to take into consideration when formulating a list like this. It leaves plenty of room for debate as these rankings are ultimately subjective. There are power league results, qualifier results, national tournaments like Triple Crown and of course the USAV Girls Junior Nationals and AAU national championships. All these come into play. We put more weight on what happened at Junior Nationals than a qualifier because the whole season is built toward peaking at JN’s. We also had one steadfast rule we didn’t break no matter the circumstances. That rule was if Team A defeated Team B in a gold challenge match or gold bracket match at JN’s, Team A is always going to be ranked ahead of Team B. That’s because everyone comes to JN’s to win a gold medal and if Team A eliminates Team B from contention, it won at the absolute right time. It can make for some skewed overall rankings as a team might be too high or low overall but what’s the point if the biggest head-to-head matches of the season aren’t the most important ones? vballrecruiter.com FINAL TOP 50 NATIONAL RANKINGS 1. TAV 14 Black (TX) (1 – previous ranking) 2. Arizona Storm 14 Thunder (AZ) (2) 3. Tstreet 14 Carson (CA) (3) 4. Mizuno Long Beach 14 Rockstar (CA) (4) 5. Madfrog 14 Green (TX) (5) 6. Skyline 14 Royal (TX) (6) 7. Drive Nation 14 Red (TX) (10) 8. Club V 14 Ren Silver (UT) (29) 9. Forza1 North 14 One (CA) (7) 10. AP 14 Adidas (TX) (17) *** 11. OT 14 Laura (FL) (8) 12. Absolute 14 Black (CA) (21) 13. Legacy 14-1 Adidas (MI) (27) 14. AZ Sky 14G (AZ) (18) 15. A5 14 Helen (GA) (13) 16. Forza1 14 One (CA) (24) 17. Top Select 14 Elite (FL) (34) 18. Adidas KiVA 14 Red (KY) (11) 19. Munciana 14 Chipmunks (IN) (16) 20. HPSTL 14 Royal (MO) (15) *** 21. Lions 14-1 (IL) (35) 22. Tribe 14 Elite Cardinal (FL) (23) 23. MAVS KC 14-1 (KS) (9) 24. Rage 14 Garren (CA) (40) 25. Elevation 14 Molly (OH) (12) 26. GP 14 Rox (FL) (30) 27. Wave 14 Tammy (CA) (25) 28. Hou Skyline 14 Royal (TX) (14) 29. Excel 14 National Red (TX) (26) 30. Tejas 14 Black Mauro (TX) (n/r) *** 31. PVA 14 Elite (KS) (22) 32. SA Junior 14 Adidas (TX) (n/r) 33. Academy 14 Diamond (NC) (43) 34. Vision 14 Gold (CA) (20) 35. Mintonette Sports m.41 (OH) (37) 36. NKYVC 14-1 Tsunami (KY) (36) 37. Premier Nebraska 14 Gold (NE) (39) 38. KC Power 14 Black (KS) (45) 39. Northern Lights 14-1 (MN) (42) 40. Kairos 14 Alpha (SD) (50) *** 41. Mauloa 14 Green (HI) (32) 42. Tri-State Elite 14 Blue (OH) (33) 43. Miami Hype 14 Nekane (FL) (n/r) 44. WPVC 14 Armour Black (FL) (44) 45. Far Out 14 Black (MI) (41) 46. AZ Rev 14 Premier (AZ) (18) 47. Rockwood Thunder 14 Elite (MO) (47) 48. Kokoro 14-1 (MN) (n/r) 49. AVC Cle 14 Red (OH) (n/r) 50. FC Elite 14 Navy (WI) n/r) *** ON THE CUSPSASVBC 14-1 (HI)Austin Skyline (TX)United 14s Evren (CA)HJV 14 Elite (TX)Aspire 14 Premier (AZ)Iowa Rockets 14R (IA)ID Crush 14 Bower (ID)Paramount 14 VBC (VA)Lions 14 Red (IL)Coast 14-1 (CA)HPSTL 14 Royal (MO)1United 14 Bill (TX)Adversity 14 Adidas (IL)Drive Nation 14 Black (TX)WF Waves 14 King (FL)Alliance 14 Ren (TN)Arete 14 Navy Telos (TX)Vaqueras 14-1 (PR)Lex United 14 Adidas (KY)

