CLASS 3A
 

 
ALEX BITTNER, CHENEY
 
Bittner takes her final turn with the Cardinals after helping them win 78 matches with a runner-up and third-place finish in Class 3A the past two seasons. A six-rotation player, the senior outside hitter earned her second All-Central Plains League first-team honor and All-3A second team after registering 193 kills on .211 hitting, 36 aces, 37 blocks and 463 digs. “Alex is a great leader,” Cheney coach Sara Walkup says. “She leads by example every day with her work ethic and her skill and her desire to win.”
 

 
MYLIE BROWN, BELOIT

Brown has been a standout for Beloit for each of her first three seasons, earning first-team All-North Central Activities Association honors all three years and helping the Trojans to league crowns each of those seasons as well. A complementary hitter to junior standout Addison Budke, Brown delivered 290 kills last year despite being limited to just back-row play in Beloit’s first seven matches last season. She recorded a whopping 71 aces and also had 271 digs last year. Brown is just 28 kills away from 1,000 in her career and also has 153 career aces and 859 career digs. She earned second team All-Class 3A honors the past two seasons, helping Beloit to state berths each year.
 

KENDAL BRUEGGEN, HESSTON
 
Brueggen, a junior, was one of six underclassmen named to the All-Central Kansas League first team last season after playing a big part in the Swathers’ 21-win season. She averaged 4.1 kills and digs per set as an outside hitter with a team-high .391 kill percentage. “Kendal is an athletic hitter with a powerful arm swing, but also is a solid passer and defender in the back row,” Hesston coach Jason Peters says of Brueggen, a KSHSAA Covered All-3A second-team basketball player last winter.
 

 
ADDISON BUDKE, BELOIT

Budke has been a dominant force since her arrival as a freshman in 2021 and already is over 1,000 kills for her career just two years in (1,218). The six-foot outside hitter was among the top attackers in the state in 2021 with school-record 679 kills and followed it up with 539 kills last year, posting a scorching kill percentage of .488 a year ago. A two-time first-team All-North Central Activities Association and first-team All-Class 3A selection, Budke has led Beloit to two straight NCAA titles and a 3A state berth last year with the Trojans going 1-2 in pool play. Budke added 249 digs, 40 blocks and 39 aces last year and teams with senior Mylie Brown to give Beloit one of the top 1-2 punches in the state in any class.
 

 
BRAEGAN BUESSING, SANTA FE TRAIL

A dual-sport athlete in volleyball and golf the fall for her first two seasons, Buessing concentrated solely on volleyball last year. Manning the libero position, Buessing recorded 278 digs in 71 sets and also added 16 assists, 29 kills and 26 aces. Buessing earned first-team All-Pioneer League honors after being an honorable mention pick as a sophomore. Buessing plans to dual-sport again this year and will be one of the top small-school golfers in the state after being a past state medalist.
 

 
CY RAE CAMPBELL, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN

Campbell has been a dominant player since her freshman year and a key factor in Heritage Christian winning state championships each of the past three seasons. The 5-11 senior can swing it from all three front row positions and has been the model of consistency, putting down 269 kills as a freshman, 274 as a sophomore and 265 last year as a junior (808 career). She’s improved her kill percentage each season, sporting a 52.3% last year, and also her hitting percentage each year, hitting at a .385 clip last year. Campbell also has 153 career aces and 113 career blocks and has been a three-time first-team All-State selection, the last two seasons in Class 3A.
 

 
SHELBY DAVIDSON, MINNEAPOLIS

A four-year starter at outside hitter for the Lions, Davidson already ranks No. 6 on the Minneapolis’ career kills chart. She made a big move up the list with 407 kills last season, a total that is the third-best single-season mark in school history. The 5-9 senior also had 123 digs, 26 aces and 15 blocks last year, earning first-team All-North Central Activities Association honors after being an honorable mention pick as a sophomore.
 

HOPE DUNCAN, SMOKY VALLEY
 
Duncan delivered exactly what Vikings coach Doug Schneider wanted from her last season – quality leadership and breakout-level production in all phases. The Fort Hays State commit and outside hitter recorded 426 kills, 423 digs, 40 aces and 34 blocks as Smoky Valley earned its third straight Class 3A state tournament berth and finished 32-8. The senior earned All-Class 3A honorable mention and a spot on the All-Central Kansas League first team. She’s on track to surpass 1,000 career kills this season.
 

ABBY ELFFNER, HIAWATHA

After being a key reserve for Hiawatha as a freshman, Elffner moved into a starting role as a sophomore in 2021 and into a starring role last year as a junior as the Red Hawks’ primary attacker. The 6-foot Elffner was a unanimous All-Big Seven League selection last year after leading Hiawatha and the league with 387 kills, more than double her kill total for the first two seasons combined. A Baker commit, Elffner has a career hitting efficiency of .315 and she’s also deadly from the service line with 82 career aces with a 93.8 serving percentage.
 

 
AVERY ELOFSSON, WICHITA COLLEGIATE
 
The Spartans will benefit from Elofsson’s all-around talents for one more season after the three-year starter earned her second All-Ark Valley-Chisholm Trail Division IV first-team honor at middle hitter. A six-rotation player, Elofsson led Collegiate in multiple categories, including kills (327), digs (262), total blocks (40) and hitting percentage (.301). “She can do it all – serve, pass, play defense, block and attack from both the front and back row,” Collegiate coach Chris Zandler says.
 

