MaxPreps Preseason Top 25 Volleyball Early Contenders: Nos. 20-16

We continue our countdown of the 2015 Preseason Top 25 Volleyball Rankings, presented by Asics, with Nos. 20-16.

Be sure to check out the previous teams, and come back as we continue to release the top volleyball teams in the country entering the 2015 season.


Division: Non-public A
2014 finish: 41-1 (won final 18 matches including eighth straight non-public title)
Head coach: Maria Nolan

Top Returnee:

Caitlyn Floyd: MaxPreps All-American and state Gatorade winner finished with 956 assists (10.7 avg.) last season as she eclipsed 3,000 for her career. She became the sixth IHA player in the last seven years to be named a New Jersey Player of the Year by Gatorade.

Other Returnees: 6-1 senior Annabel Reyes (3.8 kills, 60.7 pct., 68 blocks), Erica Timpanaro, Julia Morris, Jamie del Rosario, Lisa Ferioli and Casey King

Key Losses: Maeve Kenny and Kristin Kirwan (All-State).

2015 Outlook: Floyd runs the show and Reyes can steal it with her front row play. Add Jamie del Rosario and Casey King, plus the quartet of 2014 freshmen (Julia Morris, Erica Timpanaro, Lisa Ferioli and Catherine Fazio) who performed beyond expectations, and make room in the trophy case.

2015 Toughest Opponent: Though Heart beat the Lady Norsemen three times in 2014, Northern Valley Regional (Demarest, N.J.) twins Veronica and Victoria Corcoran should make this the most watched 2015 rivalry in the state.

Notable: Immaculate Heart's only loss last year was to St. Mary's (Lancaster, N.Y.). It has not lost to a New Jersey program since 2012.

Coach's Comment: "I know people doubted us and even the players didn't know what to expect," said Nolan. "Yet what you saw was cohesiveness and very good volleyball. We were able to get it done, step by step. This is the result."

                                            No. 19 Coronado (Henderson, Nev.)
Division: 1
2014 finish: 34-7 (repeated as state large-school champion)
Head coach: Matt Johnson

Key Returnees:

Cali Thompson (Portland): The 5-11 setter averaged 11.3 assists per set in 2014. She was named the Sunrise League's top player and a MaxPreps All-American. She was also a finalist for PrepVolleyball's National Junior of the Year, and was an alternate for the 2014 Junior USA Girls National Team.

Nikki Jackson: The 6-0 senior won her share of postseason honors and is back for more.

Other Returnees: 5-10 senior Emily Bender, Navi Lee, and 5-9 Carolyn Andrulis.

Key Losses: Berkeley Oblad (State Gatorade winner now at University of Utah).

2015 Outlook: A balanced team with a surplus of standout hitters always competes. That's what the Cougars have in Lee, Jackson, Bender and Andrulis. If Bender, Lee and Jackson pick up where they left off last season and can fill the void left by the graduated Oblad (6-4 middle), Thompson will likely surpass 1,000 assists and the Cougars could be looking at a three-peat.

2015 Toughest Opponent: The Mustangs of Shadow Ridge (Las Vegas) were the only Nevada team to beat Coronado a year ago.

Notable: Of the seven 2014 losses, five were to teams that either won, or played for, a state championship in their respective states. Coronado won its final 10 matches in 2014 and lost just one set, while winning 29.

View the entire Coronado preseason photo shoot gallery

Coach's Comments: Johnson said in NevadaPreps.com, after his team's semifinal win over Carson in the 2014 state tournament, "The middle is our strength, but they served us tough and they took us out of our middle attack, so credit to them for doing that. I would do that against us. I'm just happy we got out of there with a win."

Division: D-1 (largest in state)
2014 finish: 19-3, State D-1 champions for ninth time
Head coach: Tanya Fuanatu-Anderson

Fuanatu-Anderson is a graduate of the University of Hawaii-Hilo, where in 1993 she was named the NAIA National Player of the Year. She is a three-time All-American.

Key Returnees:
Vae Malufau: The 6-foot all-state and D-1 state all-tournament team selectee returns in the middle.

Kiana Peroff: Another all-state and D-1 state all-tournament team member returns on the outside.

Brandee Markwith: Named All-State and D-1 state all-tournament team as well.

