Pope falls in Xcellent 25 volleyball rankings

Walton (Marietta, Ga.) has been Pope's nemesis for some time and last week the Greyhounds once again came up short against their AAAAA foes.

Pope dropped its first game of the season after 22 straight wins with a loss to Walton last week. Walton is ranked No. 1 in the AAAAA rankings in Georgia while Pope is ranked No. 1 in the AAAA rankings. Walton also handed Pope its only two losses last season. Pope had defeated Walton in their previous meeting this year.

While Pope dropped in this week's MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Volleyball National Rankings presented by Army National Guard due to the loss, Assumption was one team that managed to rise despite a loss. The Rockets fell to Mercy earlier in the week, but they came back to win the Louisville Invitational Tournament with a victory over Mercy and a win against St. Joseph's Academy of St. Louis, a team ranked in some polls as the No. 1 team in the country.

Here's a look at the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Volleyball National Rankings presented by the Army National Guard:

MAXPREPS XCELLENT 25 VOLLEYBALL NATIONAL RANKINGS
1. (1) Berkeley Prep (Tampa, Fla.), 6-0
The Buccaneers won three times over the weekend, topping Clearwater Central Catholic (Clearwater, Fla.) and Buccholz (Gainesville, Fla.) 3-0 and Yonge (Gainesville, Fla.) 3-1. Amber Mirabello had 14 kills and Jordan Burgess had 12 against Clearwater Central Catholic while MacKenzie Dagostino had 31 assists. Burgess added 14 kills against Buchholz while Mirabello and Dagostino each had 11.

2. (2) Papillion-LaVista South (Papillion, Neb.), 7-0
The Titans were idle last week but have a big match Wednesday against Marian (Omaha, Neb.). Papillion-LaVista South defeated Marian two weeks ago at the Bellevue Invitational.

3. (4) Muncie Burris (Muncie, Ind.), 15-0
The Owls easily downed a strong Wapahani team 3-0 to stay undefeated and extend their win streak to 63 matches in a row.

4. (5) Assumption (Louisville, Ky.), 13-2
The Rockets lost their second match in a row, falling to defending state champion Mercy (Louisville, Ky.) 3-2 on Sept. 7. However Assumption regrouped over the weekend and won the prestigious Louisville Invitational Volleyball Tournament with a 25-16, 15-25, 25-21 win over St. Joseph's Academy (St. Louis). Claire Gerwig had 15 kills in the championship match. Assumption beat out fellow Xcellent 25 teams Ravenwood (Brentwood, Tenn.) and Mercy for the title.

5. (6) Redlands East Valley (Redlands, Calif.), 1-0
The Wildcats opened their season Sept. 9 with a 3-1 win over Murrieta Valley. Krista Vansant had 16 kills in the victory while Alyssa Mason had 14 and Brianna Potter had 10. Peyton Moyles finished with 43 assists. The Wildcats were ranked No. 1 in the Southern Section Division 1-A preseason polls released last week.

6. (7) St. Joseph's Academy (St. Louis), 8-1
The Angels fell to Assumption in the finals of the Louisville Invitational Tournament over the weekend after winning their first eight games of the season. St. Joseph's Academy defeated Incarnate Word Academy (St. Louis) and Edwardsville (Mo.), both by 2-0 scores, prior to heading to Kentucky. The Angels will host their own Tournament of Champions invite this weekend.

7. (8) La Jolla Country Day (La Jolla, Calif.), 1-0
The Torreys jumped on Poway for wins in the first two games and then needed to hang on for a 3-2 win in their season opener on Thursday. Lauren Birks had 18 kills and Mollie Rogers had 14 in the win.

8. (9) Ursuline Academy (Cincinnati), 6-0
The Lions continue to roll, beating Dublin Coffman 3-1 in a rematch of last year's state championship match. Ursuline Academy got 11 kills from Olivia Johnson and Elena Lohr in the win while Kate Reilly added 10. The Lions have won 35 matches in a row.

9. (11) Rose (Greenville, N.C.), 6-0
The Rampants rolled over Conley (Greenville, N.C.) 3-0 behind the hitting of Jamie DeRatt, who had 12 kills in the victory. Rose then swept Jordan (Durham, N.C.) and Broughton (Raleigh, N.C.) by 3-0 scores to stay unbeaten.

10. (3) Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 22-1
The Greyhounds lost their only match last week, falling to AAAAA powerhouse Walton 3-2. Walton is ranked No. 1 in the AAAAA state coaches poll while Pope is number in the AAAA poll. The two teams have split their two matches this year. The teams played seven times last year with Pope going 5-2 against the Raiders. Pope's only two losses last year were to Walton.

