High School Players of the Week
For the 2015 high school season, Nebraska Prep Volleyball will name a Player of the Week – sponsored by Nebraska Juniors – for each of the six classes each Tuesday, starting on Tuesday, Sept. 8, and ending on Tuesday, Nov. 17.
Selections are made solely by Nebraska Prep Volleyball, based on personal observations, information entered into MaxPreps by coaches and nominations received. Nominations must be made by the high school team’s coach. A nomination does not guarantee selection, nor does the lack of a nomination prevent selection.
Coaches – to submit a nomination to Nebraska Prep Volleyball for Player of the Week, please send it by 10 p.m. on Sunday. You may submit as much or little information as you would like to: Berk@NebraskaPrepVolleyball.com.
2015 High School Players of the Week
Sponsored by:
Class A: Madi Stearns, 6-foot, Jr., OH, Millard South. After starting the year 5-16, Millard South has gone 10-4 in its past 14 matches and the junior outside hitter a big reason why. Earlier this year Stearns set a new school record with 30 kills in a 3-2 win over Bellevue East and last week she broke her own record with a 34-kill performance in a dramatic 3-2 win over Omaha Westside. to go along with a season-high 25 digs. Two days later in a 3-1 win over Omaha Gross, Stearns added 15 kills, 21 digs, four blocks and four acce serves for the Patriots.
Class B: Brianna Boender, 6-foot, Sr., Setter/RS, Waverly. The Vikings’ do-it-all setter/right side helped Waverly score a 3-2 win over Crete and 3-1 upset of Elkhorn last week. Bender finished the two matches with a combined 19 kills, 46 digs, 57 assists, four aces serves and 3 1/2 blocks.
Class C-1: Lauren Crockett, 5-foot-9, Sr., OH, Wahoo. The Warriors went 5-0 last week and Crockett was her usual standout self during those wins. The senior combined for 54 kills, 44 digs, eight service aces and two blocks in the five victories for Wahoo.
Class C-2: McKenna Griess, 5-foot-11, Sr., MH, Sutton. Griess had two of her best matches of the year to help lead Sutton to a 3-0 sweep of Tri-County and a 3-1 victory over Sandy Creek. The senior had a combined 28 kills to go with eight digs, four ace serves and three blocks in the two wins.
Class D-1: Fallon Stutheit, 6-foot, Fresh., MH, Johnson-Brock. Conference tournaments at the end of the year are not supposed to be when you lean on a freshman, but Fallon Stutheit is not your average freshman for Johnson-Brock. Stutheit had a career-high 20 kills to lead Johnson-Brock to a 3-2 upset of top-ranked Diller-Odell in the Pioneer Conference championship last week. In the three tournament matches, Stutheit finished with 46 kills, 27 digs, five blocks and two ace serves.
Class D-2: Rylee Pieper, 5-foot-9, Soph., OH, Meridian. In two Crossroads Conference tournament matches last week, Pieper raised her level of play to new heights. She had a career-high 22 kills in a five-set loss to Exeter-Milligan in the conference semifinals, then followed that with another career-best 27 kills the next night in the consolation final against BDS. She also had a combined 42 digs in those matches.
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Week Ending Sunday, Oct. 18, 2015
Class A: Nerissa Moravec, 6-foot-1, Sr., MH, Lincoln Southeast. Moravec had one of the best matches of her high school career last week in a 3-2 loss to Lincoln Southwest. The Central Florida recruit had 21 kills in the match while hitting .373 and added four solo blocks. She followed that performance up the next night in a 3-0 sweep of Lincoln High with nine kills and three solo blocks.
Class B: Libby Anthony, 5-foot-10, Sr., Setter/RS, Crete. Anthony is one of the state’s most versatile volleyball players and she displayed that last week for Crete, helping the team go 3-4 in seven matches. Anthony contributed a total of 90 assists, 59 digs, 37 kills and 10 ace serves in the seven matches combined as Crete won as many matches last week as it had all season up to that point.
Class C-1: Maggie Hiatt, 6-foot-2, Jr., MH, Louisville. During the Lions’ four matches last week, the hard-hitting junior averaged a double-double for Louisville. She finished the four matches with 40 kills, 49 digs, four blocks and seven ace serves.
Class C-2: Lauren Hinrichs, 6-foot-2, Sr., MH, Doniphan-Trumbull. It’s been a long, long time since Doniphan-Trumbull had a win as big as the Cardinals’ 3-2 victory over St. Paul last week, and Hinrichs had a record-breaking performance in the process. The Wichita State recruit had a school-record 27 kills in the match – six coming in the 5th set. She also finished the match with three aces, five blocks and 17 digs.
Class D-1: Macy Peregrine, 5-foot-6, Sr., OH, Fullerton. Peregrine has been a major factor in the success Fullerton has had so far during a 17-8 season and it was apparent again last week. The senior recorded 41 kills – including 18 in a win over Spalding Academy – to go along with 43 digs and two aces in three matches last week.
