With Nebraska's high school volleyball season winding down, and subdistrict and district action beginning next week, we have decided to take a look at which subdistricts and districts, through their collective toughness, are best preparing their members for the grind of the postseason.
Using the MaxPreps Nebraska Volleyball Rankings, we calculated the average power rating for each subdistrict and district, and that calculation is the basis for this week's Top 10.
It does make sense that any district featuring a top-ranked team would have the upper hand at weighing in as a Top 10 district, and that is somewhat the case this season. Class A's Lincoln Southwest, Class B's Omaha Skutt Catholic and Class C1's Gothenburg, the Cornhusker State's top-ranked clubs in its three largest classifications, all made this week's Top 10 as did the districts they reside in.
Three of Class B's Top 10 volleyball teams make up the B-3 subdistrict, the Cornhusker State's toughest. Second-ranked Elkhorn North heads into subdistrict play as the favorite. Ranked fourth is Bennington while No. 9 Elkhorn High fills out the rest of the Cornhusker State's toughest subdistrict/district.
The A-7 District claims a couple of Top 10 teams and sits in the No. 2 spot this week. No. 7 Lincoln Pius X and eighth-ranked Millard West share the favorites role while No. 18 Lincoln Southeast and No. 21 Bellevue West will try to pull off an upset. The C1-9, A-6 and B-5 Districts round out the Top 5 in the Nos. 3-4-5 spots respectively.
Classes A, B, C1 and C2 are all represented in this week's Top 10. But that doesn't mean Classes D1 and D2, Nebraska's smallest classifications, won't have competitive subdistricts. In Class D1, the D1-11 subdistrict, featuring Arapahoe, Cambridge, Hi-Line and Maywood-Hayes Center lead the way. The D2-1 subdistrict, featuring Diller-Odell, Falls City Sacred Heart, Humboldt-Table Rock-Steinauer and Lewiston, is top dog in Class D2.
Combined, the B-3 Subdistrict is also Nebraska's toughest when it comes to its collective won-loss record of 68-22.
Below, listed on the top line, is the subdistrict or district that is being ranked, its average MaxPreps power rating and the district's collective won-loss record. Listed on the second line and beyond is the MaxPreps classification ranking for each team competing in that subdistrict or district as well as the name of the school and that school's current won-loss record in parenthesis.
Nebraska's Top 10 volleyball subdistricts and districts
1. B-3 Subdistrict | Average MaxPreps Rating (19.7667) | Collective Record (68-22) No. 2
Elkhorn North (Elkhorn) (28-4), No. 4
Bennington (23-6), No. 9
Elkhorn (17-12).
2. A-7 District | Average MaxPreps Rating (13.7250) Collective Record (68-62) No. 7
Pius X (Lincoln) (20-11), No. 8
Millard West (Omaha) (21-10), No. 18
Lincoln Southeast (Lincoln) (14-19), No. 21
Bellevue West (Bellevue) (13-22).
3. C1-9 Subdistrict | Average MaxPreps Rating (13.2400) | Collective Record (99-42) No. 2
Minden (27-2), No. 3
Grand Island Central Catholic (Grand Island) (25-2), No. 9
St. Paul (22-7), No. 11
Adams Central (Hastings) (23-7), No. 53
Gibbon (2-24).
4. A-6 District | Average MaxPreps Rating (11.9250) | Collective Record (76-57) No. 6
Gretna (26-7), No. 9
Marian (Omaha) (22-13), No. 17
North Star (Lincoln) (12-19), No. 26
Omaha Central (Omaha) (16-18).
5. B-5 Subdistrict | Average MaxPreps Rating (11.2333) | Collective Record (52-39) No. 3
Norris (Firth) (25-7), No. 13
Crete (16-16), No. 15
Beatrice (11-16).
6. C1-11 Subdistrict | Average MaxPreps Rating (10.4200) | Collective Record (85-57) No. 1
Gothenburg (26-2), No. 7
Kearney Catholic (Kearney) (23-7), No. 22
Broken Bow (15-13), No. 27
Holdrege (13-15), No. 42
Cozad (8-20).
7. C2-6 Subdistrict | Average MaxPreps Rating (9.9200) | Collective Record (86-58) No. 5
Clarkson/Leigh (Clarkson) (23-6), No. 9
Wisner-Pilger (Wisner) (20-9), No. 20
Humphrey/Lindsay Holy Family (Humphrey) (17-11), No. 22
Stanton (15-13), No. 25
Lutheran-Northeast (Norfolk) (11-19).
8. B-2 Subdistrict | Average MaxPreps Rating (9.7250) | Collective Record (51-50) No. 1
Skutt Catholic (Omaha) (15-4), No. 11
Duchesne (Omaha) (10-16), No. 16
Mercy (Omaha) (16-11), No. 22
Ralston (10-19).
9. A-2 District | Average MaxPreps Rating (9.2000) | Collective Record (71-81) No. 1
Lincoln Southwest (Lincoln) (26-3), No. 13
Millard North (Omaha) (16-15), No. 15
Kearney(15-15), No. 23
North Platte (North Platte) (8-25), No. 29
Bryan (Omaha) (6-23).
10. A-3 District | Average MaxPreps Rating (7.7800) | Collective Record (67-91) No. 5
Papillion-LaVista (Papillion) (25-8), No. 11
Elkhorn South (Omaha) (17-15), No. 14
Norfolk (14-17), No. 25
Lincoln Northeast (Lincoln) (8-23), No. 32
Omaha North (Omaha) (3-28).
