POWERADE FAB 50 Rankings: Final
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The final two matches of the California Interscholastic Federation state championships last Saturday were played at a fever pitch. Both went to five games and were a great way to end the nation's 2011 season.
The season began with Papillion-La Vista South (Papillion, Neb.) in the No. 1 position in the FAB 50. The Titans end it there and can now officially be crowned as the POWERADE FAB 50 national champions. They will likely start off 2012 in the same spot as well since almost all of their major players will be back.
The California championships didn't provide many reasons to make too many changes in the final rankings, either. Division I champion Palo Alto (Palo Alto, Calif.) stayed at No. 9, although Division II champ Presentation (San Jose, Calif.) did move up to No. 14, just in front of Division I runner-up Marymount (Los Angeles, Calif.). Choosing which one deserved a higher ranking was the toughest decision of the final rankings.
Here are the 14th and final rankings for the 2011 season:
Compilers: Kirstin Olsen, Mark Tennis
Contributing: Doug Huff, Paul Muyskens
| 2011 POWERADE FAB 50 Girls' Volleyball Rankings: Final | |||
| RK (LW) | SCHOOL (CITY, STATE) | REC | COMMENT |
| 1 (1) | LaVista South Papillion, NE | 41-0 | This is the second year in a row Papillion-La Vista South has capped an unbeaten season with a No. 1 ranking in the FAB 50. Juniors Kadie and Amber Rolfzen, both 6-foot-3 and both on the U.S. junior national team, still have their senior seasons to go, along with setter Kelly Hunter. |
| 2 (2) | Lake Travis Austin, TX | 50-0 | The Cavaliers won it all this year, including tournaments at Pearland and Duncanville and then the Class 4A state title. Eight players on the squad will be playing at Division I colleges next year. The Mustangs are also the first undefeated Texas state champ since Windthorst in 2004 and the 12th overall. |
| 3 (3) | Assumption Louisville, KY | 43-1 | Kentucky Miss Volleyball Katie George paced the Rockets to a state title and also to major tournament wins in Las Vegas and Chicago. |
| 4 (4) | St. James Academy Lenexa, KS | 47-1 | This team's only loss was to No. 1 Papillion-La Vista South. That was followed by a fourth straight Class 4A state title. Senior Paige Brown has been chosen as the Kansas City area player of the year and leaves as the school's all-time leader in assists. |
| 5 (5) | Berkeley Prep School Tampa, FL | 30-2 | With two-time Florida Miss Volleyball winner Jordan Burgess leading the way, the Buccaneers won the Florida Class 4A state title. It was their third straight state crown. Burgess will play next at Stanford University. |
| 6 (6) | Benet Academy Lisle, IL | 39-3 | The Redwings won their first Class 4A state title by capturing their final 20 matches. Benet was led by two senior college prospects in 6-foot-3 Wisconsin recruit Meghan Haggerty and Virginia Tech recruit Jenna Jendryk. |
| 7 (7) | Penn Mishawaka, IN | 38-1 | Indiana's top overall squad repeated as Class 4A state champions and ended an unbeaten season for Avon in the finals. Senior Kaitlyn Hickey led the way. |
| 8 (8) | Chaparral Parker, CO | 31-0 | Texas-bound Nicole Dalton led the Wolverines to their second straight Class 5A state title and a perfect season. The team also was blessed with two other major college signers - Elizabeth Campbell (Duke) and Emily Podschweit (Colorado). |
| 9 (9) | Palo Alto Palo Alto, CA | 36-3 | The Vikings won their second straight CIF Division I state title Saturday at Concordia University against Marymount of Los Angeles, 25-17, 25-23, 22-25, 20-25, 17-15. MVP Melanie Wade had 27 kills. Palo Alto became first team in school history to win back-to-back state titles. |