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s 15s Final Club National Rankings (2023)

July 27, 2023

There was no doubt which teams separated themselves from the rest this year when it came to the 15s division. The 15 Open championship matches at both AAUs and USAV featured the same two sides squaring off for gold. It was a split decision, with Mintonette Sports m.51 grabbing first in Orlando and Skyline 15 Royal earning gold in Chicago. It left a tiny amount of room for debate as to which deserved to be the top team in our final national rankings, but not very much. There’s no denying that Chicago featured a much deeper field than Orlando, and with Skyline winning out there it was an easy decision to keep Skyline at No. 1. The North Texas Region club has occupied that spot since winning Triple Crown back in February, when it replaced Mintonette. Since then, the two have remained at Nos. 1 and 2 respectively and now end the season there too. There was some significant movement inside the Top 10 behind them, as five teams climbed inside the Top 10 in the final update. Arizona Storm 15 Thunder jumped from No. 12 to No. 5. Pohaku 15-1, by virtue of its upset of SCVC 15 Roxy in the challenge round, shot up from No. 18 to No. 6. SCVC is right behind at No. 7, moving up from No. 14. Wave 15 Brennan, after upsetting TAV 15 Black in challenge play as well, went from No. 15 to No. 8. Lastly, Forza1 North 15 One moved a few spots from No. 13 to No. 10. None of those clubs made a leap like AVC Cle 15 Red though. AVC was at No. 31 but finishes at No. 13 after ending tied for fifth in Chicago. You can check out the full rankings below. There are lots of factors to take into consideration when formulating a list like this. It leaves plenty of room for debate as these rankings are ultimately subjective. There are power league results, qualifier results, national tournaments like Triple Crown and of course the USAV Girls Junior Nationals and AAU national championships. All these come into play. We put more weight on what happened at Junior Nationals than a qualifier because the whole season is built toward peaking at JN’s. We also had one steadfast rule we didn’t break no matter the circumstances. That rule was if Team A defeated Team B in a gold challenge match or gold bracket match at JN’s, Team A is always going to be ranked ahead of Team B. That’s because everyone comes to JN’s to win a gold medal and if