Recently in Girls Volleyball Category

By Phil Brozynski

Meghan Niski of Class 4A state champion St. Charles East and Lyons setter Alexis Viliunas are among the Best High School Playing Freshmen of 2008 according to a list recently released by Prepvolleyball.com.

Niski, a 5-foot-9 outside hitter, had 229 kills and 284 digs for the Saints and earned honorable mention all-Upstate Eight Conference honors.

"Meg worked hard every day in practice to make sure she was the best that she could be," St. Charles East coach Jennie Kull said. "She is a perfectionist, always wanting to do things the best. I am blessed to have her for three more years. She is a diamond."

The 6-foot-1 Viliunas started every match for the 28-12 Lions and earned all-tournament honors at Rich East. She finished the season with nearly 700 assists and added 126 digs, 22 aces and 82 kills.

Jenna Jacobson of Whitney Young, Michelle Schultz of Class 3A semifinalist (Chicago) Payton and 6-foot-2 middle hitter Abby Heise of downstate Jacksonville received highest honorable mention honors.

Jacobson, a 5-foot-8 setter, helped lead the Dolphins to the city championship game by amassing 682 assists, 211 digs, 58 aces and 64 kills. A 5-foot-8 outside hitter, Schultz had 138 kills, 207 digs and 67 aces for the 37-3 Grizzlies.

Named special mention were Amelia Anderson of Crystal Lake Central, Samantha Bedard of Breese Mater Dei, Emily Burger of Bloomington, Sam Espensa of Edwardsville and Maisey Mulvey of St. Charles East.

Also earning special mention honors were Brooke Schulte of Breese Mater Dei, Morgan Semmelhack of York and Jessie Tulacka of Downers Grove North.

Named honorable mention were Huntley's Amy Dixon, Batavia's Mary Nilles, Lake Zurich's Amanda Orchard, York's Caroline Rose and Lake Forest's Heidi Sierks,

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Annemarie Hickey of Joliet Catholic and Jessica Jendryk of Benet were named honorable mention All-American by Volleyball Magazine.

Nebraska recruit Hannah Werth of Chatham Glenwood was the only Illinois player named to the 14-member All-American team.

By Phil Brozynski

Reaction is still coming in concerning the Illinois High School Association's decision to end its long association with Wilson and begin employing balls manufactured by Baden Sports, Inc., during its various state series, including girls and boys volleyball.

Here are some comments from a few more area volleyball coaches:

"What I like are the Molten balls for several reasons. Molten is used at the college level and in many club programs. My players choose that ball first in the cart. I always order Molten balls for practice balls. They hold up twice as long as the Wilson ball. The boys especially are tough on a volleyball because they hit the ball so hard. The Molten ball also hold its air better, maintaining consistent air pressure. The Wilsons only last about a year-and-a-half for me. I order some Wilson balls which we use for game balls, but the majority of my order is Molten. I have complained to my rep about the Wilson ball, but it did not do much good. I do not have much experience with the Baden." - Lincoln-Way Central girls coach Joann Holverson.

"We like the Baden volleyball better than the Wilson volleyball, but the one my players really like are the Molten volleyballs. The Wilsons did not keep their shape and often did not hold the air like it should, which affects the flight of the ball." - Providence boys coach Cindy Olczyk.

"Baden is great brand name for volleyball. I used it early on at Loyola University before we switched to Molten. Baden was a stronger ball than Tachikara at that time, lasted longer, and could take the wear and tear of the men at Loyola playing with the same balls as the women. I use Molten here at Latin with a spattering of Wilson. I guess I will look into Baden to see if they have any better deals than Molten. I guess I would have to say I like Molten the best, but Baden is fine." - Latin's Liz Nelson.

"It should be a more welcome ball than the Wilson I-Cor. I hope that it will last longer than the Wilsons did." - Wheaton Warrenville South boys and girls coach Bill Schreier.

"Baden is a good volleyball. The company has been around for quite some time and they make a quality product. If I am not mistaken, I believe it is the official ball of the NCAA. Other than it is no longer a local company that is the official supplier, the change should be negligible. It is a quality product." - Oak Park-River Forest boys coach Don August.

"Baden has been around for a while. I think they make a pretty good volleyball, probably better than the Wilson ball." - Immaculate Conception's Jean Field.

