Xcellent 25 Volleyball Rankings: Mercy replaces Assumption

Rockets' loss to Sacred Heart allows another Louisville school, Mercy, to return to the national high school girls volleyball Top 25.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Kevin Askeland
By
Oct 26, 2009, 12:00am
The playoffs have begun in several states across the country, and one of the Xcellent 25's first victims of single-elimination play is the Assumption Rockets of Louisville, Ky.

Assumption, which was ranked No. 14 in last week's Xcellent 25 rankings, was defeated by Sacred Heart of Louisville in the 7th region finals. Assumption had defeated Sacred Heart the week before in district play, but was unable to repeat the feat at the regional tournament. As a result, the Rockets were eliminated from the state tournament.

Mercy, another Louisville school, advanced to the state tournament after winning its region. Mercy also had previous wins over Sacred Heart and Assumption.

The only other casualty last week was Ankeny of Iowa. Bishop Heelan of Sioux City, Iowa, knocked off Ankeny at the Heelan Classic last week, giving Ankeny its only loss of the season. Wakefield, from Raleigh, N.C., replaces Ankeny in this week's rankings.

MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Volleyball Rankings

1. (1 last week) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 25-0
The Monarchs won a pair of West Catholic Athletic League matches, defeating Presentation (San Jose, Calif.), 3-0, and Notre Dame (Belmont, Calif.), 3-0. Kristina Graven had 19 kills, and Shannon Fleming had 10 in the win over Presentation. Graven added 15 kills against Notre Dame.
Shannon Fleming, Archbishop Mitty
Shannon Fleming, Archbishop Mitty
File photo by Dirk Dewachter


2. (2) Reagan (San Antonio, Texas), 40-1
The Rattlers moved to within one game of an undefeated district championship with 3-0 wins over Johnson (San Antonio, Texas) and MacArthur (San Antonio, Texas). Kayla Keller had 13 kills and Preslie Alexander added 12 in the Johnson victory. Rachel James led Reagan in the MacArthur win with 11 kills.

3. (3) Ursuline Academy (Cincinnati, Ohio), 24-0
Ursuline opened the sectional tournament with 3-0 wins over Middletown (Ohio) and Fairfield (Ohio). Jade Henderson topped the Lions with 14 kills while Christina Beer had 11. Henderson did even better against Fairfield with 18 kills, with Beer right behind with 14. Dani Reinert had 37 assists in the latter victory.

4. (4) Shakopee (Minn.), 26-0
The Sabers finished the regular season with 3-0 wins over Holy Angels (Richfield, Minn.) and Lakeville North (Minn.). Kari Monnens had 10 kills in the victory over Holy Angels while Ashley Wittman spiked 18 kills against Lakeville North.

5. (5) Muncie Burris (Muncie, Ind.), 36-0
The Owls won the Class 2A Section 41 tournament with three straight wins by 3-0 scores. Muncie Burris bounced Lapel in the opener and then dropped Winchester in the semifinal. The Owls defeated Wapahani in three straight for the sectional title. The Owls open regional play this week against Park Tudor.

6. (6) Coffman (Dublin, Ohio), 24-0
The Shamrocks won their first two matches in the Pataskala District 1 playoffs, defeating Walnut Ridge (Ohio) 3-0 and Brookhaven (Ohio) 3-0. Coffman allowed just 36 points in the two matches combined.

7. (7) Colorado Springs Christian (Colorado Springs, Colo.), 19-0
The Lions defeated Manitou Springs (Colo.) 3-0 and topped St. Mary’s (Colorado Springs, Colo.) 3-0 in a Tri-Peaks League crossover match. Morgan Broehuis had 16 kills and 10 assists in the victory over Manitou Springs while Hannah Walker added 21 assists. Broekhuis added 16 kills and Brianne Vande Griend had 13 in the St. Mary’s victory.

8. (8) Dos Pueblos (Goleta, Calif.), 20-1
The Chargers defeated Santa Ynez (Calif.) and Buena (Ventura, Calif.) by 3-0 scores last week to set up a showdown with Santa Barbara this week. Sam Wopat had 14 kills against Santa Ynez and 16 against Buena.

9. (9) Amarillo (Texas), 40-3
The Sandies won two matches last week, knocking off Tascosa (Amarillo, Texas) in a close match 3-2 and topping Odessa Permian 3-0 for their 55th straight district win. Micah Nolan had 19 kills, and Sheridan Burgess and Caitlin Wallace each had 10 in the Tascosa win. Danielle Barker added 34 assists.

