West Aurora graduate Lauren Carlini never played at Redbird Arena, but she has played just about everywhere else during her college and professional career. She was scheduled to play in Tokyo this summer with the U.S. women's national team. Today, we continue our countdown of the 100 All-Times Best Illinois Girls Volleyball Players with Nos. 1-10. 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 s...
Benet's Muisenga among those to be honored on ESPN as First-Team AVCA All-Americans
Benet setter Rachel Muisenga, who plays club for Adversity, will be among the 24 AVCA First-Team All-Americans who will be honored Sunday at 3:00 p.m. Sunday on ESPN. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) A year ago on New Year’s Eve, 24 of the best high school seniors nationwide competed on the same court against one another in the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Under Armour All-America match.In November, the AVCA announced that it would cancel the All-America match in Orlando, Florida, with plans to honor the athletes at a later date...
Bolingbrook puts the finishing touches on a victory over Joliet Catholic
Bolingbrook players surround their coach, Molly DeSerf, after the Raiders' victory Saturday over visiting Joliet Catholic. The handful of fans in the stands and perhaps a few at the scorer’s table may have been gnawing at their fingernails when Joliet Catholic made a late run in the third game to trim what had been a 21-11 deficit to 22-16 Saturday at Bolingbrook.Nervous? Not Bolingbrook’s Kaylee Wnek.“I trust my team,” said the 5-foot-4 libero. “I trust the person behind me. I trust the person next to me. I really believe in them. I r...
McAuley's ballhandlers pass the test at Nazareth as Mighty Macs remain perfect
Nazareth's Izzy Decker (3) had 11 kills, but they weren't enough as the Roadrunners fell Monday to visiting Mother McAuley. (Photo by Dave Ruggles) A successful offense starts with good passing, and Mother McAuley passed the test with flying colors Monday.Molly McDermott and 5-8 middle hitter Abby Sarich each had 7 kills, 6-foot-3 middle hitter Molly Boyd added 5 kills and Caroline Macander passed out 21 assists as Mother McAuley defeated Nazareth, 25-22, 25-17, Monday in LaGrange Park.And it all started with good passing.“Our middles defi...
Pickering, Montini breeze past Mater Dei; Pleasant Plains exploits Chicago Christian
Montini had a lot to celebrate Friday, rolling past Breese Mater Dei, 25-10, 25-11, in an IHSA Class 2A semifinal at Redbird Arena. (Photo by Dave Ruggles). Class 2A Class 2A By Phil BrozynskiIllprepvb.com EditorNormal – Can anyone stop Montini?Breese Mater Dei certainly couldn’t.“You just watched the best team in the state dominate a team that was really, really strong,” said Breese Mater Dei coach Chad Rakers after watching his team succumb to the Broncos, 25-11, 25-10, in an IHSA Class 2A semifinal Friday at Redbird Arena.Montini s...
Benet finds offense here, there and everywhere in opener at Wheaton North
Kaneland is a team that hopes to make a long run in the postseason, and achieving that goal started with a strong showing Wednesday at the Wheaton North Blue & Gold Invitational. After losing his most experienced player and most proven offensive threat – 6-2 senior middle hitter Ann Marie Remmes – to an ACL injury during the club season, Benet coach Brad Baker wondered where his offense would come from this fall. The answer? Everywhere. Outside. Rightside. Middle. Service line. The Redwings scored from all over the cou...
Hinsdale Central's game speed just a little too quick for Timothy Christian
Timothy Christian, which is only in its second full year of fielding a varsity team, features seniors (from left) Ben Tameling, Josh Loerop, Andrew Sheehan, Jason Westra and Kyle Teune. Timothy Christian’s schedule hasn’t exactly prepared the Trojans for what they’ll see on the other side of the net when the IHSA tournament begins in two weeks.“Adequate competition,” is what Timothy Christian coach David Barker calls his team’s slate of conference opponents.So while Wednesday’s 25-18, 25-15 loss at Hinsdale Central – the first time Timoth...
Illprepvb.com ranks the 10 All-Time Best Illinois Boys High School Volleyball Teams, Nos. 6-10
Brother Rice's flirtation with perfection ended in the 2007 quarterfinals (Photo courtesy of Paul Ickes) The COVID-19 pandemic denied high school volleyball fans a 2020 boys’ season, but we can still celebrate some of the great teams of the past by naming the 10 All-Time Best Boys High School Volleyball Teams.The boys' first sanctioned state tournament was held in 1992. Richards dominated the landscape that season, not only becoming the first state champion in IHSA history, but also the first unbeaten state champion.There have been ot...
Illprepvb.com presents the 100 All-Time Best Illinois Girls Volleyball Players, Nos. 71-80
Jacksonville's Jaelyn Keene (2) had nearly 3,000 kills during her combined high school and college careers. (Photo courtesy of Illinois State University, cover photo courtesy of St. Louis University) Today, we continue our countdown of the 100 All-Times Best Illinois Girls Volleyball Players with Nos. 71-80. 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....
Normal West spills Champaign Central in battle of teams no longer on the bubble
Normal West, ranked No. 2 in Class 3A by Illprepvb.com, won the eighth regional in school history Thursday with a 25-17, 25-18 victory over Champaign Central at the Bloomington Class 3A Regional at the Robert Frank Sports Complex. (Photos by Randy Sharer) By Randy SharerSpecial to Illprepvb.comBLOOMINGTON – The Champaign Central volleyball team has improved significantly from the beginning of the season.The only problem for the Maroons in the Bloomington Class 3A Regional final Thursday was running into a Normal West squad that has impro...