Team A eliminates Team B from contention, it won at the absolute right time. It can make for some skewed overall rankings as a team might be too high or low overall but what’s the point if the biggest head-to-head matches of the season aren’t the most important ones? vballrecruiter.com’S TOP 50 NATIONAL RANKINGS 1. Skyline 15 Royal (TX) (1 – previous ranking) 2. Mintonette Sports m.51 (OH) (2) 3. Hou Skyline 15 Royal (TX) (4) 4. Legacy 15-1 Adidas (MI) (8) 5. Arizona Storm 15 Thunder (AZ) (12) 6. Pohaku 15-1 (KS) (18) 7. SCVC 15 Roxy (CA) (14) 8. Wave 15 Brennan (CA) (15) 9. TAV 15 Black (TX) (7) 10. Forza1 North 15 One (CA) (13) *** 11. AZ Sky 15G (AZ) (5) 12. Madfrog 15 Green (TX) (6) 13. AVC Cle 15 Red (OH) (31) 14. Boiler Jrs 15 Gold (IN) (3) 15. Austin Skyline 15 Royal (TX) (9) 16. Aspire 15 Premier (AZ) 22) 17. NKYVC 15-1 Tsunami (KY) (10) 18. Elevation 15 Tony (OH) (16) 19. Alamo 15 Premier (TX) (17) 20. Tribe 15 Elite Cardinal (FL) (19) *** 21. Far Out 15 Black (MI) (26) 22. WPVC 15 Armour Black (FL) (28) 23. GP 15 Rox (FL) (21) 24. Team Pineapple 15 Black (IN) (29) 25. Tri-State Elite 15 Blue (OH) (25) 26. Academy 15 Diamond (NC) (34) 27. Club V 15 Ren Reed (UT) (27) 28. Top Select 15 Elite (FL) (33) 29. AP 15 Adidas (TX) (11) 30. Metro 15 Travel (DC) (n/r) *** 31. Dynasty 15 Black (KS) (20) 32. Premier Nebraska 15 Gold (NE) (43) 33. SG Elite 15 Rosh (CA) (38) 34. Michio 15 National (IL) (24) 35. Academy HP 15 Danielle (CA) (47) 36. Triangle 15 Black (NC) (32) 37. MKE Sting 15 Gold (WI) (39) 38. 1st Alliance 15 Gold (IL) (44) 39. Mauloa 15 Green (HI) (n/r) 40. TVC 15 Black (OH) (40) *** 41. Mizuno Long Beach 15 Rockstar (CA) (n/r) 42. Vision 15 Gold (CA) (37) 43. Tstreet 15 Curtis (CA) (45) 44. TAV Houston 15 Adidas (TX) (48) 45. HJV 15 Elite (TX) (23) 46. Drive Nation 15 Red (TX) (35) 47. Arete 15 Navy Telos (TX) (n/r) 48. A5 15 Bob (GA) (36) 49. Jupiter Elite 15E (FL) (30) 50. Circle City 15 Purple (IN) (n/r) *** ON THE CUSP High Tide 15 Elite (FL)Northern Lights 15-1 (MN)MN Select 15-1 (MN)1st Alliance 15 Silver (IL)Iowa Select 15 Mizuno (IA)Rockwood Thunder 15 Elite (MO)HPSTL 15 Royal (MO)AZ Rev 15 Premier (AZ)MJVA 15 Elite (TN)Sunshine 15 Westside (CA)JJVA 15 Teal (FL)Co Jrs 15 Sherri (CO)OJVA 15-1 Gold (OR)MAVS 816 15-1 (KS)A5 15-1 Victor (GA)Actyve 15 Black (CA)STVA 15 Mizuno (TX)Circle City 15 Black (IN)305 15 (FL)KC Power 15 Black (KS)LAV 15 National Black (AL)OP2 15-1 (OK)Coast 15-1 (CA)

