SPVB B16 Elite, 630 17-1 roll; wheels come off others at JVA Showdown in Motown

Plagued by injuries and inconsistency, SPVB B18 Elite and setter Trevor Powell (far right) finished fourth at the JVA Showdown in Motown last weekend. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Detroit, Michigan – When everyone does their job, good things happen.SPVB B16 Elite crushed the 16 Open field at the JVA Showdown in Motown at Huntington Place (formerly the TCF Center) in Detroit, Michigan last weekend, wrapping up a near-perfect effort with a 25-19, 25-16 victory over HPSTL B16 Royal in the championship match.“The guys did a much better job of unde...

Illprepvb.com presents 250 or more reasons to watch girls volleyball in 2022

Springfield Lutheran's Makenna Cox (14) is among the many players who we watched in 2021 and who will return to the high school hardcourts in the fall of 2022. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSure, the start of the 2022 fall girls’ volleyball season is months away, but it’s never too early to speculate about what or who we’ll be seeing on high school courts across Illinois.Today, Illprepvb.com looks at 250 or more reasons to watch girls high school volleyball next fall by taking a peek at some of the best playe...

Presenting the initial Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com Boys 18's Club rankings of '21-22

Plagued by injuries and inconsistency, SPVB B18 Elite dropped its final three matches and finished fourth at last weekend's JVA Showdown in Motown. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorTime to play catch-up with boys’ volleyball clubs.While the girls were wrapping up their high school season, boys club teams in Illinois were quietly going about their business at THE Point Series at the Wintrust Sports Center in Bedford Park and the Third Coast Invitational at the Wisconsin Center.Last weekend, several Illinois boys’ clubs participated i...

Two Grevengoeds are together again for one final run before college beckons

Logan Grevengoed (10) led Chicago Cjhristian to a third-place finish in the IHSA Class 3A finals this fall at Redbird Arena. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Delanie, Troy and Logan Grevengoed in 2019. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comTroy Grevengoed has a bond with all his children … all six of them, including five daughters. But he has a special bond with his oldest daughter, Logan.Troy Grevengoed, the longtime boys’ and girls’ volleyball coach at Richards High School in Oak Lawn, gave up the girls’ position this past fall to wa...

Club players from southern Illinois meet in St. Louis to kick off the Gateway League

Rockwood Thunder 16 Navy features a pair of Illinois products -- Edwardsville's outside hitter Sydney Davis (back row, second from left) and Quincy Notre Dame's Emma Hoing (back row, third from left). On the cover page is Edwardsville's Gabby Saye, who plays for Rockwood Thunder 18 Elite. By PJ BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorThe Windy City Power League does not get underway until January 8, but that does not mean the girls’ competitive club volleyball scene involving players from Illinois has been completely dormant.The Gateway League, which ...

Illprepvb.com peers into the crystal ball at the girls h.s. landscape in the coming fall

Campbell Paris (25) and her Barrington teammates should vie for a state title in 2022, but can 2021 Class 4A champion Metea Valley overcome some severe graduation losses? (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorI am often asked these questions:Which teams come through in the fall of ‘22?Considering how graduation will take a substantial toll on at least three teams that won IHSA championships in 2021, who are the likeliest candidates to replace St. Thomas More, Montini and Nazareth at the top of their respective class...

Here are the '21-22 Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com Boys 15's, 16's Club rankings

SPVB B16 Elite won the 16 Open division of the JVA Showdown in Motown last weekend to earn the top spot in the Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com Boys 16's Club rankings. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorTime to play catch-up with boys’ volleyball clubs.While the girls were wrapping up their high school season, boys club teams in Illinois were quietly going about their business at THE Point Series at the Wintrust Sports Center in Bedford Park and the Third Coast Invitational at the Wisconsin Center.Last weekend, several Illinois boys’...

Hurta joins long list of distinguished players who reaped POY honors

Nazareth's Katie Hurta (9) joins a long and distinguished list of players who earned Player of the Year honors since the award was first presented in 1982. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com Editor Did you know that girls were not permitted to participate in interscholastic volleyball contests until 1973? Then during the 1974-75 school year, the IHSA sponsored its first volleyball tournament at Lantz Gymnasium on the campus of Eastern Illinois University. New Trier East won that affair, defeating Rich East 15-10, 6...

Presenting the initial Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepb.com Boys 17's Club rankings of '21-22

630 Volleyball 17-1 sits atop the Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com Boys' 17s Club rankings after winning the 17 Open division at the JVA Showdown in Motown last weekend. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorTime to play catch-up with boys’ volleyball clubs.While the girls were wrapping up their high school season, boys club teams in Illinois were quietly going about their business at THE Point Series at the Wintrust Sports Center in Bedford Park and the Third Coast Invitational at the Wisconsin Center.Last weekend, several Illinois boys...

College of DuPage names coaching staff for new men’s volleyball program

West Aurora boys' volleyball coach Tolis Koskinaris (left) and Oswego's Frankie Martinez will lead the new men's volleyball program at College of DuPage. A familiar coaching staff will lead the Chaparral men's volleyball program when it opens in 2022-23. Head women's volleyball coach Tolis Koskinaris and assistant Frank Martinez will hold those respective positions for the athletic department's new sport when it gets underway next season.“Both of us are excited to begin a sport that is well received at the high school level here in DuP...