By Keith Lair
It’s the season of change. The high school volleyball season began this week with a slew of new coaches, four area players already signing national letters of intent, and the shuffle of CIF-Southern Section playoff divisions that affects many top teams in the area. Schools with coaching changes include Mayfield, Flintridge Sacred Heart, San Marino, South Pasadena, Alhambra and Rosemead, three of which advanced to the playoffs last season. Mayfield middle blocker Hannah Schraer has signed to play at USC, Monrovia outside hitter Tirah Le’au will play at Georgia, Flintridge Sacred Heart middle blocker Camille Coffey is heading to Fairfield, and FSH outside hitter Alyssa Walton is going to Delaware. The Prep and Rio Hondo leagues jump up a division and the Pacific League drops a division.

THE STAR-NEWS PRESEASON TOP 10

No. 1 Mayfield

Schraer, a 6-foot-3 senior, has no idea what it’s like to lose a CIF-SS playoff game – she’s helped the Cubs to three consecutive titles.

Mayfield went 24-7 and defeated Cerritos in the 3A finals last year.

They lost four key players, including Star-News player of the year Rachel Aragon, and move to 3AA this season.

“We have a lot of competition at a lot of positions,” coach Megan Rush said. “Sometimes we don’t know who is where, and we’ll have to wait and see.”

No. 2 La Canada

Three Spartans landed college scholarships to four-year schools and a fourth has earned a starting spot at an area community college. Four others also graduated.
So La Ca ada, which reached the championship game of the CIF-SS Division 2A tournament, is rebuilding, right?

“We’re not rebuilding,” coach Brock Turner said. “We’re regrouping.”

Turner can say that, considering he had eight players who saw extensive playing time last year back on the roster.

“Our goal is to make the finals for a third year in a row,” Turner said. “These girls want to make their own goals. We cannot replace the four that we lost, we can only put new people in their positions.”

No. 3 Arcadia

The Apaches drop down one division, to CIF-SS 2A, and have almost their entire lineup returning.

“If we can compete, and I think we can, then I think we have a shot to win it,” coach Charles Freberg said. “We have the makings to do it if we can get through (the Pacific) League.”

The Apaches return T.J. DeGraaf, Ashleigh DeBarge, Joy Kang and Jennifer Estrada, all seniors, up front. DeGraaf will play outside hitter, DeBarge the middle and Estrada the right side. Junior Brittney Lee also will see ample playing time on the front line.

No. 4 Flintridge Sacred Heart

Some of the Tologs’ top players graduated. Longtime coach Shelli Orlandini retired and was replaced by assistant Anne Arlie.

The Tologs return only three seniors, including Walton and Coffey. Junior setter Alessandra Orlandini, the niece of the former coach, also returns.

“They’re our leaders and the girls need to follow their lead,” Arlie said. “They have to lead us by more than their skill.”

No. 5 San Gabriel

The Matadors return nearly all of their players, and the teams that dominated the CIF-SS Division 3A last year, in the Miramonte (now the Hacienda) and Desert Valley leagues, are in upper divisions.

“We are a mystery,” coach Larry Kanow said. “We did not play in a summer league and we don’t know how we’re going to play yet.”

That mystery will be resolved with some games under their belt.

“By the time we get to playoffs, I think we should be better than last year,” Kanow said. “We have to take advantage of our opportunities.”

No. 6 Gabrielino

It’s possible the two best public schools in San Gabriel could be playing each other for a CIF-SS Division 3A title.

Gabrielino lost to Mayfield in the semifinals, and the Eagles’ big loss to graduation was outside hitter Melissa-Rose Villasenor.

“We have size and we have some key players back from last year,” Gabrielino coach Cuong Chau said. “We’re really ready for a challenge.”

Setter and outside hitter Ashley Van Oosten, middle blocker Amanda Watkins and outside junior hitter Joanne Chac are the key players.

No. 7 San Marino

New Titans coach Allan Vince figures the best way to beat Rio Hondo League power La Ca ada is to join them.

“They like to have a quick offense and we’d like to counterattack that with a similar offense,” Vince said. “We’ve been trying to teach them (the Titans) that, and they have been very receptive.”

Senior Kelsey Buckner returns at outside hitter, and 6-0 junior Kathleen Sloan gives the Titans a big presence in the middle.

The Titans return senior Victoria Arreola at libero and junior Joie Fan to the back row.

No. 8 Monrovia

Georgia-bound Le’au should have the Wildcats flying high again.

“She’s done a lot for our program,” coach Wayne Teng said. “She helps every other girl on the team and they help her.”

The Wildcats lost six seniors from a team that finished second in the Rio Hondo League for the second consecutive year and went 23-7.

No. 9 Pasadena Poly

Coaches bemoan the loss of 10 seniors from a team that went to the CIF-SS semifinals, but not the Panthers’ Steve Beerman.

“We have a young team and we’ll be a work in progress,” he said, “but I think we have enough good players that I think we can be ready for November. We have a lot of good stuff.”

That starts with returning all- CIF junior outside hitter Alexis Genske and CIF-SS basketball player of the year Michelle Miller, the team’s setter last year.

No. 10 Maranatha

The Minutemen lost nine seniors from last year’s team, which went 20-9 and reached the CIF-SS 3A semifinals.

“We have a lot of sophomores and first-year players, but I still think we’re going to be pretty good,” Maranatha coach Rebecca Honeycutt said.

Middle blocker Hope McMorrow, a 5-9 senior, will lead the team.