Recent Junior Varsity News
Xavier Prep Beats Gilbert for Westwood Tourney Title
Gators Defend TOC Title
We all know who the best team in the state is right now. It's like asking why people eat bacon. It's obvious.
We didn't need to see Phoenix Xavier Prep beat Gilbert, 25-17-, 25-22 Saturday night at Mesa Westwood High in the Westwood Tournament of Champions gold division title match. What we didn't know is how good Xavier Prep really is.
On Saturday, Xavier Prep showed it has weapons even beyond setter Bianca Arellano (who had more than 20 assists), hitter Abby Hornacek (eight kills, five in the first game), middle blockerMegan O'Sullivan (five kills) and libero Ana Panagiotakopoulos. Senior middle Allison Brady (three kills and three blocks) is stepping up. And sophomore hitters Mia Teilborg (three blocks and seven kills, five in the second game) and Danielle Westfall (five kills) are combining to fill the hole left by All State-caliber senior Kat Schulz, who decided not to play this year.
"That's what we were hoping," Xavier Prep coach Tim McHale said of Teilborg's and Westfall's emergence. Xavier Prep had at least six players record two kills in the first game. But Gilbert didn't help themselves, with eight unforced errors (including five service errors, which were due in part to Gilbert trying to serve aggresively to get Xavier Prep out of its offensive rhythm).
"We learned that we have some things to work on for sure," Gilbert coach Joe Hesse said. "We're not quite in Xavier's class quite yet. You can't make mistakes against them. " Gilbert, which was led by Penina Snuka's 10 kills (seven in the second game) and Macey Gardner's five kills, elminated most of its errors in the second game and took an 8-6 lead. But Xavier Prep went on a 12-4 run to take the lead for good. Snuka accounted for five points in a late run that helped Gilbert come within two points, 23-21, but Xavier Prep would finish the game on kills from Hornacek and O'Sullivan.
(ITL's quick observations: We all know Snuka and Gardner hit hard. But WOW. Snuka is a dynamo. And Gardner is the hardest hitter I've ever seen since covering Arizona prep volleyball the last six years, that's including former Sunnyslope star Madison Kingdon, who is now UA's top hitter. You just never know what Arellano is going to do, which makes her even more dangerous. May be best all-around player in the state. Hornaceck is a consistent, accurate hitter and hardly makes an error anywhere on the court.)
Xavier Setter/Opposite listed by prepvolleyball.com
PrepVolleyball.com completes the 2012 Senior Aces today with "the 150," those Aces, not in the top 100, determined to be among the top 250 Class of 2012 recruits in the nation.
Choosing these Aces was in many ways more difficult than ranking the top 100, because there isn’t much to distinguish a player who might be No. 220, if this list was presented in rank order, from a player who is No. 500 and whose name does not appear here. Both are terrific players, gifted athletes and will contribute significantly to the college of their choice. Remember: just because your name does not appear here does not mean that you are not recognized as a talented and valuable player. Keep working hard and stay positive!
I also want to stress, once again, that this list is derived exclusively from college coach input and there was a lot of it. Some of my very favorite players to watch and even more of my very favorite people did not make this list. Simply put, I do not get a vote.
To that end, there were several players championed by multiple college coaches who did not make the final cut. They are the last players out and would be in the top 325 or so if we were to expand the list. I will recognize them AFTER the Senior Aces are revealed.
Please see the initial release on August 31 for information on how the list was determined.
