St. Pius X Catholic, Papillion-LaVista South, McCutcheon among teams to add state championship banner to gym.
State champions continue to be crowned across the country as the high school volleyball season enters the final stretch. Marymount, the No. 1 team in the MaxPreps Top 25 heads to the CIF Open Division bracket as the top seed in the south after besting Mater Dei in the Southern Section finals.
The Sailors faced perhaps their biggest test of the season as No. 7 Mater Dei pushed them to four sets in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 finals over the weekend. The Monarchs are one of seven teams to take a set off the top-ranked team.
Marin Catholic is opposite Marymount as the No. 1 seed in the Northern California bracket and the two appear on a collision course in the Nov. 20 final.
Two top 5 teams finished their seasons with state titles as St. Pius X Catholic grabbed the Georgia AAAAA crown with a sweep over Greenbrier. In the Midwest, Papillion-LaVista South capped its unbeaten season with a Nebraska Class A title, its fifth. The Titans dropped four sets all season on the road to perfection.
Also in the Cornhusker State, it should be noted that bubble team Skutt Catholic grabbed a Class B title with a 3-1 win over Norris, the seventh straight state championship for the Skyhawks.
Indiana's state championship culminated Saturday with three, five-set matches. However, No. 14 McCutcheon didn't need to go past three sets to earn their first state title with a sweep over Castle behind high-flying Chloe Chicoine who adds an Indiana crown to her US U18 bronze medal.
Mary Neal, Walton
Photo by Cecil Copeland
The Sailors had to dig deep to overcome a determined Mater Dei squad in the Southern Section Division 1 finals. The Sailors were trailed early before grabbing the first two sets. Mater Dei won the third set, just the seventh lost by Marymount all season, before
Elia Rubin and her teammates ended the upset bid.
Next: Nov. 10 vs. Village Christian
2. (2) St. Pius X Catholic (Atlanta), 52-1Highlights: The Golden Lions got nine kills each from
Kate Larocco and
Nina Shaw while
Avery Brown threw up 25 assists in a finals sweep over 36-3 Greenbrier. St. Pius X's lone loss was to Ponte Vedra in the Nike TOC Southeast final.
Next: AAAAA champions. Season complete.
3. (3) Papillion-LaVista South (Papillion, Neb.), 40-0Highlights: Stella Adeyemi had 14 kills,
Lauren Medeck added 12 and Kansas State commit
Ava Legrand dished up 36 assists in the finals sweep over Millard West. It was the fifth state title for the Titans, who dropped four sets all season, and the third unbeaten title for the program.
Next: Class A champions. Season complete.
4. (4) Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), 48-1Highlights: The Mustangs begin their quest to repeat as regional play begins this week against 31-8 Novi. Marian has dropped three sets all season, one to Rockford and two to Notre Dame Prep in the Mustangs' only loss of the year.
Next: Nov. 9 vs. Novi
5. (5) Brandeis (San Antonio), 42-2Highlights: Jalyn Gibson and
Carlee Pharris continue to lead the Broncos through the always tough UIL postseason. Gibson and junior
Emma Halstead each pounded 15 kills and Pharris added 33 assists in a sweep of Round Rock.
Next: Nov. 12 vs. Madison
6. (7) Notre Dame Prep (Pontiac, Mich.), 59-1Highlights: The Fighting Irish begin to navigate the Michigan Division 2 regionals, drawing 20-16 Regina first.
Aly Borellis has 602 assists and 365 kills, while
Bianca Giglio has hammered 389 kills and
Sophia Sudzina added 356 kills.
Next: Nov. 9 vs. Regina
7. (6) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 36-6Highlights: Babi Gubbins and
Jordyn Schilling each posted 10 kills for the Monarchs in the loss as
Shanelle Puetz tossed up 34 assists. Mater Dei grabbed the three-seed in the Southern California Open Division bracket.
Next: Nov. 11 vs. La Costa Canyon
8. (8) Lovejoy (Lucas, Texas), 37-6Highlights: The Leopards took another step in their quest for a third consecutive 5A title with a sweep of Wilson. Seniors
Rosemary Archer and
Grace Milliken lead the hitting attack.
Next: Nov. 9 vs. Wakeland
9. (10) Cathedral Catholic (San Diego), 33-4Highlights: The Dons grabbed the San Diego Section Open Division title with a sweep over La Costa Canyon and slide into the two-seed in the SoCal Open Division bracket.
Julia Blyashov led Cathedral Catholic over LCC with 12 kills.
Next: Nov. 10 vs. Lakewood
10. (11) Marin Catholic (Kentfield, Calif.), 28-2Highlights: The Wildcats won their seventh straight North Coast Section title and ninth since 2010 as
Grace Oliva powered the sweep with 12 kills as
Julianna Treadway added 11. Marin Catholic enters the Open Division as the NorCal top seed.
