California teams from Blue Star Media Net 25 girls’ volleyball rankings fuel CIF-Southern Section Division 1 pool play; four teams from Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, New Jersey make debuts

BENSALEM, Pa. – California here we come.

If there’s one state that can turn the Blue Star Media Net 25 girls’ volleyball rankings on its ear, it’s California. Whenever the California Interscholastic Federation sectionals are drawn up, the volleyball universe pays attention.

However, it’s the Southern Section Division 1 pool play that’s piqued our interest—as it always does—and with four teams from the Net 25 in the two four-team pools, it’s volleyball at another level. Division I talent abounds and the quality of play is off the charts. Future national team players are on display because southern California is an incubator for the sport—beach too!

On Sunday, the CIF-Southern Section revealed the nine divisions, including the all-powerful Division 1, which for the second year used pool play to determine a champion.

Pool A includes No. 1 Mater Dei (Santa Ana), No. 11 Sierra Canyon School (Chatsworth), Marymount (Los Angeles) and Palos Verdes (Palos Verdes Estates).

Pool B consists of No. 2 Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach), No. 16 Huntington Beach, Alemany (Mission Hills) and Los Alamitos.

The round-robin format opens Wednesday and finishes up next week on Oct. 24 and 28. The pool winners meet in the final on Nov. 4 at Cerritos College in Norwalk, 7 p.m. PT.

After that it’s the Northern and Southern regional followed by the state finals from Nov. 17-18 R Santiago Canyon College in Orange (or Orange County).

The key CIF Sections in Division 1 are San Diego, Southern, Central, North Coast and Central Coast.

Elsewhere, four teams from Georgia, Hawaii, New Jersey and Illinois join the Net 25 rankings.

No. 17 Pope (Marietta, Ga.) returns to the Net 25 and No. 18 Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.) is back for the first time this season. The newbies are No. 20 Kamehameha-Kapalama (Honolulu) and No. 22 Sparta (N.J.).

All four recorded enormous wins and in the case of Benet, it captured the prestigious Autumnfest in Lombard, Ill. Sparta took down New Jersey monster and No. 23 Immaculate Heart Academy (Washington Township) in straight sets. Pope is one of the favorites to win the Georgia Class AAAAAA title and the same goes for Kamehameha-Kapalama in Hawaii Division I.

The next month will fly by as the postseason usually does.

That’ll do it for the second week in October. The postseason has already started in Indiana, Hawaii and Georgia and the rest will fall into line by the end of the month.

The Blue Star Media Net 25 girls’ volleyball rankings return Oct. 25. Have a Happy Halloween.

Stay safe. We hope to see you at a game soon. – Christopher Lawlor

Blue Star Media Net 25 Girls’ Volleyball Rankings, Oct. 18, 2023

1. Mater Dei, Santa Ana, Calif. (35-2)

Previous rank: 1.

Digs: The Monarchs are Trinity League champions with an 8-0 record after dispatching Santa Margarita (Rancho Santa Margarita), 25-13, 25-10, 25-20, in the regular-season sendoff. Sophomore outside hitter Layli Ostovar hammered 16 kills, senior Malyssa Cawa had 13 digs and Brown-bound setter Julia Kakkis send out 31 assists. The “second season” or the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 playoffs start Wednesday. In Pool A, the Monarchs meet Palos Verdes (Palos Verdes Estates) in the first of three round-robin matches that will continue the final two next week.

2. Mira Costa, Manhattan Beach, Calif. (35-2)

Previous: 2.

Digs: Senior McKenna Collins provided 12 digs and 12 service receptions when the Mustang completed a 10-0 mark to capture the Bay League title in sweeping Culver City, 25-4, 25-14, 25-21. Next up is the CIF-Southern Section Division 1 Pool B round-robin playoffs with Los Alamitos Wednesday. The play continues on Oct. 24 and 28.

3. Hamilton Southeastern, Fishers, Ind. (29-0)

Previous: 3.

Digs: Won the Class 4A Zionsville Sectional championship, defeating Noblesville, 25-7, 25-9, 2512, in the final and Noblesville, 25-17, 25-16, 27-25, in the semifinals. The Royals continue their state title defense in the regional semifinals with Harrison (West Lafayette) Saturday. Later that same day the winner meets Homestead (Fort Wayne) or Carroll (Fort Wayne) in the final. The regional winner heads to Semi-States on Oct. 28.

