Toledo’s incoming recruiting class for the 2009 campaign has received honorable mention in PrepVolleyball.com’s rankings of the nation’s volleyball recruits.
The Rockets are one of six Mid-American Conference schools mentioned in the rankings.
UT’s freshman class includes 6-0 outside hitter/middle blocker Bailey Blank, 6-1 middle blocker Bethany Irwin, 6-0 outside hitter Sondra Parys and 5-3 libero McCall Paynter. The quartet will join 13 returning letter winners as well as first-year Head Coach Greg Smith for the program’s first season in the newly renovated Savage Arena.
Blank comes to the Rockets following an impressive career at Forest Hills Eastern High School in Grand Rapids, Mich. She earned first-team all-state accolades as a senior after collecting a school-record 517 kills, 480 digs and 85 blocks to help the Hawks to the Class B regional semifinals. She also was a two-time all-region, all-district and all-conference honoree.
A native of Indianapolis, Irwin was a four-year letter winner at Center Grove High School and a member of three conference and sectional championship squads. She earned all-county and all-conference laurels and was her team’s Most Valuable Offensive Player as a senior and an all-conference selection as a junior. Irwin also helped Team Indiana Volleyball Club place fifth in nationals as a 17-year-old and third nationally in the 14- and 15-year-old age groups.
Parys played both middle blocker and outside hitter at Prairie Ridge High School in Crystal Lake, Ill. She was a member of conference championship squads as a freshman and senior, as well as a regional champion as a sophomore and a sectional champion as a junior. Parys received all-state and all-conference accolades as a senior after posting a .345 attack percentage to go along with 386 kills, 262 digs, 77 blocks and 30 service aces. As a junior, she was named to all-area and all-conference squads after collecting 333 kills while hitting at a .287 clip. Parys also has played for the Club Fusion program the last three years and helped them to a national runner-up finish and was named to the all-tournament team as a 16-year-old.
A Centennial, Colo., native, Paynter served as Grandview High School’s starting libero the last two seasons and was a member of three state finalists and one state champion squad. She earned All-State Class 5A honors as a junior and senior and also was a member of the All-Colorado squad her last two seasons. She notched 52 service aces as a junior in addition to averaging a team-best 5.4 digs per set. Paynter also has been a member of Front Range Volleyball Club for the last four years and helped her team qualify for Junior Olympics twice.