| 10 (10) | Yorktown Yorktown, IN | 38-2 | The Tigers won the Class 3A state championship with a dominating tournament. Yorktown also handed neighboring power Muncie Burris a rare in-state regular-season loss. |
| 11 (11) | Alan C. Pope Marietta, GA | 43-2 | The Greyhounds have emerged as a legitimate national power the last two years. They won the Class AAAA state title and were led in kills by senior outside hitter Mary Hannah Arrington, who signed with Auburn. |
| 12 (12) | Bishop Miege Shawnee Mission, KS | 42-3 | Shelby Workman, bound for Kentucky, was the leading player for the Stags. They won their fourth straight Class 5A state crown and suffered all three of their losses to No. 4 St. James Academy. |
| 13 (13) | Avon Avon, IN | 39-1 | After an undefeated regular season, Avon lost its only match to No. 7 Penn in the Class 4A state final. |
| 14 (14) | Presentation San Jose, CA | 41-2 | This school comes from the same West Catholic Athletic League as 2008 and 2009 FAB 50 national champion Archbishop Mitty and also has to battle St. Francis of Mountain View regularly in that league. In the CIF Division II state final, the Panthers rallied to win their first state title after being down two sets to beat La Costa Canyon of Carlsbad. |
| 15 (15) | Marymount Los Angeles, CA | 34-5 | Marymount fell to Palo Alto in a hard-fought five-game match in the CIF Division I state championship. The Sailors have won six small-school state titles, five in Division IV, but were in their first title-match since 2006. |
| 16 (16) | Punahou School Honolulu, HI | 15-1 | Punahou won the HHSAA Division I state championship over Kamehameha. The Buff 'n Blu will continue to be a force next season as three key players return. |
| 17 (17) | Lovejoy Lucas, TX | 48-4 | The Leopards beat Abilene Wylie in five sets for the Class 3A state championship. They also became the first team in 3A history and fourth team ever to win four straight state titles. |
| 18 (18) | Portland Central Catholic Portland, OR | 33-0 | Oregon's dominant program made it three straight titles with this year's run in the state's highest classification. One player who will be missed next season is University of Oregon-bound Martenne Bettendorf. |
| 19 (19) | East Lake Tarpon Springs, FL | 22-1 | The Eagles went up by one position for the final rankings. They won the Florida Class 8A title behind kills leader Brittnay Estes. |
| 20 (20) | Los Alamitos Los Alamitos, CA | 37-4 | Despite losing in a four-game match to Marymount in the CIF Southern California Division I final, it was a great year for the Griffins. They won a CIF Southern Section title, won the Orange County championship and were second at the Durango Classic. |
| 21 (21) | Coppell Coppell, TX | 42-8 | The Class 5A state champs from Texas get a bump for the final rankings due to their high win total. The Cowgirls were led by coach Julie Green, who followed up a state title from the year before in Class 4A at Lake Travis. State title game MVP Kierra Holst will play next year at Oklahoma. |
| 22 (22) | Dos Pueblos Goleta, CA | 27-6 | The Chargers claim wins over both of the CIF Division I state finalists -- Palo Alto and Marymount of Los Angeles -- and they also have a win over CIF Division III state champion Cathedral Catholic. |
| 23 (23) | Bishop Moore Orlando, FL | 32-2 | Junior Lindsay Owens was among the standout players for the Hornets, who made it to the Class 4A state final before falling to No. 5 Berkeley Prep. |
| 24 (24) | Mount Notre Dame Cincinnati, OH | 24-5 | In their fifth Division I state tournament since 2005, the Cougars ended the 48-match win streak of defending champion St. Ursula (Toledo, Ohio) to win the title. All-Ohio junior Michelle Strizak will be a top returnee for the 2012 team. |
