Six-foot-6 Taylor Landfair (back row, middle) and SPVB 18 Elite are seeking the club's sixth AAU championship in seven years in the 18 Open division. Dynasties.Michael Jordan’s Bulls. Magic Johnson’s L.A. Lakers. The 1957-66 Boston Celtics. Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers. The New York Yankees (pick your favorite decade). The UCLA Bruins under John Wooden. The NHL’s Montreal Canadiens (1953-1979). Somewhere in there, you can add Sports Performance’s 18 Elite volleyball team.The Aurora-based club’s 18 Elite team won eight USAV 18 O...
Peering into the crystal ball at some teams to watch in 2019
Marist lost only once to an Illinois team and three times all season while repeating as state champion. Which are the teams to be seen in 2019?Can Marist three-peat? Or will Benet, Belleville Althoff or a more seasoned Edwardsville team derail the RedHawks in their bid to make history?Can Class 3A champion Sterling weather the loss of Josilyn Borum and Gretchen Gould and defend its state title, or will Joliet Catholic or Nazareth supplant the Warriors?Will St. Thomas More be factored up to 3A, or will 6-foot-1 Allie Trame and the Sabers ge...
Illprepvb.com announces Player, Team, Coach of the Year and All-State First Team
Althoff's Karinna Gall led the Crusaders to a second-place finish in the IHSA Class 3A tournament. (photo by Dave Ruggles) Today, we continue to announce the Illprepvb.com 2018 Girls All-State Volleyball Team with our Player of the Year, Coach of the Year, Team of the Year and those players named to the First Team. Coaches across Illinois were invited to nominate players to the Illprepvb.com all-state team. Team members were selected based upon their accomplishments on the court as high school players, not on any future potential or curren...
Katie Lanz lights the lamp from the service line against Naperville Central
St. Charles North's Kyla Lannert, Gigi Crescenzo, Ashley Bruns, Katie Lanz and Brigid McCarthy. And on the 14th point, St. Charles North rested.St. Charles North’s 5-11 senior setter/outside hitter Katie Lanz broke a 6-6 tie with a kill in Game 1 of the North Stars’ nonconference match Wednesday at Naperville Central, then proceeded to serve the next 17 points during a run that featured 12 aces.There really wasn’t much for her teammates to do except watch, wonder and wait for the return that never came.“You don’t have to do much,” St. Ch...
No. 5 Sandburg rallies to defeat No. 7 Mother McAuley
Sandburg's (left to right) Rachel DeFries, Rachel Krasowski, Shelby Stefanon and Erica Staunton. By Randy Whalen Special to Illprepvb.com A 9-0 run ended a nine-year losing streak for the Sandburg girls‘ volleyball team. The Eagles entered Tuesday’s big match without a victory over Mother McAuley since 2009. To make matters worse for the home team, they are always reminded that McAuley had eliminated them from the postseason 10 times in a 12-year span between 2005-2016. But none of that mattered to this season’s Sandburg squad....
Muisenga, Benet roll in Wheaton North tournament openers
Romeoville's (left to right) Mackenzie Blizniak, Lexi Zajda, Crystal Galaviz, Alayna Rooks and Corinne Doty. Rachel Muisenga is a setter. Rachel Muisenga is a middle blocker. Rachel Muisenga was an all-tournament selection at the National Junior Classic hosted by the Great Lakes Volleyball Center last spring and an all-Great Lakes 16 Super Open Power League choice.And oh, by the way, she’s going to Penn State … eventually. That’s not a bad resume for a 6-foot sophomore.Wednesday at the Blue & Gold Wheaton North Tournament, Muisenga p...
Sterling ‘golden’ against Joliet Catholic; Belleville Althoff passes Latin test
Defending state champion Belleville Althoff will face Sterling for the Class 3A state championship Saturday in Normal. By Randy Whalen Special to Illprepvb.com NORMAL – Sterling entered the season believing this was its year. Now the Golden Warriors are one win away. The trio of Borum sisters – Josilyn, Breelyn and Brooklyn -- banged 32 kills, and the Gould sisters – Gretchen and Grace – chipped in with 5 kills of their own as Sterling rallied down the stretch of the first set and went onto a 27-25, 25-20 victory over Joliet Ca...
No. 2-ranked Sterling makes quick work of United Township
Sterling's Breelyn Borum, Lexi Rodriquez, Brooklyn Borum and Josilyn Borum. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comSterling sophomore Breelyn Borum had a direct answer when asked about her teams goal this season.“To win state,” Borum said of the Class 3A title. “We're really playing together as a team and making our connections.”That's something Sterling has been doing all season. The Golden Warriors remained undefeated with a 25-8, 25-20 victory over (East Moline) United Township in a nonconference match Tuesday at Sterling.The Borum sister...
1st Alliance Volleyball Club/Illprepvb.com 2018 Week One Girls Rankings
Monmouth-Roseville, one of the smallest schools in Class 3A, won the Macomb invite Saturday. 1st Alliance Volleyball Club/Illprepvb.com 2018 Week One Girls Rankings(Preseason rank in parenthesis)1. Marist (1) 6-0Another “magical season” in store for Camryn Hannah & Co.? 2. Marian Catholic (8) 5-1Nothing fancy from the Spartans, just in-your-face volleyball.3. Sterling (4) 6-0Who’s the boss? Avenges 2017 loss to Joliet Catholic at Metea Valley. 4. Benet (3) 4-1Redwings sorely miss Hattie Monson, Sophie Gregus, Caitlin Wepfer.5. Sandbu...
Marist’s practice makes almost perfect; Downers North’s remarkable run continues
Marist will defend its state championship Saturday after beating conference rival Benet 25-18, 25-15 in a Class 4A semifinal Friday. NORMAL -- This was not the same Marist team that lost to Benet 22-25, 25-22, 25-19 in an East Suburban Catholic Conference match in Lisle on October 16. “We’ve been practicing really hard these past three weeks,” said Marist coach Jordan Vidovic. “The girls were really motivated to improve and clean some things up. Tonight showed the kind of work we put in.” Marist (38-3) overcame an early 8-5...