4A Rankings Update: Sectional Draw

<p>Sectionals start around the state of Indiana next Tuesday, making this the last rankings update of the regular season. The top five teams are the same, but the rankings themselves have altered slightly. With the help of Zach McCrite and IndianaPrepVolleyball.com, we dive a little deeper into the futures of these teams and the players that will be responsible for their successes.</p> <p><strong>#5: La Porte, 24-2</strong></p> <p>The Slicers haven’t dropped a set since mid-September, and don’t look to let up any time soon. They play the winner of Mishawaka (8-18) and South Bend Riley (3-9) in the sectional semifinal on Saturday, October 17. This is a team primed for a deep run, and their strength of schedule has been one of the best around. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="102465" first="Aniya" last="Kennedy"] (’22, 6-0, MB) </strong>is our favorite of this bunch, as her physicality and athleticism can take over a match. La Porte hosts the regional this year; added incentive to keep winning.</p> <p><strong>#4: Crown Point, 25-3</strong></p> <p>The Bulldogs haven’t lost a match since September 22, against #5 La Porte. They got a bye to the semifinals as well, playing the winner of Valparaiso and Hobart on Saturday the 17th. A possible revenge match awaits in the regional final against La Porte, but Penn might be standing in their way in the regional semifinal. Should be fun up north. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="102846" first="Kendall" last="Schara"] (’22, 5-8, OH)</strong> is the best of this bunch, as she leads the Bulldogs in kills and aces, and is second in digs.</p> <p><strong>#3: Munster, 26-2</strong></p> <p>I promise, I am not biased in favor of all teams north of Indianapolis. Truth be told, there’s a lot of great volleyball in Hamilton County, Muncie, Fort Wayne, and the Chicagoland area. That being said, Munster is my favorite "up-north" team listed here, and with their only losses coming to Crown Point and Penn, seeing La Porte in a possible regional semifinal is the least of their worries. They’ve already beaten La Porte twice, and only having to deal with ONE of their previous losses is a bonus. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="102468" first="Lourdes" last="Torres"] (’21, 5-9, OH)</strong> still runs the show for the Mustangs, averaging nearly four kills per set while hitting close to .400. </p> <p><strong>#2: Yorktown, 20-0</strong></p> <p>I’m pretty sure that we’re contractually obligated to mention a Muncie-area team in our top fives. Cowan won the 1A last year, 2A #2 is Wapahani, 3A #2 is Muncie Burris, and 4A #2 is Yorktown. Oh yeah, and the defending 4A state champ is New Castle, who Yorktown will see in the sectional semifinal. The Tigers are relentless and fast, and I pity any team that has to face them without serving tough. If you don’t, you might as well toss a free ball over; their libero is Wright State-bound <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="85678" first="Jenny" last="Morey"], </strong>and their OH1 is <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="85673" first="Ellee" last="Stinson"], </strong>who wants to be Northwestern’s libero next fall. And we haven’t even mentioned their top attacker, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="85700" first="Jaylynn" last="Dunsmore"] (’21, 6-0, MB), </strong>who leads in kills and blocks and hits north of .300. Did I mention that the IHSAA Volleyball State Championships are played at Ball State in Muncie? Just saying.</p> <p><strong>#1: Hamilton Southeastern, 20-0</strong></p> <p>Three. That’s the number of sets the Royals have lost this season. No match HSE has played has gone to a deciding set. Even the Tigers can’t say that. HSE hosts their sectional, and play the winner of Westfield (swept on October 5) and Carmel (four-set win on August 17). Perennial rival Fishers is a possible matchup in the sectional final, which is no easy task either. To know that two of the three teams that took a set off of the Royals are in their own sectional makes every matchup intriguing. We are amazed at the development of freshman <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="110501" first="Lauren" last="Harden"] (’24, 6-2, OH), </strong>who leads the Royals in kills and is #2 in aces.</p>