Class D-2: Rylee Pieper, 5-foot-9, Soph., OH, Meridian. Meridian was hot last week, going 6-0 and Pieper was impressive in all six matches. The sophomore had a total of 69 kills in the six matches and also had 43 digs, seven ace serves and three blocks for the Mustangs.
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Week Ending Sunday, Oct. 11, 2015
Class A: Claire Bexten, 5-foot-9, Sr., OH, Omaha Central. Bexten had one her best matches of the season last week in helping the 11-11 Eagles sweep Omaha Westside. The senior had 16 kills, 16 digs, two blocks and a pair of assists the win. Earlier in the week against top-ranked Omaha Marian, Bexten had 10 kills, six digs and an ace serve.
Class B: Cameron Scott, 5-foot-5, Jr., Setter, Gretna. Scott established a new Nebraska all-class record for most assists in a match last Thursday in her team’s 3-2 loss to Elkhorn South in the Eastern Midlands Conference Tournament championship. The NSAA is still reviewing the record to get an official total for Scott from the match, but Nebraska Prep Volleyball had her with 69, Mike Patterson from the Omaha World-Herald had her with 70 and different Gretna statisticians had her with 72 and 73, respectively. Regardless of the final tally, Scott’s performance was nearly flawless on the night and she has run the Dragon offense at a high level all season.
Class C-1: Maeghan Pieper, 5-foot-11, Sr., MH, Columbus Scotus. Scouts won four matches last week – all against ranked teams – and also won the Centennial Conference Tournament title and Pieper was a big reason why. The senior had 49 kills in the four matches while hitting .416. In the conference title match she had 10 kills on .562 hitting. For the week she added 31 digs, six blocks and two ace serves.
Class C-2: Lucy Skoch, 6-foot-1, Jr., MH, Hastings St. Cecilia. It was a little bit of a rough week for Hastings St. Cecilia, going 1-3, but its dominating middle was on fire during the four matches. Skoch pounded 61 kills in the four matches to go with 14 1/2 blocks, four aces and eight digs.
Class D-1: Kayla Shaner, 5-foot-9, Sr., MH, Cambridge. In a big five-set win over Southwest last week, Shaner a double-double with 20 kills and 15 digs to to along with three acce blocks for the Trojans. In two combined matches last week for Cambridge she finished with 31 kills, 21 digs and eight blocks.
Class D-2: Sydney Parr, 5-foot-6, Sr., OH/Setter, Silver Lake. Parr had a monster week last week for Silver Lake, culminated by what might be the most impressive stat line in the state this year. In the Mustangs’ 3-2 win over Southern Valley on Thursday, Parr finished the night with with 27 kills, four aces, 26 digs and 18 assists for the very-rare triple double. Earlier in the week Parr had 16 kills and 12 assists in a sweep of McCool Junction.
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Week Ending Sunday, Oct. 4, 2015
Class A: Maren McGuire, 5-foot-6, Sr., Setter, Omaha Marian. McGuire provided a huge spark over the weekend for Marian as the Crusaders went undefeated to capture the Lincoln Northeast Invitational. McGuire finished the six matches with two kills, four aces, a block, 38 digs and 136 assists to help Marian remain the top in the state.
Class B: Halie McArdle, 5-foot-10, Sr., OH, Gretna. McArdle is one of the most feared outside hitters in the state and the Wyoming recruit pounded home a team-high 11 kills in helping the Dragons to a 2-0 victory over Omaha Skutt in the finals of the Skyhawk Invitational on Saturday. The Wyoming recruit has been a huge part of Gretna’s undefeated season thus far.
Class C-1: Courtney Labenz, 5-foot-4, Sr., Libero, Columbus Scotus. At one of the most tradition-rich volleyball schools in Nebraska, Labenz is having a senior season to remember for the Shamrocks. In helping Scotus to a 3-1 record last week which included a pair of wins over Columbus Lakeview and one over Hastings, Labenz had 59 digs and is averaging 5.3 digs a set for the season. Earlier this year, her 34 digs against Grand Island Central Catholic established a new school record.
Class C-2: Tarrin Beller, 6-foot, Sr., MH, Humphrey-Lindsay Holy Family. Beller, a Wayne State recruit, helped Humphrey-Lindsay Holy Family go 3-1 last week by averaging nearly a double-double. In the four matches Beller totaled 43 kills, four aces, 26 blocks and 36 digs.
Class D-1: Harlie Himmelberg, 5-foot-3, Sr., Libero, Lawrence-Nelson. During a week in which Lawrence-Nelson went 4-1, Himmelberg anchored the team’s defense with 83 digs to go along with an assist and two aces.
