Class 5 Rankings

<!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>1. Liberty Blue Jays 25-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The town of Liberty is a volleyball town with the two best Class 5 teams separated by less than five miles. This week, the battle with Liberty North was a massive draw, with Liberty taking the match in 5 21-25, 25-23, 25-13, 24-26, 15-12. Aisha Aiono had a monster match with 14 kills on .481 hitting and four blocks, while [player_tooltip player_id='99215' first='Brooklyn' last='Young'] rejected eight balls and slammed 12 herself. Super sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='153930' first='Abigail' last='Mullen'] finished with 17 kills, and sister [player_tooltip player_id='99216' first='Ashley' last='Mullen'] dished 49 assists. Liberty has a big match with Nixa, and the Ozark Tournament is still on the schedule.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>2. Liberty North Eagles 20-3</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I would have loved to be at this game, but I watched it on TV and loved every minute. Nothing better than watching heavyweights slug it out, and Liberty got the best of the Eagles this time. [player_tooltip player_id='153934' first='Emma' last='Christian'] and [player_tooltip player_id='152821' first='Lauren' last='Wright'] ran the offense, while Abby Christian kept powerful hits off the ground all night. Hitters [player_tooltip player_id='119226' first='Carlie' last='Cisneros'], [player_tooltip player_id='219774' first='McKenna' last='Jacquin'], [player_tooltip player_id='152148' first='Rory' last='Stanley'], and [player_tooltip player_id='232620' first='Ella' last='Morgan'] had plenty of scoring opportunities. A battle till the end and was a state championship caliber match, but one of the top two in the state won't even win districts this year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>3. Eureka Wildcats 18-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A repeat championship at the Oakville Tournament and a 3-0 sweep of district rival Lafayette were fantastic two weeks. Next is the home tournament with games against St. Pius X, Bolivar, Rogersville, and Ozark, which should help test Eureka's strength. [player_tooltip player_id='123459' first='Mia' last='Berg'] leads the team with 167 kills, followed by [player_tooltip player_id='123473' first='Abby' last='Holt'] with 157. Defensively the Wildcats are solid, with [player_tooltip player_id='124215' first='Olivia' last='Hasbrook'] and [player_tooltip player_id='152123' first='Dana' last='Grib'] digging everything in sight.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>4. Rock Bridge Bruins 15-2</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Liberty North handed the Bruins one of their losses with a 25-22, 23-25, 18-25, and a loss to Helias this week in 4. Mark your calendars for October 10^th, as the Bruins have a date with Eureka and the 13^th date with Blair Oaks. [player_tooltip player_id='119220' first='Lily' last='Dudley'] is the kill leader with 160, while [player_tooltip player_id='184887' first='Kaylen' last='Rush'] has been steady at the libero position with 153 digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>5. Lee's Summit West Titans 16-8</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This team has me perplexed this year. Last year's Class 5 runner-up has some solid wins over Kickapoo and Nixa, but their loss to Park Hill South has me shaking my head. Liberty North comes to town on the 11^th, which might give me a better idea of what this team is made of. Remember, they knocked out Liberty North in the playoffs on their way to a runner-up finish. [player_tooltip player_id='216020' first='Ryanne' last='Wattree'] and [player_tooltip player_id='493090' first='Kamryn' last='McDonald'] lead the team with 189 and 188 kills.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>6. Kickapoo Chiefs 20-5</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another year the Chiefs have a great team and another year stuck in a brutal district with Nixa and Ozark. Nixa knocked off Kickapoo 2-3 earlier this year, and then matchups with Liberty North and Lafayette on 10/6 will keep Kickapoo prepared for playoffs. Grace Gardner leads the team in kills from the right pin with 195 kills and plays her part in the backcourt with 191 digs. [player_tooltip player_id='342439' first='Kya' last='Johnson'] rocks the different color jersey with 311 digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>7. Nixa Eagles 18-5</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Eagles are a team I thought would be down this year, losing two of the best players in program history. Well, I was wrong because they are right back in the mix. They would start the year 0-2 but have gone 18-3 since with big wins over Lafayette 3-0 and Cor Jesu Academy 3-1. Nora Clark leads the offense with 220 kills, and Jacy Bray runs the offense with 646 assists on the year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>8. Lafayette Lancers 14-6</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I picked Lafayette to win it all this year, and they still could. They have the firepower and frontline to do so, but they've struggled more than I thought. They lost four in a row, and one was to district rival Eureka in a sweep. Big battles are coming up with Liberty North and Kickapoo this weekend. [player_tooltip player_id='153929' first='Maya' last='Witherspoon'] and Caitlin Litle lead the attack, and [player_tooltip player_id='124219' first='Alyssa' last='Nelson'] runs the show from the setter spot.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>9. Ozark Tigers 17-6-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ozark lost a nail bitter to Eureka over the weekend, 27-25, 23-25, 15-8, and would have liked this to go the distance to get a better outlook on Ozark. The Tigers have beaten Nixa and lost to Nixa, and then they have three losses to Kickapoo on the year. These three will have to battle it out come districts, and it seems like a toss-up. Big bad freshman [player_tooltip player_id='219778' first='Tara' last='Venable'] leads the team in kills with 210. The end of the month is the Ozark Tournament, and it brings in some big-time teams.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"textColor":"primary"} --> <p class="has-primary-color has-text-color"><strong>10. Liberty Eagles 21-1</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A win over Mater Dei, IL, at Belleville East Tournament moves the Wentzville-based Liberty Eagles into the top 10. If you follow the Saint Louis Metro area volleyball scene, you know that Mater Dei is always one of the best teams on the Illinois side of the river. Liberty would take them 25-22, 25-18, which caught my eye. The only loss of the year is to a good Breese Central, IL team. Savannah Meyer has 148 kills, [player_tooltip player_id='216459' first='Reese' last='Douglas'] 105, and Riley Watson pushes the ball around and racked up 355 assists. The rest of the season looks winnable for the Eagles before the playoffs start.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->