Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

Volleyball season officially began last week with the first day of practice on Monday.

The season really gets rolling in less than a week with the first matches being held across the state on August 21.

As the season gets underway every team has their sights set on the same thing – a spot at the state tournament October 30 to November 2 at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

In preparation for the start of the season Your Prep Sports took at look at seven returning players to watch this season in an article that published earlier this month.

Today Your Prep Sports highlights six players that are ready to take their games to the next level with breakthrough seasons.

Gracie Hennings

Senior, Liberty High

Hennings was a key contributor on the Liberty High squad that won the first state title in program history this fall.

As one of only two returning starters from last year’s 5A title team Hennings will have an even bigger role this season not only as a player but as a leader for the Lightning.

Hennings was productive a year ago ranking fifth on the team with 95 kills on .311 hitting and leading the team with 56 blocks on her way to earning honorable mention Mississippi Valley Conference all-divisional honors.

Look for those numbers to soar this season as Hennings becomes a focal point on both sides of the net for the Lightning.

Aly Stahle

Junior, Solon

Solon returns three juniors that all had at least 145 kills last season but none appear more poised for a big-time breakthrough than Stahle.

After getting her feet wet at the varsity level while posting 31 kills as a freshman Stahle ranked third on the team with 189 kills on .253 hitting a year ago in her first season of full-time action.

The 5-foot-3 Stahle is a dynamic athlete on the outside as a hitter but is capable of making an impact all over the court.

Last season she ranked third on the team with 64 blocks and was second on the team with 196 digs.

Solon will look to make another jump as a team in year two under head coach Mikayla Siddell and the growth of Stahle should play a key role in the Spartans’ ascent.

Emily Coleman

Senior, West Branch

With last year’s leading hitter Iva Senio lost to graduation there will be plenty of opportunities for returning hitters this season.

Coleman will be among the Bears poised to pounce on the increased hitting changes this season.

Last season Senio accounted for nearly 35 percent of the Bears’ swings, logging a team-high 279 kills and on a team-high 959 attempts.

Coming of a career season a year ago, Coleman will be one of several Bears with breakthrough seasons this fall.

Coleman ranked third on the team with 174 kills on a team-best .235 hitting last season and also led West Branch with 31 blocks.

The 5-foot-7 Coleman will have the benefit of a strong surrounding core this season as five starters return from a team that went 17-17 last season.

Emma Stammeyer

Senior, West High

A starter since her freshman season Stammeyer has led West High in assists each of the past three seasons racking up 914 career assists.

The breakthrough was supposed to come a year ago for Stammeyer but a knee injury cost her several weeks of the season and limited Stammeyer throughout the season.

Even with the injury Stammeyer was productive.

She led West High with 323 assists last season and added 117 digs, 37 kills, 26 ace serves and 21 blocks in just 21 matches.

A healthy Stammeyer should be in for a huge senior season as she looks to help the Trojans improve on their 11 wins from last season.

Averie Lower

Sophomore, Clear Creek Amana

Nearly all of the production and firepower from last year’s Class 4A state runner-up team returns for the Clippers this season.

Among the seven returning players from last year’s starting rotation are four that had at least 150 kills a year ago highlighted by all-stater Bliss Beck.

The player on that list that could take a big step forward this season is Lower, who earned second-team all-WAMAC West Division honors in her debut season last fall.

Lower ranked second on the team with 222 kills last season and added 50 blocks, 338 digs and 38 ace serves.

The 5-foot-9 Lower is an impressive athlete and with a season of varsity volleyball under her belt could be poised for a big-time sophomore season.

Kiley Devery

Sophomore, Regina

It was classmate Reese Naeve that grabbed most of the headlines last season with a breakthrough debut season in which she earned all-state honors after leading the River Valley Conference in kills.

This fall keep an eye on Devery who is poised to build on what was her own impressive freshman season.

Devery ranked second to Naeve on the team in kills last fall with 166 on a team-best .389 hitting efficiency.

The 6-foot-1 Devery also led Regina with 80 blocks last season as a freshman and had a team-high 23 ace serves.

Look for Devery to take a big step this season after her impressive debut as Regina seeks to improve on its 19-15 mark from a year ago.

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