JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The News4Jax Super 6 high school volleyball poll will be published each Thursday during the regular season. Records are through Sept. 29 games.
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News4Jax Super 6
Rank, Previous, School, Record, Classification
1. (1) Ponte Vedra (13-0, Class 6A)
Notable wins: Bartram Trail, Episcopal, Florida High, Merritt Island, Middleburg, Ridgeview, St. Pius X Catholic, Santa Fe (twice), Steinbrenner, Tampa Plant.
Why they’re here: The Sharks passed two more significant challenges last weekend when they beat Santa Fe in five, including a 16-14 thriller to clinch it. The Raiders are one of the state’s best teams annually and Ponte Vedra already had a 2-1 W over them this season. But the true test in volleyball is winning in a best-of-five match, not a best-of-three, and the Sharks did that. Ponte Vedra was down 2-1 against Santa Fe and won the fourth set in 26-24 fashion. That’s clutch. They’ve handed Santa Fe, ranked No. 25 nationally by MaxPreps, two of its three losses this year. Zeta Washington was a wrecking ball in that match, going off for 25 kills and hitting 50% against the Raiders. I mentioned it before here in the Super 6, but the current run of Ponte Vedra (49 consecutive wins, all but six of those by sweep) is unprecedented in area volleyball history. Robin Mignerey’s team is deep, battle-tested and chewing up any team that comes its way. The Sharks added a 3-1 win over an 11-4 Merritt Island squad, too. I don’t think it’s a stretch to say this is the best volleyball run we’ll ever see.
2. (2) Mandarin (17-1, Class 7A)
Notable wins: Bartram Trail, Christ’s Church, Creekside, Fernandina Beach, Fletcher (twice), Master’s Academy, Ridgeview, Yulee.
Why they’re here: A 2-0 week for the Mustangs, who swept Paxon and Christ’s Church since our last Super 6. They’ve got a matchup against a solid Stanton on Thursday night before the Gateway Conference tournament, which they should win. Ellie Jackson (183 kills) is creeping up on the 200-kill mark this season and also leads the Mustangs in digs (226). Taylor Boyd (239 assists) and Grace Hollis (224 assists) are keeping the offense humming along.
3. (3) Bartram Trail (8-4, Class 7A)
Notable wins: Bishop Kenny, Creekside (twice), Episcopal, Fletcher, Northside, Ga., Sneads, Thomasville, Ga.
Why they’re here: Only one match since our last Super 6, a sweep of rival Creekside. Jenna Otts (160 kills) and Lauren Marien (138 kills) both had double-figure kill matches against the Knights. Otts also leads in service aces (37). Sydney Lewis (162 digs) and Morgan Langley (132 digs) continue to dig things up for the defense. Annie Dill (380 assists) is quickly approaching 400 assists. Bartram’s most difficult remaining matches are to Clay County programs (Fleming Island, Middleburg and Ridgeview), as well as 10-win Yulee.
4. (4) Bishop Kenny (11-5, Class 4A)
Notable wins: Bolles, Fernandina Beach, Fleming Island, Nease, Providence, Yulee.
Why they’re here: A 2-0 mark for the Crusaders since we last checked in, sweeps of Nease and Fleming Island. Tough stretch ahead at the Venice tournament for Kenny, but that’s not surprising. If you’ve followed Kenny volleyball for any length of time at all under coach Suzanne Winkler, it’s a very similar routine. The Crusaders schedule tough as nails, lose a few matches here and there, and then play on until the state semifinals like clockwork. Allison Cavanaugh (187 kills), Bailey Chin (154 kills), Tina Nika (279 digs) and Alexis Chin (494 assists) remain the leaders in those categories.
5. (5) Providence (16-4, Class 3A)
Notable wins: Aiken (SC), Christ’s Church, Episcopal, Fernandina Beach, Gray Collegiate (SC), Satellite, Trinity Christian, Yulee.
Why they’re here: A 2-0 week for the Stallions, with sweeps of Camden County and University Christian. They’ve got two big challenges during the span of our next Super 6 window, a visit to Middleburg on Thursday night and a home game against 11-win Nease on Tuesday. Robinson Repass (191 kills, 35 blocks) is closing in on the 200-kill mark. Kayla Burmeister leads the team in service aces (40) and has 191 assists. Josie Brooks (147 kills), Kamryn Croft (117 kills), Lexi Patania (142 digs) and Emily Collings (286 assists) are among the Providence statistical leaders.
6. (NR) Ridgeview (10-6, Class 5A)
Notable wins: Fleming Island (twice), Fletcher, Master’s Academy, Middleburg, Satellite, Yulee.
Why they’re here: The Panthers make their Super 6 debut after putting together a solid body of work this season. There’s not a bad loss on their resume. Creekside, Florida High, Leon, Mandarin, Ponte Vedra, Santa Fe are all double-digit win programs. Elaina Reynolds (154 kills, 35 aces), Haley Robinson (51 blocks), Kasey Casiple (34 digs), Joi Monsanto (241 assists) and Mariah Bostic-Jones (234 assists) lead a talented Panthers squad. Big one on Tuesday at home against No. 3 Bartram Trail.
Dropped out
Creekside (10-4, Class 7A).
On the bubble
Bolles (9-7, Class 4A); Christ’s Church (9-5, Class 2A); Creekside (10-4, Class 7A); Episcopal (12-7, Class 3A); Fernandina Beach (9-6, Class 4A); Fletcher (12-7, Class 6A); Keystone Heights (10-8, Class 3A); Menendez (10-8, Class 5A); Middleburg (12-8, Class 5A); Nease (11-6, Class 6A); St. Johns Country Day (10-3, Class 2A); Stanton (11-5, Class 5A); Trinity Christian (11-5, Class 3A); University Christian (10-6, Class 2A); Yulee (10-8, Class 4A).