Class D-2: Jacie Laetsch, 5-foot-6, Jr., OH, Chambers-Wheeler Central (CWC). CWC, which has played one of the toughest schedules in all of D-2, got a pair of wins last week over Elkhorn Valley and Elgin-Pope John and Laetsch was a big reason why with 25 kills, five aces and 21 digs in the two matches.
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Week Ending Sunday, Sept. 27, 2015
Class A: Katie Stephens, 5-foot-9, Sr., OH, Papillion-LaVista. In six matches for the Monarchs last week, the Wayne State recruit had 50 kills, including 13 against Papillion-LaVista South in the championship match of the Allison Weston Invitational. Stephens also finished the week with five service aces, 3 1/2 blocks and 80 digs.
Class B: Katelynn Richard, 5-foot-10, Sr., OH, Platteview. Richards had a double-double in each of Platteview’s two wins last week as the Trojans swept both Blair and DC West 3-0. Richard had 10 kills in each of the matches and added 13 digs against Blair and 14 against DC West.
Class C-1: Kylie Thiele, 5-foot-8, Jr., OH, Kearney Catholic. During a week in which Kearney Catholic made quite a statement in running its record to 18-0 on the year and won the Lincoln Pius X Invitational, Thiele had her best match of the season at the biggest time. Thiele had 15 kills in the Stars’ 2-1 win over Elkhorn South and finished the five Kearney Catholic matches last week with 48 kills with an incredible hitting percentage of .458.
Class C-2: Lil Sheehy, 5-foot-9, Sr., OH, Hastings St. Cecilia. Her name might be Lil, but her game definitely is not. Sheehy started off last week on fire with 21 kills and 19 digs in a 3-1 win over Doniphan-Trumbull and kept it going all week, finishing the week with 63 kills in five matches to go with 76 digs.
Class D-1: Madison Hajek, 5-foot-9, Jr., MH, Diller-Odell. It was a busy and successful week for the top-ranked Griffins as Diller-Odell went 7-0 and took home the Axtell (KS) tournament title over the weekend and Hajek was a big reason why. In the seven matches she finished with 56 kills, 12 aces, 14 blocks and 45 digs.
Class D-2: Jacee Weber, 5-foot-9, Jr., OH, Dorchester. Dorchester entered the Class D-2 rankings this week after going 5-1 last week and Weber had a season-high 15 kills to go with three ace serves, a block and seven digs in a big 2-1 win over Nebraska Lutheran. In the six matches for the week, Weber finished with 67 kills, nine aces, three blocks and 28 digs.
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Week Ending Sunday, Sept. 20, 2015
Class A: Elizabeth Loschen, 6-foot-2, Sr., RS, Omaha Marian. Loschen, a South Dakota recruit, came up huge for the Crusaders as they reclaimed the #1 spot in the rankings last week on the strength of their performance in winning the Lincoln Public Schools Volleyball Classic. For the week, Loschen registered 42 kills – 21 of them coming in three bracket play matches during the tournament. She also finished the week with 12 blocks.
Class B: Julianna Kalil, 5-foot-9, Soph., OH, Omaha Duchesne. Though just a sophomore, Kalil is already establishing herself as one of the most feared attackers in Class B. Although Duchesne went 3-2 on the week, Kalil had a monster week with 59 kills in the five matches and added 14 ace serves as well.
Class C-1: Shelby Bretschneider, 5-foot-10, Sr., OH, Pierce. Bretschneider, who signed with Midland University earlier this week, did a little bit of everything for Pierce last week in leading her team to a win over Battle Creek and in a 3-2 loss to Crofton. The senior outside hitter had 14 kills against Battle Creek and 18 against Crofton and had a combined 4 1/2 blocks, two aces and 16 digs in the two matches.
Class C-2: Payton Robley, 5-foot-8, Sr., OH, East Butler. To say Robley had a good week for East Butler might be the understatement of the year. In 6 matches she had a staggering 112 kills, which included 30 in a 2-1 win over High Plains, 29 in a 3-2 loss to Meridian and 27 in a 2-1 loss to Cross County. She also had 19 ace serves, four blocks and 90 digs combined in the 6 matches.
Class D-1: Jadyn Heckenlively, 5-foot-11, Soph., Alma. In Alma’s five matches last week, the sophomore put down a total of 70 kills and also had nine service aces and 11 blocks.
Class D-2: Monique Schafer, 5-foot-8, Sr., OH, Stuart. It was a big week for Stuart as the Broncos snapped O’Neill St. Mary’s win streak and took over the top spot in Class D-2 while remaining undefeated on the season. Schafer had a total of 47 kills, 56 digs, five blocks and three ace serves for the Broncos.