| 25 (25) | St. Ursula Academy Toledo, OH | 28-1 | The defending Division I state champion Arrows had a 48-match win streak halted by Mount Notre Dame (Cincinnati) in the finals. Senior Cassidy Croci, a New Hampshire recruit, led the way. |
| 26 (26) | Cary-Grove Cary, IL | 37-5 | The Trojans advanced to the state tournament for the third straight year and finished as Class 4A runner-up to Benet Academy. Ashley Rosch and Melanie Jereb led the way. |
| 27 (27) | Carroll Southlake, TX | 41-2 | For much of the season, the Dragons were the Class 5A equivalent in Texas of Lake Travis in 4A. They were upset in an early-round state playoff match, however, by Grapevine, so they have to be behind 5A champ Coppell in the final rankings. Their overall body of work for the season is still strong enough for a top-30 spot. |
| 28 (28) | Corona Del Mar Newport Beach, CA | 32-5 | The Sea Kings lost to No. 20 Los Alamitos in the CIF Division I Southern California bracket. CdM graduates only four seniors and has a budding young talent in freshman Hayley Hodson. |
| 29 (29) | Newport Harbor Newport Beach, CA | 26-10 | This team had a lot of losses, but was seemingly in every tough tournament, played in the toughest league in California and had many quality wins. Newport Harbor also made it to the semifinals of the CIF Southern California Division I playoffs, where it lost to Marymount. |
| 30 (30) | Washburn Rural Topeka, KS | 26-3 | Topeka city player of the year Dani Musselman helped the Blues go all the way to the top in Kansas' Class 6A playoff bracket. |
| 31 (31) | Cathedral San Diego, CA | 35-4 | The Dons defeated Albany 25-15, 23-25, 21-25, 31-29, 16-14 in a barnburner to win their third CIF Division III state championship in four years. They also were the No. 1 ranked team overall among teams in the CIF San Diego Section. |
| 32 (32) | Mater Dei Santa Ana, CA | 27-9 | The Monarchs were one of the top teams in Southern California all season, and their playoff loss was to No. 29 Newport Harbor. The young team has potential for next year and won the Torrey Pines Cal Challenge this year over Corona del Mar. |
| 33 (33) | Pius X Lincoln, NE | 38-3 | Nebraska's Class B state champs featured the talents of three-time all-state player Cassie Effken and two-time all-state pick Lauren Smith. |
| 34 (34) | Gilbert Gilbert, AZ | 35-10 | Macey Gardner, the Arizona Republic's Big School Player of the Year, led this team to the Division I state title. It was an up-and-down regular season, but in the playoffs the Tigers got hot and beat several higher-ranked teams. |
| 35 (35) | Xavier College Prep Phoenix, AZ | 42-3 | This was one of the teams that Gilbert knocked off in the Division I state playoffs. Until then, there wasn't much doubt that the Gators were Arizona's top team. Senior Bianca Arellano, junior Amanda Benson and sophomore Mia Teilborg topped the Gators' list of individual honorees. |
| 36 (36) | Cardinal Gibbons Fort Lauderdale, FL | 24-2 | Seniors Leigh Andrew and Katie Hillman had nearly identical stats up front in leading the Chiefs to a second-place finish behind No. 5 Berkeley Prep in the Class 4A state playoffs. |
| 37 (37) | Saint Francis Mountain View, CA | 32-9 | With Presentation winning the CIF Division II state title, St. Francis gets a slight rise for the final rankings as well. The Lancers actually beat the Panthers to win the CIF Central Coast Section Division II title, only to lose to them in a memorable five-game rematch in the Northern California final. |
| 38 (38) | Mater Dei Breese, IL | 41-3 | This was the top-ranked downstate team in Illinois and for the St. Louis metro area as well. The Knights captured the Class 3A state title. |
| 39 (39) | Martin County Stuart, FL | 27-5 | Florida State recruit Nicole Walch was the focal point of the Tiger attack. The squad won Florida's Class 7A state title. |
