From Volleypalooza to the Nike TOC Southwest,
Cornerstone Christian (San Antonio, Texas) has been road and tournament warriors, winning both of those events and finishing runner-up in the Nike TOC Southeast national bracket. The Warriors, with a whopping 53 wins, moved up three spots in this week's MaxPreps Top 25 high school volleyball rankings after an impressive run this weekend in Phoenix that saw them beat SoCal powers
Marymount (Los Angeles) and
Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach, Calif.) in succession.
The lone newcomer to the MaxPreps Top 25 is Northern California unbeaten
Saint Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), which dispatched a trio of Southern California schools over the weekend.
Cornerstone Christian celebrates its Nike TOC title over the weekend. The Wariors beat Marymount and Mira Costa in the semis and finals for the title.
Photo: Darin Sicurello
Recap: The Dons had a light week, sweeping Scripps Ranch. They have two league matches this week before heading to Nebraska for the GEICO High School Volleyball Invitational.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Patrick Henry, Oct. 6 vs. La Jolla, GEICO High School Volleyball Invitational
2. (2) Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), 27-0
Recap: The Mustangs asserted their dominance with a sweep of Mercy as
Ella Schomer had 12 kills and
Molly Banta and sophomore
Izzy Busignani each added seven.
Ava Sarafa tossed up 28 assists.
Outlook: Oct. 5 vs. St. Catherine of Siena Academy
3. (6) Cornerstone Christian (San Antonio), 53-2
Recap: The Warriors dropped one set en route to winning the Nike TOC Southwest title, dispatching SoCal powers Marymount and Mira Costa in the semifinals and finals.
Nayeli Gonzalez is approaching 500 kills on the season while sophomore
Megan Fitch is nearing 450 kills.
Taylor Anderson and
Kaia Thiele have combined for more than 1,100 assists.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Gregory-Portland
4. (4) McCutcheon (Lafayette, Ind.), 24-1
Recap: The Mavericks rode their win streak to 24 with a trio of sweeps last week.
Chloe Chicoine notched her 400th kill of the season and is approaching 1,900 as Indiana postseason brackets have been announced.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Carmel, Oct. 5 vs. Lafayette Central Catholic
5. (5) Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), 23-3
Recap: The Mustangs showed their mettle with a gritty five-set win over Redondo Union before heading to the Nike TOC and coming in second to Cornerstone Christian. The road to the championship game also included a win over Mater Dei.
Drew Wright,
Tanon Rosenthal and
Charlie Fuerbringer have powered the Manhattan Beach school.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Palos Verde, Oct. 10 vs. Culver City
6. (3) Fayetteville (Ark.), 28-2
Recap: The Bulldogs dropped their second match of the season, losing 2-1 to Missouri power Liberty North in the semifinals of the Blue Springs South Invitational.
Kennedy Phelan had 35 assists, 13 digs and nine kills while
Brooke Rockwell added 17 kills and
Madeline Lafata had 13 kills in the loss to Liberty North.
Outlook: Oct. 6 vs. Bentonville West
7. (7) Hamilton Southeastern (Fishers, Ind.), 25-1
Recap: The Royals won three non-conference and one conference match last week without losing a set.
Avery Hobson leads a trio of hitters with more than 125 kills and
Macy Hinshaw is approaching 500 assists.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Greenfield Central, Oct. 6 vs. Franklin Central
8. (8) Tompkins (Katy, Texas), 29-3
Recap: Cindy Tchouangwa hammered 21 kills and 19 digs and
Tendai Titley added 15 kills and 22 digs in a sweep of Cinco Ranch in the Falcons' lone match of the week.
Presley Powell posted 25 assists and
Erica Dellesky added 18 in the three-set win.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Seven Lakes, Oct. 7 vs. Katy Taylor
9. (10) Yorktown (Ind.), 26-2
Recap: The Tigers grabbed their ninth straight Delaware County tournament title with a win over Wapahani as sophomore
Charlotte Vinson pounded 18 kills and
Emilee Hill and
Kynnadi Bell combined for 29 assists.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Fishers. Oct. 8 vs. Center Grove
10. (12) Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), 26-3
Recap: Danica Rach combined for 20 kills in a pair of sweeps over Marlborough and Harvard-Westlake. The Trailblazers' last big regular-season test awaits Tuesday at Marymount.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Marymount, Oct. 6 vs. Alemany
11. (11) Mother McAuley (Chicago), 23-2
Recap: The Mighty Macs bounced back from a tough 2-1 loss to Assumption to win the Asics Challenge, bouncing Hamilton, Skutt Catholic and beating Notre Dame Academy 25-13 in the third set for the title. Michigan commit
Ellie White was sensational in the title match with 19 kills,
Jillian Moonan had 18 blocks and libero
Gigi Navarrete had 26 digs.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Providence Catholic, Oct. 6 vs. St. Ignatius College Prep
12. (9) Assumption (Louisville, Ky.), 25-6
Recap: The Rockets, who get everyone's best shot, handed Mother McAuley a pre-tournament loss before falling twice (Notre Dame Academy and Skutt Catholic).