Next: Nov. 11 vs. Saint Francis
11. (12) Wayzata (Plymouth, Minn.), 31-0Highlights: The Trojans have won 51 straight and look for their second straight title after winning in 2019 and not having a tournament in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Next: Nov. 10 vs. Roseville Area
12. (13) Hudsonville (Hudsonville, Mich.), 49-2-1Highlights: The Eagles beat Zeeland East 3-1 in the District 13 finals and head to Division 1 bracket with a semifinal collision against No. 4 Marian on the horizon.
Next: Nov. 9 Lakeview
13. (16) Ponte Vedra (Fla.), 28-1Highlights: The Sharks had four hitters —
Kendall Mignerey (21),
Rachel Johnson (18),
Chelsea Sutton (11) and
Zeta Washington (11) — with double-digit kills in the five-set win over Leon.
Jessica Shattles fed the hitters with 53 assists. The lone loss is to Westminster Christian at the Venice tournament in October.
Next: Nov. 13 vs. Viera
14. (18) McCutcheon (Lafayette, Ind.), 30-6Highlights: Chloe Chicoine delivered big time for the Mavericks with 24 kills in a sweep over Castle that earned the program's first state title. McCutcheon won the 4A crown in its first finals appearance since 1989.
Next: 4A champions. Season complete.
15. (15) North Raleigh Christian Academy (Raleigh, N.C.), 27-2NCISAA Class 4A state champions. Season complete.
16. (19) Victor (N.Y.), 45-1Highlights: UConn commit
Emma Werkmeister came up huge in the four-set Sectional finals over Penfield with 32 kills. Emily Willow dished up 51 assists as Victor exacted revenge over Penfield for its only loss of the season.
Next: Nov. 13 vs. Brockport
17. (17) Assumption (Louisville, Ky.), 30-6Highlights: The Rockets lost in the Kentucky regional finals without star
Sydney Helmers. Assumption played a brutal national schedule with three major tournaments over successive weeks in October.
Next: Season complete.
18. (NR) V.R. Eaton (Fort Worth, Texas), 35-3Highlights: The Eagles survived a scare from Franklin, coming back after dropping the first two sets to win 15-9 in the decider. V.R. Eaton is fueled by a quartet of hitters in
Lindsey Harris,
Paige Mooney,
Emily Simmons and
Lillian Bickley, while junior setter
Lorena Gomez and freshman
Keely Shearer power the engine.
Next: Nov. 9 vs. Southlake Carroll
19. (NR) Montini Catholic (Lombard, Ill.), 38-1Highlights: Jordan Heatherly served up 16 assists and six kills with
Paige Pickering pounded nine kills in the Broncos Class 2A Super-Sectional win.
Next: Nov. 12 vs. Mater Dei
20. (20) Fayetteville (Ark.), 32-4Class AAA state champions. Season complete.
21. (23) Walton (Marietta, Ga.), 27-6Highlights: The Raiders won their state-best 15th title with a 3-1 win over Alpharetta. Mary Neal was the offensive catalyst for Walton with more than 400 kills on the season, while Hans ended above 800 assists on the year.
Next: Season complete.
22. (21) Lansing (Kan.), 40-1Class 5A state champions. Season complete.
23. (14) Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), 31-5Highlights: Jordan Middleton and
Micah Gryniewicz continue to dominate at the net with 414 and 307 kills, respectively. The Huskies advanced to the 6A quarterfinals after sweeping Cesar Chavez into the opening round.
Next: Nov. 9 vs. Liberty
24. (NR) Parkland (Allentown, Pa.), 22-0Highlights: The Trojans won the 4A District 11 title with a sweep of Freedom to remain perfect on the year.
Elena Pursell led the way with 14 kills and
Brynn Dreisbach added nine as
Maggie Smith dished up 33 assists.
Next: Nov. 9 vs. Downingtown West
25. (NR) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 33-7Highlights: The Monarchs on the CIF Central Coast Section Open Division title with a sweep of Menlo School.
Audrey Liddle had 17 kills and
Kendra MacDonald added 15. Mitty earned the NorCal Open Division two seed.
Next: Nov. 10 vs. Branson
On the bubble: Spain Park (Hoover, Ala.), 46-4;
St. Mary's Dominican (New Orleans), 45-2;
Immaculate Heart Academy (Washington Township, N.J.), 20-1;
Marcus (Flower Mound, Texas), 31-7;
Highland Park (Dallas), 38-6;
Skutt Catholic (Omaha, Neb.), 33-8;
O'Connor (Phoenix), 26-4;
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas), 29-6;
Mother McAuley (Chicago), 34-6;
Lone Peak (Highland, Utah), 27-5
