Coverage presented by Arkansas Select Volleyball.
4A
There is a change at the top where Pottsville takes over after winning the silver bracket in the Fort Smith Invitational and Baptist Prep falls to No. 2 after going 1-3 at the LRCA Classic.
The Lady Eagles’ overall strength of schedule keeps them falling further in the polls.
Prairie Grove moves from No. 7 to No. 5 after winning the Lincoln Invitational.
1. POTTSVILLE (8-3-3)
Previous rank: No. 2
Last week: def. Mansfield 3-0; def. Conway Christian 3-0; lost 3-1 to Paris Thursday; Fort Smith Invitational Saturday: tied Rogers 1-1; tied Van Buren 1-1, tied Sylvan Hills 1-1. Silver bracket: def. LR Southwest; def. Mansfield; def. Rogers Heritage
This week: at Clinton Tuesday; vs. Clarksville Thursday. Morrilton Devil Dog Tournament: vs. Atkins, vs. Maumelle, vs. Morrilton JV
Lady Apaches take home silver bracket in the Fort Smith Invitational.
“We split with Rogers and Van Buren this morning in our pool which put us earning the third seed because of point differentials when it came down to a tie. So we ended up in the silver bracket and swept all three teams in the bracket win silver. Definitely a tough day after coming off a three match week. But we saw some good things and know what we are capable of. Van Buren went on to beat Southside in the gold championship so we know we are competing and playing with the right people. Just trying to figure out what works best for us and our team to be stronger come conference and post season.” — Pottsville head coach Kacie Stabler
2. BAPTIST PREP (9-7)
Previous rank: No. 1
Last week: def. Central Arkansas Christian 3-0; lost 3-0 to Little Rock Central Tuesday. LRCA Classic: lost 2-0 to Little Rock Central; lost 2-0 to Searcy; def. Episcopal Collegiate 2-0. Gold bracket: lost 2-1 to Cabot
This week: vs. Conway Monday; vs. No. 4 Pulaski Academy Tuesday; at Mills Thursday
Lady Eagles defeated Cabot 25-20 in the first set before dropping the last two 25-19 and 15-11.
“I told them before the game I wanted them to compete. Cabot is a great team, a 6A team and win or lose, I’m super proud of how they competed on the court today. In pool play, we were awful, terrible and ridiculously bad. As I told them, we come back, it’s a new day, new uniform, new gym and they responded. We have to get back in the gym and keep working. We play Conway Monday and start conference play on Tuesday. Hopefully, this competition will help us prepare for what’s to come.” — Baptist Prep head coach Krista Spoon on the LRCA Classic.
3. MENA (8-3)
Previous rank: No. 3
Last week: def. Arkadelphia 3-0; def. Fountain Lake 3-1
This week: vs. Paris Monday; at Camden Fairview Tuesday; vs. Magnolia Thursday
Pascha Wistrand, Mena had 13 kills against Arkadelphia while Chloe Hopper had 35 assists.
4. PULASKI ACADEMY (6-2)
Previous rank: No. 4
Last week: def. Central Arkansas Christian 3-1
This week: at No. 1 Baptist Prep Tuesday; vs. Bauxite Thursday
Lady Bruins open conference play with Baptist Prep.
5. PRAIRIE GROVE (10-2-1)
Previous rank: No. 7
Last week: lost 3-0 to Van Buren; def. Berryville 3-0; def. Huntsville 3-1. Lincoln Invitational: tied West Fork 1-1; def. Lifeway Christian 2-0; def. Little Rock Hall 2-0; def. Providence Academy 2-1; def. Lincoln 2-1
This week: at Pea Ridge Tuesday; at Gravette Thursday
Lady Tigers win Lincoln Invitational.
