Photos by Dave Ruggles Confidence. That’s all that was lacking from Ultimate B18 Gold in the first set of its title match against powerful Pac6 18 Blue out of Pacific Palisades, California, in the 18 Open division of the 2019 Boys Winter Volleyball Championship Monday at McCormick Place. “Yeah, they took it to us in the first set,” said Ultimate B18 Gold’s 6-foot-2 outside hitter Marty Jepsen from Marist. “I think we were just playing scared in the beginning, and that's not how we play. “We just really needed to pat each other o...

Young Illini Elite 16 Cardinal, which features eighth-grader Kenna Wollard (front row, far left) and freshman Averie Hernandez of Normal West (top row, second from right), is 3-1 after two days of the Great Lakes Power League. The two best teams perhaps in any gymnasium in Illinois collided early Sunday in the Great Lakes Power League Division I. SPVB 18 Elite, which returns three players from the team that won the AAU national championship in the 18 Open division last summer, and SPVB 16 Elite, which features nearly all the players w

Each week during the season, Illprepvb.com will name a "Player of the Week" selected from nominations provided by Illinois volleyball coaches. Coaches can nominate their players by providing a 100-150 word summary of their achievement and a 2x3-inch high quality headshot and sending it to illprepvb@gmail.com by noon on Sunday of the week for which they wish to nominate a player.This week’s “Player of the Week” is (Stanford) Olympia’s 5-foot-9 senior outside hitter Kalli Terrell. Terrell is a four-year varsity standout who recently recorded ...

Katie Erdmann of tiny Forreston (back row, second from right) led the state in kills last fall. Now she's looking to take her game to the next level. People’s reactions range from stoic to surprised when Katie Erdmann tells people she goes to tiny Forreston High School (enrollment: 246), nestled in the northwest corner of Illinois some 30 miles west of Rockford. “They don’t really joke about it, but they always ask me how many people are in my class,” she said. “When I tell them about 50, they say, ‘Oh, my goodness.’ “Yes … I know ...

SPVB B18 Elite features (front row, from left) Albert Atczylo (Hinsdale South), Carter Stenmark (Naperville Central), Frederick Halper (Downers Grove North), Ryan Swartz (Glenbard West) and Kevin Lamp (Lake Forest), and (back row, from left) Joshua Gottlieb (Wheaton Warrenville South), Benett Schreiner (Wheaton North), Danny Risner (West Aurora), Rico Wardlow (Bolingbrook), Hunter Bailey (Timothy Christian) and Kevin Kauling (Neuqua Valley). This is the season SPVB B18 Elite has been pointing toward since finishing second in the 16 Open ...

Each week during the season, Illprepvb.com will name a "Player of the Week" selected from nominations provided by Illinois volleyball coaches. Coaches can nominate their players by providing a 100-150 word summary of their achievement and a 2x3-inch high quality headshot and sending it to illprepvb@gmail.com by noon on Sunday of the week for which they wish to nominate a player.This week's "Player of the Week" is St. Charles North's Katie Lanz. Lanz, a 6-0 senior setter/outside hitter and North Carolina-Wilmington recruit, had 6 kills, 6 di...

Camryn Hannah led Marist to a second consecutive IHSA Class 4A championship. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Today, we continue to announce the Illprepvb.com 2018 Girls All-State Volleyball Team with those players named to the Second Team. 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. Players represent all four IHSA classes and hail from every cor...