FIVE DFW TEAMS ARE #1 SEEDS IN POOLS AT THE ‘PALOOZA’
BY CHUCK LICATA / BIG DADDY MEDIA
The 15th Edition of the Volleypalooza Tournament (started in 2010 by now-Leander ISD Assistant Athletic Director Jacob Thompson) features four teams from out of the state of Texas and many, many ranked highly-ranked teams.
Thompson has turned the “Palooza” into the most high-profile preseason high school volleyball tournament in the country. Many tournament champions have progressed to their respective state tournaments – and a number have “brought home the hardware” by winning a state championship.
The 2025 field certainly boasts that kind of field. No less than five teams from each of the current Class 5A and 6A TGCA polls will line up for this weekend’s tournament; Allen is listed as the top-ranked team in the Palooza’s impressive 68-team field. Highland Park (listed as the #3 team in the tournament), Lovejoy (#8), Prestonwood Christian (#9) and Hebron (#16) are also listed as top-ranked teams in their respective four-team pools.
There will be 12 teams from the DFW area in the 68-team field. Among the five listed above, Allen is ranked #3 in the TGCA poll and #17 by Maxpreps; Highland Park is #2 in TGCA and #35 in Maxpreps; Prestonwood is ranked 31st by Maxpreps; and, Lovejoy is ranked #50 by Maxpreps.
Other Maxpreps ranked teams in the field include: Torrey Pines (#12), Cathedral Catholic (13), Cypress Ranch (34); Tompkins (37); Fulshear (38); Austin High (41); and Lovejoy (50).
DFW Teams to watch: Outside of the top seeds (Allen, Highland Park, Prestonwood, Lovejoy and Hebron), there’s a few teams to watch this coming weekend. That includes two major DFW surprises: Eagle Mountain, 12-7 overall and 12-5 since losing its first two matches of the season; and, Duncanville, 17-1 overall. Both are #2 seeds in their Day 1 pools.
Another team to keep your eye on is Plano East. The Panthers are 11-4 overall (and 1-1 in District 6-6A), with high-quality losses to state-ranked Allen, Austin High and Keller.
Overall notes: There are some interesting rankings in the Day 1 pools. The most obvious is Grand Oaks, which just finished fourth in last weekend’s NISD Classic. I’ve known Head Coach Morgan Rogers for four years and even she’d agree her team should probably not be a #1 seed (the Grizzlies are ranked 11th overall) …The Stony Point (Rouind Rock) Tigers are seeded fourth in one of the weaker pools. The Tigers are a surprising 12-9 this year and have some good quality wins. Playing near their hometown, I believe the Tigers will be a shock to pool-mates Reagan (San Antonio), Tomball and Jenks (Oklahoma)…Liberty Hill may not be the state-contending team this year they’ve been in previous years, but Marie Bruce is one of the best underdog coaches in the state. She’s got the supposedly-rebuilding Lady Panthers cranking at 15-5 so far; they’ll be a problem for all opponents this weekend.
Tournament information is on AES at this link: https://results.advancedeventsystems.com/event/MjAyNV9MSVNEX1ZvbGxleXBhbG9vemE1/divisions/-50007/overview
