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Here are 5 IHSA girls volleyball storylines we’ll be watching in The Times area in 2026 · Illinois Valley - Shaw Local

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  Speaker 1: Here are five ISA girls volleyball storylines will be watching
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  Speaker 1: in the Times area in twenty twenty six. Written by JT. Penalty,
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  Speaker 1: this article is being read by an automated voice brought
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  Speaker 1: to you by Everlett. With the opening day of the
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  Speaker 1: twenty twenty six high school girls volleyball season fast approaching,
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  Speaker 1: here are just five of the storylines the Times sports
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  Speaker 1: staff will be watching when the first serves go up
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  Speaker 1: next Monday evening. Will the twenty twenty six Times Girls
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  Speaker 1: Volleyball Player of the Year be another dominant area standout?
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  Speaker 1: The Magic eight ball says you may rely on it.
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  Speaker 1: With our twenty twenty five Times Girls Volleyball Player of
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  Speaker 1: the Year, Streetor's Aubrey Jacob's gone to the tune of
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  Speaker 1: pomp and Circumstance, The twenty twenty six honor looks wide
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  Speaker 1: open heading into the season. There are, though some early favorites.
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  Speaker 1: Newark's Riley car Neilson returns for her junior year after
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  Speaker 1: an all state season as a sophomore that included two
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  Speaker 1: hundred and sixty two kills, twenty eight aces and two
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  Speaker 1: hundred and fourteen digs. Her setter Taylor Jeffers is also
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  Speaker 1: a leading candidate entering her senior season after compiling four
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  Speaker 1: to forty four assists and seventy two aces during a
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  Speaker 1: Times All Area first Team junior year. Marquette's Kinley Rick
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  Speaker 1: and Cincenna's Brooklyn Sheedy are also returning Times All Area
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  Speaker 1: First teamers and Player of the Year preseason favorites following
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  Speaker 1: great sophomore campaigns. Rick compiled one to fifty one kills,
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  Speaker 1: four hundred and three assists, fifty one aces and two
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  Speaker 1: hundred thirteen digs for the Crew, while Sheedy put down
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  Speaker 1: three twenty three kills as the primary weapon for the
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  Speaker 1: Fighting Irish. Other pre season candidates based on last falls
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  Speaker 1: Times All Area honors include Streeter junior Kinsley Sweden, Seneca
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  Speaker 1: senior Grayson Provence, Woodland senior Grace Longmire, Ottawa senior Bella Knole,
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  Speaker 1: and Newark sophomore Zoe Carlson. Howell programs such as Ottawa
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  Speaker 1: Sandwich and Flanagan Cornell Fair under second year coaches the
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  Speaker 1: magic eight Ball, says ask again later. Divine Rich had
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  Speaker 1: a strong debut season as Flannagan Cornell's head coach, leading
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  Speaker 1: the Falcons to a seventeen to fifteen record against a
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  Speaker 1: tough schedule filled with Heart of Illinois Conference opponents. Things
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  Speaker 1: didn't go as swimmingly for fellow rookie head coaches such
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  Speaker 1: as Ottawa's Christina Corret and Sandwich's Shannon Stall, with the
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  Speaker 1: Pirates rebuilding and finishing nine to twenty three to two,
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  Speaker 1: while the Indians were eight twenty five, while Flannagan Cornell
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  Speaker 1: lost a potent group of seniors. The Falcons, like Ottawa
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  Speaker 1: and Sandwich, have a number of key returnees and will
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  Speaker 1: look to take the next step with a full year
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  Speaker 1: of experience under their head coaches. Will the area produce
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  Speaker 1: more than one regional champion this fall? The Magic eight
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  Speaker 1: ball says signs point to yes. While only Newark found
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  Speaker 1: its way out of the regional round and into sectionals
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  Speaker 1: last year, defeating Serena in straight sets the Class one
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  Speaker 1: A Yorkville Christian Regional title before a loss to Stockton
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  Speaker 1: in the sectional semifinals, there's reason to have higher hopes
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  Speaker 1: for our area's teams in twenty twenty six. Newark returns
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  Speaker 1: as a favorite, of course, but as the above list
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  Speaker 1: of Player of the Year candidates indicates, key players return
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  Speaker 1: for programs that got close in twenty five, including Seneca, Streeter,
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  Speaker 1: Ottawa and Woodland with Serena regional finalists last year, Earlville
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  Speaker 1: twenty one to thirteen with six starters returning, and Fieldcrest
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  Speaker 1: new head coach Gracie Schultz, all coming off seasons that
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  Speaker 1: saw them score at least one postseason win. And then
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  Speaker 1: there's Marquette Academy, which finished just below zero point five
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  Speaker 1: zero zero last season fifteen sixteen, but after what sixteenth
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  Speaker 1: year coach Mindy McConaughey called an encouraging offseason and with
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  Speaker 1: a strong senior class led by middle Kelsey Kutra to
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  Speaker 1: compliment juniors like Rick and Lucy mcgare, the Crusader's project
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  Speaker 1: like a team on the rise. This fall, can Straighter
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  Speaker 1: put up a second straight point five zero zero or
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  Speaker 1: better season. The Magic eight ball says outlook good. The
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  Speaker 1: Bulldog Spikers were an even seventeen seventeen to two last fall,
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  Speaker 1: and while it's true they lost a dominant all around
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  Speaker 1: player in Jacob's Streeter returns All Conference and or times
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  Speaker 1: All Area honorees including middle Sophie snow Sweden at center,
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  Speaker 1: Alexa bar at outside, and Malaya Zavada in the middle.
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  Speaker 1: A strong start during an opening week of all road
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  Speaker 1: matches and a three match second week could propel the
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  Speaker 1: Bulldog Spikers to another winning campaign. Can Newark take the
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  Speaker 1: next step and perhaps even return to the Class one
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  Speaker 1: of state finals. The Magic eight Ball says cannot predict now,
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  Speaker 1: but there's definitely potential there as the Norsemen not only
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  Speaker 1: return the aforementioned Jeffers and Riley Carlson, but bring back
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  Speaker 1: all conference middle Zoe Carlson, back row leader Kayla Pottinger,
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  Speaker 1: and a handful of other key players. Newark will again
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  Speaker 1: play a tough non conference schedule to steal itself for
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  Speaker 1: postseason success, so keeping an eye on its competitiveness in
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  Speaker 1: those matches with Class two A and three A programs
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  Speaker 1: instead of the results may make a better predictor for
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  Speaker 1: where the Norsemen might become early November