"I recently talked with my equipment salesman and he said they are anticipating that the required Baden volleyball is going to cost $55. The Wilson from last year is approximately $40. My past experience with Baden is that they were not very good balls. That was some years ago, and they may be better now. The Wilson ball is a great ball. We will have to see how the Baden measures up when we get one and actually use it." --
Hinsdale Central boys coach and assistant athletic director Len Serwat.

"Baden makes a quality ball and we have no qualms about the switch." - Lincoln-Way East boys coach Dawn Murphy.

"I don't have a lot of familiarity with the Baden ball. I do know that the list price of the volleyball is twice the price of the Wilson. Most of the club world uses the Molten ball, so it's another difference." - Barrington boys coach Rob Ridenour.

And finally, there was this from a coach who did not want to be named.

"It's the next step in crappy deals brokered by the IHSA without input from coaches and players."

By Phil Brozynski

Prepvolleyball.com has released its list of the top 50 recruits in the Class of 2010 and three Chicago area players are among those college coaches predict will make the biggest impact at the next level.

The list includes 6-foot-1 outside hitter Kelsey Robinson (Wheaton St. Francis), 6-0 outside hitter Carly Sahagian (Bartlett), and 5-11 outside hitter Stephanie Holthus (Burlington Central), who has already verbally committed to Northwestern.

Kara Wehrs, a 5-9 setter from Hampshire who has verbally committed to Kansas, is listed among the next 30 top recruits in the Class of 2010.

Three Chicago area players were among the nominees for Prepvolleyball.com's Andi Collins Award, which recognizes the best senior setter in the nation. The Award is named for Collins, who died on September 4, 2003, one month shy of her 17th birthday.

The three players from Chicago are Desiree Aramburu from Mother McAuley, the 2008 Chicago Sun-Times Player of the Year, Laura Homann from St. Charles East, who led the Saints to the Class 4A state title, and Joliet Catholic's Gina Vera.

The 5-8 Aramburu finished with 792 assists, 260 digs, 90 kills, 48 blocks and 49 aces while leading Mother McAuley to a third-place finish in Class 4A. Homann, a 5-10 Syracuse recruit, piled up 1,100 assists, among the best single-season marks all-time in Illinois.

At 5-8, Vera was a good six inches shorter than Joliet Catholic's previous setter -- Sun-Times 2007 Player of the Year Kelly Murphy. But she launched 935 assists while guiding the Angels to the Class 3A state title.

Meanwhile, Vera's teammate at Joliet Catholic, 5-8 outside hitter Anne Marie Hickey, was among 25 players nationwide nominated for National High School Junior of the Year. A Sun-Times all-area selection, Hickey amassed 427 kills with her rocket arm.

Finally, two area coaches were among the finalists for Prepvolleyball.com's National High School Coach of the Year - St. Charles East's Jennie Kull and Joliet Catholic's Chris Scheibe.

Kull led St. Charles East to the Class 4A state title with two freshmen in the starting lineup and only one player over six feet. Scheibe took Joliet Catholic to the 3A title one year after graduating Gatorade National Player of the Year Kelly Murphy and four other starters.

Previous Coach of the Year winners include Peg Kopec from St. Francis (2006) and Nancy Pederson of Mother McAuley (2004).

By Phil Brozynski

For several years, we have had to listen to high school P.A. announcers across Illinois say, "When Illinois kids play games, they play with Wilson balls."

Well, no more.

The Illinois High School Association's contract with Wilson will end at the end of this school year. The IHSA has entered into a new five-year agreement with Washington-based Baden Sports, Inc., the official ball provider of the Chicago Bulls, to provide balls for the IHSA's various state series.

Reaction about the change is mixed among Illinois volleyball coaches. Many would prefer to see the IHSA endorse Molten as the official volleyball for the boys and girls state tournaments. Others are concerned about the price of Baden balls.

However, most were universal in their condemnation of the old Wilson balls.

"The Baden volleyball has been around for a while," said Walther Lutheran's Mara Schmidt. "I am not a fan as I feel it is hard to get them inflated properly so they tend to feel hard. The Wilson volleyballs were terrible, however, so switching is a good idea."

Marist's Bob St. Leger also likes the switch.

"The Wilson balls were not very durable at all," he said. "After using them everyday in practice, I always had to buy new balls the next year which obviously was expensive. Hopefully the Baden balls will be more durable.

"What the state should use are Molten volleyballs," he added. "These are the balls used in USA Volleyball and at the collegiate level."

Evanston's Mike McDermott also endorses the Molten.

