CLEVELAND — The Division I Top 25 AP Poll for girl’s high school volleyball features a number of classic rivalries between schools, conferences and emerging programs in Northeast Ohio.
Blue Streaks vs Jaguars
The classic rivalry between Magnificat High School and St. Joseph Academy also reigns supreme in high school volleyball.
No. 2 Magnificat leads the top of the charts for Northeast Ohio, with a 17-2 set record overall, 10-0 in matches. The Blue Streaks only two set losses of the season have been against Saint Ursula Academy, the No. 3 team in the state, and Mount Notre Dame, the No. 4 team in the state.
The 2021 DI State Champions are led by outside hitter junior Julia Sprecher. Sprecher, a verbal commit to Louisiana State University to play Beach Volleyball, averages 3.7 kills per set. Additionally, she adds eight digs per set, an uncommon trait for a hitter.
As for No. 9 St. Joe’s, 12-8 in sets overall, recently won a five-set battle against Notre Dame Cathedral Latin School on Saturday. Senior Mia Sunahara led the night with 14 kills, 10 digs and two aces.
Additionally, her teammate junior Juliette Chandler contributed 11 kills and two blocks on Saturday. The Jaguars will travel to Columbus this week to play in the Columbus Invitational Tournament.
SWC Dominance
As for the Southwestern Conference, No. 5 Olmstead Falls, No. 15 Amherst Steele and No. 16 Avon Lake represent the west side of Cleveland as well.
Olmstead Falls clinched the SWC title for the first time since 2015 in their victory against Amherst, 3-1 on Saturday afternoon. The Lady Bulldogs found themselves in the double digits for assists to other teammates, with Kyle Urban recording 24 kills.
The Lady Bulldogs, who are 19-1 in overall sets, beat the Shoregals and Lady Comets in a combined 6-1 sets in the last month. Olmstead Falls is 6-0 in conference play overall.
Respectfully for Amherst, the 16-4 set record and 9-3 match record is indicative of a tough conference. In addition to the match dropped against the Lady Bulldogs, they also lost to the Shoregals.
In both conference matches, team leader Nia Hall recorded a combined 56 kills, 16 digs, three aces and four blocks for the Comets.
Last but not least Avon Lake junior Aubrey Kirk leads the way for the 5-1 match overall record. She earned her 500th career kill in their match against Avon in September.
Bees vs Hornets
No. 18 Medina Bees are 16-3 in sets played, with an 8-1 conference record overall. The recent loss comes after an upset result against Medina County foes Brunswick Blue Devils who beat them in a 3-2 thriller.
The Bees look to get back on track against non-conference opponent Rocky River. Lady Bee Kira Holland had a match-high of 23 kills against the Blue Devils.
Not too far down the road is rival T-No. 20 Highland High School, who were swept 3-0 against the Bees early on in the season. Most recently, the Lady Hornets swept the Nordonia Knights and were led defensively by Corrine Mutch, Alayna Tessena and Kate Weber who each had 6 digs on the night.
Tied for a spot in the rankings
Part of the three-way tie at No. 20 at the bottom of the rankings for DI is Rocky River and Chardon High School.
The Lady Pirates are coming off a double-win weekend after defeating Berea-Midpark and Vermillion in a non-conference tri-match on Saturday. Leading the way for Rocky River between both matches is Samantha Young, who had a combined 27 kills and 16 digs.
Rocky River is set to square up against Holy Name on Thursday for the Great Lakes Conference Championship Match.
As for Chardon, the Lady Hilltoppers are back on a winning streak after defeating Riverside High School and Mayfield High School. The next match is set to take place at home against Kirkland High School.
No relationship, just good
Last but certainly not least, the No. 10 Jackson Polar Bears ring in as the final team in Northeast Ohio’s powerhouse for varsity girls' volleyball.
Jackson is 19-1 overall in set wins and undefeated in the Federal Conference. They are on a 13-match win streak, the most recent being a sweep against Perry. The Lady Polar Bears will host their final two matches of the season against Glen Oak and Lake (Uniontown).
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