Xcellent 25 Volleyball Rankings: Assumption moves up

Louisville team hands Catholic Academy of Joliet first loss of the season; Central Catholic of Portland enters rankings at No. 9.

Thumbnail image of this articles writer: Kevin Askeland
By
Oct 5, 2009, 12:05am
One week after finishing third at the Durango Classic in Las Vegas, the Assumption Rockets traveled to Chicago, Ill., and captured first place at the Asics Challenge, knocking off No. 3-ranked Catholic Academy of Joliet in the finals.

The Rockets move up four spots in this week's Xcellent 25 national volleyball rankings with the tournament championship. Catholic Academy, meanwhile, drops to No. 16. Plant of Tampa, which finished third in the tournament, lost to Catholic Academy in the semifinals and falls to No. 19.

One team on the rise is Central Catholic of Portland, Ore. Undefeated on the season and ranked No. 1 in the Oregon coaches poll, Central Catholic defeated Jesuit of Portland in the finals of the South Albany State Preview Tournament. Central Catholic slides into Jesuit's spot at No. 9 in the Xcellent 25 rankings while the Crusaders drop to No. 25.

New teams in this week's rankings include Ankeny of Iowa, Marian of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., and Pope of Marietta, Ga.

MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Volleyball Rankings

1. (1 last week) Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.), 17-0
The Monarchs won their only match last week with a 3-0 sweep over St. Francis of Mountain View. Rachel Williams had 14 kills in the win while Kristina Graven added 11. Joan Caloiaro had 37 assists.

2. (2) Reagan (San Antonio, Texas), 35-1
The Rattlers won a pair of district matches, defeating Smithson Valley 3-0 and Churchill 3-0. Kayla Keller notched 16 kills and Kayci Evans had 14 in the win over Smithson Valley while Kacy Griffin had 36 assists. In the win over Churchill, Preslie Alexander had 19 kills.

3. (4) Ursuline Academy (Cincinnati, Ohio), 16-0
Ursuline defeated Magnificat 25-22, 27-25, 27-25 to win the championship at the Northeast Ohio Tournament in Mentor. Ursuline also defeated Toledo Notre Dame 2-0 and won pool play matches over Solon and Kenston. Magnificat had defeated previously unbeaten Lakota West in cross-pool play.
Samantha Wopat, Dos Pueblos
Samantha Wopat, Dos Pueblos
Photo by Marc Liberts

4. (5) Shakopee (Minn.), 17-0
The Sabers won a pair last week, dropping Minnetonka 3-0 and Red Wing 3-0. Ashley Wittman had 17 kills in the Minnetonka victory.

5. (6) Muncie Burris (Muncie, Ind.), 28-0
The Owls picked up a pair of league wins, defeating Randolph Southern 3-0 and Union 3-0.

6. (8) Coffman (Dublin, Ohio), 16-0
The Shamrocks defeated Jerome 3-0 and Worthington 3-0 last week in their only matches.

7. (10) Colorado Springs Christian (Colorado Springs, Colo.), 13-0
The Lions won three matches during the week, beating Manitou Springs 3-1, Peyton 3-0 and Buena Vista 3-0. Morgan Broekhuis had 41 kills in the three matches combined, including 18 in the victory over Manitou Springs.

8. (11) Dos Pueblos (Goleta, Calif.), 10-1
The Chargers won a Channel League showdown with Santa Barbara, topping the dons 3-2. Sam Wopat had 19 kills in the win while Carly Wopat had 18 and Sally Yingst had 15. Dos Pueblos also dumped Buena 3-1 with the Wopat sisters each registering 11 kills.

9. (NR) Central Catholic (Portland, Ore.), 15-0
The Rams are ranked No. 1 in the state coaches poll in Oregon and defeated No. 2 Jesuit in the finals of the South Albany State Preview tournament over the weekend.

10. (13) Amarillo (Texas), 32-3
The Sandies whipped Monterey 3-0 and topped Midland 3-1 in District 2 play last week.

11. (15) JH Rose (Greenville, N.C.), 15-0-2
The Rampants defeated Laney and New Bern by 3-0 scores and edged Conley 3-1 last week. Caroline Douglas had 13 kills and against Laney and 16 in the win over Conley.

