ResV Top 15
North Kingstown (19 - 0) - Wins over East Providence, Classical, and Cumberland.
La Salle Academy (15 - 3) - Wins over East Greenwich and Coventry.
Classical (12 - 4) - Loss to North Kingstown.
+3 East Providence (10 - 7) - Win over Cumberland. Loss to North Kingstown.
—1 Cumberland (13 - 7) - Win over Lincoln. Losses to East Providence and North Kingstown.
+1 Portsmouth (11 - 7) - Wins over Cranston West and Chariho.
—1 Westerly (12 - 6) - Wins over Cranston East and South Kingstown.
Barrington (9 - 8) - Win over Prout.
Coventry (8 - 8) - Win over Chariho.
North Smithfield (16 - 0)
Lincoln (12 - 3) - Win over Pilgrim. Loss to Cumberland.
Prout (7 - 8) - Loss to Barrington.
Tiverton (12 - 0) - Wins over Johnston and Times2.
+1 Toll Gate (11 - 2) - Win over Central Falls.
(New) Pawtucket (12 - 7) - Win over Middletown.
RIIL Girl’s Volleyball Playoffs…
As per usual, these predictions are my own…based on the limited amount of matches I’ve seen, the patterns I’ve observed throughout the season, and my gut feelings from the 23 years of coaching the sport. I welcome, and encourage, all to prove me right or wrong on these predictions. I have no skin in the game nor am I passionate about a particular team…my agenda is simply to see the best volleyball possible in the state and highlight it. Do your thing, leave it all on the floor, and if it is top shelf, I’ll make sure it sees print.
D1 Seeds (RIIL seeding):
Format - Seeds #1, #2, #3, and #4 get byes in the first round and advance to the quarter finals. All matches from the first two rounds are hosted at the higher seeds gym. Semifinals and Finals are at Rhode Island College.
1 - North Kingstown
2 - La Salle Academy
3 - Classical
4 - Cumberland
5 - East Providence
6 - Portsmouth
7 - Barrington
8 - Westerly
9 - Coventry
10 - Prout
11 - East Greenwich
12 - Mt. Hope
What do I think?
Quarterfinals -
North Kingstown hosts Westerly (Westerly gets by the Oakers, but probably a hard four or five sets…hosting always helps) - North Kingstown moves on (Too much firepower for Westerly to handle from the Skippers).
Cumberland hosts East Providence (Townies will get by Mt. Hope in three, maybe four) - East Providence upsets the applecart. (Guessing a five-set slugfest with the Townies just figuring out a way).
La Salle hosts Barrington (Eagles will fly past Pout in three or four) - La Salle moves on (Eagles will run out of space at the mountain top as Rams press their advantages).
Classical Hosts Portsmouth (Patriots will slide step East Greenwich in four) - Classical moves on (The Purple are deadly in their home barn, though Portsmouth will have moments).
Semi-finals -
North Kingstown and East Providence at Rhode Island College - North Kingstown in four (Two “player of the year” candidates will do battle, but Skippers navigate the path forward in the end).
La Salle and Classical at Rhode Island College - Coin Flip. Either could advance. It’s probably going to take five sets. They only saw each other once during the regular season and Rams upended the Purple in four…but that was at the mountain top…this one is at RIC. La Salle Academy in five sets…could easily be wrong…(Another “player of the year” match-up, Rams just have a little more attacking power behind them).
Finals -
North Kingstown and La Salle for all the chips at the middle of the table. Skippers have won both meetings with the Rams…but that second time was a war and it left a mark…like realizing that the stove will indeed burn you if you’re not paying attention. Skipper’s serving pressure should be the difference…the Pins for the Rams will have to be brilliant for La Salle to have a shot. North Kingstown gets another one (probably in four sets).
D2 Seeds (RIIL seeding):
Format - Seeds #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5 get byes in the first round and advance to the quarter finals. All matches from the first two rounds are hosted at the higher seeds gym. Finals are at Rhode Island College.
1 - North Smithfield
2 - Lincoln
3 - Toll Gate
4 - Johnston
5 - Pawtucket
6 - Exeter / West Greenwich
7 - Cranston East
8 - Scituate
9 - Ponaganset
10 - West Warwick
11 - Middletown
What do I think?
