The Palos Point Series has been put on hold until at least January due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Palos Court Point Series, the traditional start of the boys’ club season in Illinois for age groups 14 through 18, has been postponed until at least January, Palos Courts Sports Complex director Adam Beck said in an email to participating clubs Monday.“Since we are, unfortunately, in no different phase here in Illinois, we are going to have to cancel the November portion of the Palos Point Series and hope we can get restarted in January 202...
SPVB B18 Elite’s national championship hopes go down in the (Balboa) Bay
Chicago Bounce 18 Red defeated Pipeline 18-1, 25-21, 25-21, to win the 18 USA division at the 2021 USAV Boys Junior National Volleyball championships Wednesday in Kansas City. Kansas City, Missouri – The end came like a rushing wave.After beating the Nos. 2 and 6 seeds to reach the quarterfinals of the 18 Open division at the 2021 USAV Boys Junior National Championships at the Kansas City Convention Center, SPVB B18 Elite was swamped Wednesday by Balboa Bay 18 Blue, 25-12, 25-22.“We started off with a service error to start the match,” sai...
Balboa Bay ends 630 Volleyball 16-1's run to a USAV national championship
630 Volleyball 16-1 reached the championship match of the 16 Open division Saturday at the 2021 USAV Boys Junior National Championship in Kansas City, Missouri, before running afoul of Balboa Bay 16 Blue. Kansas City, Missouri – There would be no second scintillating comeback for 630 Volleyball 16-1.After mounting a furious rally to defeat Bay to Bay 16-1 (Campbell, California) in the semifinals, 630 Volleyball 16-1 saw Balboa Bay 16 Blue dash its national title hopes late Saturday at the 2021 USAV Boys Junior National Championship at the...
There's something special about playing for your mom, and for moms coaching their daughters
Dakota's Tabytha Toelke likely would have finished in the top three on the IHSA all-time career kills list but for the pandemic-shortened season. The four-year starter led the state with 562 kills as a junior. https://youtu.be/RHMmGZ6fp4E By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.comTheir hometowns are separated by hundreds of miles and they have never met, but Dakota’s Tabytha Toelke, Paris’ Emma Pinkston and Herrin’s Kelsey Jurich have a lot in common.All three volleyball stars are multisport athletes, team captains, outstanding students...
Ella Ramsay's cerebral approach has Maroon fans thinking 'red'
Four-year starter and Loyola University recruit Ella Ramsay (14) of Moline worked tirelessly to turn herself into a six-rotation player for the Maroons. (Photo by Randy Sharer) Moline's Ella Ramsay By Randy SharerSpecial to Illprepvb.comMOLINE – Moline High School volleyball fans have their fingers crossed.They haven’t been able to cheer their Maroons to a state tournament berth since 2002, but now they see Ella Ramsay’s approach could lead to a Class 4A Final Four appearance at Redbird Arena on November 12-13.Fans have actually seen two...
Glenbard West is going home (but in a good way); Lockport, Lake Park win
Sophomore Jakobi Lange (7) had 13 kills for Hinsdale Central, but it wasn't enough as Glenbard West prevailed, 25-21, 25-18, at the Hinsdale Central Sectional. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Glenbard West senior Danny Pasinski knew he was going to get a lot of work Tuesday against Hinsdale Central.The 6-foot-4 outside hitter was ready for it.“We knew from the scouting report that our outside was going to work a little bit more than our other positions tonight,” Pasinski said. “So I think I got ran a little bit more, which is nice.“I hit a load to...
IHSA pulls the plug on state tournaments, but does not nix spring sports entirely
There will not be an IHSA boys volleyball tournament at Hoffman Estates in 2020. But the organization refused to rule out the possibility that some contests could be conducted later this spring or summer if the state government and health professionals deem it is safe. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) Following Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzer’s decision Friday to close all Illinois schools for the remainder of the year, one astute boys volleyball coach reacted to the IHSA’s announcement that it would postpone until today a decision whether to cancel spri...
Illprepvb.com presents the 100 All-Time Best Illinois Girls Volleyball Players, Nos. 51-60
Augusta Southeastern's Kolby McClelland (20) ranks third on the IHSA all-time career kill list and now stars for Murray State. (Photo courtesy of Murray State). Today, we continue our countdown of the 100 All-Times Best Illinois Girls Volleyball Players with Nos. 51-60. Volleyball has come a long way since the IHSA began sponsoring a state tournament series in 1974. You might be hard-pressed to recognize the game. Not only have the rules changed, but so has the caliber of the athletes who compete.The growth of club volleyball, improve...
Lake Park, Schellinger hand top-ranked St. Francis first loss of the season
No. 1-ranked St. Francis saw its winning streak to open the season end at 23 matches Friday at the hands of Lake Park. By Matt Le CrenSpecial to Illprepvb.comTop-ranked St. Francis no longer has the pressure of trying to go undefeated.Josh Schellinger and his Lake Park teammates made sure of that.The 6-foot-6 Schellinger and 6-5 Andrew Deardorff each put down 9 kills, and setter Elijah Wrobel dished out 24 assists as the third-ranked Lancers upset St. Francis, 25-16, 25-23, Friday in Wheaton.The loss ended a 23-match winning streak by the ...
Meet me in the middle? SPVB 18 Red defeats Illini Elite 18 Black for AAU title
Illini Elite 18 Black survived nearly a half-dozen three-set matches to reach the championship match of the 18 Club division in Orlando, but ultimately fell to SPVB 18 Red. Orlando, Florida – Sports Performance 18 Red and Illini Elite 18 Black traveled a combined 2,300 miles to play in the championship of the 18 Club division at the 48th AAU Junior National Volleyball Championships at the Orange County Convention Center.Wouldn’t it have been easier to settle things somewhere in the middle? Say, Dwight, Illinois?Maybe the accommodations are...