Login Subscribe
    • Players/Parents
    • College Coaches
  • Arizona
    Arkansas
    California
    Colorado
    Dakotas
    Florida
    Georgia
    Illinois
    Indiana
    Iowa
    Kansas
    Kentucky
    Michigan
    Minnesota
    Missouri
    National
    Nebraska
    Nevada
    New Jersey
    Ohio
    Oklahoma
    Oregon
    Texas
    Virginia
    Washington
    Wisconsin
  • Loading...
  • Showcases
    • Stock Up Showcases Stock Up Showcases
    • Sophomore ID Camps Sophomore ID Camps
    • Freshman Showcases Freshman Showcases
    • Up Next Showcases Up Next Showcases
    Tournaments
    • 2026 Tournaments 2026 Tournaments
    About Our Events
  • Prep Dig for
    • Players
    • Parents
    • Club Coaches
    • High School Coaches
    • College Coaches
    • Fans
    View All Features
    • Coverage Access Prep Dig articles year-round without ads.
    • Rankings See how players stack up across the country.
    • Player Profiles Build your own profile and join the Prep Dig database.
    • Coach Views Get notified when a college coach views your profile.
    • Profile Trends Track your Player Profile views over time.
    • Recruiting Tasks Stay on-track in the recruiting process
    • Recruiting Dashboard All your recruiting tools in a single place.
    • College Match Recommends colleges that match with your profile.
    • Coach Contacts Contact any program in the country.
    • Event Credits Save $25 on all Prep Dig showcases.
    • Recruiting Tips Become an expert on the recruiting process.
    • College Email Template Send customized emails directly to college coaches.
    • Scouts
    • How We Rank
    • Reviews
    • About Us
  • New Jersey
  • Rankings
    • How We Rank

    • Archived Rankings

  • Club Programs
  • Player Database
  • Scouts
  • Home
  • Coverage
      Arizona
      Arkansas
      California
      Colorado
      Dakotas
      Florida
      Georgia
      Illinois
      Indiana
      Iowa
      Kansas
      Kentucky
      Michigan
      Minnesota
      Missouri
      National
      Nebraska
      Nevada
      New Jersey
      Ohio
      Oklahoma
      Oregon
      Texas
      Virginia
      Washington
      Wisconsin
  • Events
      Showcases
      • Stock Up Showcases Stock Up Showcases
      • Sophomore ID Camps Sophomore ID Camps
      • Freshman Showcases Freshman Showcases
      • Up Next Showcases Up Next Showcases
      Tournaments
      • 2026 Tournaments 2026 Tournaments
      About Our Events
  • Rankings
      Loading...
  • Features
      Prep Dig for
      • Players
      • Parents
      • Club Coaches
      • High School Coaches
      • College Coaches
      • Fans
      View All Features
      • Coverage Access Prep Dig articles year-round without ads.
      • Rankings See how players stack up across the country.
      • Player Profiles Build your own profile and join the Prep Dig database.
      • Coach Views Get notified when a college coach views your profile.
      • Profile Trends Track your Player Profile views over time.
      • Recruiting Tasks Stay on-track in the recruiting process
      • Recruiting Dashboard All your recruiting tools in a single place.
      • College Match Recommends colleges that match with your profile.
      • Coach Contacts Contact any program in the country.
      • Event Credits Save $25 on all Prep Dig showcases.
      • Recruiting Tips Become an expert on the recruiting process.
      • College Email Template Send customized emails directly to college coaches.
  • About Us
      • Scouts
      • How We Rank
      • Reviews
      • About Us
  • Support
Login Subscribe

Predictions for the Spring: NJAC’s American Division

Predictions for the Spring: NJAC’s American Division
Photo: Instagram
Sara LiVecchi
Sara LiVecchi
February 9, 2021 @ 10:43 AM
Facebook
X (Formerly Twitter)

In this article:

