Player of the year

Kayla Ellis

Junior outside hitter

Century

First team

Sami Parris

Senior setter

Century

    In straightforward terms, Century won its fourth consecutive 4A volleyball title because the Diamondbacks played faster than everybody else.

    The D-backs could not overpower teams with size and strength, not with Skyview and all its seniors or Bonneville and all its individual talent.

    So head coach Pauline Thiros kicked up Century’s pace. They played relentlessly, without abandon and at a blazing speed.

    Right in the middle of all that was Parris, making sure hitters like player of the year Kayla Ellis and first-team middle blocker Henny Hearn had balls set just right so they could hammer away kill after kill.

    "I was impressed with how Sami ran the court this year,” Thiros said. “In a year when decision making about distribution was very important and also very tricky, she responded well. She located the ball well and put a variety of hitters in good situations in a pretty fast system.”

    Parris has signed to play for volleyball for Idaho.

Brylie Bair

Senior outside hitter

Snake River

    Coaches from around the area referred to Bair’s strength whenever they heard her name.

    “She’s just a very powerful player. She can put the ball down,” said Malad head coach Camie Tripp.

    Highland head coach Morgan Rose said, “What a great athlete; very powerful and very strong.”

    And Thiros added, “Brylie Bair is a powerful outside (hitter) who really helped her team rise to the top.”

    Bair and the Snake River Panthers rolled to a third state championship in four years after placing fourth in 2012. Just consider that a down year, because in 2013, the Panthers crushed all 3A competition, taking out Fruitland and Parma in four sets before sweeping Parma in the title match 25-11, 25-20, 25-12.

Bailey Nelson

Junior outside hitter

Firth

    With Nelson on one side, Kylie McCree on the other and Kayla Jensen in the middle, Firth won the 2A state championship with an all-star squad.

    And Neslon exemplified that, leading the Cougars past Malad in the state championship.

    "Bailey is certainly one of the most physical outside hitters around Idaho,” Thiros said. “She has a heavy arm and can simply power through, or hit over the block. And her blocking skill makes her a great asset to her team. I think we will hear a lot about Bailey Nelson in the next couple of years."

Henny Hearn

Junior middle blocker

Century

    Century relied heavily on Ellis and her ability to put away kills in key moments.

    But there’s no way the Diamondbacks would have even sniffed a title if they had not maintained offensive balance. Ellis and senior Becky Christensen provided zip on the outside and Hearn was there on the inside, both for her offense and blocking ability.

    "Henny was a very efficient attacker this year,” Thiros said. “She got a lot of swings but made few errors, and she was excellent in tough situations.”

    Hearn, a starting center for Century’s top-ranked and 9-1 basketball team, has received recruiting interest from several Division I teams for her ability on that floor. Her game as a volleyball player, though, isn’t too bad.

    “When we really needed to put a ball away or had to make a stop, Henny got her kills and blocks at the right times,” Thiros said. “She is a big player and continues to get better each year. Henny is a critical part of our success."

Casey Rich

Senior middle blocker

West Side

    Rich was a middle blocker for West Side only by position. She did a little of everything for the Pirates, who won a state championship with Rich her sophomore year.

    “I was glad to see her be a senior finally,” Tripp said. “She has a good swing on the ball and she’s also a good blocker. She doesn’t have much height but she had an ability to find the ball.”

    And she was just as good in the back row as she was right in front of the net, personifying the meaning of an “all-around” player.

Ashlyn Van Every

Senior right-side attacker

Highland

    Before her senior year had begun, Van Every knew she would play volleyball for Idaho State. She had already committed, but not as a right-side attacker — as a setter.

    Because it was as a setter that Van Every had succeeded at Highland throughout her career.

    But she has made the Journal’s all-area team as a right-side attacker after she made the move for the Rams during the 2013 season, helping Highland improve its team midseason.

    “I really think it takes a lot of maturity to move positions,” Rose said.

    If anything, the change highlighted Van Every’s ability to play anywhere and everywhere on the volleyball floor.

    “I’ve had the privilege of coaching her four years, and it’s been awesome to see the growth and maturity she’s had,” Rose said. “She’s got great hands. She sees the floor and runs the floor very well. She can take control and has a calm about her. People look to her (to lead.)”

Second team

Setter               Mikayla Sobieski, Sr., Shelley

Outside hitter    Becky Christensen, Sr., Century

Outside hitter    Kylie McCree, Jr., Firth

Middle blocker    Bryce Gibbs, Sr., Malad

Middle blocker    Savanah Farr, Sr., Rockland

Libero                Jacqueline Cuttlers, Jr., Century

Honorable mention

Setter               Paityn Tripp, So., Malad

Outside hitter    Brooke Sorensen, Sr., Malad

Outside hitter    Makena Shelley, Sr., Snake River

Middle blocker    Ali’iana Kelemete, Sr., Highland

Middle blocker    Kayla Jensen, Sr., Firth

Libero                Hannah Murdock, Sr., Snake River