| 40 (40) | La Costa Canyon Carlsbad, CA | 31-9 | The Mavericks lost a heart-breaker to Presentation in the CIF Division II state championship after being up two sets. They had a strong year overall, showing great potential with young guns like Cosy Burnett and Brittany Abercrombie. |
| 41 (41) | Edison Huntington Beach, CA | 23-7 | After finishing in first place at the Ann Kang Invitational in Hawaii in August, the Chargers went on to enjoy a solid season. They lost in the CIF Southern Section Division IAA playoffs to No. 32 Mater Dei of Santa Ana 25-13, 26-24, 18-25, 25-17. |
| 42 (42) | Boyd McKinney, TX | 45-7 | Coach Kelly Quinn's club advanced to the Class 5A state final with six playoff victories, including three against state-ranked Georgetown, Austin Westlake and Cypress Falls. The Broncos got one game against Coppell in the championship, but fell 3-1. |
| 43 (43) | Saint Charles East Saint Charles, IL | 35-7 | With four-year standout Meghan Niski leading the way, the Saints made a run at the Class 4A state title and wound up with a third-place finish. |
| 44 (44) | Wapahani Selma, IN | 30-6 | The Raiders ended the 14-year Class 2A state title reign of Muncie Burris en route to winning the state championship. |
| 45 (45) | Muncie Burris Muncie, IN | 31-3 | Burris, which handed No. 7 and two-time Class 4A champion Penn its lone regular-season loss, had its 14-year run as Class 2A state champs end in the sectional final by eventual champion Wapahani. The Owls also had won 95 straight tournament games before that loss. |
| 46 (46) | Catholic Memorial Waukesha, WI | 46-6 | The Crusaders captured their state record-tying third straight Division 2 title. Senior Sara Connell and junior Aly Dawson were first-team all-state picks. |
| 47 (47) | Omaha Marian Omaha, NE | 34-9 | All-state libero Kate Elman paced the Crusaders all season. They lost in the Class A Nebraska semifinals by a competitive score to No. 1 Papillion-La Vista South. |
| 48 (48) | Horizon Scottsdale, AZ | 33-5 | The key player for the Huskies, who won a state title in 2010, was junior outside hitter Nikki Hess. They lost in this year's playoffs to eventual champion Gilbert. |
| 49 (49) | Bishop Kelley Tulsa, OK | 32-3 | The Comets completed their march to the state title with a three-game sweep of Edmond North. |
| 50 (50) | Henry Clay Senior Lexington, KY | 33-9 | Senior setter Jordan Strickland, one of the top players in Kentucky not from Assumption, led the Blue Devils to a semifinal finish in the state playoffs. Kentucky had a number of other solid squads other than Assumption, but Henry Clay was the only one that had fewer than 10 losses. |
| On the bubble: Bentonville (Bentonville, Ark.) 31-5-3; Burlington-Edison (Burlington, Wash.) 34-0-2; Canyon Randall (Amarillo, Texas) 32-6; Clovis West (Fresno, Calif.) 39-6; College Park (The Woodlands, Texas) 34-5; Dike New Hartford (Dike, Iowa) 46-3; Eden Prairie (Eden Prairie, Minn.) 27-6; El Camino (Sacramento, Calif.) 37-4; Fayetteville (Fayetteville, Ark.) 34-2; Georgetown (Georgetown, Texas) 36-12; Grandview (Aurora, Colo.) 29-2; Hamilton (Chandler, Ariz.) 33-9; Iowa City West (Iowa City, Iowa) 39-6; J.J. Pearce (Richardson, Texas) 36-14; Jackson (Massillon, Ohio) 27-1; Lafayette (Wildwood, Mo.) 33-5-1; Leon (Tallahassee, Fla.) 24-8; Marist (Chicago) 24-8; Mercy (Farmington Hills, Mich.) 65-4; Notre Dame (Sherman Oaks, Calif.) 28-3; Rockford (Rockford, Mich.) 60-8; Sacred Heart (Louisville, Ky.) 30-10; St. Francis (Sacramento, Calif.) 38-5; Thousand Oaks (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) 25-5; Tupelo (Tupelo, Miss.) 31-1; Walton (Marietta, Ga.) 26-8; Waverly-Shell Rock (Waverly, Iowa) 48-3; York (Elmhurst, Ill.) 32-4. | |||
| Dropped out: None. | |||