Joliet Catholic's Bella Ray (14) tries to hit through the block of Sterling's Brooklyn Borum (10) and Kierra Collins (15). Photo by Dave Ruggles) By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.com NORMAL – Sterling believed all season. Now the Golden Warriors are back-to-back IHSA Class 3A champions. Brooklyn Borum bashed 16 kills, and what Grace Egan imagined came through as the freshman outside hitter added 11 kills and 5 digs, as Sterling stopped Joliet Catholic with a 25-16, 25-19 victory Saturday in the Class 3A championship match at R...

Sky High Adidas 16 Black flashed its potential when it finished 10th at the 2020 Triple Crown Volleyball NIT two weeks ago. https://youtu.be/FOg54ng8no4 Perhaps no one is harder on Sky High Adidas 16 Black than … Sky High Adidas 16 Black.“I have a lot of perfectionists on this team,” said Sky High Adidas 16 Black coach Steve Bonnem. “You can’t be that in this sport. You have to learn to get over the mistakes and move on from them. Even an elite team is going to make mistakes.”Sky High Adidas 16 Black certainly showed it can be an el...

New Trier's Colin Heath (12) and Glenbard West's Ben Harrington (1) could meet at Hoffman Estates again in 2020. (Photos by Dave Ruggles) Which teams will be among Illinois’ best in 2020? Peering into the Illprepvb.com crystal ball … Can Glenbard West return to the top of the Illinois boys volleyball world after falling to Marist and Marty Jepsen in the 2019 IHSA championship game? Can Marist repeat without the 2019 Illprepvb.com Player of the Year? Will New Trier ride its two fabulous outside hitters to the school’s first title in 25 years...

Crystal Lake Central defeated Andrew at the Mother McAuley Preview tournament Saturday to earn a berth in next October's Asics Challenge. By Randy WhalenSpecial to Illprepvb.comMaddy McCormick just wanted to get it over. So that's exactly what the Crystal Lake Central junior outside hitter did.Her match-ending kill gave the Tigers a 25-18, 25-23 win over upstart Andrew on Saturday in the title match of the Mother McAuley Preview Invite.With the championship match already starting nearly an hour late, and at least an hour-and-a-half ride hom...

(Photos by Dave Ruggles) Today, we are pleased to announce the Illprepvb.com 2019 Boys All-State Volleyball Team, our Player of the Year, Coach of the Year and Team of the Year. 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 current recruitment status. These players excelled on the court and represented their schools, their teams and their communities with distinction...

Ella Strausberger (front row, far right) and her Sports Performance 15 Elite teammates. Naperville Central boys volleyball coach Roger Strausberger and his daughter, Ella. By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorShe grew up in the gym watching her dad coach.She played soccer and volleyball as a youngster, but decided to focus on volleyball because she said it "kind of runs in the family.”She’s training as a setter, and sometimes father and daughter sit down and talk about strategy and how to run an offense.Naperville Central boys’ volleybal...

Adversity G16 Adidas may have learned some valuable lessons after competing in the 16 Open division at the Windy City National Qualifier. It was a beautiful Easter Sunday afternoon outside McCormick Place along Chicago’s lakefront for the final day of the 2019 adidas Windy City National Qualifier.   Inside, however? Well, that was a mixed bag. Dreams were shattered, hopes were dashed, and lessons were learned. Adversity G16 Adidas had already qualified for the 2019 USA Volleyball Girls Junior National Championships June 27-July 6 ...