Next up in are holiday season awards release is our Sophomore Player of the Year Candidates! Over the next few weeks we’ll be selecting and naming our Player of the Year for the senior, junior, sophomore and freshman classes.

First, let’s take a look at the process and what you can expect. We begin this week by naming our Player of the Year candidates, starting with the senior class Tuesday, juniors Wednesday, sophomores Thursday and freshmen Friday. The next step after announcing our candidates is to narrow the list to our Player of the Year finalists, beginning next week in which we’ll have more depth on each player and why they are a finalist. From there, we will name and award the Player of the Year for each class.

I’ve been handing out awards in some capacity for nearly 20 years. There is always a cutoff point and therefore there is always excitement and disappointment depending which side of that cutoff a player was on. This is a relative selective list that is of course subjective. There’s no way to make a list like this all-inclusive and we acknowledge that in a country as large as ours there are so many talented players who fly under the radar and may never receive press.

At the same time, we set forth to honor those we feel qualify for Player of the Year candidates.

Again, making a list like this is subjective. Here’s what we are ultimately looking for in our Player of the Year winners. It involves looking at three parts – the athlete, their impact on their team and the team’s overall success.

In terms of team success, it’s relative but we are looking for a deep run in the state playoffs. Take Highland Park of Texas for example. The Scots had a tremendous regular season – including beating eventual 6A champion Dripping Springs in the finale – but was upset by Guyer in the regional quarterfinals. That meant Highland Park didn’t make a deep run in the state playoffs and as a result a player like senior outside Sydney Breon – who could have been a Player of the Year candidate – is not featured.

As for the impact an athlete had on their team, for a top player like Chloe Chicoine of McCutcheon (Indiana) is quite obvious. She had an enormous impact and it’s just as obvious the Mavericks would not have had the season they did without her. This holds true of all the top talented players like Chicoine. It’s much different to gauge with someone like Kyndal Stowers of Guyer. She missed more than half the season but clearly her presence made a difference in the upset of Highland Park. Still, Stowers played less than half her team’s sets this fall and therefore she also wasn’t featured.

Then there’s the matter of the player, which we gave a few examples of above. Both Chicoine and Stowers are top-tier, 5-star players and that alone would have them in consideration. But add the other two factors and you can see how a player like Chicoine is on the list and Stowers is not.

An example specific to the junior class is with 5-star Nebraska recruit Skyler Pierce. We all know her amazing talents but Olathe Northwest did not make the final eight of the state playoffs for Kansas and thus she is not part of the Player of the Year Candidates for her class. The same goes for Pierce’s club teammate Abigail Mullen of Liberty. Despite her amazing talents her team also didn’t advance far enough to make the cut below for sophomores.

Finally, we present our Sophomore Player of the Year Candidates.

Abigail Li SO S Walton GA

Ada McCoy SO OH Musselman WV

Addy Horner SO MB St. Francis IL

Addy Tindall SO OH Homestead IN

Alani Taliloa SO OH Mt. Rainier WA

Alivia Eikenberg SO OH Rock Canyon CO

Alyssa Aguayo SO OH Corona del Sol AZ

Anna Jelenik SO OH Norris NE

Anya Schmidt SO S/RS Rogers MN

Ashlyn Tafoya SO S Thompson Valley CO

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Asta Hildebrand SO S Iowa City Liberty IO

Ava Poinsett SO OH Francis Parker CA

Avery Gibbs SO OH Thompson Valley CO

Bailey Warren SO OH Fulshear TX

Bayleigh Minor SO MB Fort Bend Christian TX

BreAnna McMillan SO S/RS Millbrook NC

Campbell Flynn SO S Mercy MI

Cari Spears SO OH Prestonwood Christian TX

Carly Fonda SO S Floyd Central IN

Cassie Jenema SO S Cadillac MI

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Charlotte Vinson SO OH Yorktown IN

Chloe Elarton SO S Valor Christian CO

Claire Payne SO MB NorthWood IN

Elena Fischer SO OH Branson CA

Ella Craggs SO S Northville MI

Ella Lewis SO OH The Woodlands TX

Elle Heckenlively SO MB Gretna NE

Evan Polsgrove SO OH Brookland AR

Haedyn Crumbley SO OH Morgan County GA

Hannah Leftridge SO OH St. Pius X MO

Izzy Busignani SO OH Marian MI

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Jackie Carle SO S Jesuit OR

Jaeden Pratt SO MB Ankeny Centennial IO

Jaidyn Jager SO OH La Costa Canyon CA

Josephine Hensley SO S Clearwater Central Catholic FL

Kaci Demaria SO OH Palos Verdes CA

Karyna Werley SO S La Cueva NM

Kassidy O’Brien SO S Cinco Ranch TX

Kennedy Vaugh SO OH Bob Jones AL

Keri Leimbach SO L Lincoln Lutheran NE

Kirra Musgrove SO S/RS Lutheran South Academy TX

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Lauren Hurst SO OH Cleveland TN

Lauren Lopez SO OH Bishop Miege KS

Libby Fandel SO OH Xavier IO

Logan Parks SO S/RS Blue Valley North KS

Lydia Pitts SO MB Southside AR

Madison Quest SO OH DSHA WI

Maggie Dostic SO OH Plant FL

Maria Nix SO OH Cannon NC

Marie Laurio SO OH Saline MI

Marlie Davis SO OH Gilmour Academy OH

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Maya Witherspoon SO OH Lafayette MO

Megan Fitch SO OH Cornerstone Christian TX

Misty Kate Smith SO OH Baysida Academy AL

Navea Gauthier SO OH Shelby MI

Raegan Durbin SO OH Western Boone IN

Reese Messer SO S St. James Academy KS

Reese Sheppard SO S Puyallup WA

Sophia Barber SO OH NorthWood IN

Sophia Thornburg SO OH Ursuline Academy TX

Suli Davis SO OH Colleyville Heritage TX

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Summer Kohler SO OH Venice FL

Tara Greenberry SO MB Incarnate Word MO

Tate Drageset SO OH Buckley CA

Tatum Sharp SO MB Thompson Valley CO

Taylor Harvey SO MB Bountiful UT

Tekoa Barnes SO OH Boca Raton FL

Teraya Sigler SO OH Horizon AZ

Tia Traudt SO OH Grand Island NE