“We were thankful for the opportunity to compete in the Lincoln Tournament today. It was a perfect time to continue to work on our line up. We have several talented girls that could go in and contribute at anytime this season so it was beneficial for them to get into the mix and get that invaluable playing time. I was proud of the girls for fighting together and finding ways to win against teams we don’t normally see and aren’t use to playing.” — Prairie Grove head coach Lindsey Biocic
6. BAUXITE (7-2-2)
Previous rank: No. 7
Last week: def. Fountain Lake 3-2; lost 3-2 to Episcopal Colleigate Thursday. LRCA Classic Saturday: tied Bryant 1-1; tied No. 8 Jonesboro Westside 1-1; def. Russellville 2-0. Gold bracket: lost 2-0 to Bentonville
This week: at Joe T. Robinson Tuesday; at Pulaski Academy Thursday
“Bentonville is huge, they’re big, they’re 6A and they’re dominating. I think we played well and stuck with them through most of the set and gave up a big serving run and couldn’t get back in it. I was happy with how we played. We started a little slow, overall I’m happy with how we played and grew as a team. We start conference play and it was good to see these teams and see bigger classification teams. Seeing them made us better.” — Bauxite head coach Haley Howard
7. JONESBORO WESTSIDE (8-1-2)
Previous rank: No. 8
Last week: def. No. 5 Wynne 3-0; def. Highland 3-0; def. Trumann 3-0; LRCA Classic Saturday: tied Bryant 1-1; tied No. 7 Bauxite 1-1; def. Russellville 2-0. Gold bracket: lost 2-0 to Little Rock Christian Academy
This week: vs. Pocahontas Tuesday; at Blytheville Thursday
“We missed three serves in set one and had some tough serve-receive errors in set two. Little Rock Christian is a great team and we have some things to clean up. I think we could have been more competitive if it wasn’t for our errors. I through we played Bauxite well. We were pretty evenly matched, We didn’t play very well vs. Bryant. We had a few too many errors. All three teams in our pool were strong and good competition.” — Jonesboro Westside head coach Codie Ziegler
8. WYNNE (3-4)
Previous rank: No. 5
Last week: lost to Jonesboro Westside 3-0; def. Forrest City 3-0
This week: at Jonesboro Monday; at Lonoke Tuesday
Ella Reed had 35 assists in both matches with 6 kills, 16 digs and 8 aces. Landry Lovell had 17 digs vs. Jonesboro Westside.
9. CLARKSVILLE (6-2)
Previous rank: No. 9
Last week: def. Dover 3-0, def. Atkins 3-0; lost 3-0 to Hackett
This week: vs. Morrilton Tuesday; at Pottsville Thursday. Saturday at Morrilton Devil Dog Tournament: vs. Morrilton, vs. Watson Chapel
Addison Phillips had 17 digs, 2 aces and 2 assists vs. Dover while Baylor Pasley had 10 kills and 2 digs. Alex Rodriguez had 16 assists and 4 digs and Analeise Fultz had 11 digs and 2 blocks.
10. BROOKLAND (6-5)
Previous rank: No. 6
Last week: def. Greene County Tech 3-1; def. Blytheville 3-0; def. Pocahontas 3-1
This week: vs. Mountain Home Tuesday; vs. Trumann Thursday
Playing a hard non-conference schedule has paid off for the Lady Bearcats who have climbed over .500.
“I have been really pleased with how they have played this week. We had a big contest against 5A Greene County Tech and they played really well and won in 4. I knew our game against Pocahontas wouldn’t be easy and when we lost set 2 I challenged them to respond and to not let down, and they did were able to win the next 2 and the match in 4. They know none of our games will be easy and they just keep chipping away every play.” — Brookland head coach Katie Dillon.
3A
Episcopal Collegiate and Harrisburg take pride in challenging themselves against teams in higher classes.
However, those challenges sometimes come at a price. Episcopal went 2-3 at the LRCA Classic with losses to Class 6A Central and 4A Baptist Prep. In addition, they were without Lauren Kate Fryar who had an ankle injury and Jules Johnson, who was sick.
Harrisburg was without Adalen Kocher, who had 30 kills in victories over Walnut Ridge and Crowley’s Ridge. She suffered an ankle injury vs. West Helena Central. Without her, Harrisburg lost all three matches in pool play to 5A tams Alma, Cabot and Benton and to Episcopal in the silver bracket.
While Episcopal head coach Paige Gantar was not happy with how her team played Saturday despite not having everyone in the lineup. Harrisburg was not at full strength, but both teams stay in the top two spots in this week’s poll because of their strength of schedule.
