Photo by Diego Sosaya

RIO RANCHO- The New Mexico high school volleyball season has come to a close, and on January 8, 2026, Gatorade will announce the winner of the 2025 New Mexico Volleyball Gatorade Player of the Year award. Here are the 10 players that we believe are in the conversation to earn the distinctive honor.

Below you will find some stats/accolades from the candidates, and quotes from some of the coaches describing the player. Here are some important things to know before looking at these rankings: 

1. Las Cruces’ Addison Massey has won the last two GPOY, and could be the first athlete to reach three GPOYs.

2. The higher the class of volleyball, the higher chances to win GPOY. 

3. The GPOY typically goes to a player on a contending team or a state championship team.

4. Strong recruiting profiles seem to help build cases for GPOY. 

*DISCLAIMER: We are not associated/affiliated with Gatorade or any members of the GPOY. We are a sports outlet, and this is a prediction list.

Without further ado, here is our list (no order):

1. Las Cruces outside hitter Addison Massey (senior)-

Stats/accolades: State leader in kills (571), and hitting percentage (.519). First Team All-District, First Team All-State, AVCA Second Team All-American, and two-time Gatorade Player of the Year award winner. Signed letter of intent to play for Kansas State.

-BREAKDOWN: Quote from Las Cruces head coach Keith Leupold, “Addison Massey has dominated the NM high school volleyball scene the last three years, and received  2nd Team All-American Honors from the American Volleyball Coaches Association in 2025.  Her hitting percentage of .519 is 10th nationally among high school players, and she saved her best efforts for the semis against Cleveland (31 kills) and finals against La Cueva (36 kills).   Most dominant player I have had in 41 years at Las Cruces High.”

2. La Cueva outside hitter/defensive specialist Jula Utash (junior)- 

Stats/accolades: 370 kills, 291 digs, 33 total blocks, and 102 total aces. First Team All-District, First Team All-Metro, District Player of the Year, Rio Volleyball Bash All-Tournament Team, Offensive Player of the Year, All-Around Athlete of the Year, Blue & Silver Award, named to Region AVCA girls high school team Region 8. In her career, 807 kills, 750 digs, 63 total blocks, and 102 assists.

-BREAKDOWN: Quote from La Cueva head coach Steven Archibeque, “Jula is one of the best all-around players in the entire state. Her ability to impact the game in every phase — attacking, serve-receive, defense, and leadership — makes her one of the most dynamic and complete players we’ve ever had. She changes the match the moment she steps on the floor.”

3. St. Pius X libero Maya Perea (senior)-

Stats/accolades: 335 digs, .024 serve/receive percentage, .934 serving percentage, 17 serving aces, 124 assists, First Team All-State, First Team All-Metro, First Team All-District, Top 12 in the Albuquerque Metro Area, District All-Academic Team, District Player of the Year, District Champion, New Mexico 4A State Champion, 4A State Championship Player of the Game, and New Mexico All-Star Champions & Defensive Player of the Game. 

BREKADOWN: Quote from St. Pius X head coach Jordan Russell, “Maya has been a huge piece of our program. From the day she walked in the gym, I knew she would be special. She is not only a phenomenal libero, she is a great person and we are very lucky to have been part of her HS volleyball career.”

4. Albuquerque outside hitter/right side Kaelynn Ashley (senior)-

Stats/accolades: 388 kills, 212 digs, 4.5 kills a set, and .282 hitting percentage. First Team All-State, First Team All-Metro, First Team All-District, and  All-District All-Academic. NMHSCA All-Star, and was honored as the All-Star MVP.

BREKADOWN: Quote from Albuquerque head coach Monica Ashley, “Kaelynn and Ayva are two of the best volleyball players to ever come out of Albuquerque High.They set a high standard and won’t accept anything less. They continue to push limits and prove doubters wrong… Kaelynn is one of the most athletic players I have ever coached. She is a high flyer and very dynamic in the front and back row. She finds multiple ways to score and wants the ball when the game is on the line. She is extremely competitive and will not back down from a challenge. Tell her what she can’t do and she’ll show a million ways she can!”

5. Cleveland outside hitter Azlynn Tittmann (senior)-

Stats/accolades: 332 kills, .365 hitting percentage, 176 digs and 53 blocks. First Team All-District, First Team All-Metro, First Team All-State , Rio Bash All-Tournament Team, Sweet 16 All-Tournament Team, and District Player of the Year. Signed letter of intent to play volleyball for Boise State.

