Former Lockport head coach Julia Hudson retired from coaching after wrapping up an eight-year career at Evansville North High School. Julie Hudson led Lockport to the 1993 IHSA Class AA title with a team that was unbeaten against opponents from Illinois. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comJulia Hudson was interviewed nine years ago as she prepared to enter her last season as girls’ volleyball coach at Lockport. “Please don’t use the word, ‘last,’” Hudson said at that time. “Please find another word, because that sounds so final....

Freeport Aquin Catholic is seeking its first regional championship since 2014 with several key returning players and a new coach. Illprepvb.com continues its coverage of the 2019 Illinois high school girls' volleyball season with another set of team previews. School: Arthur-Lovington/Atwood-HammondConference: Little Okaw ValleyHead coach: Emily Crossman          Last season’s highlights: 23-12 overall, 6-3 in conference,  lost to St. Joseph-Ogden, 25-17, 25-18, in a Class 2A region...

Fairfield's 5-10 sophomore Emersyn Robbins is one of the top players in southern Illinois ... regardless of class or classification. Beginning with the first day of practice Monday, August 9, folks across Illinois will be keeping one eye on their home team and the other eye on Bloomington waiting to see if the IHSA pulls the plug on the 2021 girls volleyball season.COVID-19 has not gone away.New coronavirus cases leaped in Illinois during the week ending August 1, rising 46 percent as 11,682 cases were reported after 7,983 new cases were r...

Paul Ickes' 2007 Brother Rice team, led by Sun-Times Player of the Year Josh Scaletta (back row, fifth from left), was 39-0 heading into the IHSA quarterfinals before being upset by New Trier, a team it has defeated earlier that season. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comPaul Ickes is going back to his roots, and the former Brother Rice volleyball coach could not be happier.Ickes, 56, who won 552 matches and took five teams to the IHSA state finals, is now at Providence Catholic High School in New Lenox. He is a theology teacher and wi...

Normal U-High's Lily Barry (far right) projects to be a libero in college but will continue to man the pin for the Pioneers, who hope to return to Redbird Arena in 2021. On the cover is Normal Community West's Averie Hernandez. (Barry photo by Dave Ruggles) Yes, the start of the 2021 fall girls’ volleyball season is still a few weeks 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 continues its look at 570 reasons to watch girls high school voll...

Taking home state trophies became a commonplace occurrence during Chris Scheibe's tenure at Joliet Catholic. Chris Scheibe, here flanked by Erin O'Grady and Bella Ray, would often be seen supporting her players during club season. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comFor Christine Scheibe, it was just time.After a phenomenally successful career as the head girls’ volleyball coach at Joliet Catholic Academy, Scheibe has decided to step down. She leaves with a 21-year career record of 602-198-10 and enough memories to last many lifetim...

1st Alliance 18 Silver was Illinois' top finisher in the Girls 18 Open division at the Winter Volleyball Championship, finishing fifth. Indianapolis, Indiana – After his team’s 19-25, 25-17, 16-14 loss to FVP B18 Blue in a Round Two pool finale Sunday, SPVB 18 Lenny coach Zach Splitt said his team had to learn to handle pressure situations better.They’re still learning.Twenty-four hours after that loss, Lenny fell to FVP B18 Blue again, 25-17, 26-24, in the championship match of the Boys 18 USA division Monday at the Winter Volleyball Cham...

Waubonsie Valley defeated Oswego and Wheaton Warrenville South on Friday to advance to the championship quarterfinals of the Illprepvb.com/Crimson Classic at Plainfield North. Melissa Walden made the difficult decision to graduate early and get a head start on her volleyball career at Texas A & M.But that’s nothing new for the 6-foot setter, who has been making difficult decisions from the moment she joined the varsity team at Waubonsie Valley as a freshman. “I’m going in January,” she said. “Part of it is that I will be able to get use...

Kate Dean (left) calls older sister Karli "her best friend." (Cover photo by Douglas Cottle) Karli Dean is now a freshman at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. (Photo by Douglas Cottle) By Randy SharerSpecial to Illprepvb.com TUSCOLA – As they seek to maintain a level-playing field, sports rule enforcers keep an eye on performance enhancers. Kate Dean, however, has surely found a performance enhancing loophole that will never be outlawed in volleyball: her big sister, Karli, a 6-foot-1 freshman middle hitter at the University of...

Rockford Boylan's Nikos Zydakis (11) is one of four key returnees from a team that went 35-3 and reached a sectional semifinal last season. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) The 2020 IHSA boys volleyball season officially kicks off with the first day of practice on Monday, March 9. Illprepvb.com begins its look at the 2020 boys' high school volleyball season today with our first set of team previews. Illprepvb.com will continue to provide the best in boys high school volleyball coverage throughout the season.School: Bolingbrook   Conferenc...