The Durango Fall Classic is one the premiere high school volleyball tournaments on the fall calendar. This year,
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.),
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.),
Harrisburg (S.D.) and
Marymount (Los Angeles, Calif.) will come together the day before the tournament starts in a two-match event at Bishop Gorman High School put on by VBAdrenaline.com.
The Sept. 18 matches feature last year's No. 3 team Mater Dei vs. perennial Nevada power Bishop Gorman as well as 2021 MaxPreps National Champion Marymount against three-time Class AA state champion Harrisburg.
Matches are schedueld for 4 and 6 p.m. and the event is free.
Mater Dei's Westley Matavao will be among a handful of MaxPreps All-Americans to play in a pre-Durango Fall Classic event on Sept. 18 at Bishop Gorman High School. The Monarchs will play the host Gaels while Marymount will play South Dakota state champion Harrisburg on the night before one of the season's premiere tournaments begins in Las Vegas. (FILE PHOTO: Jann Hendry)
Mater Dei, which was the 2023 MaxPreps National Champion and a Southern California regional runner-up last year, features two of the games top hitters in senior
Layli Ostovar and junior
Westley Matavao, both All-Americans last season.
Ostovar led the Monarchs with 337 kills last season and Matavao, who missed a month before becoming eligible, had 276 kills. The duo is joined by middles senior
Addison Coady and junior
Emma Kingston, who combined for nearly 200 blocks for the 37-5 Monarchs.
Sam Capinpin returns at setter after tossing up 531 assists.
Bishop Gorman went 29-8 and won the Class 5A title behind MaxPreps Junior All-American
Ayanna Watson, who tallied 705 kills.
Trinity Thompson also is back at setter for the Gaels after 1,216 assists as a junior and
Chloe Lopez mans the back row for Gorman at libero after 356 digs as a sophomore.
Harrisburg enters 2025 looking for its fourth straight state title behind the dynamic duo of
Gabi Zachariasen and MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year
Josalyn Samuels.
Zachariasen, a MaxPreps All-American, had 403 kills with 229 digs and 185 serve receptions. Samuels, who was recently invited to the USA Volleyball U19 National Team tryouts, is already approaching 2,000 career assists after posting 1,000 in her eighth-grade season and adding 870 in 2024 as Harrisburg ended the year on a 78-game win streak.
Marymount, which finished No. 33 in last year's expanded MaxPreps Top 25, returns a host of players that could have the Sailors at or near the top of the preseason rankings.
Junior All-American
Samantha Destler led the Sailors with 387 kills, while
Makenna Barnes added 278 and middle
Elle Vandeweghe chipped in 231 along with 95 blocks. Setter
Olivia Penske had 862 assists and libero
Declan Eastman anchored the defense with 201 digs and 380 serve receptions.
