Benton, Central, Savannah and Bishop LeBlond start season with city jamboree

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (News-Press NOW) — Volleyball talent in northwest Missouri is at an all-time high. With so many All-State players, ranked teams and legendary coaches in the area, the city volleyball jamboree brings some of the state’s best together to begin the 2026 season.

In true Bishop LeBlond volleyball fashion, coach Kim Huss and her team dominated the unofficial start of the season. In a format that saw only two sets played between each combination of Central, Benton, Savannah and LeBlond, the Golden Eagles walked away as the only team to win a series, going 2-0-1 on the evening.

“I thought it was really fun to see them play with a lot of team chemistry tonight,” Huss said. “They worked really hard. We had to really earn some points tonight you know, a lot of hustle plays. I thought our serve game was really strong.”

Bishop LeBlond replaced a loaded senior class with new talent just like it does every year. That transition between classes has been something Huss has preached throughout her more than 20 years coaching LeBlond volleyball.

“They’ve been holding the line playing as team two in practice for a couple of years,” Huss said. “They’ve just been really pushing the varsity and being the backups for the varsity and they were ready to go. It’s their turn and they’re ready to go and they’re ready to play.”

Juniors Emily Conz, Maya Acosta, Ava Libel and Blakeli Swope stepped up to the challenge and showed that, just like every year, Bishop LeBlond can be one of the top teams in the state. For a program that has had so much success developing talent, freshman Kansas Miljavac stepped into the middle hitter position and excelled.

“It’s really fun and all my teammates are supportive so it’s really good,” Miljavac said. “I think I’ve worked really hard to be in this position so I’m really grateful that my coach gave me this opportunity.”

The one team LeBlond tied with was Benton. The Cardinals come in with high expectations and a ton of talent to back it up. Coach Marissa Richardson and her squad tied with all three teams, not the outcome they had hoped for, but Benton still showed signs of being a team everyone should be worried about.

Senior Jalynn Brown leads the way as the Cardinals return their top three hitters. Brown, junior Jenna Cox and sophomore Kiya Cook exploded through the gymnasium with loud kills. Their swings to finish a play are reminiscent of Michigan State basketball star Coen Carr’s emphatic dunks. Legendary head coach Tom Izzo once said Carr’s dunks “are worth six points because not only are they usually incredible plays … but for the most part, it got us going.” It seems to be the same for Benton, as those kills often feel like they are worth more than a single point. Not only do they put the ball back in the hands of capable servers, but they also bring the Cardinals to life.

“That’s what we expect from her,” Brown said of Cook’s emphatic kills. “She can hit the ball.”

Tuesday’s games also marked the welcome to varsity for Benton’s freshman twins Maggie and Blakely Brittingham. Blakely seemed to embrace the atmosphere and got better with each set she played. Her running mate, Maggie, excelled from the moment she touched the court, flying around at outside hitter and making her presence felt everywhere as they both started in Benton’s more game-like lineup against Central.

“It’s fun, we have our connection,” Maggie said of playing with her twin. “We’ve been playing together, she’s been my setter the whole time I’ve played. It’s just fun showing everyone that we can do that.”

Benton is a much better team than it showed by splitting all three matchups. With the jamboree, everything needs to be taken with a grain of salt as the Cardinals put an emphasis on getting back to practice and working on their passing.

“I think it’s just because it didn’t go the way we wanted it to,” Brown said of the team’s grim huddle. “We know what we need to work on and we’re going to fix it.”

With Benton’s final set coming against Central, it was obvious the two will be fun to watch whenever the St. Joseph matchup comes. The two each won a set 15-11 against the other. Central plays small but has enough depth to last as long as it needs. The Indians play hard, fast and tough and constantly rotate bodies in to keep that pace.

Central was led by a dominant senior class that flies around the court. Greely Simpson and Maggie Adams led the way at outside hitter. Simpson had a particularly good day as she steps into a leadership role. Junior Mia Morrow also played extremely well at setter. Morrow’s serves led the way, while Central neared 15 substitutions in several sets as it got all of its players action.

Savannah also got its start and, after graduating five seniors, looked as deep as ever. Junior twins Rilynn and Ashlynn Blake played well at outside hitter, while sophomore Molly Weis stepped into the role as well. Seniors Meara Delaney and Aryana Spry showed that the Savages have the opportunity to finally get over the hump this year as they look to improve upon their start at the jamboree.

One thing that is obvious within seconds of watching the group play is how close the Savages are. They are constantly picking each other up and everyone seems to be playing for the team, whether things are going well or not.

“It’s just different this year because all of us can pick each other up,” Rilynn said. “We know that we all have each other’s backs and no matter what, even if we’re competing, we’re just always like sisters.”

Head coach Miranda Mizera emphasized that the jamboree showed the Savages what they need to focus on moving forward.

“One thing I told our girls tonight is that it’s going to require a high level mental fortitude out of them to be able to recognize that if they’re having an on night, then great, if not then that’s why this is a team sport and we all have an opportunity to pitch in,” Mizera said. “So that may require different people being on the court at ...

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