11. (14) King (Corpus Christi, Texas), 27-3
The Mustangs won their only reported game of the week, defeating Jones (Beeville, Texas), 3-0. Dempsey Thornton had nine kills and Kate Bowman had seven in the win.

12. (15) Cary-Grove (Cary, Ill.), 13-0
The Trojans went undefeated at the Prairie Ridge Invitational and did not drop a set in winning the championship. Cary-Grove topped Prairie Ridge 25-21, 25-19 in the final for the title. Kelly Lamberti had nine kills in the final match while Allison Whimpey had eight.

13. (NR) St. James Academy (Lenexa, Kan.), 9-0
Won the Mo-Kan Invitational and picked up wins over Bishop Miege and Lee's Summit West en route to the championship. The defending 4A state champion in Kansas came out on top in a tournament that featured nine of the top 10 teams in the Kansas City Star's Greater Kansas City rankings. Hanna Forst had 58 kills in the tournament and Morgan Voorhes had 49. Setter Paige Brown had 134 assists.

14. (13) Mercy (Louisville, Ky.), 13-2
The Jaguars won a big city matchup with Assumption, taking a 3-2 victory last week. Mercy then lost twice at the Louisville Invitational Tournament, falling to Assumption and Sacred Heart.

15. (NR) Sacred Heart (Louisville, Ky.), 11-3
Volleyball figures to be very competitive in Louisville this year. Sacred Heart, which lost in the state finals to Mercy (Louisville, Ky.) last year, has lost to Mercy and Assumption (Louisville, Ky.) this year, but also has a win over Mercy at the Louisville Invitational Tournament. The Valkyries also defeated previously ranked Ravenwood (Brentwood, Tenn.) and had a loss to St. Joseph's Academy (St. Louis).

16. (16) Cy-Woods (Cypress, Texas), 26-1
The Wildcats won their only reported match last week, defeating Cypress Ranch 3-0. Daniela Arenas had 14 kills to lead the Wildcat offensive.

17. (NR) Huntsville (Ala.), 29-2
The Panthers have just two losses on their record, both of them to Grissom (Huntsville, Ala.). However Huntsville has also defeated Grissom twice, including a match at Grissom on Sept. 9. Huntsville also went undefeated at the Ironman Tournament two weeks ago with two wins over Woodward Academy (College Park, Ga.), a team that has defeated Georgia AAAAA No. 1 Walton, which in turn defeated Georgia AAAA No. 1 Pope last week.

18. (17) Jesuit (Portland, Ore.), 0-0
The Crusaders began their season with the Central Catholic Jamboree over the weekend and will play Sprague (Ore.) on Sept. 14.

19. (18) Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), 22-1
The Mustangs were idle this week and will play in the Mt. Morris Classic this upcoming weekend. Alexandra Lovell leads the team in kills this year with 172.

20. (20) St. Francis (Wheaton, Ill.), 6-0
Spartans remained unbeaten by topping Wheaton Academy (West Chicago, Ill.), 2-0.

21. (21) Chaparral (Parker, Colo.), 8-0
The Wolverines won the Regis Jam Tournament last week with wins over Mullen (Denver) and Highlands Ranch (Colo.) and then knocked off Dohery (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and its All-American candidate Taylor Simpson with a 3-2 victory.

22. (23) Lovejoy (Lucas, Texas), 19-3
The Leopards were idle last week but still hold on to the No. 1 ranking in the Texas 3A coaches poll.

23. (NR) Xavier College Prep (Phoenix), 12-0
The Gators won the Westwood Tournament over the weekend with victories over previously ranked Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.) and previously unbeaten Sunnyslope (Phoenix), the defending 4A state champion. Katarina Schulz had 14 kills in the finals against Sunnyslope and Bianca Arellano added 12 kills for the Gators.

24. (NR) Hebron (Carrollton, Texas), 27-4
The Hawks defeated Flower Mound in their only match last week and are ranked No. 2 in the Texas Girls Coaches Association 5A state rankings. Hebron also has a win over Pearce, the No. 1 ranked 4A team.

25. (NR) Edmond Memorial (Okla.), 12-1
The Bulldogs are the top team in Oklahoma and recently won the Heather Harkness Tournament. Edmond Memorial also has one of the nation's top setters in Micha Hancock, the Gatorade State Player of the Year last season.