"In my experience, the top of the line Baden volleyball is of a higher quality and consistency than any of the Wilson balls that we have used," he said. "If given the choice, our players would prefer the Molten Pro Touch, which is what they use in club all season."

Here is a sampling of what some other coaches are saying:

"It took us many years to get all the Tachikara balls out of our gym and replace them with Wilson. Now task begins again of slowly replacing all the balls in our gym again. I am interested in seeing how the ball reacts and what the feel of the ball is to the players." - Cary-Grove's Patty Langanis.

"Baden makes a better volleyball than Wilson. The feel between the volleyballs are different. Volleyball players who play club or in college will more than likely be using a Molten or a Baden ball. I personally prefer the Molten to the Baden, but the Baden is a step up from Wilson." - Lake Forest's Ray Werner.

"We have used Baden and it has been acceptable. However, I understand that the price of the ball that they are using for the state tournament is $100. There is no way that high school teams are going to be able to afford to use the ball to practice with." - St. Charles' Jennie Kull.

"They are good quality balls. Just like every other ball supplier... you have good quality, more expensive models as well as cheap, not so good products. The switch will not effect volleyball as far as I'm concerned." - Naperville North's Roger Strausberger.

"Baden has a high quality volleyball. I can't comment on the other sports, but Baden has been associated with volleyball for years." - Waubonsie Valley's Al Lagger.

"I can say, at least for volleyball, it is a step in the right direction. Nobody plays volleyball with a Wilson except at state tournament time. They were terrible volleyballs that did not hold up at all. At Glenbrook South, we would go through about 10 a girls season and 15 during boys." - Glenbrook South's Tim Monahan.

"I have heard of Baden, but I've mostly seen them as P.E. class volleyballs rather than competitive volleyballs. I have never used their quality volleyballs. The fact of the matter is most of the top players have to adjust to the Wilson volleyballs because clubs use the Molten balls. They will just have to adjust to something different. In volleyball I don't think too many people were in love with the Wilson volleyballs anyway, so the adjustment may end up being for the better." - former St. Charles North and Naperville North coach Brad Mitchell.

"As far as volleyball is concerned, Baden is a far superior product than the Wilson. Both Baden and Molten have been the preferred ball for collegiate and international competititon for the last 10 years or so. All boys and girls club organizations use one of those two balls. The Wilson ball is OK, but it does not hold up well over time. I have to replace Wilson balls about every two or three seasons. I am happy about the decision to switch." - Maine South coach Gary Granell.

"They make a better ball than Wilson, but not close to Molten or Tachikara. Molten is the official ball of the NCAAs, USAVB and internationally. It would make sense to go with them, but that never seems to be the case." - former Addison Trail coach Tom Hubner.

"Baden is a well made volleyball and has been around a long time. Wilson is really not the 'popular' volleyball choice, especially at the collegiate level where they use Molten. Tachikara is another popular brand and has been around a long time like Baden. I can't speak for the other sports, but it is a great volleyball." - Mother McAuley's Jen DeJarld.

"The IHSA has us answer a bunch of questions every year about the sport, but never have they asked us what is the best ball. I have never played with a Baden ball, so it is hard to determine if it is any good. But I guess what I am confused about is why they don't want our thoughts about what is the best. The Wilson ball was just OK, so I am sure everyone will forgot once the season gets going..assuming the Baden ball is decent. Hopefully they have our best interest in mind and this is just not a deal for money." - Addison Trail coach Brad Baker.

"I have heard of Baden but have never used the balls in volleyball. I do know that some of the vendors are quoting the prices of the balls and they are around $10 higher for volleyball, football, basketball and baseballs. The only ball that was cheaper were the softballs. I do not know the quality of the balls for any sport. I do know that it will be expensive to change the balls out as most coaches would like to practice and play with the ones that are used for the state series." - Edwards County's Linda Brown.

And finally...

"Now if they would just make the rule change for the colored ball. Of course, that's probably two or three years away." - Glenbrook South's Tim Monahan.

By Phil Brozynski

Illinois High School Association member schools recently voted 336-78 to move the date of the first contest in girls volleyball back one week. It was one of four proposals voted upon by the principals of IHSA member schools.

The 2008 season officially started on Monday, September 1 (Labor Day). Although as of Monday the IHSA Web site did not reflect the change, the 2009 girls volleyball season will now start on Monday, August 24.

The vote will not affect the state finals, which will be played November 12-13.