PREPVOLLEYBALL.COM’S SENIOR ACES NOS. 101-250 (LISTED ALPHABETICALLY BY POSITION)
Setters (35)
Tanna Aljoe, 5-9 S, Grapevine (Texas), TAV – San Diego State
Morgan Bergren, 5-10 S, Delta (Muncie, Indiana), Munciana -- Kentucky
Sara Blasier, 6-0 S, Slinger (Wisconsin), Milwaukee Sting -- Rice
Meredith Boe, 5-10 Setter, Central Catholic (Bloomington, Illinois), Illini Elite – St. Louis
Katie Brand, 6-1 S/RS, Central Catholic (Grand Island, Nebraska), NE Elite – Kansas State
Iris Brewer, 5-11 S, Ursuline Academy (Cincinnati, Ohio), Cincy Classics -- Wingate
Paige Brown, 5-6 S, St. James (Lenexa, Kansas), MAVS – Appalachian State
Kinsey Caldwell, 5-8 S, Waverly-Shell Rock (Waverly, Iowa), Six Pack -- UNLV
Caitlin Donahoe, 5-11 S, Cardinal Gibbons (Ft. Lauderdale, Florida), Boomers – Miami
Kamrin Gold, 6-1 S/OH, Carman-Ainsworth (Flint, Michigan), Legacy – Grand Valley State
Alexia Heist, 5-8 S, Eastwood (El Paso, Texas), El Paso Wildfire – Texas Christian
Mary Henry, 6-0 S, Marian (Bloomfield Hills, Michigan), MI Elite -- Duquesne
Abigail Hornacek, 6-0 S, Xavier Prep (Phoenix, Arizona), Spiral – Kansas
Allie Hutcheson, 6-1 S/RS, Kennedy (Cedar Rapids, Iowa), Iowa Rockets – Northern Colorado
Alyssa Ivey, 5-8 S, Ravenwood (Brentwood, Tennessee), Alliance – Middle Tennessee State
Kelly Johnson, 6-2 S, Palos Verdes (Palos Verdes Estates, California), Mizuno Long Beach -- Yale
Aubrey Marsellis, 6-1 S/OH, Owasso (Oklahoma), Club One – Uncommitted or commitment not known
Hanna Muzzonigro, 5-10 S, Pine-Richland (Gibsonia, Pennsylvania), Renaissance – Notre Dame
Mary Nilles, 5-11 S, Batavia (Illinois), Sports Performance -- Marquette
Halle Peterson, 5-10 Setter, Rockford (Michigan), DFFO – Michigan State
Emma Pettit, 5-10 S, Fossil Ridge (Fort Collins, Colorado), Norco – Villanova
Amy Rosenbaum, 6-1 S, Copperas Cove (Texas), Austin Juniors -- Baylor
Brittany Sample, 5-8 S, Hebron (Carrollton, Texas), TAV – West Virginia
JoJo Schnabl, 5-9 S, Los Alamitos (CA), Mizuno Long Beach – North Carolina
Jenna Spadafora, 6-1 Setter, Carroll (Fort Wayne, Indiana) Fort Wayne Juniors – Ball State
Sam Staker, 6-2 S/OH, Taylorsville (Utah), Club Utah – Uncommitted or commitment not known
Jordan Timmer, 5-10 Setter, Lowell (Michigan), MVA – Central Michigan
Kimberly Vaio, 5-10 Setter, Incarnate Word (San Antonio, Texas), Alamo – Uncommitted or commitment not known
Jaylen Villanueva, 5-8 S, Los Alamitos (California), Mizuno Long Beach – UCSB
Carley Warner, 5-10 S, St. Francis (Wheaton, Illinois), Sports Performance -- Cincinnati
Kimmy Whitson, 5-11 S, Palo Alto (California), City Beach -- Pacific
Natalie Wichern, 5-10 S, Brebeuf Jesuit (Indianapolis, Indiana), Team Indiana -- Butler
Sierra Wilson, 5-11 S, Troy (Fullerton, California), TCA -- Alabama
Anne Yanda, 5-9 Setter, Holy Innocents (Atlanta, Georgia), A5 -- Iowa
Complete Senior Ace list can be found on prepvolleyball.com
Xavier setter listed #30 by prepvolleyball.com
PrepVolleyball.com is proud to present its Senior Aces, the top 250 volleyball recruits in the Class of 2012. We’ve been working hard since May to identify and compile a list of the best U.S. recruits in the next senior class. Every day through Sept. 7, we will reveal 10 names, in descending order, of the top 100 Senior Aces until we get to No. 1. Today, we present those recruits ranked Nos. 30-21 in the Class of 2012. Please see last Monday’s Prologue for information on how the list was determined.
30. Bianca Arellano, 5-8 S, Xavier College Prep (Phoenix, Arizona), Club Red -- Tennessee
With a disarming smile and a gentle touch, no one takes care of her teammates more than Arellano. She has a way of making players believe in themselves and, in that way, gets the absolute best out of those on the court with her. Opponents, however, should not presume that Arellano’s kindly personality means she will take it easy on them. To the contrary, she is a cut throat, cold-blooded killer who wants to win and knows how to get it done. Perhaps the fastest player in the country on her side of the net, Arellano’s lightning-quick first step helps her team stay “in system” even on mediocre passes. She has superior hand-eye coordination, which allows her to deliver perfect sets and be a well above average blocker for someone her height. An astute student of the game and a tireless worker, Arellano’s play will demand court time early at Tennessee, where she has committed.
The complete listing of Senior Aces can be found on prepvolleyball.com
ASU's Preach On The Rise
- 09/05/2011, 4:30pm (CDT)