ADRIAN HAZELWOOD, SMOKY VALLEY
 
Hazelwood, a senior, continued to evolve in her second full season as Smoky Valley’s setter. The All-Central Kansas League first-team pick delivered 930 assists after registering 946 as a sophomore. She also had 90 kills, 259 digs and 31 aces on 92% serving. Her effort helped the Vikings earn their third straight Class 3A state berth. “Adrian is a workhorse,” Smoky Valley coach Doug Schneider says. “She is a solid setter who is constantly striving to place the ball in the best location for all of her hitters. She has also developed into a fierce competitor who is willing to accept any role to help her team be successful.”
  

CALI HONEYMAN, NEMEHA CENTRAL
 
On a team loaded with seniors a year ago, Honeyman blossomed as her sophomore season went along and became a key weapon for the Thunder over the final half of the season, helping them to a runner-up finish at the Class 3A state tournament and a 44-2 record overall. The 5-11 junior plays both outside and middle hitter and last year recorded 215 kills with a hitting percentage of .353. She also added 70 blocks. With the graduation of first-team All-3A hitters Addy Holthaus and Ella Larkin, Honeyman will take on a starring role this year as the Thunder look to follow up last year’s near-miss at a state title.
  

 
SAMANTHA KLOTZ, ROYAL VALLEY

A four-sport athlete for the Panthers, Klotz has started since her freshman year in volleyball as a six-rotation player and outside hitter. She record 193 kills as a freshman, but upped that total to 265 last season, ranking second on the Panthers behind senior Kennedy Bryan. Klotz also had 54 blocks and 43 aces last year, earning first-team All-Big Seven League honors. She’s also earned all-league honors in basketball and softball and was a state medalist in track last spring. With Royal Valley losing Bryan and fellow all-leaguer Alysa Ladson to graduation, Klotz likely becomes the focal point of the Panther attack this season.
 

JAXI MITCHEK, GOODLAND

Mitchek was a key offensive weapon for a Goodland squad that reached the Class 3A state tournament for the third straight season in 2022. She will be counted on to help lead the Cowgirls after they were hit hard by graduation, losing standouts Olivia Lehman, Talexa Weeter and Lindsey Cure. The outside hitter was third on the team behind Weeter and Cure in kills with 253, averaging 2.3 per set. She was also third on the team with 271 digs. Goodland went 37-5 last year in volleyball. Mitchek was a first-team pick on the All-Great West Activities Conference team. She is also a key player on the Cowgirls’ basketball team that has captured two straight Class 3A championships and went undefeated last season.

 
KINSEY PERINE, ROSSVILLE

A three-sport standout for the Bulldawgs, Perine led Rossville’s volleyball team to the brink of a Class 3A state tournament berth last year with the bid ending with a sub-state finals loss to eventual 3A state champion Olathe Heritage Christian. Perine had a monster junior season, piling up a whopping 568 kills. That came on the heels of a junior season where she had 437 kills and with 263 as a freshman, Perine enters her senior season with 1,268 career kills and an outside shot at becoming one of only a handful of players in state history with 2,000 career kills. She can get it done defensively as well, coming up with 327 digs last year and 845 in her career. Perine was a second-team All-Class 3A selection and first-team All-Mid-East League pick – her third straight year as a first-team all-leaguer. Perine helped Rossville to the 3A state softball title last spring as well.
  

 
BELLA RADER, MARYSVILLE
 
Rader moved into a the starting setter role for Marysville as a freshman and has never relinquished the job. She racked up 763 assists last season, which ranked second in the North Central Kansas League, and also had 35 kills, 25 blocks, 176 digs and 36 aces. Rader broke the school’s career assists record last season and has 1,810 career assists going into her senior season. Rader has been a three-time first-team all-league selection.
 

DOMINIQUE SCHUTTE, HALSTEAD
 
Schutte, a 5-foot-11 middle hitter, helped the Dragons post a 28-10 record and come within one victory of a Class 3A state tournament berth last season. The All-Central Kansas League first-team selection registered 300 kills and 57 blocks – team-leading numbers for the second straight year. “Dominique is a vocal leader that brings a lot of energy to the court along with her skills as a volleyball player,” Halstead coach Diana Schutte says.
 

CAMPBELL STARK, OSAGE CITY

Stark enters her fourth year as a starter at outside/middle hitter for the Indians and at 6-2 is a force at the net. She racked up 371 kills last season, a total that ranks as the third-best in school history for a single season. That included a 22-kill match that is the second-best in school history. Her kill percentage last year was 42.6%. Stark earned first-team All-Flint Hills League honors for the second straight season, but was a unanimous selection last fall.
 

 
RACHEL VAN GORP, HERITAGE CHRISTIAN

The argument could be made that Van Gorp has been the state’s best small-school player (3A and lower) since her arrival as a freshman in 2020. She’s led the Chargers to back-to-back Class 3A state titles each of her two seasons, earning Class 3A player of the year honors the past two seasons after being a second-team All-2A pick as a freshman. Van Gorp racked up 444 kills as a freshman, 382 as a sophomore in 2021 and then pounded out 363 last year, leading a Charger team that boasts multiple weapons, including fellow first-team All-3A pick Cy Rae Campbell. That gives her 1,189 kills in her career. Van Gorp is far from one dimensional and has at least 230 digs each of the past two seasons as well as 103 aces over the past two seasons. Van Gorp also stars in tracks where she’s earned multiple state titles the past two years.
 

EJ WELLS, RIVERTON

Wells earned All-CNC second team honors last season. The senior middle hitter took a big leap last year by securing more kills in one season than she did in her first two with the Rams. To go along with her 268 kills, she also had 91 aces to lead the team. Wells becomes the top returner for a team that graduated two all-state selections in Jacy Thomasson and Morgan Compton.