Quarterfinals -
North Smithfield will host Ponaganset. (This is one of those gut feelings I mentioned at the beginning. I just think Ponaganset will figure a way out of Scituate. Could I be wrong, sure…however, my other justification is that the Chieftains have played all the top teams tough. Most of them have been five-set thrillers and though they lost to Scituate in four…I just have a feeling.) North Smithfield has also been absolutely dominant throughout this D2 season. They’ll slide past Ponaganset, or Scituate, to advance.
Johnston and Pawtucket… The Panthers host this one, however, Johnston has also faded this last stretch of the season. On the flip side, Pawtucket struggled out the blocks, but their last quarter of play has been quite strong. End of season trends matter, so Pawtucket in four with most of the sets very close.
Lincoln will host Cranston East (granted West Warwick is playing their best volleyball at the right time…but hosting a playoff match matters. CE in four). Same reasoning for Lincoln moving on. Hosting the match is huge, and either CE or WW will not have enough firepower to survive the Lions gradually increasing pressure. Lions in four.
Toll Gate gets to host Exeter / West Greenwich (I think EWG will survive Middletown in four, maybe five sets. Reasoning? Horrible to say again, but just a feeling. Haven’t heard much about Middletown this season, and EWG has flashes where no one wants to play them. The flash holds in the prelims). Meanwhile, the Titans play very well at home and they play with solid ball control. Toll Gate gets to the next round with a four set finish on EWG.
Semi finals -
North Smithfield hosting Pawtucket. I have NS in four. North Smithfield just executes a little cleaner then everyone else in the league…Pawtucket included. This feels like the type of match where the visitor will win the first set and that is enough to shock the home team to life. As with all my thoughts, certainly I could be wrong, but besides a scare, North Smithfield advances to the final.
Lincoln hosting Toll Gate. These two teams saw each other early in the season with Toll Gate winning in straight sets. Now, which Lincoln team shows up this week? They’re hosting, which helps the cause greatly, but will it be the team that played with Cumberland and took a set off of North Smithfield, or the team that lost to West Warwick? Whomever wins the serve and pass battle will come out on top here… I guess I’ll go with Lincoln as again I feel home court matters a ton. Could certainly be wrong and it’ll probably take at least four sets, probably five, to sort this one out.
Finals -
North Smithfield and Lincoln at RIC. North Smithfield has dominated this season, only losing four sets all campaign. Two of those four sets were from Lincoln. The bright lights of RIC can sometimes be an equalizer…but I don’t think so this time. I’m going with North Smithfield in this one. Lincoln will scare, but at the end of the day, this has been North Smithfield’s year and I don’t think anyone is going to upend it.
D3 Seeds (RIIL seeding):
Format - Seeds #1, #2, #3, #4, and #5 get byes in the first round and advance to the quarter finals. All matches from the first two rounds are hosted at the higher seeds gym. Finals are at Rhode Island College.
1 - Tiverton
2 - Central
3 - Woonsocket
4 - Providence Country Day
5 - St. Raphael Academy
6 - Narragansett
7 - Block Island
8 - Hope
9 - Achievement First
10 - North Providence
11 - Davies
What do I think?
Quarterfinals -
Tiverton will host Achievement First (A1 will slide past Hope in four, potentially five, sets. Hope can serve tough, but this feels like A1’s time. They jumped from practically off the board to the 9th seed by the end of the regular season! Perhaps more of a feeling then a solid pick, I think A1 has the break out game and meets Tiverton in the quarters). From there, it’ll be Tiverton making most of the plays and advancing to the semis.
Providence Country Day hosting St. Raphael’s Academy. My feeling is these two teams are pretty evenly matched. They only saw each other once this season and it was a five set thriller with PCD coming out on top. That match was on 10/5…is anything different now? Yes. St. Raphael lost their final four matches of the season going into the playoffs. Meanwhile, PCD is the reverse…and PCD hosts. Feels like the Day will prevail in four.
Central hosting Block Island…I think Block Island will hold down the fort and defeat North Providence (probably in four) in the prelims. Block Island does have the top home court advantage in Rhode Island as taking a ferry to play is clearly next level. Now, Central has had a very good campaign…almost completely under the radar. Block Island will have a couple of strong moments, but Central should move on as the Knights will just make too many plays.
