Mid Season Surprises

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We are a little past the season's midpoint, and I wanted to look at some of the top teams who were not part of my top teams for this season. Four on the list are surprisingly dominating this season, and one is a defending state champion, but they are running through opponents this season. Here are my five mid-season surprise teams and how they are racking up the wins.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Winona Wildcats 25-1-2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>First, let's start with Winona. The Class 1 tradition-rich school went through some growing pains last year, ending the year with a 15-16-1 record and its first losing season since 2018. Not only that, but they lost in the district semifinals against Summersville. This season is entirely different as Winona has powered through the season, losing only to Class 4 Cape Notre Dame. In the process, they've won all three tournaments, and winning the Dig for Life Tournament at SEMO is a significant accomplishment. During the season, the Wildcats knocked off two-time defending state champion Advance 25-23, 25-12. They are undefeated in games and set to Class 1 opponents, earning splits with Class 3 Valle Catholic and have split with Miller and Valle Catholic.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The re-emergence of Winona has a lot to do with the 2028 class. <strong>Sadie Kile</strong> leads the team in kills with 366, 2^nd in digs with 231and tops in serve receive<strong>. Bristol Lay</strong> does most of her work playing defense and passing. 2^nd on the team in serve reception and has 194 digs. <strong>Lauren Martin</strong> is 4^th on the team in kills with 101 and 3^rd in digs with 196. The 2026 class is strong, with the team's top returning hitter from last year being <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='237001' first='Taylor' last='Williams']</strong>. Taylor currently has 258 kills on the season for 2^nd on the team, 1^st in blocks with 62, and tied for 3^rd in digs with 196. <strong>Sophie Kile</strong> adds in 111 kills and 171 digs. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='232323' first='Lexi' last='Lindsey']</strong> has run the offense for Winona all three seasons and has 2599 career assists and counting. Lexi is quick with great hands, plays tremendously on defense, and runs a fast-tempo offense compared to most Class 1 teams. I only see two teams left on the schedule that could knock off Winona: Class 3 Mountain Grove or Class 4 Festus. When it comes district time, Winona will breeze to the title as no team in their district has a winning record, and Winona has already swept them. Time will tell, but Winona's chances of making the final four are strong.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>St. Dominic Crusaders 20-2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Crusaders were missing from my top list of teams coming into this season. First, let us cover the two teams to knock off St. Dominic, national power St. James Academy from Lenexa, Kansas, and Marquette. St. James barely beat St. Dominic, taking a 16-25, 25-19, 24-26 loss. This would be the only loss the Crusaders would take at the Rockwood Tournament. Marquette knocked off St. Dominic in the Gateway Matchup, and I've said it before if Marquette is on, they are a tough team to match up with. After the loss to Marquette, St. Dominic would go on to win the Gateway Matchup over Eureka. They swept Lee's Summit West, Borgia, Westminster, St. Pius X, Jackson, and Ursuline Academy and beat #1 Lafayette in the 5^th 17-15.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The offense is run by one of the best setters in the state, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='174406' first='Brytn' last='Lyon']</strong>. The 6'1" setter has 76 kills, 2^nd on the team in blocks with 40, 3^rd in digs with 102, and has over 1500 career assists. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='545696' first='Mandy' last='Lawson']</strong> and <strong>Cameron Kohmetscher</strong> get after it on defense, combining for 385 digs. <strong>Keeley Skiljan, [player_tooltip player_id='735635' first='Natalie' last='Frazier']</strong>, and <strong>Maddy Mannebach</strong> are the top three attackers, with 457 kills on the season. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='261297' first='Emma' last='Keele']</strong> has been on a tear the last week with a season-high 14 in the win over Eureka. When I watched them play at the Rockwood Tournament, they didn't have one outstanding player who led the team. Still, the combination of the 9-11 players has melted together into a tremendous group that has the potential to win the Class 5 title. We shall see how they do on their trip over to Kansas City.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Belton Pirates 21-1-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I couldn't tell you the last time Belton has put together a couple of seasons like they have the last couple of years. I lived in Kansas City for 20 years and don't remember Belton even making any noise back then. The Scherfenberg family comes, and Belton has become a mean volleyball team. I started taking Belton seriously this season when they knocked off [program_tooltip program_id='428790' first='Park' last='Hills'] South 3-1 and Odessa 3-2 and took Webb City to the brink of defeat at the Carl Junction Tournament. After this weekend's tournament, I see no other Ls on their schedule.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='222056' first='Bella' last='Scherfenberg'], [player_tooltip player_id='729502' first='Dreya' last='Scherfenberg']</strong>, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='261314' first='Phoenix' last='Fogel']</strong> are the three-headed monsters for the Pirates that put fear in their opponents. The three combine for a scary 666-kill total. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='774871' first='Lydia' last='Krabiel'] a</strong>nd <strong>Natalie Blum </strong>are responsible for feeding the monsters, while <strong>Lilah Gardner</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='778360' first='Maddie' last='Asaeli']</strong> are impressive role players. When playoffs start, Belton will have to get through St. Michael in districts, and if they can win districts, they will need only one more win to make the Class 4 final four.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Strafford Indians 19-4-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I thought Strafford would be good again this season, but not one of the top Class 3 teams. However, Coach Bough has them back on top. Strafford is another team benefiting from its 2028 class, as they have a trio of players making massive contributions to this team. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='664702' first='Ava' last='Lane'], [player_tooltip player_id='729521' first='Blair' last='Bough']</strong>, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='729492' first='Trista' last='Vanhorn']</strong> are three of the top five hitters on the team. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='490211' first='Reese' last='Darnell']</strong> led the team in assists in the 6-2 offense, while outside hitter turned libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='170042' first='Halle' last='Forester']</strong> is turning heads playing tremendous defense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For Strafford to make a final four run, they will have to avenge a loss to Rogersville to win districts. If they can get past districts, a rematch with Mountain Grove could await them. Mountain Grove game the Indians one of their losses along with Rogersville, Fair Grove, and Republic. Lucky for Strafford, they lost to both Rogersville and Mountain Grove in nail-biting five-setters. I wouldn't be shocked if I saw Strafford in the final four.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Fair Grove Eagles 23-0</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I knew the defending state champions returned enough to repeat possibly, but I didn't think they would be this good. They have breezed through the season, going 60-1 in sets, but only Strafford took a set from the Eagles. They swept Clever, El Dorado Springs Marshfield, Rogersville, Republic, and Springfield Catholic. They have one of the best setters in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='349621' first='Brooke' last='Daniels']</strong>, who took full reigns of the offense this year. She is a significant piece of the dominance so far in the season. Brooke is an incredible three-sport athlete running the offense to perfection with her 611 assists and over 2200 career assists. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='493046' first='Shea' last='Skouby'], [player_tooltip player_id='737639' first='Abbey' last='Green'], [player_tooltip player_id='737648' first='Ashton' last='Bell']</strong>, and <strong>Greta Arnett</strong> want to go out in style with a repeat Class 2 title. Another critical factor in the season was the play of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='735242' first='Sofee' last='Garrett']</strong>. Sofee went from 10 kills last season playing sparingly to 156 and 2^nd on the team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Mt. Vernon Tournament should test the undefeated streak and matchups with Springfield Catholic and Strafford again. In districts, FG will have to knock off El Dorado Springs again, whom they already beat earlier in the season 25-18, 25-18, and 25-22. If they can win districts, it should be smooth sailing until the final four. This senior class for Fair Grove already has one volleyball and two basketball state titles in the trophy case.  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->