The Taylorville Tornado3s are surrounded by their fans after knocking off No. 1-ranked Normal U-High at the (Chatham) Glenwood Class 3A Supersectional. (Photo by Randy Sharer) At (Chatham) GlenwoodCHATHAM – Down a set and trailing 23-17 in Game 2, Taylorville needed a lot of things to go right in order to upset Normal University High in the Chatham Glenwood Class 3A Supersectional on Friday.The stars improbably aligned as Taylorville pulled out a 22-25, 26-24, 25-23 shocker over U-High, which came in ranked No. 1 by Illprepvb.com.“We w...
Benet Academy, Naperville North on a collision course after sectional victories
Benet Academy's Annie Eschenbach slams a kill past the outstretched arms of Oswego East's Cailyn Smiley (14) and Ava Stiller (13) during Monday's first sectional semifinal at Plainfield North. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorAnnie Eschenbach remembers.“This is the game that we lost last year,” said Eschenbach, Benet Academy’s 6-4 middle hitter and one of a handful of returning starters who lived through last year’s 25-14, 18-25, 25-18 sectional semifinal loss to Plainfield North at Oswego.“Going into this game,...
No. 6-ranked Rochester wins 'basket case' showdown with No. 1 Normal U-High
Normal University High's Lily Barry (12) had 19 kills and 19 digs, but her efforts were not enough to prevent the Pioneers from falling to Rochester in a Central State Eight showdown in Normal . (Photos by Randy Sharer) By Randy SharerSpecial to Illprepvb.comNORMAL – Nothing symbolized the grinding nature of Tuesday’s Central State Eight Conference matchup between Rochester, ranked No. 6 in Class 3A by Illprepvb.com, and No. 1 Normal University High more than the penultimate point in Game 2.U-High’s swarming defenders ricocheted a ball...
Illprepvb.com presents a first look at Illinois' top 2023 club teams … the 17s
IC Catholic Prep's Ava Falduto (4) should help 1st Alliance 17 Gold's bid for a national championshp. On the home page, not every volleyball plauer in Illinois plays for an Illinois-based club. Herrin's Karli Mann (23, far left) plays for Evansville United in Indiana. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorToday, we turn our attention to the 17s as we continue our look at some of the top club teams in Illinois. This year’s crop of 17s has some high bars to hurdle.Last summer, 1st Alliance 17 Gold won the 17 Open c...
Timothy Christian plays 'the right way' 24 hours after heartbreaking loss to IC Prep
Timothy Christian was back at it Wednesday, less than a day after a crushing 25-21, 21-25, 26-24 loss to rival IC Catholic Prep. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSometimes the hardest thing to do is sports is to come back after a crushing defeat. That was the challenge for Timothy Christian Wednesday at Westmont, 24 hours after a heartbreaking 25-21, 21-25, 26-24 loss to Illprepvb.com Class 2A top-ranked IC Catholic Prep.“That’s what I told the girls as we were getting ready,” said Timothy Christian coach Scott Piersma. “The test is...
A refugee from the war in Ukraine, Bondar finds safety, joy in the United States
Sonia Bondar, who fled war-ravaged Ukraine with her family last February, is able to put thoughts of the horrors back home out of her mind when she plays volleyball with her teammates at Vernon Hills. (Photos by VIP Photography) Sonia Bondar By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.comVernon Hills senior Sonia Bondar and her teammates stood in a circle as they got instruction from coach Chris Curry before a recent practice.The 6-foot opposite is just like the rest of the Cougars in many respects – tall, athletic and full of energy.The one di...
Here are the final regular-season 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com Girls rankings
Macomb's Kennedy Adair recorded her 1,000th career kill during Saturday's tournament at Quincy Notre Dame. That’s a wrap on the 2022 regular season. Now the real fun begins.Less than three weeks from today, the IHSA will crown champions in four classes. The road to Redbird Arena has more potholes than an Illinois winter. Who will navigate it best?That question, and more, will be answered in the next few weeks.Meanwhile, here are the final regular-season 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com Girls High School Rankings:Class 4A (last week’s rank...
Benet, IC Prep move up in latest 1st Alliance VBC/Illprepvb.com rankings
Kirsten Krammer (15) and the Benet Academy Redwings climbed two spots in this week's Class 4A rankings after winning the Wheaton Classic championship Saturday. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Oh, that IHSA has a sense of humor. The sectional pairings were released last week, and among the not-so-surprising surprises (?) were the assignments of private school powers and 2021 2A semifinalists (Lombard) Montini and Chicago Christian to the same supersectional. Of course, newly crowned No. 1-ranked IC Catholic Prep and the Abby VanderWal-led...
Illprepvb.com presents 70 heavenly players in the freshman Class of 2026
Montini's 5-11 freshman middle hitter Francesca Lorenzo is part of a young lineup that could challenge for another Class 2A championship this fall. On the home page is St. Charles North's outside hitter Haley Burgdorf, one of the leading attackers in the Class of 2026. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) Today, we complete our look at some of the top players in Illinois by listing (alphabetically) players in the Class of 2026.The list features players who are making an impact on their high school varsity teams this fall – either in the starting r...
MVP Ellie White, Mother McAuley claim ASICS Challenge championship
Kate Goudreau (3) and St. Charles East defeated Nazareth, 25-16, 25-16, to win the Silver bracket at the ASICS Challenge hosted by Mother McAuley on Saturday. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com Editor“Just remember, stick to the plan,” said the Oz the Great and Powerful to Finley the monkey.“But the plan is you,” Finley replied.Whatever the plan was Saturday, Mother McAuley stuck to it. The result was the Mighty Macs’ sixth ASICS Challenge championship, and their first since the national championship team won it back in ...