Back on top. Benet Acadmey's loss to Marist last week and Marist's loss to Mother McAuley at the ASICS Challenge put the Mighty Macs back on top the Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com rGirls High School Rankings. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSports Performance owner/director Troy Gilb, who coached in Nebraska for several years, has a novel idea.Why not follow the Nebraska model when conducting the IHSA tournament?Nebraska, which has six classes, divides the state into six sections. Each section winner ...
Tharpe leads Whitney Young past Jones College Prep; eyes ultimate prize
Jones College Prep fell into a first-place tie with Whitney Young and Taft in the Chicago Public Gold with its 25-21, 25-29 loss to the Dolphins on Tuesday. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorFew could have imagined that after his friend dragged him to a boys’ volleyball tryout a few years back that Whitney Young’s 6-8 outside hitter Tyler Tharpe would have developed into one of the top high school players in the country.But there is one thing that Tharpe, who has committed to continue his academic and volleyball career at Ohio State next...
The ‘White’ stuff: SPVB 16 White wins national championship on final day of AAUs
SPVB 16 White dominated the field in the 16 Spirit division at the 50th annual AAU Girls National Volleyball Championships in Orlando, Florida, this week. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorORLANDO, Florida – Twelve teams from Illinois advanced to the championship brackets of their respective divisions Thursday at the at the 50th annual AAU Girls National Volleyball Championships in Orlando, Florida.Six survived their first-round matches.But only one thrived. SPVB 16 White defeated Lake NONA 16 Willie (Orlando, Florida), 25-19, 25-16...
1st Alliance 17 Black wins AAU 17 Club title; MOD Elite G17 Blue third in Premier
1st Alliance 17 Black rallied from down a set to defeat VCNebraska 17 Black and win the 17 Club division national championship Sunday in Orlando, Florida. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorORLANDO, Florida – Paint it black. As in 1st Alliance 17 Black.The Woodridge crew rallied after dropping the first set to defeat VCNebraska 17 Black (Lincoln, Nebraska), 18-25, 26-24, 15-7, to win the 17 Club division Sunday at the 50th annual AAU Girls National Volleyball Championships in Orlando, Florida.After losing the first set, 1st Alliance...
This ‘Sting’ really hurts: 1st Alliance 15 Gold falls just short in National title bid
1st Alliance 15 Gold reached the finals of the 15 National division at the 2023 USAV Girls Junior National Championship at McCormick Place on Saturday before falling to MKE Sting 15 Gold. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorRiding high in April. Shot down in May.Something had to give when 1st Alliance 15 Gold and MKE Sting 15 Gold met in Saturday’s championship match of the 15 National division at the 2023 USAV Girls Junior National Championship at McCormick Place.The teams had split two previous matches, with 1st Alliance 15 Gold wi...
Slow-starting Benet finishes fast, beats Normal West to win Scholastic Cup
Lynney Tarnow (12) had 10 kills, 3 blocks and an ace in Benet Academy's victory in the championship match of the St. Charles East Scholastic Cup on Saturday at the Great lakes Volleyball Center in Aurora. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSlow starts are enough to drive any coach mad.But it’s not how you start that matters, it’s how you finish. And Benet Academy finished with a bang.After falling behind 14-6 in the opening set of Saturday’s championship match of the St. Charles East Scholastic Cup tournament at t...
Glenbard South seniors’ ‘all-or-nothing’ season now includes victory over Fremd
Glenbard South iproved to 16-3 overall with a 25-21, 25-16 victory Thursday over Fremd in Glen Ellyn. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorThis is the year they’ve been pointing to since a boys’ volleyball team first took the court at Glenbard South in 2020.And, so far, they haven’t disappointed.Thursday, the Upstate Eight Conference-contending Raiders improved to 16-3 by knocking off Mid-Suburban West co-leader Fremd, 25-21, 25-16, in Glen Ellyn. “This is it,” said Glenbard South’s 5-10 setter Mike Hines. “This is it. We have ...
Here are the final 2023 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com Boys H.S. Rankings
Glenbard West's Adam Graham is one of several juniors who will return in 2024 bidding to earn the Toppers' second three-peat since 2015-17. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorI feel the need … the need, to seed.For the second time in two years, arguably the two best teams in the Illinois met prior to the IHSA tournament championship game.Last year, Barrington (36-3), led by Player of the Year Jack O’Riordan (Ohio State), lost a tough three-setter to eventual IHSA champion Glenbard West in the sectional champio...
Loyola Academy takes care of business to advance at the Tiger Classic
Rolling Meadows' middle hitter Chruis Kalweit (23) and the Mustangs dropped both of their matches Friday at the Wheaton Warrenville South Tiger Classic. (File photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorLoyola Academy took care of business. St. Rita gave Fremd the business. Day two at the Wheaton Warrenville South Tiger Classic did not go exactly as planned for several of the top seeds. But Loyola Academy came out of the scrum unscathed, defeating Rolling Meadows and Neuqua Valley in straight sets to advance to Saturday’s q...
Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com present 100 Players to Watch in the Class of ’25
Amanda Stephens (19), who led tiny Augusta Southeastern to the IHSA Class 1A semifinals as a freshman in 2021, is back to lead the Suns again this fall. On the homepage is Norris City-Omaha-Enfield's Hinsley Everett. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com Editor The start of practice for the 2023 Illinois girls high school season is just two weeks away. Today, Illprepvb.com takes a look ahead to some of the players we expect to make an impact during the upcoming season. So here they are, the Michio Chicago ...