Early August Top 5 Rankings in Class D1

<p>First official practices of the 2019 high school volleyball season begin a week from Monday and the first contests are now less than four weeks away. What, exactly, happened to summer?</p> <p>It feels like I spent my entire summer driving the back roads of the state hitting as many team and individual camps as I could this summer, probably because that's what I did. With that knowledge in hand, I give you a look at what I consider - right now - to the the top five teams in each class.</p> <p>I will post the full top 10 in each class the weekend before the start of competition, but for now here is a look at the teams I would rank in the top 5 in Class D1 right now.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>#1 - Diller-Odell</strong></span></p> <p>Last year in Class D1, there were a lot of good teams, but Archbishop Bergan was clearly the most dominant team all year and cruised to the state title. This fall, there are once again a lot of good teams in Class D1 - it's a VERY deep class - but Diller-Odell is simply on another level. The Griffins finished second in the C2 division at the Kearney Top 10, beating several teams that will be among the contenders in the next class up. Setter Addison Heidemann would start for anyone in the state - ANYONE. And with Mackenzie Vitosh, Emily Swanson, Madelyn Meyerle and Karlie Heidemann at the net and Kyleigh Barnts at libero, there isn't a weak spot on the floor. It a team that would compete for the Class C2 title and would also be competitive in C1.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>#2 - Meridian</strong></span></p> <p>I had Meridian at #3 in the early June rankings, but the Mustangs are even better than I originally thought they would be after seeing them compete in Kearney. Hallie Pribyl is big-time at the net and Josiee Sobotka gives Meridian a good setter. Meridian finished second in the D1-D2 division at Kearney Top 10 Camp and looked really good there, but as good as they are, the Mustangs just don't compare with Diller-Odell in terms of depth and elite talent. </p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>#3 - Overton</strong></span></p> <p>Overton lost to Pleasanton in the round of 16 in Class D1 last year, a season in which the Eagles went 21-11. Haley Fleischman, Rachel Eklund and Kenzie Scheele are all legit attackers for the Eagles. Replacing all-state setter Jaycee Wallace won't be easy, but this team showed at the Kearney Top 10 Camp that it has plenty of talent to make a deep run into the postseason this fall.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>#4 - CWC</strong></span></p> <p>The Renegades are moving up a class this season after finishing 25-8 last year and losing to Mullen in the Class D2 quarterfinals in the state tournament. CWC brings back setter Ryann Haburchak and outstanding middles Taylor Peter and Morgan Ramsey and outside hitter Tessa Metschke. The Renegades will be one of the most athletic and talented teams in the class.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>#5 - Hartington Cedar Catholic</strong></span></p> <p>While CWC is moving up a class this fall, Hartington Cedar Catholic is dropping down to D1 this season after a really nice run of success in C2 the past few seasons. The Trojans have played for four state titles this decade - including each of the past two seasons - but haven't won it all since 2012. Graduation hit the Trojans hard, but Hartington CC should be in good shape with the drop down in class plus the return of players like Abby Hochstein, Tori Arens, Kenlee Goeden, Megan Heimes and Aiden Wortmann.</p>