PrepVolleyball.com - The 2010 Soph 79: The Best VARSITY PLAYING High School Sophomores in the Country Main Articles Player Lists Rankings Fun Stuff Advanced Search Archives My Account Message Boards Home Girls Volleyball College Talk Teens Only! Boys Volleyball Beach Volleyball The 2010 Soph 79: The Best VARSITY PLAYING High School Sophomores in the HS Tournament Country -----------------Scheduling Written by John Tawa Login to Board Monday, 14 March 2011 Register Your Free Account Recruiting Information PrepVolleyball.com now offers some great recruiting features in addition to our articles covering the subject. The latest edition is our 2011- 2013 Nfinity College Needs List. Over 500 schools from across the country have participated. Use the links below to see our recruiting features: 2011 Needs 2012 Needs Chicago-area setter Sophia Dodd is one of 79 lucky ladies to land on our Soph 79 list for 2010 Below, please find at least 420 sophomores of distinction the nation enjoyed watching last fall. http://prepvolleyball.com/content/view/2827/384/[03/15/2011 3:04:48 PM] PrepVolleyball.com - The 2010 Soph 79: The Best VARSITY PLAYING High School Sophomores in the Country Before we get to the Class of 2013 honorees, you should know that this is by far the hardest list we do and it gets tougher every year. The Frosh 59 list is tough because we don’t yet know the athletes, but is made easier because so few freshmen are making significant contributions on the varsity level. Picking All Americans is tough because so many have become exceptional players and deserve recognition for what they’ve accomplished in state; yet, having seen them both high school and club, we have an idea about how to distinguish the truly exceptional from the merely exceptional. The Soph 79 list stands in the middle, which is why it is such a massive project. On the one hand, we are still getting to know these athletes. On the other, they are already making their marks on high school varsity programs across the nation. Like last year, the Soph 79 is massive once again, thanks to incredible talent. That may explain why it took more than one month to complete this year, even with two contractors helping me write narratives. Whew! Of the players listed below, the first 79 are our “Soph 79,” in our estimation the top sophomores based on high school achievement in the land. I have bolded those five words because being on the Soph 79 does not mean you are one of the top 79 recruitable players in the class. You may be, but that’s not what this list is for. This list recognizes outstanding high school varsity achievement. Period. If you made a significant impact on your high school team and state and we learned about you, you are on this list. Otherwise, you may not be. So, if you were hurt and hardly played, like St. Charles East’s Erienne Barry, or you transferred schools or found yourself on JV or a varsity bench, don’t look for your name below. You won’t find it. Not this list. Not this year. You had to achieve on a high school varsity squad to make it. In addition to the Soph 79, you will find five sub-categories for the remaining super sophs, from “Highest Honorable Mention,” which has 70 players; all the way to “Honorable Mention,” which has 65. (Incidentally, I count about a dozen in the HM category who would be considered among the top 100 recruitable athletes in the class, currently). We also list 94 players for whom we needed more information. As emails trickle in about these players, we will add them to our lists, though not to the Soph 79. Remember, AND NEVER FORGET, this recognition is based solely on High School Achievement, not club acclaim, college potential or reputation. Please appreciate the distinction between “high school achievement” and where a player might rank as a recruit for the next level. I say this every year, but moms, dads and coaches have a way of forgetting that, especially when the Top 50 Juniors list, which is a recruiting list, comes out next December and their Soph 79 daughter is not on it. Have we missed some? Undoubtedly. We try our best, canvassing high school and club coaches across the country numerous times over a several-month period, but some worthy sophomores always fall through the cracks. We rely heavily on coaches to tell us who the top sophomores are and, when they don’t deliver, players are sometimes omitted or the information on them is incomplete at best. In several instances below, we