Woonsocket hosting Narragansett. I think Narragansett will find away against Davies…probably in three or four. From there, I think Woonsocket is just the stronger club. When these teams played in early October, Woonsocket was able to wrangle a four set win in their home barn. Being at home again, I suspect basically the same result. Narragansett will threaten but the door will be closed in four.
Semi Finals -
Central hosting Woonsocket. Sort of feels the same vibe as the Woonsocket Narragansett blurb but reversed. Central has a four set win on Woonsocket in the regular season and is hosting this one. Woonsocket will need to play a perfect match to upend the Knights. It certainly can be done…but I don’t envision it. As always, my predictions can go the other way…Lord knows, I’m wrong plenty of times. Still, if I was required to choose, I’ll go with Central on this one as they host and have the head to head. I think it goes five, though, and Woonsocket could easily turn the tables.
Tiverton hosting Providence Country Day. Tiverton has only lost four sets on the season. PCD was not one of those clubs. Generally, PCD loves to serve you off the floor and I suspect their strategy will remain. So, can Tiverton pass well enough to get the job done? In a word, yes. PCD will do their thing and there will be moments, but Tiverton has been the big dog on the block all year and they’ll show it in this one as well.
Finals -
Tiverton and Central. For all the marbles, Tiverton and Central will figure it out at RIC. They played once in the regular season and it was all Tiverton in that one. Still, it was very early in the campaign and a lot has happened since then. Mainly, Central grew in to the second seed power while Tiverton just maintained control on the league. Could Central upset Tiverton? Sure. They would need to be precise in the attack and win the serve / pass battle. Still, I think similarly to D2 and D1, the top ranked team is just a tic better in all facets of the game. Just too much firepower, ball control, and serving pressure… Tiverton in four for the ring.
Again, these predictions are what I think based on what I’ve seen and studied. They could be true, they could be wildly incorrect. Regardless, the players, teams, and coaches will sort it out. Though I’ve been in their shoes, it doesn’t mean I know anything about how it’s going to fall. Every year is a year for triumph and upsets. Battle and claim your destiny…with the rest of us, who don’t really matter in these events, cheer you all on!
Upcoming Big Matches…
Monday, 11/2 - Westerly at Coventry : Prout at Barrington : Achievement First at Hope : Ponaganset at Scituate
Tuesday, 11/3
Wednesday, 11/4 - Check RIIL Tournament Central…
Thursday, 11/5 - Pawtucket at Johnston : St. Raphael Academy at Providence Country Day
Friday, 11/6 - Check RIIL Tournament Central…
ResV Player of the Year Race:
Kayleigh Garrepy - Sr. - North Kingstown - Pin (Holy Cross Commit)
20 kills, 11 digs, 4 aces, 2 blocks against East Providence
13 kills, 3 aces, 8 digs against Classical
Darryl Ashilaka - Jr. - Cumberland - Pin
16 kills, 10 digs, 2 aces against Lincoln
20 kills, 9 digs, 5 aces against East Providence
Amaya Womack - Sr. - Classical - Pin (URI Commit)
13 kills, 4 digs against North Kingstown
Adrian Brzoza - Sr. - La Salle Academy - Pin
Ella Grimley - Jr. - East Providence - Utility
17 assists, 9 kills, 4 blocks, 5 digs against Cumberland
Gold Five Performances…
Alison McCoombs - North Kingstown - 12 digs, 3 aces against East Providence : 12 digs, 3 aces against Classical
Ella Reyes - Westerly - 12 kills, 2 digs, and a block against Cranston East : 12 kills, 4 blocks against South Kingstown
Charlotte Didie-Burke - Bay View - 23 assists, 22 digs against Burrillville
Sayler Ouellette - Tiverton - 35 assists, 14 digs against Johnston : 14 assists, 3 kills, 4 aces, 6 digs against Times2.
