Bay Area News Group girls volleyball Top 15
(Mercury News & East Bay Times)
No. 1 ARCHBISHOP MITTY
Previous ranking: 1
The Monarchs continue to assert themselves as the best team in the Bay Area. Last week, Mitty collected easy road wins over St. Ignatius (3-1) and Presentation (3-0) in WCAL play. Mitty faces Valley Christian in WCAL competition this week.
No. 2 ST. FRANCIS
Previous ranking: 2
St. Francis had a perfect week in WCAL play, sweeping Presentation and St. Ignatius at home. The Lancers have dates with Sacred Heart Cathedral and Valley Christian this week.
No. 3 JAMES LOGAN
Previous ranking: 3
The Colts continue to cruise in MVAL play. James Logan swept Kennedy-Fremont and American in league play last week and takes on Moreau Catholic this week.
No. 4 ST. IGNATIUS
Previous ranking: 6
SI endured a tough week of competition but made a good impression against the Bay Area’s two best teams. The Wildcats acquitted themselves well by taking a set in a loss to Mitty and were competitive throughout (25-22, 25-19, 25-23) despite being swept by St. Francis. SI will look to build on the momentum of that tight match with the Lancers in WCAL matchups against Archbishop Riordan and Sacred Heart Cathedral this week.
No. 5 SAN RAMON VALLEY
Previous ranking: 4
SRV dropped one spot after a 3-2 loss to Amador Valley but still leads the EBAL with a 10-2 league record. The Wolves also swept Carondelet for the second time in three tries and swept Liberty in nonleague action. They will face fellow EBAL contender Monte Vista this week.
No. 6 CARONDELET
Previous ranking: 5
Carondelet endured a tough sweep at the hands of SRV but rebounded to sweep its next six matches. The Cougars blanked Dougherty Valley in three sets before earning two-set tournament sweeps of Nevada Union, Woodcreek, Pleasant Valley, American Canyon and Windsor. Carondelet gets back to league play this week with a matchup against California.
No. 7 FOOTHILL
Previous ranking: 7
Foothill had an uneventful week with league sweeps of Dublin and Livermore. An important matchup with fast-rising Amador Valley, which the Falcons swept earlier this season, looms this week at home.
No. 8 LOS GATOS
Previous ranking: 8
Los Gatos picked up league wins over Mountain View (3-1), Homestead (3-1) and Gunn (3-0) last week. The Wildcats take on Palo Alto and Monta Vista this week.
No. 9 PALO ALTO
Previous ranking: 9
The Vikings are right there with the Cats at 9-1 in league play and have a chance to seize the top spot in Los Gatos on Wednesday. Paly also takes on Los Altos this week.
No. 10 AMADOR VALLEY
Previous ranking: 14
Amador is rapidly rising up the rankings after another huge win in EBAL play. This time, the Dons took down SRV 3-2 and also swept Livermore. Since being swept by Foothill, AV has won six consecutive EBAL matches, including a sweep of Carondelet. The Dons travel to Foothill this week with an opportunity to continue their surge up the EBAL standings. Overall, Amador has won 10 matches in a row.
No. 11 MENLO-ATHERTON
Previous ranking: 15
The Bears made a statement last week, sweeping Burlingame to ascend to the top spot in the PAL Bay Division. M-A has won four matches in a row, including sweeps of Carlmont, Aragon and San Mateo. Menlo-Atherton takes on Carlmont and Hillsdale this week.
No. 12 BURLINGAME
Previous ranking: 10
It wasn’t all bad for Burlingame last week. The Panthers swept Woodside and remain tied atop the PAL Bay, though they have lost sole possession of first place. Burlingame can build momentum this week with league matchups against San Mateo and Aragon.
No. 13 MERCY
Previous ranking: Not ranked
Another Burlingame school enters the rankings. Mercy has had an impressive backstretch of the season with wins in its last 10 matches against Bay Area teams. The Bears swept Menlo School and Notre Dame-San Jose in WBAL Foothill play this week and lead the league with a spotless 5-0 record. An essential matchup with 5-0 Sacred Heart Prep will determine the league’s sole leader this week.
No. 14 SACRED HEART CATHEDRAL
Previous ranking: 11
The Irish are hanging on to third place in the WCAL standings but have key matchups looming this week against St. Francis and St. Ignatius. SHC took care of business with a league win over Riordan (3-1) last week.
No. 15 SACRED HEART PREP
Previous ranking: 12
Speaking of the Gators, they also took care of business with drama-free wins over Notre Dame-Belmont (3-1) and Menlo School (3-0) in league play. SHP plays Mercy twice in the next eight days, a pair of matchups that will go a long way in determining the WBAL champion.
Teams eligible for the Bay Area News Group rankings come from leagues based predominantly in Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Clara and San Mateo counties.
Teams, please update MaxPreps with results each week.