4. Prestonwood Christian Academy, Plano, Texas (30-4)

Previous: 4.

Digs: With TAPPS Class 6A, District 1 matches remaining, the Lions are perfect through nine outings. The regular-season finale is at Ursuline Academy (Dallas) on Sept. 24.

5. Cathedral Catholic, San Diego, Calif. (28-4)

Previous: 5.

Digs: The Dons won three matches at the Sage Creek Series in Carlsbad, Calif., and closed out the Western League slate and regular season with University City (San Diego) Tuesday.

6. Assumption, Louisville, Ky. (28-4)

Previous: 6.

Digs: Charlotte Moriarity pounded out 13 kills and added 11 digs when the Rockets swept then-No. 8 Notre Dame Academy (Park Hills, Ky.), 25-19, 25-15, 26-24. Next up is the 26^th District playoffs this week.

7. Wayzata, Plymouth, Minn. (27-0)

Previous: 9.

Digs: Defeated Chaska and Maple Grove in three sets and closed out the regular season at Minnetonka Tuesday.

8. Grand Oaks, Spring, Texas (40-1)

Previous: 10.

Digs: With two District 13-6A matched left, the Grizzlies are looking to go a perfect 12-0 but Conroe and Cleveland stand in the way.

9. Papillion (Neb.)-La Vista South (31-0)

Previous: 11.

Digs: Defeated Papillion-LaVista, 25-23, 25-23, 25-20. Junior setter Charlee Solomon directed the offense with 22 assists and sophomore Kami Dyrstad added 14 digs.

10. Divine Savior Holy Angels, Milwaukee (41-1)

Previous: 12.

Digs: Defeated Menomonee Falls, 19-25, 25-19, 25-22, 25-11, in the regular season finale. Sophia Wendlick spiked 23 kills, Olivia Durst had 16 digs and Belmont-bound Jordan Czajkowski handed out 32 assists. The Dashers, who won the Greater Metro Conference with an 8-0 mark, tip the Division 1 regionals this week.

11. Sierra Canyon School, Chatsworth, Calif. (33-6)

Previous: 13.

Digs: Clinched the Mission League championship with a 10-0 record and sweeping Marlborough (Los Angeles) and Notre Dame Academy (Los Angeles) in three sets to close the regular season. The Trailblazers play Marymount (Los Angeles) in CIF-Southern Section Division 1 Pool A action.

12. Carrollwood Day School, Tampa, Fla. (23-2)

Previous: 15.

Digs: The Patriots carried a six-game win streak in the District 9-3A tournament this week. They played Santa Fe Catholic (Lakeland) Monday in the quarterfinals. The semifinals are Tuesday and final Thursday.

13. Mother McAuley, Chicago (29-5)

Previous: 7.

Digs: The Mighty Macs lost in the Autumnfest final to No. 18 Benet Academy (Lisle, Ill.), 22-25, 22-25. When the Class 4A regional start next week, they are the top seed in the 18-team bracket.

14. Cornerstone Christian School, San Antonio (34-7)

Previous: 14.

Digs: Lost to then-No. 19 Dripping Springs (Texas), 24-26, 25-21, 19-25, 25-21, 15-10. The junior hitting tandem of Aniya Hall (20 kills) and Texas A&M-bound Megan Fitch (18) combined to spike 38 kills and Kaia Thiele handed out 26 assists and Natalia Jackson had 24. The Lady Warriors do not compete for a state championship. Season complete.

15. Pace Academy, Atlanta (32-3)

Previous: 17.

Digs: The Knights won the Area 5-AAAA tournament title, sweeping Lovett (Atlanta) in three sets and now shift their focus to the Class AAAA first round when they host Seckinger (Buford) in the first round.

16. Huntington Beach, Calif. (27-7)

Previous: 16.

Digs: The Oilers open CIF-Southern Section Division 1 Pool B with Alemany (Mission Hills) Wednesday. Pool play continues with Los Alamitos on Oct. 24 and No. 2 Mira Costa (Manhattan Beach) on Oct. 26.

17. Pope, Marietta, Ga. (35-3)

Previous: Not ranked.

