Trophy Club Byron Nelson remained No. 1 in the nation this week and clinched the top seed in District 4-6A with straight-set wins over Northwest Eaton and Justin Northwest.
Washington pledge Kylie Kleckner had 21 kills and 10 digs, Rice pledge Ashlyn Seay added 17 kills and sophomore Sophee Peterson had 43 assists in Tuesday’s 25-22, 25-13, 25-18 win over Northwest. Byron Nelson (32-1, 14-0) has won 28 matches in a row and hasn’t lost since Aug. 16 against Highland Park.
This is the first season that there will be two state champions in each classification for volleyball. School enrollment determines whether teams will be in the Division I or II playoff bracket.
Keller (25-4, 12-2), which has clinched the No. 2 seed in 4-6A and is ranked No. 21 in the nation, will be in Division I. Northwest Eaton (25-15, 8-6), which is tied with Keller Central for fourth place, will join Keller in Division I if it makes the playoffs. That would push Byron Nelson to Division II.
Third-place Southlake Carroll (23-10, 9-5) has a smaller enrollment than Byron Nelson, as do Keller Central (25-18, 8-6) and Justin Northwest (23-13, 6-8), which are both still in the playoff race with two district matches remaining.
Hebron (31-6, 12-0), ranked No. 3 in the area, leads District 5-6A by one match over Flower Mound (21-14, 10-1) in the loss column, and those two teams will play in the regular-season finale next Tuesday at Flower Mound. Hebron has the third-largest enrollment in 5-6A but could still end up in the Division II bracket if Coppell and Lewisville both make the playoffs.
Plano West (24-7, 14-1) suffered its first loss in District 6-6A when it fell to Allen in five sets on Friday, but still leads the district by one match over Plano East (29-8, 12-2) with two matches remaining.
Plano West has the third-largest enrollment in the state, but it’s guaranteed to be in the Division II bracket since Allen and Plano East — the two largest schools in the state — have clinched playoff berths in 6-6A.
Allen (26-11, 11-3) has won six in a row after Tuesday’s four-set win over Prosper. It has five wins over area-ranked teams and has clinched a playoff berth.
Rockwall, which has clinched District 10-6A and is ranked No. 5 in the area, is guaranteed to be in the Division I bracket with Royse City and North Forney having already clinched playoff spots.
Class 5A
Plano Prestonwood Christian (31-2) remains No. 4 in the MaxPreps national rankings and has won 25 in a row against Texas schools after sweeping Ursuline 25-20, 25-19, 25-6 on Tuesday. That streak includes wins over nationally ranked Lovejoy, San Antonio Cornerstone, Keller, Cypress Ranch and Dripping Springs.
Lovejoy (31-7, 12-0), ranked No. 16 in the nation, has won 15 in a row after beating 25-13, 23-25, 25-23, 20-25, 15-13 on Tuesday. Sophomore Gentry Barker led defending 5A state champion Lovejoy with 19 kills, Bella Lopez had 15 and Anna Barr finished with 14 as Lovejoy clinched the No. 1 seed in District 9-5A.
They won’t meet in the playoffs, as Melissa is guaranteed to be in Division I and Lovejoy has already clinched a spot in the Division II bracket.
Argyle (32-5, 9-1) and Colleyville Heritage (30-6, 9-1) remain tied for first in 6-5A with two matches left, and they split their two district matchups. Argyle will for sure be in the Division II playoff bracket, while Colleyville Heritage will join it there if Richland makes the playoffs over Grapevine. If Grapevine gets in, then Colleyville Heritage would go Division II.
Frisco Wakeland (27-6, 11-1) and Highland Park (28-9, 11-1) are tied for first in 12-5A after Highland Park won their head-to-head matchup 25-17, 10-25, 25-19, 25-17 on Friday to gain a split of their two district matchups. Highland Park has wrapped up a spot in the Division I playoff bracket, while Wakeland will go Division I if Carrollton Newman Smith makes it and Division II if Frisco Reedy makes the postseason instead of Newman Smith.
Volleyball area rankings
Class 6A
Rk. Team, Record, Previous
1. Trophy Club Byron Nelson, 32-1 (last week No. 1)
2. Keller, 25-4 (LW 2)
3. Hebron, 31-6 (LW 3)
4. Plano West, 23-7 (LW 4)
5. Rockwall, 27-13 (LW 5)
6. Plano East, 29-8 (LW 6)
7. Southlake Carroll, 23-10 (LW 7)
8. Allen, 26-11 (LW NR)
9. Flower Mound, 22-14 (LW 8)
10. Wylie East, 30-7 (LW 9)
Dropped out: No. 10. Wylie
Class 5A-others
Rk. Team, Record, Previous
1. Plano Prestonwood Christian, 31-2 (last week No. 1)
2. Lovejoy, 31-7 (LW 2)
3. Argyle, 32-5 (LW 3)
4. Colleyville Heritage, 30-6 (LW 4)
5. Highland Park, 28-9 (LW 6)
6. Frisco Wakeland, 27-6 (LW 5)
7. Melissa, 33-7 (LW 7)
8. Midlothian, 32-7 (LW 8)
9. Frisco Liberty, 26-7 (LW 9)
10. Argyle Liberty Christian, 29-7 (LW 10)
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