Postseason play shook up the MaxPreps Top 25 high school volleyball rankings as a handful of teams entered after semifinal and finals victories over previously-ranked opponents.
None was more impressive than McCutcheon (Lafayette, Ind.) downing former No. 16 Penn in an epic Hoosier State 4A semifinal battle. United States U18 bronze medalist Chloe Chicoine willed the Mavericks to a five-set win pounding out 34 kills while adding 21 digs. McCutcheon draws Castle for the 4A title after the Knights swept previous No. 25 Roncalli.
No. 21 Lansing ran off 40 straight wins en route to the Kansas Class 5A state title after opening the season with a loss. The Lions beat previously-ranked Aquinas in the final.
In Arkansas, No. 20 Fayetteville had lost twice to Har-Ber in the regular season, but the Bulldogs won the one that mattered, taking the AAA title with a sweep of their rival.
One of the most anticipated matches of the season happens Saturday in the CIF Southern Section Division 1 final as No. 1 Marymount battles No. 6 Mater Dei. Both will wind up in the Southern California Open Division bracket. The unbeaten Sailors beat Mater Dei during the regular season and are looking to keep the pedal to the floor on what's been a historic season.
Chloe Chicoine, McCutcheon
Photo by Shawn Barney
The Sailors swept through the quarterfinals and semifinals with wins over Harvard-Westlake and Mira Costa to set up a CIF Southern Section Division 1 final showdown with No. 6 Mater Dei. In the win over Harvard-Westlake,
Elia Rubin and
Torrey Stafford each pounded 13 kills. Marymount owns a 2-0 win over the Monarchs on Sept. 18.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Mater Dei
2. (2) St. Pius X Catholic (Atlanta), 51-1Highlights: The Golden Lions bested Blessed Trinity 3-1 in an epic AAAAA semifinal battle between two ranked teams.
Kate Larocco led the St. Pius attack with 16 kills, while
Lura Underwood and
Annemarie Rakoski each chipped in 11. Setter
Avery Brown tossed up 42 assists with only one ball-handling error. The Golden Lions seek their third state title.
Next: Nov. 6 vs. Greenbrier
3. (3) Papillion-LaVista South (Papillion, Neb.), 37-0Highlights: Hitters
Stella Adeyemi and
Lauren Medeck and setter
Ava Legrand continue to push the Titans toward perfection. PLVS is three wins from its fifth Class A state title and first since 2019.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Fremont
4. (4) Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), 46-1
Highlights: Michigan's most dominant team all season looks for a second straight Division 1 title behind Miss Michigan Volleyball candidates
Sarah Sylvester (TCU commit) and
Ava Brizard (North Carolina State). No. 7 Notre Dame Prep, a Division 2 team, is the only school to take down the Mustangs all season.
Next: Nov. 3 Farmington
5. (5) Brandeis (San Antonio), 40-2Highlights: Jalyn Gibson has been the driving force behind a Broncos offense that has five hitters with more than 100 kills. Fellow senior
Carlee Pharris is seemingly everywhere on the floor, having tallied more than 1,000 assists, 300 digs and 240 kills on the season.
Next: Nov. 2 vs. East Central
6. (6) Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), 35-4Highlights: The Monarchs look for their chance at revenge — and to take the Southern California Open Division No. 1 seed — in Saturday's match against top-seed Marymount. Mater Dei's schedule might be the toughest in the nation with trips to several national tournaments and a Texas swing in August.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Marymount
7. (7) Notre Dame Prep (Pontiac, Mich.), 57-1Highlights: The Fighting Irish begin their quest for a Division 2 state title on Wednesday after rolling through the regular season with a lone loss to Division 1 Mercy.
Aly Borellis powers a relentless six-hitter attack and also leads the team with 602 assists.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Warren
8. (8) Lovejoy (Lucas, Texas), 35-6Highlights: The Leopards begin their 5A three-peat title quest behind perennial MaxPreps All-American
Averi Carlson and
Rosemary Archer, who leads a six hitters with more than 100 kills.
Next: Nov. 2 vs. Heritage
9. (9) Flower Mound (Texas), 36-5Highlights: The Jags begin their quest for a state title against 27-12 Prosper. The team that emerges from the UIL 6A bracket will be deserving of consideration as MaxPreps National Champion as V.R. Eaton, Martin, The Woodlands, Seven Lakes and Brandeis are among the heavyweights also vying for the state crown.
Next: Nov. 2 vs. Prosper
10. (11) Cathedral Catholic (San Diego), 31-4Highlights: The Dons look for a San Diego Section Open division crown behind hitters
Julia Blyashov,
Ryleigh Patterson and
Noemie Glover as well as setter
Faith Tyson.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. San Marcos
11. (12) Marin Catholic (Kentfield, Calif.), 26-2Highlights: The Wildcats are the cream of the Northern California crop and are led by a the senior trio of
Grace Oliva,
Leah Wilton-LaBoy and
Bella McGirr.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Carondelet
12. (13) Wayzata (Plymouth, Minn.), 30-0Highlights: The Trojans can complete the unblemished season with a 4A title win over two-seed Champlin Park. Wayzata has been Minnesota's top team all season.
