SPVB 18 Elite outside hitter and Wisconsin recruit Ella Wrobel (Plainfield North) was named MVP of the 18/17 Open division at the SPVB Presidents Day Challenge. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) https://youtu.be/Nv4F9fYMlvw By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorSports Performance’s 15 Elite team has taken the court 18 times this season – 24 if you count the six matches it played during a scrimmage early in the season – and only five times has the team on the other side of the net been in the same age bracket.So after dropping the second set o...
Adversity girls rebound from early loss to advance at Winter Volleyball Championship
Michio Chicago 18 National finished third in its pool on day one of the 2022 Girls Winter Volleyball Championship at McCormick Place. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorAdversity G18 Adidas was up against it after its first match Saturday at the 2022 Girls Winter Volleyball Championship at McCormick Place.Adversity dropped its opener against Milwaukee Sting 18 Gold, 16-25, 25-22, 15-12, and needed to win its final two matches to remain in the hunt for one of the handful of Open bids available to the 2022 USAV Girls Junior National Champi...
Marchis' passion, hard work and energy have Falcons soaring toward postseason
Wheraton North kill leader Will Trussell put 8 more in the column for the Falcons Tuesday against visiting Geneva. (Photo by Dave Ruggles). https://youtu.be/Uq5BTyA9R-w By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorWhenever the Wheaton North coaching staff wants to challenge their players to work harder, they don’t have to look far to find someone for those players to emulate.“We called them out,” said Wheaton North coach Justin Hineman. “We told them, ‘If you want to see what passion is, if you want to see what hard work is, if you want to see...
The Volleyball Institute/Illprepvb.com present the top 100 boys in the Class of 2023
Jakobi Lange, whose 229 kills as a sophomore last spring powered Hinsdale Central to a sectional final, heads The Volleyball Institute/Illprepvb.com list of the top 100 players in the Class of 2023. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Today, we rank the top 100 boys in the Class of 2023.Among those at the top of the list are three members of 630 Volleyball 17-1 -- Hinsdale Central's 6-4 outside hitter Jakobi Lange, who led the Red Devils to the sectional final as a sophomore, setter Peter Zurawski of defending IHSA quarterfinalist Oak Park-River F...
Barrington is bloodied but unbowed; Marist 'kids' beat 'gassed' Lincoln-Way East
(Rockton) Hononegah (left) defeated Geneva to win the Oswego Invitational on Saturday. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) https://youtu.be/A5anPWFy8ok By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorNobody is perfect, even when they’re perfect.Barrington took a punch to the gut Saturday in the championship match of the 6th Annual Barrington/Vernon Hills Invitational Saturday in Vernon Hills, dropping its first set of the young season in the second set of the championship match against the hosts.That meant Barrington rookie head coach Charlie Spry’s secret w...
Presidents Day winners lead latest Michio Chicago VBA/Illprepvb.com Girls Rankings
Gwen Wolkow and her SPVB 18 Elite teammates will get a look at some of the top teams in the country, including Triple Crown NIT champion Munciana 18 Samurai, in less than two weeks at the 22 Adidas Bluegrass Tournament. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Some liked it hot. Some liked it cold. Not everyone came home happy. The long Presidents Day weekend is over, and while it was a mixed bag for many Illinois teams, there were a few that stood out. 1st Alliance 15 Gold won the Triple Crown NIT, while 1st Alliance 18 Gold went all the way to ...
The Volleyball Institute/Illprepvb.com present the top boys in the Class of 2024
Barrington's 6-10 sophomore outside hitter Cole Hartke (15) led Pipeline 17-1 to the championship match of the 2022 Dennis Lafata Boys Bid Classic. (Photo courtesy of Daily Herald) Today, we rank the top boys in the Class of 2024. The list is headed by the most impactful freshman from the 2021 high school season, Lockport's 5-foot-10 setter Evan Dziadkowiec, who led the Porters to their first-ever appearance in the IHSA quarterfinals and continued to flash his brilliance this winter at the reigns of Ultimate B16 Gold. Just behind...
Gwen Adler proves that you don't have to specialize to be a special student-athlete
Gwen Adler (far left) and her Barrington teammates finished third this fall in the IHSA Class 4A volleyball tournament at Redbird Arena. (Photos courtesy of the Daily Herald) Gwen Adler (15, lower left corner) watches as teammate Campbell Paris puts a kill away in an IHSA Class 4A semifinal. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.comBoredom will never be a problem for Barrington sophomore Gwen Adler. Exhaustion may eventually trip her up, but not boredom.Adler is an outlier even by the energetic standards of teenager...
Grayson steps away (but not too far) after nearly three decades as a player, coach
Former Newark star and Horizon League freshman of the year Madi Malone said if her former coach decides to return to the sidelines, she would support her in "any way." (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Tonya Grayson won more than 500 games and 18 conference titles as head coach at Newark By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.comWhen Tonya Grayson took over the girls’ volleyball program at Newark in 2001, the Class 1A school in Kendall County was known as a basketball school.Two decades later, that is no longer the case.The Norsemen became a volleyba...
Is one Sky High better than two? Which 1st Alliance team is first? It's still undecided
Sky High Adidas 16 Elite is a combination of two 15s teams from a year ago and has found itself among the upper echelon of teams in the Windy City Power League 16/15 Open division. On the home page is Sky High Adidas 16 Elite setter Jenna Meitzler from Barrington. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorBack and forth they go.1st Alliance 16 Gold and 1st Alliance 15 Gold found themselves in familiar territory Saturday during Windy City Power League play at the 1st Alliance facility in Woodridge – the championship match of Bracket A.Whether i...