The penultimate weekend of high school volleyball was full of upsets, state title triumphs and movement in this week's MaxPreps Top 25.
In Illinois, a ranked showdown in the Class 4A final did not disappoint as No. 9
Marist (Chicago) upended No. 10
Benet Academy (Lisle) 19-25, 25-16, 25-19 to grab its third state title and first since 2018.
After some rough patches in late September and October, Marist ended the season on a 15-match win streak.
"That was an upset for the ages right there," Marist coach Jordan Vidovic
told the Chicago Tribune. "No questions about it. It was all toughness, right? You can have the biggest players. You can have a Division I-filled roster. You can do whatever you want. You still have to have the toughness. And that’s what we’ve brought the last couple of weeks."
The final weekend of the season will see the top two teams in the MaxPreps Top 25 compete for titles in their respective states.
In California, No. 2
Mater Dei (Santa Ana) is looking for its second straight Open Division title this weekend. The Monarchs must get through No. 7
Cathedral Catholic (San Diego) on Tuesday in a battle of the last two MaxPreps National Champions. The winner there gets either No. 17
Saint Francis (Mountain View) or No. 24
Archbishop Mitty (San Jose) in the final.
Xavier College Prep climbed to No. 8 in the MaxPreps Top 25 after winning the Arizona Class 6A title over Corona del Sol. (Photo: Mark Jones)
Record: 38-1 | Last week: 1
Junior
Kylie Kleckner had 20 kills in a sweep over Southlake Carroll (Southlake) in the Class 6A Division 2 quarterfinals. She has 555 kills on the season.
Record: 37-4 | Last week: 2
Held on for a five-set victory over No. 11 Sierra Canyon in the SoCal Open semifinals.
Westley Matavao powered 23 kills and 19 digs and
Layli Ostovar added 16 kills.
Record: 37-2 | Last week: 3
Texas commit
Macaria Spears hammered 16 kills in a sweep of Antonian Prep (San Antonio) as the Lions won their third straight TAPPS Class 6A title. It was the fourth championship for Spears, who won a state title in Virginia as a freshman. The MaxPreps National Player of the Year finalist finished the season with 605 kills.
Record: 35-0 | Last week: 4
Season complete. Class 3A state champion.
Record: 47-1 | Last week: 6
Season complete. Division 1 state champion.
Record: 36-0 | Last week: 7
Season complete. Class AAAAAA state champion.
Record: 44-3 | Last week: 8
Yale commit
Mae Kordas had 24 kills, hitting at 55 percent, in a four-set win over Redondo Union (Redondo) in the Southern California Open Division regional semifinals.
Record: 32-4 | Last week: 15
Sophomore
Tessa Larkin dropped 23 kills, senior
Elle McCreery had 14 and junior
Vivian Hickman added 13 kills and 28 assists as the Gators won the Class 6A title 3-1 over Corona del Sol (Tempe).
Record: 32-9 | Last week: 21
Coach Jordan Vidovic adds a girls title to go with the boys championship he won last spring.
Record: 33-6 | Last week: 9
The sophomore tandem of
Eva Jeffries and
Hanna McGinest combined for 43 kills in the five-set loss to Mater Dei.
Record: 33-4 | Last week: 12
Season complete.
Record: 39-1 | Last week: 13
Season complete. Class 5A state champion.
Record: 41-2 | Last week: 24
Gwen Koss (15) led four Spartans with double-digit kills in a 3-1 win over Shadow Creek (Pearland) in the Class 6A Division 2 quarterfinals.
Audrey Cook had 42 assists.
Record: 28-1 | Last week: 20
Season complete. Class 7A state champion.
Record: 28-0 | Last week: 18
Gabi Zachariasen had 12 kills and freshman
Josalyn Samuels had 26 assists as the Tigers won their play-in game for the Class AA tournament. Harrisburg faces Aberdeen Central (Aberdeen) on Thursday.
Record: 30-5 | Last week: NR
Survived a five-set marathon over St. Ignatius (San Francisco) in the NorCal semis and draw rival Archbishop Mitty for the right to battle for a state title. The two split full-length matches while Mitty won a three-set tournament match early in the season.
Record: 40-7 | Last week: NR
Senior
Samara Coleman (505 kills) and junior
Halle Thompson (440 kills) lead the defending champs into the Class 6A Division 1 semifinals against 31-12 Allen.
Record: 38-6 | Last week: NR
Alexys James has more than 1,300 assists as the Chargers enter the Class 6A Division 1 semifinals against Westlake (Austin) on Tuesday.
Record: 37-2 | Last week: NR
Senior
Molly Reck had the match-deciding block as the Mustangs beat previously-ranked Mercy (Farmington Hills) 18-16 in an extended fifth set in the Division 1 postseason. Northville battles Bedford (Temperance) on Tuesday in a quarterfinal matchup.
Record: 29-5 | Last week: NR
Nebraska commit
Teraya Sigler had 33 kills in a four-set win over Sunrise Mountain (Peoria) as the Huskies grabbed their fourth straight Class 5A title. Sigler, who won a title her freshman year at Phoenix Country Day, finished with 573 kills on the season.
Record: 33-6 | Last week: NR
Knocked off previously-ranked Lovejoy (Lucas) in the Class 5A Division 2 quarterfinals. Junior
Hannah Lee (442 kills) leads six hitters with more than 100 kills.
23. Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.)Record: 44-7 | Last week: NR
Senior
Izzy Busignani leads the Mustangs into the Division 1 quarterfinals with 548 kills on the season.
Record: 28-6 | Last week: NR
The Monarchs beat Rocklin in the other NorCal Open Division semifinal. They bested a Thunder program led by Bret Almazan-Cezar, who led Mitty to a state-best 11 state titles from 2000-20.
Record: 32-0-1 | Last week: NR
Norah Busch had 18 kills and
Maeve Gallagher added 15 kills and 14 digs as the Golden Panthers won the Class 3A title. It was their 80th straight victory and third straight state championship.
On the bubble: Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, Calif.), 28-11;
Marymount (Los Angeles, Calif.), 33-8,
Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), 27-8;
Papillion-LaVista South (Papillion, Neb.), 34-5;
Assumption (Louisville, Ky.), 34-8;
Norris (Firth, Neb.), 38-1;
Saint Thomas Aquinas (Overland Park, Kan.), 34-6;
Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 36-5;
Pace Academy (Atlanta, Ga.), 43-6;
Mill Valley (Shawnee, Kan.), 37-5