Next: Nov. 3 Champlin Park
13. (14) Hudsonville (Mich.), 46-2-1Highlights: The Eagles kept rolling as
Megan Beemer tossed up 21 assists,
Lauren Wiles added 14 and
Olivia Howlett pitched in 11 kills in a sweep over Holland on Monday.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. West Ottawa
14. (19) Sequoyah (Canton, Ga.), 51-3Highlights: The Chiefs got 27 kills and 13 digs from junior
Rosa Fisher while
Catherine Brumbeloe added 17 and
Sydney Huyck chipped in 16 in a five-set AAAAAA semifinal win over Lassiter. Junior
Taylor Pecht tossed up 62 assists with only two errors as Sequoyah won 15-8 in the deciding set.
Next: Nov. 6 vs. Buford
15. (15) North Raleigh Christian Academy (Raleigh, N.C.), 27-2Highlights: The Knights completed the seven-peat, owning the NCISAA 4A division since 2014. Perennial MaxPreps All-American
Riley Buckley had 27 assists and nine kills in the sweep of Durham Academy while
Brianna Frazilus pounded 21 kills in the win.
Next: Season over
16. (21) Ponte Vedra (Fla.), 26-1Highlights: Zeta Washington and
Rachel Johnson paced the Sharks' hitting attack with 14 and 12 kills, respectively, in a sweep of Booker T. Washington in the Florida 6A quarterfinals.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Niceville
17. (10) Assumption (Louisville, Ky.), 30-6Highlights: The quest for the Rockets' 23rd
state title ended prematurely with a 3-1 loss to Sacred Heart in the
regional finals while without star hitter
Sydney Helmers.
Next: Season over
18. (NR) McCutcheon (Lafayette, Ind.), 29-6Highlights: The Mavericks outlasted former No 16 Penn in an Indiana 4A five-set semifinal thriller.
Chloe Chicoine, who earlier this year helped the US U18 team to a bronze medal at the World Championships, dominated for McCutcheon with 34 kills and 21 digs. Sophomore setter
Allie Shondell tossed up 43 assists and
Alleigh Dutton came up big at the service line.
Next: Nov. 6 vs. Castle
19. (22) Victor (N.Y.), 42-1Highlights: The Blue Devils began Sectionals play with a sweep of Rush-Henrietta and draws Hilton Central on Wednesday. Senior hitter
Emma Werkmeister is closing in on 500 kills for the season.
Next: Nov. 3 vs. Hilton Central
20. (NR) Fayetteville (Ark.), 32-4Highlights: Two of the four losses on the year for the
Bulldogs were to Har-Ber. But Fayetteville won the AAA state final match
3-0 to exact revenge and grab the Bulldogs' second straight and sixth
state title under coach Jessica Phelan. Juniors
Brooke Rockwell and
Madeline Lafata combined for 27 kills, while sophomore
Regan Harp added
eight in the sweep. Junior setter
Kennedy Phelan had 41 assists.
Next: Season complete
21. (NR) Lansing (Kan.), 40-1Highlights: The Lions were perfect following an opening-match loss to Aquinas, capping a 40-win season with the Kansas 5A title win over St. James Academy, which beat the Saints in the semifinals.
Olivia Mae Van der Werff led five Lansing hitters with more than 120 kills with 427.
Caitlin Bishop found her hitters all season, finishing with 1,014 assists.
Next: Season over
22. (NR) Martin (Arlington, Texas), 35-2Highlights: Part of the 6A postseason gauntlet, the Warriors fell twice on Aug. 14 and haven't lost since, reeling off 32 straight matches. Seniors
Emily Adams (394 kills) and
Zella Baresh (316 kills) power Martin's potent attack while
Courtney Hanson has surpassed the 1,000 assist mark on the season.
Next: Nov. 2 vs. Berkner
23. (NR) Walton (Marietta, Ga.), 26-6Highlights: The Raiders are looking for their 15th state crown after sweeping Cherokee in the AAAAAAA semifinals behind
Mary Neal's 15 kills.
Next: Nov. 6 vs. Alpharetta
24. (24) Nolensville (Tenn.), 43-3Highlights: Tennessee Division 1 AAA state champions
25. (NR) Spain Park (Hoover, Ala.), 46-4Highlights: The Jaguars swept McGill-Toolen to win the Alabama 6A title behind a dominating night from
Audrey Rothman, who ended the match with her 25th kill. Junior
Emily Breazeale added 12 kills while Rothman added 13 digs and junior setter
Lilly Johnson chipped in 22 assists.
Next: Season complete
On the bubble: Castle (Newburgh, Ind.), 32-2;
Steinbrenner (Lutz, Fla.), 25-3;
Montini Catholic (Lombard, Ill.), 33-1;
Sacred Heart (Louisville, Ky.), 26-9;
Washburn Rural (Topeka, Kan.), 35-2;
San Marcos (Calif.), 33-3;
V.R. Eaton (Fort Worth, Texas), 33-3;
Mercy (Louisville, Ky.), 27-11;
Leon (Tallahassee, Fla.), 24-4;
Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.), 30-5.