While the vote itself is likely to be viewed as a positive change (it will open up an additional weekend for tournaments), what was disappointing was how few principals (the schools' designated voting representative) took the time to vote on the proposals.

Only 415 principals voted electronically on the four proposals. There are 777 member schools. That means that only 53 percent of principals took the time to respond to issues that affect a significant number of their students.

What is worse is that fewer than two-thirds of all principals have bothered voting the last three times the IHSA held balloting on issues that affect student-athletes. During the 2006-2007 school year, only 57 percent of principals voted on six proposed measures.

Only once during the last 13 times schools have been asked to cast a ballot have at least three-quarters of them (78 percent on five proposals put forth during the 2005-06 school year) bothered to vote.

Apparently, many principals cannot be bothered to vote on major issues that affect their students.

So what is it exactly that principals do?

Oh, that's right. When their school finishes fourth or better at a state athletic tournament, they show up to accept their medal.

I've never seen a principal fail to appear for THAT event.

By Phil Brozynski

More than 50 boys and girls are participating in youth volleyball programs sponsored by Sports Performance Volleyball Club at the new Lake Barrington Field House.

The Lake Barrington Field House is a massive 175,000-square foot facility for football, baseball, softball, basketball and volleyball that opened this fall. Sports Performance is just one of several tenants occupying the facility.

"We have girls teams for 16s and down and one boys 18 team right now," said Sports Performance's Joe Jablonski. "Sure, you'd always like to have more kids. But we're happy with the initial turnout."

The Lake Barrington Field House includes a single artificial field turf playing surface that accommodates a full-size soccer field, two baseball/softball diamonds, a full-size football field or a full-size lacrosse field.

The facility also features 40,000-square feet of maple hardwood court surface that accommodates eight volleyball courts and four basketball courts. The courts have a 30-foot clear height roof.

Occupants include Sky High Volleyball, Lacrosse America and the Barrington Area Soccer Association.

Other occupants are Kessel's Training, a leading provider of camps, clinics and private instruction in basketball and volleyball, and ProSport, a unique sports training and rehab facility that is the leading provider of sports enhancement and rehabilitation in Chicagoland.

Sports Performance has already held one tournament at the facility, but does not expect to sponsor large high school events like the St. Charles East/Mizuno Cup tournament held at its Aurora location.

"The facility is really nice, but it does not accommodate as many spectators as the Aurora facility," Jablonski said. "It may be good for a smaller high school event."

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Congratulations to former Sun-Times All-Area standouts Laura DeBruler (Downers Grove North) of Illinois and Lexi Zimmerman (Barrington) of Michigan after being named unanimous All-Big Ten first team selections.

Arielle Wilson (Proviso East) of Penn State was also named to the Big Ten first team, while Beth Karpiak (Lyons Township) of Michigan earned All-Big Ten honorable mention honors.

llinois' Lizzie Bazzetta (Naperville North) and Iowa's Kiley Fister (St. Francis) were among the 11 recipients (one from each team) of the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award. The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior.

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On the recruiting front, Wheaton Warrenville South's 6-foot-9 middle Rob Samp has committed to Indiana Purdue-Fort Wayne while Marist's 6-7 Joe Smalzer has committed to Loyola University (Chicago).

By Phil Brozynski

A number of former Illinois high school standouts are members of teams that participated in the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Championship semifinals and finals last weekend in Omaha, Nebraska.

Two former Illinois players - Cary-Grove's Kim Hohl and Proviso East's Arielle Wilson -
are members of Penn State (38-0), which won its second straight NCAA title Saturday by beating Stanford 25-20, 26-24, 25-23.

Wilson, a sophomore, was fourth on the team in kills (244) and second in blocks (155).

Former Naperville Central standout and Chicago Sun-Times 2005 Player of the Year Jessica Yanz is a member of semifinalist Nebraska, which snapped Penn State's streak of consecutive games won at 111 and extended the Nittany Lions to five games in their semifinal.

Yanz is redshirting this season at Nebraska after transferring from Penn State and will have two years of eligibility remaining beginning in 2009.

Finally, one of the big reasons Texas reached the national semifinals was former St. Francis setter Michelle Kocher. One of the biggest reasons Texas failed to advance to the finals was the Texas coach's decision to pull Kocher for one point in the fifth set of its match with Stanford.

With Texas serving, the coach yanked the 5-foot-10 Kocher out of the front row to try to get a bigger block against the Stanford rally. The Cardinal returned a playable ball, but Texas was unable to make a decent set and Stanford won the point and eventually the match.

