Club 1 B18 Skronkstrong had a rough start to its weekend at the Winter Volleyball Championships Saturday in Indianapolis, going 0-3 in first round pool play. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) Jason Kougan (Lincoln-Way East) and his Ultimate B18 Gold teammates struggled to an 0-2 finish Saturday. Indianapolis, Indiana – Solomon Dail is feeling the heat.“(Coach Zach) Splitt is a very, very competitive person, and there’s a lot of pressure on me as a team captain because he really wants this three-peat,” said the 6-foot-5 Dail, a Sports Performanc...
Top Notch notches top finish at AAU St. Louis Crossfire Super Regional
Top Notch 16 Elite Top Notch 16 Elite out of Springfield, Illinois, won the AAU St. Louis Crossfire Super Regionals 16U-17U division January 16-17 at the BudDome in St. Louis, Missouri.Top Notch defeated SI Wave 16s Gray, 25-13, 25-11; R1C Invasion 16-White, 20-25, 25-18, 15-10; and R1C STL Crossfire 16 R1, 25-15, 25-9, on Saturday, then defeated STL Crossfire 16 T1, 25-23, 25-14; 314 VBC 16-1, 25-20, 25-15; and Elite VBC 16 GOLD, 25-20, 25-12, on Sunday.Team members include Megan Becker (Springfield), Ruth Becker (Springfield), Peyton...
Where are 200+ girls from Illinois high schools and clubs playing D-I volleyball?
Former Nazareth star Ella Sandt took her considerable talents to St. Mary's College of California, a private Catholic college in Moraga, California. The Gaels compete in the West Coast Conference. (Sandt photo by Dave Ruggles. Ally VanEekeren cover photo by Mark Kuhlmann) There are 334 schools that play Division I Women's Volleyball in the United States, including 13 in Illinois. Based on information provided by club directors, Illprepvb.com has identified approximately 235 girls who either played high school or club volleyball in ...
The IHSA announces high school girls volleyball season will begin March 8
The good news? There will be a girls high school volleyball season beginning March 8. The bad news? No state tournament. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) There will be a girls’ high school volleyball season in Illinois this year … albeit a briefer one with no state tournament. And a boys’ high school volleyball season, too. Maybe a state. Maybe not.The IHSA announced Wednesday that Illinois girls high school volleyball will begin on March 8 with seven days of practice. The first contests can begin once a team has met that requirement, and the seaso...
Top Notch 'invites' athletes by offering balance between toughness, 'funship'
Top Notch club director Jen Holliday, a former All-American at Florida and standout at Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin, knows when it's time to be serious and when it's time to have fun. Top Notch 16-1 setter Megan Becker from Springfield High School. By Randy SharerSpecial to Illprepvb.comSPRINGFIELD – As a measure of coaching excellence, few statistics reveal more than the number of invitations to weddings.Great coaches win, of course, but the best also win when wedding invitations arrive from former players, clear evidence a coach ...
Schuele answers the call to the pen; Lenny takes the road less desired to advance
Future 18 Elite advanced to the Gold bracket of the Boys 18 Open division at the Winter Volleyball Championship in Indianapolis, Indiana, despite its late Sunday afternoon loss to SPVB B18 Elite. Gavin Swartz and his SPVB 18 Lenny teammates took the hard road to the Gold semifinals of the 18 USA division. Indianapolis, Indiana – Four points into its match with Academy 18 Adidas early Sunday at the Winter Volleyball Championship, Sports Performance 18 Elite had to go the bullpen. Kevin Schuele turned out to be quite a reliever.Schuele,...
NVA/AVCA Division I-II, III Men's Preseason Coaches' Poll January 4, 2021
Mission not impossible: Fresh faces, coaching staff attract players to new club
Mission Volleyball Club enjoyed a successful competitive debut at the Wisconsin Juniors Pre-Season Kick-Off at the Lake View RecPlex in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.com Mission Volleyball Club was initially conceived as a rebranding of Club Fusion's branch operation in Marengo before becoming its own entity. If you open it, will they come?That’s the question for anyone thinking of starting a new volleyball club.For Mission Volleyball Club, the answer has been a resounding, “yes.”Over 200 athletes ...