10. (10) JH Rose (Greenville, N.C.), 19-0-2
The Rampants completed the regular season with a 3-0 win over New Bern (N.C.) and then opened the first round of the playoffs with a 3-0 win over West Johnston (N.C.). Emily Neideffer had 13 kills in the New Bern victory and 11 kills against West Johnston.

11. (11) Newport Harbor (Calif.), 17-3
The Sailors won both of their Sunset League matches last week, defeating Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.) 3-1 and Fountain Valley (Calif.) 3-0. Newport Harbor has a pair of big matches against Los Alamitos (Calif.), which is ranked No. 5 in the Southern Section coaches poll.

12. (12) Marian (Omaha, Neb.), 31-1
The Crusaders completed the regular season with a 3-0 win over Millard North (Neb.). Marian begins the Metro Conference Tournament this week.

13. (13) Randall (Amarillo, Texas), 34-1
The Raiders defeated Canyon (Amarillo, Texas), 3-0 with Raegan Shelton, Aubree Piper and Ashley Davis all supplying nine kills apiece.

14. (15) Catholic Academy (Joliet, Ill.), 34-1
The Angels received 13 kills from Annemarie Hickey to defeat Providence (New Lenox, Ill.) 2-0. The 34-1 record marks the best record in school history.

15. (16) Plant (Tampa, Fla.), 22-1
The Panthers completed their regular season with 3-0 wins over Durant (Plant City, Fla.) and Sickles (Tampa, Fla.). Maddie Martin had 18 kills in both games while Leah Jordan had 10 kills against Sickles.

16. (17) Yorktown (Ind.), 34-1
Yorktown won Class 3A Sectional 24 with three straight wins by 3-0 scores. The Tigers defeated Blackford, Mississinewa and Delta to advance to the regional tournament. Yorktown opens regional play against Northwood.

17. (19) Huntsville (Ala.), 58-2
The Panthers defeated Hoover 3-0 to advance to the Elite Eight Tournament this week. Huntsville opens with Daphne and also has McGill-Toolen on the same side of the 6A bracket.

18. (21) Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 51-2
The Greyhounds defeated Peachtree Ridge, Greenbrier and Northview by 3-0 scores to reach the finals of the Class AAAAA Elite Eight Tournament. Pope will take on Walton, the only team to defeat Pope this year, in the state finals on Oct. 31.

19. (21) Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), 61-2
The Mustangs won seven matches at the Mattawan Tournament over the weekend to push their record over 60 wins on the season. Marian plays Notre Dame Prep (Pontiac, Mich.) in the CHSL finals this week and will compete in the Bedford Invitational next weekend.

20. (22) Jesuit (Portland, Ore.), 25-1
The Crusaders defeated Aloha (Beaverton, Ore.) and Beaverton (Ore.) in 6A Metro play. Jesuit moved to the top of the 6A state rankings with last week’s victory over Central Catholic.

21. (23) Central Catholic (Portland, Ore.), 32-1
The Rams bounced back from their first loss of the season to Jesuit (Portland, Ore.) with 3-0 wins over Douglas (Portland, Ore.) and Reynolds (Troutdale, Ore.) in 6A Mt. Hood competition.

22 (24) Pearce (Richardson, Texas), 37-5
The Mustangs swept Turner (Carrollton, Texas) and Rockwall-Heath (Texas) by 3-0 scores to move within a game of an undefeated season in 4A District 10 play.

23. (NR) Mercy (Louisville, Ky.), 28-6
Mercy won the 6th region with a 2-0 win over Holy Cross (Louisville, Ky.). The Jaguars emerge as the top team out of Louisville after Assumption fell to Sacred Heart in the 7th region finals and failed to advance to the state tournament. Mercy defeated both Assumption and Sacred Heart in early Oct.

24. (25) Martin County (Tampa, Fla.), 24-1
The Tigers won a pair of matches to conclude District 14 play. Martin County defeated Jensen Beach 3-1 with Elise Walch registering 29 kills and Nicole Walch adding 19. In a 3-0 win over Carroll, Elise Walch had 24 kills and Nicole Walch posted 12. The Tigers begin district play this week.

25. (NR) Wakefield (Raleigh, N.C.), 23-0
The Wolverines debut this week after winning the Cap-7 Conference championship last week and remaining as the only undefeated Class 4A team in North Carolina. Wakefield opened the first round of the state playoffs with a 3-0 win over Middle Creek. Elizabeth Campbell had 13 kills and Katie Slay had 16 kills in the win.

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