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Week Ending Sunday, Sept. 13, 2015
Class A: Parsila Dike, 6-foot-1, Jr., RS, Omaha Northwest. Dike, a transfer from Bellevue West, has been a big reason for Omaha Northwest’s most successful start to a volleyball season in a long time. In helping the Huskies go 6-2 in eight matches last week – including a second-place finish in the Gradoville Invitational – Dike had 63 kills, 13 ace serves, 10 1/2 blocks and 43 digs.
Class B: Brianna Boender, 6-foot, Sr., Setter, Waverly. Boender just missed a triple-double in the Vikings 2-1 win over Norris to with the Norris Invitational over the weekend. Bender had 11 kills, 14 assists, nine digs and three aces in the win. For the week, Boender helped Waverly go 5-1 with 34 kills, 61 digs and 103 assists.
Class C-1: Jenae Boudreau, 5-foot-3, Sr., Setter, Minden. Minden has gotten off to an 8-0 start to the season in Class C-1 and Boudreau is a big reason why. Boudreau has filled a huge void with the graduation of Ali Rowse and in the Whippets four wins last week, she had eight kills, 14 digs and 107 assists – including 47 in a 3-1 win over Phillipsburg, KS.
Class C-2: Hiliary Huss, 5-foot-6, Sr., Setter/RS, Stanton. Stanton went 5-0 last week while winning the Wakefield Invitational, which included two nice wins over Pierce and one over Hartington Cedar Catholic. For the tournament, Huss finished with 33 kills, eight aces, 66 digs and 50 assists.
Class D-1: Madison Jurgens, 5-foot-9, Jr., Setter/RS, Diller-Odell. Few players in the state can fill out a stat sheet like Jurgens and she proved that again last week for the Griffins. Diller-Odell went 3-0, including a huge five-set win over Falls City Sacred Heart, and Jurgens averaged a triple double for the week. In the three matches she had 54 kills, four aces, 5 1/2 blocks, 31 digs and 48 assists. In the win over Falls City Sacred Heart she had 21 kills 16 digs and 21 assists.
Class D-2: Madison Taylor, 6-foot-1, Sr., MH, Sandhills-Thedford. Taylor played huge for Sandhills-Thedford as it won all six of its matches last week, including a 2-1 win over ranked Class D-1 opponent Brady. Taylor had 49 kills in the six matches for the Knights and added four aces and three blocks.
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Week Ending Sunday, Sept. 6, 2015
Class A: Taylor Crandall, 5-foot-7, Sr., Setter, Papillion-LaVista South. Crandall was outstanding in every aspect in helping lead the Titans to the Bellevue West Invitational Championship. Crandall finished the six tournament matches with 162 assists – including 35 in the semifinal win over North Platte and 32 in the championship against Omaha Marian. For good measure, she added 30 digs, five ace serves, four kills and 2 blocks to the stat sheet as well.
Class B: Kylie Broich, 5-foot-6, Jr., Setter, Grand Island Northwest. Broich is one of the most multi-dimensional players in Class B and it was on full display at the Beatrice Invitational where she helped lead Northwest to the team title and a perfect 6-0 start to the season. Broich finished the tournament with 59 assists, 65 digs, 41 kills, 9 1/2 blocks and 11 ace serves.
Class C-1: Ashlyn Power, 5-foot-8, Jr., Setter, Lincoln Christian. Lincoln Christian was one of the surprise teams of the first week of the season, and Power was a driving force behind its performance. Lincoln Christian went 3-2 with an upset of Hastings St. Cecilia and wins over Wahoo and Omaha Roncalli while pushing two the best teams in Class C-1 (Ord and Grand Island CC) in its two losses. Power had 44 assists, 42 kills, 18 digs, three blocks and nine aces in those five matches.
Class C-2: Bailey Batenhorst, 6-foot, Sr., MH, Wisner-Pilger. Wisner-Pilger scored a huge 2-1 victory over Guardian Angels CC in winning the Northeast Nebraska Invite and also had wins the first week over Scribner-Snyder, Wakefield, Lutheran High Northeast and North Bend Central. Batenhorst had 51 kills (including 18 against North Bend Central) 10 blocks, 25 digs and four ace serves in the five matches combined.
Class D-1: Emerson Carbajal, 5-foot-11, Sr., MH, Johnson-Brock. Johnson-Brock had perhaps the biggest upset of the first week of the season with its defeat of former Class D-1 #1 Diller-Odell at the Freeman Invitational. Johnson-Brock wound up going 3-2 in the tournament with its only losses both coming to defending Class C-2 champion Freeman. Carbajal finished the tournament with 31 kills and 7 1/2 blocks.
Class D-2: Karren Schmeits, 5-foot-8, Sr., MH, Riverside. Schmeits had a monster match for Riverside in its upset victory over Fullerton as she finished the match with 15 kills and three blocks for the Chargers. She added seven more kills in a 2-0 sweep of Central Valley. In the two matches combined Schmeits hit .484.