Midwest High School Volleyball Matchups We Would Love

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I'm always one who likes to create a hypothetical situation when it comes to teams playing. Seeing different athletes from various states I can always find fun comparisons and storylines. I have covered volleyball closely in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin and there is something different about high school volleyball. Being with your team each day, the student sections, the rivalries, there is always something special about all those factors. Here are some schools I think would be a great match up when it comes to crossing borders with Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, and Wisconsin. For some of these schools. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://x.com/McAuley_VB/status/1723735912574546179","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/McAuley_VB/status/1723735912574546179 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Divine Savior Holy Angels (WI) vs. Mother McAuley (IL) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There is no shortage of history with these two programs with DSHA being the all girls Catholic school in Milwaukee and Mother McAuley being the all girls Catholic school in Chicago.&nbsp; DSHA will head to the Asics Challenge hosted by Mother McAuley in October, which brings in top talent from across the country. DSHA is seeking their third straight large school state title in Wisconsin, led by Big Ten commits in [player_tooltip player_id='178033' first='Madison' last='Quest'] (Wisconsin) and [player_tooltip player_id='178026' first='Olivia' last='Durst'] (Michigan State).&nbsp; Quest was the 2023 Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year.&nbsp; Mother McAuley has trophy cases full of state championships.&nbsp; They lost some big time players from their 2023 state title team, but they always reload.&nbsp; This season they are led by [player_tooltip player_id='537712' first='Sydney' last='Buchanan'] who is heading to Memphis and sophomore setter [player_tooltip player_id='529824' first='Peyton' last='Heatherly'] who can set and swing, she is a swiss army knife type of player.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Sussex Hamilton (WI) vs. Champlin Park (MN) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The trajectory of both of these teams for 2024 is sky high.&nbsp; Hamilton advanced to the state tournament in the Wisconsin large school division in 2023 and return a loaded roster that includes [player_tooltip player_id='178038' first='Eva' last='Finnessy'] (Northern Illinois), [player_tooltip player_id='178023' first='Brooke' last='Aslakson'] (MN-Duluth), and junior [player_tooltip player_id='249644' first='Brooke' last='Baldwin'] (Rutgers).&nbsp; They will be heading to the Asics Challenge as well and in the same conference as DSHA.&nbsp; Champlin Park is traditionally one of the top teams in Minnesota's large school division.&nbsp; They have produced the likes of Wisconsin Badger athletes in Sydney Hilley and Izzy Ashburn.&nbsp; This year they have Carly Gilk, the six rotation lefty right side who is the top recruit in the state of Minnesota from the Class of 2025.&nbsp; She will stay close to home and attend Minnesota where the Gophers have been pulling in top in-state talent from 2024, 2025, and now 2026. The Rebels are also led by Ball State commit in Reese Axness who is an extremely dynamic setter.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Galena (IL) vs. Ankeny Christian (IA) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Galena is just East of the IA/IL border, a weekend get away from a lot of people with the scenic bluffs not too far from the Mississippi River.&nbsp; They also happen to have a power house volleyball program that claimed the small school state title in Illinois in 2023.&nbsp; They have a dynamic athlete in [player_tooltip player_id='192614' first='Gracie' last='Furlong'] who recently committed to play at Bradley.&nbsp; She has played for Six Pack out of Waterloo/Cedar Falls, but will play at [program_tooltip program_id='429175' first='VC' last='United'] this upcoming club season.&nbsp; Ankeny Christian is North of Des Moines in Ankeny, Iowa where they have won the past two small school state titles in Iowa.&nbsp; They have athletes who have been part of successful club teams in Des Moines.&nbsp; Two commits from the Class of 2025 are Carley Craighead (Cedarville) and Katie Quick (Drake).&nbsp; Quick is dangerous from the setter position where she can jump and attack with a big left handed swing.&nbsp; Ankeny Christian recently took home the Ankeny Centennial Invite that featured all the top powers in Iowa's largest class.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":622404,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2024/09/DSC04173.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-622404"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Mount Vernon at the Iowa State Tournament</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Marshall (MN) vs. Mount Vernon (IA) </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Two schools that are close in size to each other and have plenty of history in their own state.&nbsp; Marshall has been a Southwest Minnesota power where they have won the past AAA state title in Minnesota.&nbsp; They have a gritty brand of volleyball where they are always winning the serve and pass game.&nbsp; An athlete to know from this team is setter Brooke Gilingham who is from the Class of 2026.&nbsp; She is a QB1 who can really run the show for her squad where she plays her club ball for Kairos out of Sioux Falls, SD.&nbsp; Mount Vernon is just outside the Cedar Rapids area and is the top ranked team in Iowa's Class 3A (mid size division).&nbsp; They are featured by two of the best in Iowa with Chloe Meester (Louisville) and Sydney Maue (Arkansas).&nbsp; These two were part of the Adrenaline 17 Ben team out of Cedar Rapids that won the 17 National Division at nationals this past summer.&nbsp; They recently competed at the Bellevue West Invite in Omaha and finished in the final four with some of the top teams out of Nebraska.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->