Liv Perreira - Tiverton - 19 kills, 17 digs against Johnston
Silver Five Performances…
Abigail Willi - Block Island - 18 kills, 20 digs, 5 aces, 6 blocks against Rogers
Olivia Baker - Cranston West - 14 kills against Mt. Hope : 14 kills, 11 digs against West Warwick
Jheinmy Milian - Davies - 36 assists, 5 aces against Narragansett
Shannon McGarty - South Kingstown - 12 kills, 12 digs, 3 aces against Mt. Hope
Elizabeth Evans - Block Island - 16 kills, 8 digs, 7 aces, 3 blocks against Rogers
Bronze Five Performances…
Sloane Medina - La Salle Academy - 29 assists against East Greenwich
Leah Ahmed - St. Raphael Academy - 13 kills, 15 digs, and a block against Exeter / West Greenwich : 8 kills, 18 digs against Woonsocket
Daisy Geoffroy - Ponaganset - 13 kills, 6 aces, 4 digs against Johnston
Marissa Marsilli - Johnston - 15 kills, 4 aces against Ponaganset
Devin Dixon - Ponaganset - 20 assists, 7 kills, 5 aces against Johnston
Honorable Mention…
Maggie Thorp - Mt. Hope - 12 kills, 3 aces, 4 digs against South Kingstown : 9 kills, 2 aces, 15 digs against Cranston West
Natasha Lightfoot - Mt. Hope - 7 kills, 5 aces against South Kingstown
Lila Muffit - South Kingstown - 11 kills, 3 blocks, 2 digs against Mt. Hope
Santanaa Hamelin - Westerly - 11 kills, 11 digs 5 aces, 2 assists against Cranston East
Courtney Simms - La Salle Academy - 12 kills, against East Greenwich
Lyla Parmentier - Cumberland - 28 assists, 3 kills, 5 digs against Lincoln
Bella Elliott - Lincoln - 26 assists against Cumberland
Mia Kumar - Bay View - 20 digs, 9 aces
Amiyah Perry - Burrillville - 34 digs against Bay View
Livvy Ridrigues - Tiverton - 22 digs, 3 aces against Johnston
Ella Boyd - Narragansett - 11 kills, 12 digs, 3 blocks, 3 aces against Achievement First
Ali Brown - Rogers - 24 digs against Block Island
Isabel Candelario - St. Raphael Academy - 23 digs against Exeter / West Greenwich
Bella Elliott - Lincoln - 23 assists, 2 aces against Pilgrim
Rachel Lapham - Ponaganset - 13 kills, 2 blocks against Johnston
Anna Lafontaine - Ponaganset - 16 assists, 6 kills, 3 aces, 2 blocks against Johnston
Sherlie Pena - Achievement First - 10 kills, 6 aces against North Providence
Yenaliz Almonte - Achievement First - 6 kills, 12 aces against North Providence
Aibsel Batista - Achievement First - 25 assists against North Providence
Audrey Abedon - Portsmouth - 9 kills, 22 digs against Chariho
Kamryn Lehner - Portsmouth - 26 assists, 5 aces, 6 digs, 2 kills against Chariho
Lily McCartney - Cranston West - 6 kills, 5 blocks against Mt. Hope
Audrey Bernard - East Providence - 8 kills, 5 blocks against Cumberland
Claire Welch - North Kingstown - 14 assists, 5 kills, 2 aces, 4 digs against Classical
Mar Guimera Fonrodona - Narragansett - 8 assists, 10 digs, 6 aces, 2 kills against Davies
Jaylline Brito Silva - Davies - 14 kills, 6 aces, 8 digs against Narragansett
Svea Crawford - Westerly - 14 kills, 4 aces, 2 digs against South Kingstown
Isabella Dacier - Lincoln - 9 kills, 3 aces against Pilgrim
Bella Elliott - Lincoln - 26 assists, 2 aces against Cumberland : 24 assists, 2 aces against Pilgrim
Lily Darden - Providence Country Day - 4 aces, 19 assists, 11 digs against Hope
Grace Gallo - West Warwick - 12 kills, 24 digs, 2 aces against Burrillville
Jazlyne Pineda - West Warwick - 18 digs, 7 aces against Burrillville
Something Interesting…
On Halloween in 2005, Brazilians Juliana and Larissa defeated Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh (USA) in a hundred minute beach final in Acapulco. The sets were 28-26, 40-42, and 15 -13. It still stands as one of the longest matches on the World Tour history.
Playoff Hunt for Week Nine…
Division One:
North Kingstown
La Salle Academy
Classical
East Providence
Cumberland
Division Two:
North Smithfield
Lincoln
Pawtucket
Toll Gate
Johnston
Division Three:
Tiverton
Central
Woonsocket
Providence Country Day
St. Raphael Academy
To send updates, stories, and players college decisions…to Coach Reslow - Scott.Reslow@protonmail.com