Kocher finished with 1,307 assists, 208 digs and 36 blocks for the 29-4 Longhorns.

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Hannah Werth, a 6-foot-1 outside hitter and setter from Chatham Glenwood, was named the 2008 Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year. The selections are made by the staff ESPNRise based upon recommendations from high school coaches and Prepvolleyball.com.

Other players who were considered in lllinois were Mother McAuley setter and Chicago Sun-Times 2008 Player of the Year Desiree Aramburu, and Benet's Ariana Mankus and Jessica Jendryk.

Werth, who will head to Nebraska next fall, set the state's all-time careers kills standard and played for the U.S. Junior National Team.

Players to keep an eye on in 2009 are Joliet Catholic outside hitter Annemarie Hickey, Burlington Central's Stephanie Holthus, St. Francis' Kelsey Robinson and Belleville Althoff's setter/outside hitter Carly Thomas.

By Phil Brozynski

PrepVolleyball.com recently released its list of the top 1,000 high school teams in the nation, including 2008 national champion La Costa Canyon from Carlsbad, California.

The rankings from 101-1,000 are largely ceremonial, designed to recognize teams for their overall achievement. This part of the list makes no claim that team No. 201 is better than team No. 202.

Teams from Illinois included No. 13 Joliet Catholic (39-3), No. 14 St. Charles East (38-4); No. 16 Benet Academy (40-2), No. 17 Mother McAuley (39-3); No. 43 Naperville Central (33-6); No. 70 Naperville North (33-5); and No. 122 Downers Grove South (28-8).

Also, No. 123 Breese Mater Dei (36-6), No. 124 Belleville Althoff (33-4); No. 141 Lemont (30-5); No. 172 Wheaton St. Francis (32-8); No. 173 Burlington Central (35-7); No. 179 Edwardsville (32-8); and No. 231 Quincy (34-4).

Also, No. 232 Metamora (32-3); No. 271 Bloomington; No. 272 Normal (27-9); No. 312 (Chicago) Payton (37-3); No. 313 Oak Forest (32-5); No. 314 York; No. 315. Morton (Ill.); and No. 316 Freeburg (36-5).

Also, No. 346 Lyons (28-11); No. 470 Rosary; No. 471 Lockport; No. 472 Marian Central; No. 473 Hampshire; No. 485 Evanston; No. 486 Crystal Lake South (32-7); No. 507 Marist (27-11); No. 508 Geneva (30-8); and No. 532 Hinsdale Central (28-9).

Also, No. 582 Moline; No. 583 Joliet; No. 595 Breese Central; No. 597 Glenbard East; No. 679 Cary-Grove; No. 689 Stagg; No. 725 (Elgin) St. Edward; and No. 973 Illinois Class 1A champion (Lanark) Eastland.

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The following freshmen are among those who have been nominated for the PrepVolleyball.com Frosh 59, a list of the top freshmen around the country:

Nominees from Illinois include; Meghan Niski, a 5-foot-9 outside hitter from St. Charles East; Alex Viliunas, a 6-1 setter from Lyons; Caroline Rose, a 5-7 outside hitter from York; and Maisey Mulvey, a 5-6 libero from St. Charles East.

Also, Brooke Schulte, a 5-9 outside hitter from Breese Mater Dei; Michelle Schultz, a 5-8 outside hitter from (Chicago) Payton; and Amelia Wegman, a 6-0 middle hitter from (Aurora) Rosary.

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Finally, Friday the 12th may as well have been Friday the 13th for local players whose college teams were playing in the NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Regional semifinals. Western Michigan, Illinois, Michigan, UCLA, Purdue and Florida were all ousted.

By Phil Brozynski

The NCAA Division I Women's Volleyball Sweet Sixteen - which resumes play Friday, December 12 with eight regional semifinals - features a number of teams led by Illinois-bred players.

Chief among the teams with a Land of Lincoln flavor is No. 8 Illinois (26-7), which plays California (25-6) Friday at 3:30 p.m. E.T. in State College, Pa. The Illini, one of four Big Ten teams in the regional semifinals, are led by Downers Grove North product Laura DeBruler.

Setters Hillary Haen (Prairie Ridge) and Lizzie Bazetta (Naperville North) and middle Abby Nelson (Marist) are also among the Illini stalwarts who will try to earn a berth opposite unbeaten Penn State in Saturday's 4:00 p.m. E.T. regional final.