1. EPISCOPAL COLLEGIATE (8-3)
Previous rank: No. 1
Last week: def. No. 6 Conway Christian 3-1; def. Bauxite 3-2 LRCA Classic: lost 2-0 to Little Rock Central; def. Searcy 2-0 lost 2-0 to Baptist Prep. Silver bracket: def. Harrisburg; lost 2-0 to Mayflower
This week: vs. Atkins Monday; vs. LISA Academy North Thursday
Despite playing playing teams in 6A (Little Rock Central), 5A (Searcy) and 4A (Baptist Prep), head coach Paige Gantar was not happy with the way her team played at the LRCA Classic despite Jules Johnson being sick and Lauren Kate Fryar out with an ankle injury.
“All around, as a team, we didn’t take care of the controllable such as energy and effort. Sometimes in a match, you might have one or two who are off and you have to overcome that, but today everyone was making their fair share of mistakes. You might be tired and have sicknesses, but you have to play through it. We have to come in Monday and leave this behind us.” — Episcopal Collegiate head coach Paige Gantar
2. HARRISBURG (7-7-2)
Previous rank: No. 5
Last week: def. Walnut Ridge 3-0; def. Crowley’s Ridge 3-1; def. West Helena Central 3-0. LRCA Classic Saturday: lost 2-0 to Cabot, lost 2-0 to Benton, lost 2-0 to Alma. Silver bracket: lost to Episcopal Collegiate
This week: vs. Hoxie Monday; at Newport Thursday
Harrisburg had a tough tournament at LRCA without Adalen Kocher who was out with an ankle injury. Cassie Carlson had 35 kills vs. Walnut Ridge and Crowley’s Ridge.
3. HARDING ACADEMY (4-3)
Previous rank: No. 7
Last week: def. Conway St. Joseph 3-0; def. Hoxie 3-1
This week: vs. Conway Christian Monday; vs. Mayflower Tuesday; vs Central Arkansas Christian Thursday
Gabby Metheny had 31 digs in both matches while Kayson Reeves had 42 kills and Kennedy Lovin had 42 assists vs. Hoxie.
4. MAYFLOWER (10-4-1)
Previous rank: No. 4
Last week: lost 3-0 to No. 10 Paris; def. Dover 3-0; def. Perryville 3-1. at LRCA Classic Saturday: lost 2-0 to Bentonville; lost 2-0 to Little Rock Christian Academy, tied North Little Rock 1-1. Silver bracket: def. Russellville 2-1; def. Alma; def. No. 1 Episcopal Collegiate; def. Bryant 2-1.
This week: at No. 3 Harding Academy Tuesday; vs. No. 10 Paris Thursday
“I think we did a lot of great things. We fought hard as a team all day when everyone was down we had tons of injury. Miranda (Leslie) and Lydia (Matthews) provided a lot of leadership and Chloe (Whittington) had a great day.”
5. MANSFIELD (8-4)
Previous rank: No. 5
Last week: lost 3-0 to Pottsville; def. West Fork 3-0; def. Lincoln 3-0. Fort Smith Invitational: lost 2-1 to Fort Smith Northside; lost 2-1 to Hackett. Silver bracket: def. Charleston; lost to Pottsville
This week: vs. Clarksville Monday; at Charleston Tuesday; at Providence Academy Thursday
Lady Tigers take their shot at teams in higher classes.
“We played a lot of great competition. We played some really talented teams and we fought extremely hard, but came up short in a few games because we were unable to finish. I’m really proud of our play and showing this weekend. I am happy with how we look right now, we are getting better every match we play. We are competing in close sets with some of the best teams in the state, makes me excited for post season.” — Mansfield head coach Kaylie Andrews
6. CENTRAL ARKANSAS CHRISTIAN (4-6)
Previous rank: No. 3
Last week: lost 3-0 to Baptist Prep; lost 3-1 to Pulaski Academy
This week: at No. 7 Conway Christian Tuesday; at Harding Academy Thursday. Sheridan Tournament Saturday: vs. White Hall, vs. Malvern, vs. Guy-Perkins
Lady Mustangs suffer a pair of losses to two of the better teams in Class 4A.
7. CONWAY CHRISTIAN (7-4)
Previous rank: No. 6
Last week: lost 3-1 to Episcopal Collegiate Monday; lost 3-0 to Pottsville; def. Joe T. Robinson 3-0
This week: at No. 3 Harding Academy Monday; vs. No. 6 Central Arkansas Christian Tuesday; at Atkins Thursday
Lady Eagles continue to challenge themselves against strong competition.