reached out to coaches specifically to supply us with more information about their players only to be met with stony silence. We apologize in advance for any oversights or errors in the information below. Without further ado, the top high school playing sophomores in the nation… The 2010 SOPH 79!! Emmy Allen, 6-1 OH, Jackson (Mill Creek, Washington) – Named First Team All-Wesco and the only underclassmen to be named First Team All Area by the Everett Herald, Jackson was a key contributor on the Timberwolves’ state 4A title team in 2010. She was at or near the top of her team in kills (309; 3.51 per set), digs (222; 2.52 per set) and aces (86). “Emmy was our most consistent hitter this season,” said head coach Ashley Allen. “We relied on her to be a steady head. As a sophomore I felt she handled the role very well, and did not cave once under pressure. She is also our most consistent passer, and we really gave her a lot of responsibility in serve receive. The most important skill I believe Emmy possesses is the ability to elevate the play of those around her. With any team she is on, they play better because she is on the court. When we would scrimmage in practice, it was rare that Emmy's team ever lost; we have a team full of great players, so that means she was ‘on’ all the time.” Shelley Anderson, 5-10 S/RS, Chino Hills (California) – A standout for the CIF Div. II-AA finalists, Anderson hit and attacked in a 6-2 offense for a 31-6 team in 2010. Named First Team All League, she finished her sophomore campaign with 494 assists, 206 kills, 205 digs and a team-leading 83 aces. “She was invaluable to our team’s tremendous success,” said coach Dana Buzzerio. BreElle Bailey, 6-4 MB, Lehi (Utah) – The two-year starter, Region 7 MVP and Salt Lake Tribune First Team Class 4A All State averaged 10 kills per match and hit .321 on the season for Lehi. “BreElle is an outstanding athlete,” said head coach Jamie Ingersoll. Amanda Benson, 5-6 Libero, Xavier College Prep (Phoenix, Arizona) – Widely regarded as the state’s best sophomore libero and perhaps the best in any class, Benson anchored the back row for the Gators, who won another 5A-I state title in 2010. On the year, Benson had 491 digs, an average of 4.1 per set, and 627 receptions while passing at a 2.31 clip. She added 57 aces and was named First Team All Region and First Team All State by the Arizona Republic. “Amanda is the spark plug for the team,” said http://prepvolleyball.com/content/view/2827/384/[03/15/2011 3:04:48 PM] PrepVolleyball.com - The 2010 Soph 79: The Best VARSITY PLAYING High School Sophomores in the Country coach Tim McHale. “She sets the tone for matches the minute she steps in the gym. Amanda looks for ways to improve her skills and pushes herself to be the best at her position, which translates into her ability to play defense with reckless abandon while still maintaining absolute precision. Her dedication to detail also is responsible for making her so dangerous as a passer on the floor.” Jill Bergeson, 6-0 OH, Friendswood (Texas) – Bergeson stuffed the stat sheet in 2010, registering 610 kills, 615 digs, 136 blocks and 48 aces for a regional finalist team in 2010. A 10-foot toucher, Bergeson is as good in the back row as she is slamming balls down at the net. She earned All District and All State honors. Brooke Betts, 6-1, MB, Bishop Hartley (Columbus, Ohio) -- Betts, was an all-Ohio Division II first-team pick and helped Bishop Hartley win the CCL championship for the second year in a row. Betts also was a Central Catholic League first-team choice and a Central District first-team selection. Betts was the only sophomore to earn all-state first-team honors in the state of Ohio. She finished the year with 363 kills, 69 aces and 72 blocks. Erin Bognar, 6-1 OH, Westminster Christian (St. Louis, Missouri) – First Team All State in Class 3, Bognar recorded 338 kills in 80 games played in 2010, a total that put her just outside the top 10 in the St. Louis Metro area for kill average. Bognar added 2.88 digs per game, 31 aces and 29 blocks. Also a primary passer, the physical Bognar led Westminster to the Elite 8 in class 3A. Jackie Bowman, 6-1 S/RS, Brentwood (California) – An All California Interscholastic Federation Division III-A First Team selection and a two-year starter, Bowman helped lead her school to the state semifinals. She ran a modified 6-2 for Brentwood, setting from the back row and playing on the right in the front.