12. (16) Newport Harbor (Calif.), 11-4
The Sailors won their only match last week, defeating Laguna Beach 3-1. The Sailors remain in first place in the Southern Section Division I rankings.

13. (17) Assumption (Louisville, Ky.), 29-3
The Rockets won the Asics Challenge in Illinois, defeating Catholic Academy of Joliet 17-25, 25-17, 26-24 in the finals. Assumption also defeated Sandburg 25-21, 25-23 in the semifinals and Mira Costa 25-17, 22-25, 25-23 in the first round.

14. (18) Marian (Omaha, Neb.), 21-1
The Crusaders, ranked No. 1 in Nebraska, defeated No. 2-ranked Papillion-La Vista South in five games to win the Lincoln Northeast Invitational over the weekend. Lauren Sieckmann had 15 kills for Marian while Ellie Pesavento had 13 and Melanie McCormick had 11.

15. (19) Randall (Amarillo, Texas), 29-1
The Raiders defeated Clovis 3-0 and Palo Duro 3-0 last week to stay unbeaten in district 3-4A play. Randall limited Palo Duro to just 18 points in a 25-10, 25-6, 25-2 victory. Randall has won 29 straight matches.

16. (3) Catholic Academy (Joliet, Ill.), 19-1
The Angels lost their first match of the season, falling to Assumption (Louisville, Ky.) in the finals of the Asics Challenge 17-25, 25-17, 26-24. Catholic Academy defeated Venice of Florida in the first round of the Gold Playoffs, 25-20, 25-20, and then dropped Plant 23-25, 27-25, 25-21 to reach the finals.

17. (NR) Pope (Marietta, Ga.), 42-1
The Greyhounds have won 22 straight games since suffering their only loss of the season to Walton on Sept. 3. Pope has also lost just four games and is ranked No. 1 in the state coaches poll.

18. (7) Huntsville (Ala.), 44-1
The Panthers lost their first game of the season last week in tournament play against Alabama’s No. 2-ranked 6A team, McGill-Toolen, 2-0. Huntsville also defeated No. 1-ranked 5A St. Paul’s Episcopal during the tournament and won five more matches during the past week to up their record to 44-1. Huntsville is still ranked No. 1 in Alabama.

19. (9) Plant (Tampa, Fla.), 16-1
The Panthers went 4-1 at the Asics Challenge in Illinois, falling to Catholic Academy of Joliet 25-23, 25-27, 21-25 before defeating Sandburg 25-16, 25-13 for third place. Plant also defeated Sacred Heart of Louisville 25-13, 29-27 in the first round.

20. (20) Berkeley Prep (Tampa, Fla.), 14-2
The Buccaneers defeated Buchholz 3-0 in their only match last week. Lindsay Young had 12 kills and Jordan Burgess had nine in the victory.

21. (23) Yorktown (Ind.), 27-0
The Tigers defeated Delta 3-1 to capture first place in the Delaware County Tournament. Yorktown also defeated Wapahani 3-0 and Daleville 3-0 to advance to the finals. The Tigers have a rematch with Delta on Oct. 9.

22 (24) Allen (Texas), 29-4
The Eagles won a pair of matches last week, defeating Wylie 3-0 and Plano 3-0, to remain the top-ranked team in the Dallas area by the Dallas Morning News.

23. (NR) Ankeny (Iowa), 18-0
The defending state champions are undefeated on the season and ranked No. 1 in the Iowa coaches poll and in the MaxPreps state rankings. The Hawks have not lost a game during the season.

24. (NR) Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.), 43-2
The Mustangs have won 41 straight matches since dropping a pair early in the season. Marian defeated North Branch, ranked No. 1 in the state in Class B, to win the Marian Varsity Invitational on Saturday. The Mustangs are led by Alexandra Cocklin, who has 437 kills on the season.

25. (12) Jesuit (Portland, Ore.), 17-1
The Crusaders reached the finals of the South Albany State Preview Tournament, but fell to Central Catholic of Portland 3-0. Jesuit is ranked No. 2 in the Oregon state rankings behind Central Catholic.

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