Naperville Central celebrates its Class 4A regional championship Thursday at Neuqua Valley. (Photos by Dave Ruggle) Naperville Central felt right at home playing on the road in a Class 4A regional championship match Thursday.After all, on the road is where the Redhawks have played 32 of their 37 matches this season.“If we just keep working hard, we’re good no matter where we go,” said Naperville Central outside hitter Madeline Bylak.Bylak had 10 kills, 3 digs and a block, and Kayla Closset had 10 kills, 10 digs and 2 aces as Naperville Cent...

Mike Layne was named the new head coach at Pinckneyville in late July after more than 20 years as head coach at Murphysboro. Mike Layne took a year off from coaching to watch daughter Stephanie play at Judson University in Elgin. Mike Layne is trading in his Crimson/Corn polo for Columbia Blue.Layne, who won nearly 1,000 matches as head coach of the Murphysboro high school and middle school girls’ volleyball programs, was recently hired at Pinckneyville High School to be the Lady Panthers’ next head coach.Layne succeeds Cathy Kohnen, wh...

1st Alliance 18 Silver setter Elizabeth Sandt (37), one of only four team members who have experience playing with each other, likes the direction the team is going. https://youtu.be/SFjT9Wnvbjo Elizabeth Sandt saw only a few familiar faces when 1st Alliance 18 Silver got together for its first practice two months ago.“The team is pretty new this year,” said Sandt, a product of Nazareth Academy who guided the Roadrunners to a third-place finish in IHSA Class 3A last fall following the first-ever semifinal appearance in school history.“...

Homewood-Flossmoor avenged a regional semifinal loss to Shepard in 2018 by defeating the Astros Thursday in Flossmoor. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comAllison Faoro was born in 2002.That was the last time that Homewood-Flossmoor won a regional championship. Until Thursday night.Faoro finagled a match-high 9 kills and added 5 digs as the host Vikings defeated Shepard, 25-16, 25-20, in the title match of the Class 4A Homewood-Flossmoor Regional. Homewood-Flossmoor (30-6) will face Andrew Monday in the second semifinal of the ...

On the home page, Mother McAuley's 5-11 sophomore Ellie White (far right) is expected to lead the Mighty Macs in a number of categories, including blocking. (Photo by Dave Ruggles. Above photo of Batavia coach McKenna Kelsay courtesy of U. of I. athletic department). Illprepvb.com continues its look at the 2021 season with previews of a team that looks to build on perfection, a downstate school with a new coach after a 22-win campaign in the spring, a perennial state power that finds itself in a new class, and a team that's looking to...

Izzy Decker (3) had 14 kills to help lead Nazareth over St. Francis in a Class 3A supersectional Friday in Wheaton. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.com Nazareth is going to state. It’s going to take a little while for that to sink in. The Roadrunners advanced to the IHSA semifinals for the first time in school history by knocking off St. Francis, 25-19, 25-21, Friday to win the Class 3A supersectional in Wheaton. Nazareth (27-7) will play Sterling at 4:00 p.m. next Friday at Redbird Arena in Normal. “It feels unr...

Joliet Catholic's Bella Ray (left) led the Angels to a second-place finish in Class 3A. (Photo by Dave Ruggles). Today, we continue to announce the Illprepvb.com 2019 Girls All-State Volleyball Team with those players named Honorable Mention. 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 and in the classroom as high school student-athletes, not on any future potential or current recruitment status. Players represent all...

Joliet Catholic's 6-2 middle hitter Bella Ray (14) had 9 kills and 5 blocks to help the Angels overcome a myriad of injuries to defeat Mother McAuley Tuesday on the south side. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comLast week, sophomore Riley Hungate didn't know if she would be on the Joliet Catholic varsity volleyball team. Tuesday night, Hungate had 10 kills in her varsity debut as the Angels overcame the absence of five players, including a pair of starters out with injuries, and defeated host Mother McAuley,...