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s 16s Final Club National Rankings (2023)

July 26, 2023

There’s little doubt the powerhouses came to play during the 16 Open division at the USVA Girls Junior National Championships earlier this month in Chicago. Five of the Top 10 teams from our prior rankings reached the final eight, including the then-No. 1 team in the nation in 1st Alliance 16 Gold and then-No. 2 Drive Nation 16 Red in the mix. Also in contention was eventual gold-medalist Arizona Storm 16 Thunder, which took home the gold medal after downing 1st Alliance in the championship match. A year ago, Storm was a heavy favorite and top seed in 15 Open but was ultimately upset in the final by at-large recipient Alamo 15 Premier and left Indianapolis with a silver medal. While Storm put together a regular season most any other club would dream of, it did not enter this year’s national championship as the same favorite as a season ago. Storm showed more vulnerability during the spring campaign this go around but when it came down to it there was no opponent getting in the way of finishing on top, which Storm did with a perfect 11-0 record. It made Storm, which was No. 6 in our previous release, the clear-cut pick to finish the season as the No. 1 ranked team in our final Top 50 National Rankings. The other four teams also residing in the previous Top 10 remained there in 1st Alliance, Drive Nation, Hou Skyline 16 Royal and Nebraska One 16 Synergy. One of the big movers was Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal, which climbed from No. 16 to No. 5 in our final rankings. Also cracking the Top 10 was Mich Elite 16 Mizuno. The club received one of the two at-large bid and made great use of it, finishing tied for ninth and landing at No. 10 in our last update. There are lots of factors to take into consideration when formulating a list like this. It leaves plenty of room for debate as these rankings are ultimately subjective. There are power league results, qualifier results, national tournaments like Triple Crown and of course the USAV Girls Junior Nationals and AAU national championships. All these come into play. We put more weight on what happened at Junior Nationals than a qualifier because the whole season is built toward peaking at JN’s. We also had one steadfast rule we didn’t break no matter the circumstances. That rule was if Team A defeated Team B in a gold challenge match or gold bracket match at JN’s, Team A is always going to be ranked ahead of Team B. That’s because everyone comes to JN’s to win a gold medal and if Team A eliminates Team B from contention, it won at the absolute right time. It can make for some skewed overall rankings as a team might be too high or low overall but what’s the point if the biggest head-to-head matches of the season aren’t the most important ones? vballrecruiter.com’S FINAL TOP 50 NATIONAL RANKINGS 1. Arizona Storm 16 Thunder (AZ) (6 – previous ranking) 2. 1st Alliance 16 Gold (IL) (1) 3. Drive Nation 16 Red (TX) (2) 4. Nebraska One 16 Synergy (NE) (7) 5. Tribe 16 Elite Cardinal (FL) (16) 6. Hou Skyline 16 Royal (TX) (4) 7. OT 16 JP (FL) (10) 8. HJV 16 Elite (TX) (5) 9. Adidas KiVA 16 Red (KY) (14) 10. Mich Elite 16 Mizuno (MI) (19) *** 11. Circle City 16 Purple (IN) (9) 12. Northern Lights 16-1 (MN) (22) 13. SPVB 16 Elite (IL) (13) 14. A5 16 Gabe (GA) (8) 15. MKE Sting 16 Gold (WI) (12) 16. AVC Cle 16 Red (OH) (28) 17. TAV 16 Black (TX) (11) 18. Surfside 16 PV Legends (CA) (3) 19. GP 16 Rox (FL) (25) 20. Austin Skyline 16 Royal (TX) (17) *** 21. Madfrog 16 Green (TX) (27) 22. ID Crush 16 Bower (ID) (23) 23. Legacy 16-1 Adidas (MI) (18) 24. NorCal 16-1 Black (CA) (31) 25. MAVS KC 16-1 (KS) (26) 26. Coast 16-1 (CA) (20) 27. OT 16 Roberto (FL) (39) 28. HPSTL 16 Royal (MO) (15) 29. Wave 16 Kevin (CA) (21) 30. Alamo 16 Premier (TX) (33) *** 31. Co Jrs 16 Shannon (CO) (41) 32. AJV 16 Adidas (TX) (36) 33. Excel 16 National Red (TX) (n/r) 34. Skyline 16 Royal (TX) (32) 35. KC Power 16 Black (KS) (n/r) 36. No Name 16 Sarah (FL) (34) 37. Dynasty 16 Black (KS) (29) 38. Tri-State Elite 16 Blue (OH) (24) 39. Munciana 16 Blaze (IN) (30) 40. Vegas Aces 16 UA (NV) (n/r) *** 41. Triangle 16 Black (NC) (45) 42. Premier Nebraska 16 Gold (NE) (37) 43. Oaks 16 Gold (CA) (n/r) 44. Vision 16 Gold (CA) (44) 45. Mizuno Long Beach 16 Rockstar (CA) (38) 46. Absolute 16 Black (CA) (n/r) 47. Metro 16 Travel (DC) (n/r) 48. Team Pineapple 16 Black (IN) (40) 49. Vaqueras 16-1 (PR) (n/r) 50. Kairos 16 Alpha (SD) (47) *** ON THE CUSP AVA TX 16 Adidas (TX)USA South 16 Premier Purple (FL)Boiler Jrs 16 Gold (IN)EliteVBTC 16 Black (OH)CUVC 16 Beast (NC)1st Alliance 16 Silver (IL)A4 Volley 16 Cassie (CA)NKYVC 16-1 Tsunami (KY)MN Select 16-1 (MN)Rockwood Thunder 16 Elite (MO)Mintonette Sports m.61 (OH)Rancho Valley 16 Premier (CA)AZ Rev 16 Premier (AZ)FC Elite 16 Navy (WI)Adrenaline 16 Doug (IA)ARVC 16 Adidas (NM)SASVBC 16-1 (HI)

Read More »

vballrecruiter.com’s Player of the Week: Emma Parks (FREE)

