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LEXINGTON, Ky. - The American Volleyball Coaches Association announced recently the sixth annual AVCA High School Beach All-American teams. Two UCLA Bruins were named to the first team and included Lexy Denaburg (Merritt Island, Fla./Merritt Island HS), and Rileigh Powers (Oviedo, Fla./Oviedo HS). This is the second year expanding to two teams of eight for a total of 16 All-Americans honored.
The state of California led the way with eight All-Americans coming from the Golden State. Florida is second with four honorees and Arizona (two), Texas (one), and Georgia (one) round out the 16. The defending back-to-back NCAA Champion UCLA Bruins bolster their lineup with a pair of additions. The Florida State Seminoles' three AVCA High School Beach All-Americans are the most of any university in 2019.
UCLA has a rich history of High School All-Americans, leading the way with a total of 16 all-time selections (Florida State and Hawai'i are tied for second with 10 All-Americans). The Bruins also lead in first team All-American picks with a total of seven all-time (USC and Florida State are tied for second with five). In 2017, the team was made up of six players and included 10 honorable mention choices. When the award was first started in 2014, the team was made up of only four players with eight honorable mention picks.
Additionally, the Bruins currently have a total of 10 AVCA High School Beach All-America selections on its 2020 roster, which along with Denaburg and Powers, includes four first-teamers from last year in Piper Monk-Heidrich, Lindsey Sparks, Abby Van Winkle, and Jaden Whitmarsh. Those six players join 2017 first team selection Megan Muret and 2017 honorable mention picks Hannah Phair and Cami Sanchez. They join the final All-American, Madi Yeomans, who was an honorable mention selection in 2016.
The High School Girls Beach All-America Committee is comprised of Jeff Smith (chairperson; 692 Beach – West Coast), Wayne Gant (Great American Volleyball – East Coast), Steve Bishop (USA Volleyball Florida Region – East Coast), Scott Stover (692 Beach – Central), Andrew Bennett (Tamarack Beach Volleyball Club – West Coast), Ryan Mariano (RPM Sand – West Coast), Bryan Jones (Southern Sand Select – Southeast), Marlee Rice (AAU – West Coast), Colleen Craig (Rally Volleyball – West Coast).
2019 AVCA HIGH SCHOOL BEACH FIRST-TEAM ALL-AMERICA
| Player | High School/Club | City, State | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| Madelyne May Anderson | A-MAY-ZING Beach Club /SandSoul | Palm Beach Gardens, FL | Florida State |
| Sierra Caffo | Point Loma High School / 692 West | San Diego, CA | LSU |
| Lexy Denaburg | Merritt Island High School / Cape Coast Beach VBC | Merritt Island, FL | UCLA |
| Ilihia Huddleston | 692 West | Oceanside, CA | Hawai'i |
| Sutton MacTavish | Southlake Carroll High School | Southlake, TX | Pepperdine |
| Audrey Nourse | Orange Lutheran/ Elite Beach Volleyball | Newport Beach, CA | USC |
| Nicole Nourse | Orange Lutheran/ Elite Beach Volleyball | Newport Beach, CA | USC |
| Rileigh Powers | Cape Coast Beach Volleyball Club | Oviedo, FL | UCLA |
2019 AVCA HIGH SCHOOL BEACH SECOND-TEAM ALL-AMERICA
| Player | High School/Club | City, State | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ashley Brasfield | Harrison High School/S3 Volleyball | Kennesaw, GA | South Carolina |
| Trinity Cavanaugh | Xavier Prep/ RPM SAND | Scottsdale, AZ | TCU |
| Kaeli Crews | West Orange High School / Cape Coast Beach VBC | Winter Garden, FL | South Carolina |
| Liz Waters-Leiga | San Leandro High School / Kleos VBC | San Leandro, CA | Florida State |
| Alexandra Parkhurst | Salpointe Catholic High School/Walker Beach VBC | Tucson, AZ | Arizona |
| Ainsley Radell | Monte Vista / Kleos | Moraga, CA | California |
| Keara Rutz | WAVE Beach | San Juan Capistrano, CA | Florida State |
| Josie Ulrich | Ventura High School/Elite Beach Volleyball | Ventura, CA | Cal Poly |