BREAKDOWN: Tittmann is a lethal attacker, and provided leadership to a Storm squad that had a deep playoff run this year. Tittmann has been a tonesetter, and could log a kill in many different ways. The reigning District Player of the Year is one of the blue chip players in the state.

6. Las Cruces setter/ right side Sydney Pipkin (senior)- 

Stats/accolades: First Team All-District, First Team All-State, District champion, 5A State Champion, co-captain, and ARVCA New Mexico Player of the Week.34 blocks (team leader), 54 aces( tied for team leader), 854 assists( team leader)

-BREAKDOWN: Quote from Las Cruces head coach Keith Leupold, “Sydney Pipkin has been an All-State AAAAA first team setter all three years of her high school career, after missing her freshman year with a back injury that required surgery.  As a Junior and senior, she set her team to a 54-0 record, and led the state in assists and assists per game, ending her career with 2493 assists.  Heady and competitive, she was a coach on the floor.”  

7. La Cueva setter Charlie Ferguson (freshman)-

Stats/accolades: 758 assists (surpassed 1,000 career assists in the championship game), 87 kills, 64 blocks, 199 digs, and 49 aces. 5A New Mexico state runner-ups, Metro Champion, First Team All-Metro, First Team All-District, Rio Bash All-Tournament Team, Metro Championship Player of the Game, third place at the Nike Tournament in Gainesville, Florida, second place at the Regional All-Star Tournament in Madison, Wisconsin, and qualified at the Lone Star National Qualifier while with ARVC 15 Black.

-BREAKDOWN: Quote from La Cueva head coach Steven Archibeque, “Charlie is a complete player and a truly dynamic setter. She runs our offense with intelligence, poise, and creativity, and she consistently makes the players around her better. Her competitiveness and versatility make her one of the strongest leaders in our program.”

8. Albuquerque setter Ayva Ashley (junior)-

Stats/accolades: First Team All-District, First Team All-Metro, First Team All-State, third in assists in 5A (738), second in aces in 5A (64), has 2,446 assists in her career, and was named 2025 District 5-5A Player of the Year. 

BREAKDOWN: Quote from Albuquerque head coach Monica Ashley, “Kaelynn and Ayva are two of the best volleyball players to ever come out of Albuquerque High. They set a high standard and won’t accept anything less. They continue to push limits and prove doubters wrong…Ayva has one of the highest IQs I’ve seen. She thinks about the game differently. She is fearless and  unafraid of the big stage. When the ball is in her hands good things are happening! She is a force behind the service line and a great defender, she is a very complete player.” 

9. Artesia setter Kirklyn Miller (senior)-

Stats/accolades: 854 assists (second in the state), 180 digs, 41 aces, and 11 total blocks. Led the state in assists in 2024 season (979). First Team All-State and First Team All-District. NMHSCA All-Star. 

BREAKDOWN: Quote from Artesia head coach Alan Williams, “I’m really proud of Kirklyn. She had never been a setter until the last 4-5 games of her sophomore season. She put in countless hours in the gym learning to set and be a leader on the varsity team. Her first season on varsity as a junior she led all classes in assists with 979. As a senior she was second in all classes and first in 4A with 854 assists. That’s an amazing accomplishment. But she is much more than a great volleyball player. She is an outstanding student also. One of the top in her class. It’s been a real blessing coaching her.”

10. Goddard outside hitter Payton Abalos (junior)-

Stats/accolades: 502 kills (leads 4A, second in the state), 86 aces (leads 4A, third in the state), 215 digs, surpassed 1000 career kills, All-District MVP, Portales Tournament MVP, Sweet Sixteen All-Tournament team, Zia Classic All-Tournament team, and has verbally committed to NMSU. 

BREAKDOWN: Quote from Goddard head coach Andy Luikens, “Payton can play any position. She can hit from any spot on the court as well as play setter. She is also an amazing passer and defender.”

HONORABLE MENTIONS: Las Cruces’ Caleigh Garcia, Artesia’s Kailee Padilla, St. Pius X’ Alyssa Bendinskas, Albuquerque Academy’s Kiki Brown, Cleveland’s Aaliyah Simpson, and Cibola’s Baleigh Hines.

This list is presented by Transcend, and we want to thank Transcend for supporting New Mexico high school athletes. Here’s a word from our sponsor: “At Transcend, we help athletes maximize their speed and performance through structured, data-driven training. As New Mexico’s Premier speed training facility, our approach pairs precision technology with expert coaching to produce reliable, measurable gains. Join a training environment where speed is the culture and performance is the outcome. “