Sandra Day O’Connor’s volleyball team made an early season statement this week at the annual House of Payne Invitational at Chandler High School.

O’Connor (O’Connor is in north Phoenix. was one of the few East Valley teams in the tournament, but played five days of near flawless volleyball, going 8-0 and losing only one set (23-25 vs. Mountain View) en route the title.

O’Connor faced Highland in the championship match, which was a 6A playoff rematch of last season’s first round 6A playoffs. Highland took O’Connor to five sets in that match, but O’Connor controlled Saturday’s title match, winning 25-19, and 25-13 in a best of three set format. Highland played a closer match earlier in the day against O’Connor, losing 27-25, and 25-20 in two sets.

University of Utah commit Devyn Wiest led the way for O’Connor with 10 kills, while seniors Iana Loera and Katie Lambeth combined for 10 more.

“We’ve got a talented group this year and we expect to have a great season,” head coach Amanda Burbridge said afterward.

‘I feel like we picked up momentum as the tournament went along.”

 

 

Wiest—a 6-1 junior—was named the tournament’s most valuable player.

Zoe John had six kills for Highland and was also named to the All-Ttournament team.

House of Payne All-Tournament Team

Devyn Weist O’Connor (Most Valuable Player)

Marley Avechuco Chandler

Zoe John Highland

Analei Bradley Mountain View

Tana Howard ALA Gilbert

Sydney Metcalf Queen Creek

Lily LaFlesch Perry

Andie Purdy Sunnyslope

6A Preview

Central Region

Corona del Sol-The Aztecs did not participate in the House of Payne tournament, but the defending 6A state champions figure to make another run at a state championship.

The 6A Central region figures to be a dogfight with the likes of Highland, Queen Creek, and Desert Vista.

“It will be a battle within our region,” Corona head coach Ben Maxfield said of the 6A Central.

“We lost a bit of depth from last season, but we also return several talented players. So we’ll have another good shot at making a title run, but there’s a lot of work to do before then.”

Top players include Julia Owens, a setter who was on the pre-season radar for All-American candidacy. Outside hitter Maggie Beauer is a Pepperdine commit and figures to create defensive havoc around the net with her 6-3 frame.

Corona del Sol setter Julia Owens (Photo Mark Jones/maxpreps)At 6-feet, junior Alyssa Aguayo figures to do the same. Sophomores Erin Clark (Llibero) and Avery Lim (setter) should also help Corona make a run at the region and state championship.

Highland-The Hawks made it to the 6A volleyball dance last season and are looking to make it past the first round this season. There’s reason to believe that can happen.

“We’re really excited about this season and hope to get better over the course of the season,” head coach Tait Neilson says of his 2023 squad.

“We’d like to break through past the first round in this year’s playoffs.”

Highland’s showing in the House of Payne invitational proved that a 6A playoff run is possible.

Senior outside hitter Zoe John is in her third year with the varsity, developing into one of the state’s best strikers. The 6-1 John played well during the House of Payne tournament, recording 16 kills in a sweep of West Point.

Other notable players include seniors Addie Garn, Danica Singleton and juniors Alyx Daugherty, Kylie Munson and Kylie Helm.

Queen Creek-Don’t be surprised if Queen Creek makes a run at the Central rRegion championship. With a young roster, the Bulldogs reached the state quarterfinals last season before bowing out to region rival and state champion Corona del Sol.

Senior Blaykli Bobik averaged 12 kills per match in 2022. Sophomore Madisyn Crnjac made a big impact as freshman, including 12 kills in a first round playoff win over Xavier. Izzy Mahaffey, Sydney Metcalf and Maycee Mercado should also make an impact for Queen Creek.

“It looks like it will be a solid year for us,” said veteran coach Erica Crismon. “Most of our starters return and we feel like we can make a deep run into the state tournament.

Desert Vista is another school with an experienced core group of players returning. “This is a great group of girls we have,” coach Audra Slemmer says of the 2023 team.

“We have more height than in the past which will help us defensively.”

Slemmer has a pair of Division-I signees in Jenna Werbelow (Idaho St.) and Tatum Meinerz (Eastern Kentucky) who can help the Thunder compete in 6A’s most competitive region.

Gilbert is another school from the 6A Central that turned in a solid 2022 campaign. The Tigers finished with a 26-8 record, ultimately falling to Liberty in a dramatic, five set quarterfinal loss. Gilbert’s biggest challenge in 2023 is experience, as the varsity roster was depleted to graduation. Juniors Reagan Richardson and Maren Lines will need to step up for Gilbert.

Desert Ridge: Players to watch: Riley Abshire, Natalie Lorenzo, Brooke Wold.

6A Premier

Hamilton—The Huskies got as close as possible to a state championship last season without tasting it. Hamilton fell to Corona del Sol in five sets and will have to reload to make another run in 2023. Sophomore Mikayla Haner and junior Ava Anderson will need be relied upon after contributing to last season’s 34 wins and state runner-up finish.

Perry is another 6A contender after reaching last season’s 6A semifinals where the Pumas fell to Corona del Sol in four sets. Perry should make some noise again this season with a roster full of talented underclassmen.

Kenna Cogill (Oregon) and Avery Stones (Kansas State) are juniors but already committed to Division-1 schools. Junior libero Lily LaFlesch was named to the House of Payne All-Tournament team, helping Perry to a 5-1 start. Perry will lean on seniors Delaney Gregg and Ireland Avalos for leadership.

“We’re playing in a tough region obviously so it’s anyone’s guess,” said coach Fred Mann. “We should be right in the mix.”

Chandler High players to watch in 2023: Marley Avechuco, Kamryn Itzen, Felise Jones, Rhys Cayton.

Basha won 17 matches last season and will lean heavily on outside hitters Karsyn Harris (sophomore) and Kole Fluckiger (junior), both of whom contributed heavily last season. Madison Bouvier and Macey Camacho should add more depth.

6A East Valley Region

Mountain View swept through region play last season with a 12-0 record, but the region did not have the depth like that seen in the Central and Premiere. The Toros were the only East Valley region team to make the playoff round of 16, where they fell to Liberty in three sets.

Mountain View should be the class of the region again, with Red Mountain close behind. Sophomore Analei Bradley earned All-Tournament honors at the House of Payne Tournament, and the Toros showed promise being the only team to defeat champion O’Connor in a set. Mountain View will look to seniors Alayna Austin, Aubrey Parris, and Serenity Kronschnabel for leadership.

Red Mountain reached the 6A tournament play-in game last season, losing to Chandler. The Mountain Lions went 8-2 in the region, only falling to Mountain View. Top returning players are junior outside hitter Sereniti Johnson, senior middle blocker Payton Condon, and senior outside hitter Olivia Seutter.

Players to Watch

Mesa High: Sally Cummard, Jonnie Cummard

Westwood: Arys Palmer, Sophie Palmer, Parley Tingey, Hope Hutchins

Skyline: Brianna Anderson

Dobson: Jenn Powers, Bella Phipps, Sienna Tah