Three area teams debut in state volleyball poll

COLUMBUS — Three area volleyball teams received recognition in the first weekly Ohio High School Volleyball Coaches Association State poll, released on Sept. 9. Because of the expansion from four to seven divisions, the poll is just 10 teams per division instead of the usual top 20. In Division III, Norwalk was among 17 teams to receive at least 10 points or more outside of the top 10. Norwalk (9-1, 2-0) hosts Clyde on Thursday in an SBC Lake Division match. In Div. VI, Monroeville (7-0, 4-0) is ranked No. 8 behind Midwest Athletic Conference powers Coldwater, St. Henry, Marion Local, New Bremen and Rockford Parkway, along with No. 5 Defiance Tinora. In Div. VII, St. Paul (6-2, 4-0) is among 12 teams that received 10 or more points outside the top 10. Also in that grouping is Sidney Fairlawn, which it defeated at the Lehman Catholic Invitational on Aug. 31. Monroeville visits St. Paul at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the first of their two annual Firelands Conference clashes in Norwalk. Nearby rivals Tiffin Calvert and Sycamore Mohawk are ranked third and fourth, respectively, in Div. VII. The lone MAC team in Div. VII is New Knoxville, which is ranked eighth. Week 1 poll leaders included Cincinnati Seton in Div. I; Cincinnati St. Ursula (Div. II); Gates Mills Gilmour Academy (Div. III); Springfield Kenton Ridge (Div. IV) Mentor Lake Catholic (Div. V); Coldwater (Div. VI); and Fort Loramie (Div. VII). Also of note, Massillon Jackson, which gave Norwalk its lone defeat to date in the finals of the Norwalk Invitational on Aug. 31, is ranked No. 3 in Div. I.