July 25, 2023

We’re proud to be a part of an ongoing partnership with Dick’s Sporting Goods, which is sponsoring our Player of the Week award. We’ll be releasing a featured vballrecruiter.com Player of the Week, sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, on Tuesdays. Below is this week’s Player of the Week: Emma Parks. *** When it comes to our recent featured Player of the Week highlights sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, we have encountered athletes who have grown up either immersed in volleyball or ones who started late in the game and have blossomed quickly. What those two dynamics share in common however are all were in love with volleyball from their introduction to the sport. Emma Parks has a different tale. She didn’t grow up loving volleyball or falling in love with it at first sight. She was focused on playing basketball and determined to continue on as long and as far as she could in that sport. It’s not that she was totally opposed to volleyball. She spent her first year playing on a regional team in fourth grade. “I was definitely super into basketball growing up before I started volleyball,” Parks said. “I didn’t want (volleyball) to interfere with basketball when I first started. I transitioned to only playing volleyball in eighth grade.” Growing up participating in multiple sports brought out Parks’ competitive spirit. Having older sisters helped too, as they were also competitive and she would naturally challenge herself against them. While giving up basketball wasn’t easy, she did find herself drawn more and more to volleyball. “I think volleyball is really different than everything else,” she said. “Especially having new sets where you can win one set and then the next set is anyone’s game. That’s what’s really cool about it. You have to have team work and work as a team.” Parks started out as a middle blocker before spending this past season with Rock City 16-1 playing outside. Her position change started in high school last fall when her coach moved her to the pin and she remained on the left during club. At 6-1 and touching 10-feet, Parks is a rising 4-star recruit who is planning on suiting up for AVC Cle next club season. “I loved playing six rotations and being part of the game the whole time,” Parks said. “The biggest adjustment for me was passing. I didn’t have to pass as a middle. I stayed in to serve but came out for serve receive. So I just didn’t do that as a middle and that’s been the hardest adjustment for me.” This recent club season ended on a high note. Parks and her Rock City teammates earned the silver medal in 16 Club at the AAU Girls National Championships in Orlando. The squad went 13-1, falling to MVVC 16 Red in the gold-medal match. Rock City was the only opponent to take a set off of MVVC as Parks was selected to the AAU All-Star team for the division. “We played at Bluegrass and won the Club division,” Parks said. “Winning the tournament was really good for our team and we really started playing at a higher level.” Up next for Parks is her junior year of high school playing for Meadville. The switch from club to high school offers a different experience, one she enjoys just as much. “I think it’s different going to high school from club,” Parks said. “It’s different but really exciting. We are hoping to have a good season. We only had one senior last year so we are getting the whole team back. I’m really looking forward to it and hopefully winning district.” As our featured Player of the Week sponsored by Dick’s Sporting Goods, we recently spoke with Parks about volleyball and more. Who is your role model or icon you look up to? Parks: I would say I look up to my sisters (Maddie and Hannah) the most. I spent a lot of time watching them play when I was younger. They are the ones who got me interested in the game. I learned a lot from them how hard they worked, how they played and how they responded when things got hard. They are my biggest supporters and they are really important to me. What is your favorite food(s)? Parks: My favorite food is mac and cheese. Specifically, my grandma’s mac and cheese. I love cooking with her. It’s super important to spend time with her. I feel like we have a family recipe in that nobody else makes it the same way. What is your favorite tournament of the season? Parks: My favorite tournament was AAUs. Going into it we were really excited. We got a house all together as a team. That was super fun to be with everyone. Competing at a high level against teams which are really good was fun. We finished pretty well. It was also our last tournament so I think that was fun. What is your favorite team bonding event? Parks: My favorite was when we were in Florida at AAUs. We got ice cream and then we came back to the house and went swimming. It was really fun. The water was really warm. What is your favorite quote? Parks: My favorite quote is by Simone Biles. It’s ‘I’d rather risk that it didn’t work out than the chances that I didn’t take at all.’ What is your go to song to warm up to? Parks: I don’t usually listen to music before games. In high school, we play music before games from our team playlist. If you could have any super power what would it be and why? Parks: I would want telekinesis like in Stranger Things. The main character El (Eleven) has it and it’s useful. I would like to use it in volleyball I guess or really anything. Life would be simpler and it would be really cool. What do you like to do outside of volleyball? Parks: I’d say I

Read More »