Teams in the hunt for a 2025 state title

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With club connections, PrepDig standouts, and plenty of national-level talent in the mix, I'm ready to take a swing at picks in Virginia. Let's see who rises to the top.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>VHSL</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 6 - James Madison</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Contenders: Colgan, Langley</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This is going to be much tougher than I thought. The easy road would be to pick who Bob picked. I can't really see fault in about every one of his picks, but I always have to be different. I'm going to go with James Madison here because they have a good stash of [program_tooltip program_id='484770' first='VA' last='Juniors'] players that I have seen a bunch, and one of the top players in the Country in [player_tooltip player_id='265167' first='Laila' last='Chadwick'], who is committed to Oklahoma. They've got a range of players that play both offense and defense, and can play all around, and a good little setter in [player_tooltip player_id='455177' first='Briana' last='Vo'] who plays for a Volley Viet team that Bob really liked at nationals. There are a bunch of players I really like on that Colgan team too, but for the sake of doing something different, I'm going to go with James Madison.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 5 - Lightridge</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Contenders: Riverside, Midlothian</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Picking against [player_tooltip player_id='301696' first='Nadiya' last='Johnson'] is almost crazy, they've got a fantastic team. But full disclosure, I'm going with Lightridge because one of my favorite players in all of the DMV is going to be there as a Freshman this year. Kayla Tutoni. The kid is a gamer, one of the best DS prospects anywhere around here. She's also going to get quite a bit of help with a couple [program_tooltip program_id='476729' first='Paramount' last=''] girls on the team, including [player_tooltip player_id='545727' first='Giuliana' last='Mastrangelo'], a MB who can be a game changer on the net.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 4 - Courtland</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Contenders: James Wood, Loudon County</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I really wanted to take James Wood, I won't lie. But Courtland stood out for me when I noticed a couple of girls I've been tracking ended up there. With the 2nd best setter in the 2026 class, [player_tooltip player_id='397536' first='Aubrey' last='Parker'], and a few hitters to mix balls to, Courtland has the makings of a very good offense. If they can get through a stacked James Wood, they have a legit shot at the crown.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 3 - Grafton</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Contenders: Liberty Christian</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ok, we've hit that point where I've got to agree with Bob here. I just don't see another team that I think will stop Grafton. Liberty Christian has a pair of sisters in Evie and [player_tooltip player_id='881169' first='Elyse' last='Ballengee'] that could make a difference, but I think ultimately, as Bob said, Grafton has a lot of pieces, and some finals experience, so I think they pull it out in the end.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 2 - Fort Defiance</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Contenders: Ridgeview</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Again, going to defer to Bob on this one, because I just don't know enough about the area and don't see any club players I recognize. I know it's a cop out, and I'm sorry to the Class 2 teams in VA. I just don't get out that way enough to make too much of an educated guess.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 1 - Giles</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Contenders - Auburn</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It sounds weird to say a school with six consecutive titles is a contender and not a favorite, but I'm a really big fan of [player_tooltip player_id='452562' first='Sophie' last='Taylor']. Big time hitter who is already committed to Ole Miss, I think this will be a case where a star player will put the team on her shoulders and take home the win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->