Sarah Wilcock
Sarah Wilcock S | 2023
NJ
Lorie Horta
Lorie Horta S | 2023
NJ
Cat Holtz
Cat Holtz OH | 2021
NJ
Brooke Askin
Brooke Askin 5'11" | MB | 2021
NJ
Mackenzie Wiggins
Mackenzie Wiggins 5'11" | OH | 2021
NJ
Lauren Wilcock
Lauren Wilcock 5'10" | OH | 2021
NJ
Amber Chen
Amber Chen 5'5" | DS/L | 2021
NJ
Sarah Wilcock
Sarah Wilcock S | 2023
NJ
Lorie Horta
Lorie Horta S | 2023
NJ
Cat Holtz
Cat Holtz OH | 2021
NJ
Brooke Askin
Brooke Askin 5'11" | MB | 2021
NJ
Mackenzie Wiggins
Mackenzie Wiggins 5'11" | OH | 2021
NJ
Lauren Wilcock
Lauren Wilcock 5'10" | OH | 2021
NJ
Amber Chen
Amber Chen 5'5" | DS/L | 2021
NJ
<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The NJAC had some big changes this season. The divisions were redrawn to drum up a ton of new matchups. Check out the full list here. Here are my predictions for the American Division teams:</span></p> <p><b style="font-size: 1rem;">6. Pope John</b></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Pope John has a number of key athletes returning this season. They finished last season with a 17-8 overall record landing them 9th overall in the conference. Returners like</span><b> Paige O’Connor</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Katherine Putsky</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="99839" first="Brooke" last="Askin"] </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">will have the opportunity to grow under the leadership of setter </span><b>Meaghan Lawrence</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and libero </span><b>Taylor Ferguson</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in their final seasons. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">There will be a bit of a shakeup as coach Braulio Rivera has left the program to coach at the collegiate level. It will be interesting to see how the new coach, Harris Boyes, steps up to the plate.</span></p> <p><b style="font-size: 1rem;">5. Mount Olive</b></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mount Olive split with Roxbury last season thanks to key players like </span><b>Jenna Lynch</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Adriana Garcia</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Gabby Forero</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Tristin Adams</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><b>Alyssa Ouimet</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">. With only Lynch and Forero returning, the program will be relying on growth from returners</span> <a href="https://highschoolsports.nj.com/player/isabella-lino-montes/girlsvolleyball/season/2019-2020"><b>Isabella Lino-Montes</b></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><a href="https://highschoolsports.nj.com/player/ava-padwelka/girlsvolleyball/season/2019-2020"><b>Ava Padwelka</b></a><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Genevieve Sarinelli</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><b>Ella Scott</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to help them stand out against the rest of these powerhouse programs. This new division will prove challenging for this program, but with enough growth and proper leadership, they will rise to the occasion.</span></p> <p><b style="font-size: 1rem;">4. Sparta</b></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">With players like </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="99815" first="Mackenzie" last="Wiggins"] </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">and </span><b>Martina Foy</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> in their final seasons, the program is looking to be in good shape from last season. Last year, they split with Pope John, split with Mendham, and won their only faceoff with Roxbury, so this competition isn’t going to be much of a surprise to this team.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sophomore </span><b>Alexis Smernoff</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> will do well to add to the offensive lineup Sparta has as well as a number of other returning sophomores like </span><b>Brynn McCurry</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and </span><a href="https://highschoolsports.nj.com/player/caroline-mastandrea/girlsvolleyball/season/2019-2020"><b>Caroline Mastandrea</b></a><b>. </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">However, if they don’t have any solid setting and defensive options rising up from the Freshman and JV programs, they may be in trouble. One definite is that 6-footer </span><b>Emily Smernoff</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> will be joining her sister in the program as a freshman this spring, and she brings a lot of talent with her.</span></p> <p><b>3. West Morris Central</b></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">West Morris comes into this division with two wins over Mount Olive, three wins over Roxbury, and a split with Mendham. With that and their 18-7 record alone, it’s clear that West Morris will have an easier time adjusting to the new competition than others. They did lose 10 seniors last season, but </span><b>Lauren VanderLaan </b><span style="font-weight: 400;">and </span><b>Ava Novello</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, who made a profound impact on the court last season, will be returning. Met with returners </span><b>Isabel Greco</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> and </span><b>Kelly Kaltenhauser</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and anyone rising up from the Freshman and JV teams, this program has a good chance to stay standing.</span></p> <p><b>2. Roxbury</b></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Roxbury is a well-coached program and they aren’t often caught up in a “rebuilding year” for this very reason. They finished last season just above Pope John in the overall conference rank with a 20-9 record having split with Mount Olive, lost both to West Morris, and earned a victory over Mendham in a 2-1 set match. Mendham will still be a strong program this year, and perhaps even stronger than last year, but Roxbury has an incredible list of athletes returning. Offensively, we look to </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="99811" first="Amber" last="Chen"]</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Samantha Olander</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Victoria Latino</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><b>Juliana Medini</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to make a big splash. Defensive and setting studs like </span><b>Isabella Chan</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Jocelyn DeFuria</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>Cassidy Dettlo</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="128677" first="Lorie" last="Horta"]</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and of course </span><b>Quinn Longo</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> will be supporting them every step of the way.</span></p> <p><b>1. Mendham</b></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Having finished second in the state in the NJSIAA Tournament of Champions, Mendham is a good bet to finish at the top of the division and top of the conference yet again. We can look to returners like </span><b>Michele Kifyak</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="128489" first="Cat" last="Holtz"]</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="128675" first="Sarah" last="Wilcock"]</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, </span><b>[player_tooltip player_id="99813" first="Lauren" last="Wilcock"]</b><span style="font-weight: 400;">, and </span><b>Poppy Skjonnemand</b><span style="font-weight: 400;"> to maintain their status. These returners are just </span><i><span style="font-weight: 400;">too</span></i><span style="font-weight: 400;"> good, but even so, there will be a number of hard-fought matches within this division.</span></p>
Prep Dig

Access all of Prep Dig

Continue reading this article and more.

Continue Reading
Already a subscriber? Log in

Rankings

0 Players Ranked

  • No Players Found.

Related Articles

  • Free PrepDig+ Until July 21 – Unlock the Player Platform

    Free PrepDig+ Until July 21 – Unlock the Player Platform

    Michelle Bamford • July 17

  • A New Era in High School Sports Media: PrepNetwork.com

    A New Era in High School Sports Media: PrepNetwork.com

    Michelle Bamford • July 15

Follow Us

  • prepdig

    Prep Dig

    @prepdig

Loading...
Home New Jersey Predictions for the Spring: NJAC's American Division

Prep Network

  • Prep Dig
  • Prep Girls Hoops
  • Prep Hoops
  • Prep Lacrosse
  • Prep Redzone
  • Prep Soccer
  • Prep Softball

Company

  • News
  • About
  • Careers
  • Store
  • Partner Interest Form

Resources

  • Terms of Service
  • Privacy Policy
  • Accessibility
  • Cookie Policy
  • Recruiting Tips
  • Student Loan Resources
  • College Scholarship Search

Support

  • My Account
  • Contact
  • Sitemap

© 2025 Prep Dig. All rights reserved.