Digs: The Greyhounds return to the Net 25 after knocking off then-No. 22 Alpharetta (Ga.), 26-24, 25-12, 25-20, 25-17, in the Region 7-AAAAAA final. This week they open the Class AAAAAA state tournament hosting Woodstock.

18. Benet Academy, Lisle, Ill. (31-2)

Previous: Not ranked.

Digs: The Redwings are back in the Net 25 after annexing the Glenbard East Autumnfest championship last weekend in the Lombard, Ill. They toppled then-No. 7 Mother McCauley (Chicago), 25-22, 25-22, in the final and a rematch of last year’s Illinois Class 4A final. Sophomore setter Ellie Stiernagle sent out 25 assists and Yale-pledge and middle hitter Gabby Stasys crushed nine spikes. The regular season ends this week with two East Suburban Catholic Conference matches and next week the Class 4A regional gets underway with the final on Oct. 26.

19. Marist, Chicago (28-4)

Previous: 23.

Digs: The regular season ends this week at Marian Catholic (Chicago Heights, Ill.).

20. Kamehameha-Kapalama, Honolulu (25-3)

Previous: Not ranked.

Digs: The Warriors join the Net 25 rankings on the strength of two match victories over Interscholastic League of Honolulu rival Punahou School (Honolulu) in four and three sets, respectively. The ILH tournament continues this week.

21. Bob Jones, Madison, Ala. (46-3)

Previous: 20.

Digs: The Patriots host the Class 7A Area 7 semifinals and final Thursday. They play Florence in the semifinals and the winner gets James Clemens (Madison) or Austin (Decatur) later that night.

22. Sparta, N.J. (17-0)

Previous: Not ranked.

Digs: New Jersey’s newly minted No. 1 squad turned aside then-No. 19 Immaculate Heart Academy (Washington Township, N.J.) in two sets and have won 25 consecutive matches through last weekend. It’ll be a busy week for the Spartans, who play unbeaten Morristown Wednesday and open the Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex County Tournament quarterfinals Thursday. The semifinals and final are Saturday in Hackettstown. The Group 2 state tournament begins Oct. 27.

23. Immaculate Heart Academy, Washington Township, N.J. (20-1)

Previous: 19.

Digs: The Blue Eagles saw their win streak halted at 43 games but rebounded in the Bergen County Tournament quarterfinals, beating Ramapo (Franklin Lakes), 25-14, 25-18. They meet Demarest Thursday in the semifinals. Additionally, coach Michelle Yoo’s squad clinched the Big North Conference United Division title with a 6-0 record.

24. St. Francis, Mountain View, Calif. (29-4)

Previous: 23.

Digs: The regular season ended with Valley Christian (San Jose) on Tuesday.

25. Branson School, Ross, Calif. (22-4)

Previous: 25.

Digs: The Bulls finished 8-0 in the Marin County League and close out the regular season on Wednesday.

Dropped out: No. 8 Notre Dame Academy (Park Hills, Ky.); No. 19 Dripping Springs (Texas); No. 22 Alpharetta (Ga.) and No. 24 Punahou School (Honolulu).

Special Consideration: Punahou School (Honolulu); Alpharetta (Ga.); Notre Dame Academy (Park Hills, Ky.); Lake Travis (Austin, Texas); St. Mary’s Dominican (New Orleans); Lake Catholic (Mentor, Ohio); Fayetteville (Ark.); Northville (Mich.); St. James Academy (Lenexa, Ka.); Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.); Dike (Iowa)-New Hartford;St. Mary’s (Lancaster, N.Y.); Pope John Paul II (Royersford, Pa.); Lafayette (Wildwood, Mo.); Valor Christian (Highlands Ranch, Colo.); Blue Valley North (Overland Park, Kan.); Jesuit (Portland, Ore.); Xavier College Prep (Phoenix); Oconomowoc (Wis.) and Skyridge (Lehi, Utah).

Records are through Sunday.

About: The Blue Star Media Net 25 High School Girls’ Volleyball Rankings are released weekly from August until the conclusion of the high school season in November. Criteria considered are the quality of the team and its players, strength of schedule, tradition, and quality of the team’s league, conference, region or district. The rankings are compiled by Blue Star Media’s Christopher Lawlor, who consults with a national network of coaches, talent evaluators and prep sports writers. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) at @clawlor.