Other returnees: 5-4 libero Avery Salvador, 5-9 OH Hana Lishman and 5-11 MB Lillie Klemmer.

Key Losses: McKenna Rose Granato (Hawaii), Hawaii POY and MaxPreps All-American.

2015 Outlook: The team will have size and experience. Only three seniors graduated from last year's title-winning team.

2015 Toughest Opponent: As always, Kamehameha will be the most difficult test. All three of Punahou's losses were to the Warriors in 2014. However, the Buff n' Blue won when it counted the most (25-21, 25-15, 20-25 and 25-21) in the State D-1 finals.

Notable: Punahou won its first state title in 1973. Sports Illustrated ranked Punahou's athletics program No. 1 in the nation in both 2008 and 2009.

Division: 5A (second-largest in state)
2014 finish: 39-10 (won state 5A title)
Head coach: Jason Nicholson

Top Returnees:
Sarah Langs (6-3 middle headed to TCU): The MaxPreps All-American has Type 1 diabetes, but despite having her glucose monitor and insulin pump with her at games, she excels. In 2014, Langs played volleyball on an international level for the first time and helped the U.S. youth national team earn a silver medal in the Women's U-18 Continental Championship in Costa Rica.

Jordan Fate (Mississippi State): The 5-10 senior and state tourney MVP was also named the state's 5A Player of the Year.

Haley Deschenes: The 6-0 junior was an all-state selection.

Other Returnees: 6-1 Callie Holden (second team All-State), Avery Arellano, 6-0 Bailey Downing, 5-6 Lexie Smith, and 5-7 Morgan Seidl.

Key losses: Emmaline Stockton (all-state setter now at Washington).

2015 Outlook: The state title team lost only two players from last year and everyone has improved after the long postseason and spring club ball. Ethan Grant, who writes for the Allen American said, "Lovejoy's future is so bright, these Lady Leopards should be wearing shades."

2015 Toughest Opponent: Rival Prosper, which split with Lovejoy in four matches last year, is one of a few teams in Texas that can match up against the Leopards. Lovejoy beat Prosper in the state semi finals a year ago.

Notable: Lovejoy has won six state titles in the last eight seasons.

Coaches comment: "I think that the youth is sometimes a bit of an issue," said Nicholson. "Sometimes we are a little up and down. Sometimes we don't have a lot of consistency because we're young, so sometimes we get a little error-prone because of the lack of experience from a skill standpoint and a volleyball standpoint. However, the youth of the team does bring something positive. They bring a lot of energy — a lot of positive influence as far as what they are doing and excitement to what they're doing too."

Division: 4A
2014 Finish: 32-5 (lost state title match to Carmel)
Head coach: Jean Kesterson

Kesterson has been head coach at Cathedral since 1990. She has never had a losing season and has had only three seasons with double digit losses while compiling a 758-173 record.

Top Returnees:

Kendall White (Penn State): The libero had 419 digs (4.4 avg.) and was first team all-state in 2014.

Megan Sloan (Louisville): The 6-2 senior was a first team Indiana 4A all-state pick. She averaged better than three kills per set and also served 46 aces.

Audrey Adams (Xavier): The 6-2 senior had 167 blocks (1.5 avg.) last season.

Maria Schorr: The 5-10 junior setter averaged 10.9 assists per set, and set a new 4A state finals record with 50 assists.

Other Returnees: Anna Jensen, Meaghan Koors, 6-2 junior Nia Parker-Robinson (considered one of the most physically-talented juniors in high school volleyball today) and Payton White.

Key Losses: Tarah Wylie (Pepperdine).

2015 Outlook: This team is loaded with a roster full of future collegiate players. There is no substitute for experience and Cathedral has plenty, with eight players who played in 95 or more sets a year ago. Schorr is a premier setter and Sloan, Adams, Jensen and Parker-Robinson can control the front. Payton and Kendall White are defensive standouts and those combinations spell success.

2015 Toughest Opponent: Cathedral won once in three tries against Carmel last year.

Notable: Cathedral's loss to Carmel in the title game snapped its 20-game winning streak.

Coaches comment: About Kendall White, Kesterson said, "She has an intense competitive spirit (that) is well beyond her years. She just has it."