Nation's top tournament should see wide-open action with many of country's top teams, players.
Video: MaxPreps Top 25 volleyball rankings Durango Classic action could shake up things for next week's rankings.
Unlike last season when
Assumption (Louisville, Ky.) came in as a prohibitive favorite, there are a handful of the 64 teams who could get hot, go on a run and walk away with the title of perhaps the deepest prep volleyball tournament in the land. But don't count the Rockets out as Ron Kordes' squad has taken the title five times since 2011, including crowns in 2017 and 2018.
The Sea Hawks bested the Monarchs in five set only to fall the following week to Torrey Pines. Mater Dei bounced back with a win over Assumption — snapping the Rockets' 68-match win streak — and looked to be on a rematch collision course at the Louisville Invitational only to see both the Rockets and Monarchs fall to Padua Franciscan (Parma, Ohio) in the semis and finals.
And with the Rockets, Monarchs, Sea Hawks and Falcons — as well as 10 others in the MaxPreps Top 50 — the 2019 title could come down to who gets hot Friday during pool play and Saturday through the qualifying rounds and into the division brackets.
None of the teams in the MaxPreps Top 25 national volleyball rankings are paired in the same pool, but there are seven unbeatens that dot pool play in addition to 12 one-loss programs.
The star power also will be out at Durango as All-Americans
Rylee Rader and
Anna DeBeer from Assumption;
Nalani Iosia and
Kami Miner of Redondo Union;
Mia Tuaniga and
Meg Brown of Mater Dei;
Elena Oglivie of
'Iolani (Honolulu); and
Madison Endsley of
Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) all will take the court. In addition, a handful of players from last year's Durango All-Tournament team will see action, including
Briana McKnight of
Xavier College Prep (Phoenix) and
Keonilei Akana of
Kamehameha Kapalama (Honolulu).
Rylee Rader, Assumption
File photo by Jann Hendry