Other Illinois products on the roster are Michelle Bartsch (Collinsville), Catherine Culligan (St. Francis), Nicole Kump (Joliet Catholic), Rachel Feldman (Normal) and Clinton products Kristine Anderson and Kylie McCulley.

Western Michigan (29-5) faces the unenviable task of taking on the Nittany Lions in Friday's regional semifinals. Penn State is the overall No. 1 seed in the field and boasts a 34-0 record. But Western Michigan won't be intimidated.

That's because the Broncos feature five Illinois products in junior libero Caitlin Strimel (Mother McAuley), junior setter Jillian Mitchell (Downers Grove South), sophomore middle Jaime Gotham (Glenbard East), sophomore outside Kate Corbett (McAuley) and junior outside Katie Eberling (Stagg).

In the lower half of the bracket, No. 19 Michigan (26-8) will face powerhouse Nebraska (29-2) Friday in Seattle, Wash. The Wolverines upset No. 13-seed St. Louis behind senior Beth Karpiak (Lyons) and sophomore setter Lexi Zimmerman (Barrington).

On the other side of the bracket, UCLA (22-10) takes on Texas behind All-American setter Nellie Spicer (Barrington), and Florida (27-3) will battle Stanford (28-3) behind super freshmen Katie Murphy (Joliet Catholic) and Colleen Ward (Naperville North).

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Speaking of Murphy, the Wilmington native was named the Southeastern Conference (SEC) Freshman of the Year. Murphy leads the Gators in kills (351) and is second in assists (595). Murphy was the Sun-Times Player of the Year in 2007.

Also on the awards front, Evansville setter Ellen Sawin (Lincoln-Way Central) was named to the Missouri Valley Conference's all-freshman team. Sawin was a third team Sun-Times all-area selection in 2007.

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Illinois' women's volleyball program is reaping the benefits of its Sweet Sixteen run and national ranking, receiving a verbal commitment from 6-foot-1 junior outside hitter Jaz Orozco from Lakewood (Calif.).

By Phil Brozynski

Play up, anyone?

Last spring, the Illinois High School Association approved a recommendation from Executive Director Marty Hickman to adopt a new "Playing Up in Classification Policy" for the 2008-2009 school year.

Essentially, the new policy allows schools to petition to play up in selected sports and or activities. Previously, schools could only petition with the understanding that the school's entire athletic programs would be required to play up.

So how many schools have taken advantage of this new policy?

Exactly one. Highland High School. The sport in which Highland wanted to "play up?" Competitive cheerleading. The lack of schools petitioning to "play up" has caught even the IHSA off-guard.

Two years ago under the old policy, (Peoria) Manual, a public school with 588 students, asked to be classified as a Class AA school in the final year of the two-class basketball format back in 2007.

Of course, that meant at the time that all of Manual's athletic teams had to "play up" - not that they were going to achieve any kind of greatness in any sport other than basketball regardless where they were classified.

But after one year of "playing up," Manual took a pass on the policy. Returning to small school (Class 2A) status for the 2007-2008 basketball season, the Rams reached the finals of the state tournament before losing to North Lawndale. Manual will play basketball in 2A again this winter.

Why bring this up?

If schools are really interested in crowning a true state champion in volleyball - or any sport for that matter - the new policy allows them to chose to "play up" without forcing their other sports teams to follow suit.

Not that bigger schools are always going to be better, but they do not have the option of "playing down."

Or the smaller schools can choose not to "play up" and let everybody argue about who really is the best team in Illinois. Just like they do every year in football.

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Speaking of football, private, non-boundaried schools, which represent less than 20 percent of the membership in the Illinois High School Association, won four of eight (50 percent) state football championships last weekend.

The only private school to lose a state title game (Aurora Christian) lost to another private school (Bloomington Central Catholic). Since 2001, private schools have won 42 percent (27 of 64) of state football titles.

Once again, whispers for change are being heard from around the state.

Meanwhile, there have been no such calls for change in volleyball despite the fact that since the beginning of the IHSA state volleyball tournament in 1975, virtually half (35 of 71) of the state champions have been private schools.

Of course, four schools account for all but seven of the 35 private school volleyball titles -Mother McAuley (13), St. Francis (seven), Breese Mater Dei (five) and Quincy Notre Dame (three).

The winningest public schools? Downers Grove South, with state titles in 1996, 1999 and 2002, Breese Central (1996, 2005, 2007) and Freeburg (1979, 1982, 2008).