8. HASKELL HARMONY GROVE (6-2)
Previous rank: No. 8
Last week: def. Smackover 3-0; def. Camden Harmony Grove 3-0; def. Cossatot River 3-0
This week: at Ashdown Tuesday; at Sheridan Tournament Saturday: vs. Sheridan, vs. Taylor, vs. Gospel Light
Lady Cardinals get to test themselves vs. 5A Sheridan this week and 2A contender Taylor at the Sheridan Tournament. Leelana Kennach had 70 assists, 22 aces and 11 digs in all 3 matches. Jaycee Bossert had 29 kills, 6 aces and 5 digs and .600 hitting pct., and Preslie Walker had 21 kills, 10 aces and 10 digs during the week.
9. CROWLEY’S RIDGE ACADEMY (3-2)
Previous rank: No. 9
Last week: def. Hoxie 3-0; lost 3-0 to No. 2 Harrisburg; def. Newport 3-1
This week: at Manlia Monday; vs. Walnut Ridge Tuesday; at Cave City Thursday
Tenlee Walker had 25 digs vs. Newport while Andee Eades had 14 digs in the same match.
10. PARIS (3-5)
Previous rank: No. 10
Last week: def. No. 4 Mayflower 3-0; def. Pottsville 3-1
This week: at Mena Monday; vs. Booneville Tuesday; at No. 4 Mayflower Thursday
Lady Eagles start to gain some momentum. Ashton Ihle had 54 kills in both matches while Rowan Patterson had 41.
2A
Hackett went 1-2 at the Fort Smith Invitational, falling 2-1 to Class 6A Fort Smith Northside in pool play while beating 3A Mansfield 2-1. In the gold bracket, they fell 2-0 to 5A Farmington.
Once again, no changes in Class 2A rankings.
1. HACKETT (8-3)
Previous rank: No. 1
Last week: def. Hector 3-0; def. Huntsville 3-1; def. Clarksville 3-1; at Fort Smith Invitational Saturday: def. Mansfield 2-1 lost 2-1 to Fort Smith Northside. Gold bracket: lost 2-0 to Farmington.
This week: at Harrison Monday; vs. Nemo Vista Thursday
Lady Hornets willing to challenge themselves in teams in Classes 5A and 6A.
“We had a long week and ran out of steam at the end. We played 17 (actually 19) sets this week, won some great games, were very competitive at the tournament today, and still have our same goal of being in the state finals!” — Hackett head coach Bridget Freeman
2. TAYLOR (10-1)
Previous rank: No. 2
Last week: def. Cutter Morning Star 3-0; def. Nevada 3-0
This week: vs. Camden Fairview Monday; vs. Columbia Christian Thursday. Sheridan Tournament Saturday: vs. Sheridan, vs. Gospel Light, vs. Haskell Harmony Grove
Genna Braswell had 11 digs and 3 aces in the victory over Cutter Morning Star. She had 8 aces against Nevada. Adley Buford had 8 kills vs. Cutter Morning Star. Carsyn Grant had 10 kills and 4 aces vs. Nevada and Macy Downs had 6 aces and 6 kills vs. Nevada.
3. ENGLAND (6-1)
Previous rank: No. 3
Last week: def. Cutter Morning Star 3-1; def. Lonoke 3-1
This week: vs. Magnet Cove Tuesday; at Conway St. Joseph Thursday
England lost the first set in both matches and came back to win the next three.
4. CONWAY ST. JOSEPH (6-2)
Previous rank: No. 4
Last week: lost 3-0 to Harding Academy; def. Magnet Cove 3-0
This week: vs. Perryville Monday; at Jacksonville Lighthouse Tuesday; vs. England Thursday
Kinley Freyaldenhoven had 8 kills and15 assists and 5 aces vs. Magnet Cove.
“Harding is really good, but we made them a lot better.” — Conway St. Joseph head coach Luke Davis on the loss to Harding Academy.
5. COTTER (7-0)
Previous rank: No. 5
Last week: def. Alpena 3-0; def. Midland 3-0
This week: at Cedar Ridge Tuesday; at Omaha Thursday
Reagan Cowart had 39 assists in both matches while Kenna Collins had 21 kills.