Charlotte Moriarty leads six hitters with more than 140 kills and
Whitney Woodrow surpassed 1,000 assists on the season and is nearing 2,500 for her career.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Holy Cross, Oct. 6 vs. Mercy
13. (13) Oconomowoc (Wis.), 31-1
Recap: The Raccoons have reeled off 25 matches since a late-August loss.
Anna Bjork had 13 kills and freshman
Marlee Sivak added 10 in a sweep of Kettle Moraine.
Lilly Wagner had 38 assists in the victory.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Waukesha North, Oct. 6 vs. Muskego
14. (14) Marymount (Los Angeles), 24-5
Recap: The Sailors took third at the Nike TOC, bouncing back from a 2-0 loss to eventual champ Cornerstone Christian in the semifinals to sweep Mater Dei in the third-place game.
Torrey Stafford paced the Marymount hitting attack.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Sierra Canyon
15. (15) Prestonwood Christian (Plano, Texas), 30-1
Recap: Macaria Spears had 15 kills in a sweep of Parish Episcopal to bump her season totals to 378. Junior hitter
Jadyn Livings has 280 kills on the season and
Mikala Young has 241.
Outlook: Oct. 6 vs. Bishop Lynch, Oct. 11 vs. Nolan Catholic
16. (16) Highland Park (Dallas), 32-2
Recap: The Scots haven't dropped a set in District 7-6A play after sweeps of Richardson and MacArthur. UCLA pledge
Sydney Breon leads Highland Park with 315 kills.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Pearce, Oct. 7 vs. Nimitz
17. (17) Buford (Ga.), 29-5
Recap: Freshman
Clara Briley paced the Wolves with 18 kills in a sweep of Collins Hill.
Polly Cummings dished up 28 assists in the victory.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Buford, Oct. 4 vs. Sequoyah
18. (18) Skyline (Ann Arbor, Mich.), 22-3
Recap: The Eagles swept Pioneer as Miss Michigan Volleyball finalist
Harper Murray is averaging 6.1 kills per set (368 total).
Outlook: Oct. 6 vs. Saline, Oct. 8 vs. Novi
19. (19) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 25-7
Recap: The Monarchs dropped Nike TOC matches to fellow SoCal powers Mira Costa and Marymount but remain at 19. They spread the offense around with
Isabel Clark,
Babi Gubbins,
Cymarah Gordon,
Liv Hertzog and
Layli Ostovar all with more than 100 kills.
Outlook: Oct. 6 vs. Orange Lutheran
20. (20) Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.), 20-1
Recap: Imposing 6-foot-4 freshman
Lynney Tarnow has 12 kills and three blocks as the Redwings beat reigning Nebraska Class B champion Skutt Catholic.
Outlook: Oct. 6 vs. Wheaton
21. (21) 'Iolani (Honolulu), 19-5
Recap: Senna Roberts-Navarro is approaching 300 kills as the Raiders look to be the favorite heading into postseason.
Outlook: Postseason, TBD
22. (22) Cypress Ranch (Houston), 34-2
Recap: The Mustangs won twice last week, including a five-setter that saw
Bianna Muoneke drop 35 kills and 20 digs on Langham Creek. Senior
Kirby Kliafas (19 assists) and freshman
Zora Bello (18 assists) made sure the offense was rolling.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Cypress Woods, Oct. 7 vs. Cypress Springs
23. (23) Nolensville (Tenn.), 35-4
Recap: Nolensville rounded out the regular season with sweeps of Centennial and Franklin.
Kaira Knox and
Maggie Rickert each had 10 kills in the win over
Franklin.
Outlook: Postseason, TBD
24. (NR) Saint Francis (Mountain View, Calif.), 18-0
Recap: The Lancers enter the MaxPreps Top 25 with juniors
Erin Curtis (141 kills) and
Taylor Williams (132 kills) leading the unblemished record after wins over rival Valley Christian as well as SoCal opponents Valencia, Newport Harbor and San Clemente last week.
Outlook: Oct. 4 vs. Archbishop Mitty, Oct. 6 vs. Presentation
25. (25) Plano West (Plano, Texas), 23-2
Outlook: Blaire Bayless had 20 kills in a sweep of Hebron and followed it with 22 kills in a four-set win over Flower Mound. She has 354 kills on the season.
Recap: Oct. 4 vs. Coppell, Oct. 7 vs. Plano
On the bubble: Sequoyah (Canton, Ga.), 28-2;
Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 34-5;
Byron Nelson (Trophy Club, Texas), 31-3;
St. James Academy (Lenexa, Kan.), 21-1;
Pace Academy (Atlanta), 34-0;
Redondo Union (Redondo Beach, Calif.), 18-8;
Washburn Rural (Topeka, Kan.), 19-1;
Dike-New Hartford (Dike, Iowa), 26-2;
North Gwinnett (Suwanee, Ga.), 36-1;
Jackson Academy (Jackson, Miss.), 36-4
