Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

The opening day of the state volleyball tournament is less than a week away.

This year’s state tournament is set to run from October 30 to November 2 at Xtream Arena in Coralville.

Before the action at the state tournament can get underway teams need to qualify for the state tournament.

That starts on Tuesday with regional finals in the three largest classes across the state.

Before the matches start on Tuesday we take a quick look at the regional finals in Class 5A, 4A and 3A involving teams from the Your Prep Sports area.

Class 5A, Region 6

No. 11 City High (23-9) at No. 8 West Des Moines Valley (18-15)

Where: West Des Moines Valley

When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Player to watch: West Des Moines Valley senior Elise Jaeger leads the Tigers with 204 kills on .265 hitter and has a team-high 50 blocks.

About the Little Hawks: City High is back in the regional title match for the fourth time in six seasons after a loss in the regional semifinals last season.

The Little Hawks rallied for a five-set win over Muscatine in the regional semifinals last week, which is significant given the fact the Muskies swept West Des Moines Valley in two sets on October 14.

City High enters the regional final seeking its first state tournament appearance since 2014 and playing its best volleyball of the season.

The Little Hawks are 9-1 in October with the lone loss coming to 5A tenth-ranked Dubuque Senior.

Claire Ernst leads a list of four Little Hawks with 100 kills with a team-high 344 while junior Emmy McComas has 227 kills on .275 hitting.

About the Tigers: Don’t be distracted by the 18-15 record as the Tigers proved last season the losses don’t mean much this time of year.

Last season West Des Moines Valley reached the state tournament at 21-20 and promptly knocked off second-seeded Ankeny in the opening round.

The Tigers are once against battled tested by a regular season schedule that ranks among the most challenging in the state.

Of the 33 matches for West Des Moines Valley this season 27 have come against currently ranked teams with the Tigers going 12-15 in those matches.

The Tigers have eight wins over ranked 5A competition including victories over top-ranked West Des Moines Dowling and third-ranked Waukee Northwest.

West Des Moines Valley has four players with more than 100 kills this season led by Jaeger and sophomore Kaelyn Wieland who has 182 kills and 248 assists.

Sophomore Thia Raridon has 155 kills and 26 blocks and senior Finley McAndrew has 111 kills.

What to watch: In the biggest match of the season look for City High to go to McComas and Ernst early and often on Tuesday.

The duo came up big in the semifinal win over Muscatine combining for 39 kills in the five set win.

Together Ernst and McComas have accounted for just more than 62 percent of the Little Hawks kills this season so its should be no surprise the duo gets a majority of the swings on Tuesday.

However, look for City High to lean on its two most experienced hitters even more early as freshman Hattie Galloway and Kaitlin Loria get comfortable in their first regional title experience.

Breakdown: West Des Moines Valley has been a state tournament regular of late, qualifying six of the past seven seasons after reaching the semis last season.

Jaeger, McAndrew and Wieland were all starters on last year’s state tournament team so they Tigers have an edge in postseason experience.

It took City High some time to get rolling under first-year head coach Carolyn Giese but the Little Hawks have hit their stride down the stretch.

Playing on the road in a regional final a strong start will be key for City High which dropped the opening set in its semifinal win over Muscatine.

Class 5A, Region 6

No. 14 Liberty High (19-21) at No. 7 Ankeny (23-14)

Where: Ankeny

When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Player to watch: Ankeny junior middle Reagan Hanfelt (6-0) ranks second on the team with 214 kills on a team-best .273 hitting and ranks sixth in Class 5A with 94 blocks.

About the Lightning: The defending 5A champion Liberty High kept its season alive with a thrilling five-set win over Ottumwa in the regional semifinals.

The Lightning are trying to return to the state tournament for the fifth consecutive season with an almost entirely new lineup from the team that defeated Pleasant Valley in the 5A title game last fall.

The lone returning starter from last year’s title team in the lineup for the Lightning on Tuesday is a good one in junior Asta Hildebrand who ranks fifth in 5A with 346 kills on .237 hitting to go with 376 assists.

Sophomore Lucy Maassen has enjoyed a breakthrough season with 244 kills and freshman Ellie Wilson has 171 kills.

Four freshmen play key roles for the Lightning with Hadley Miller leading the team with 499 assists and fellow freshman Edie Miller leading 5A with 584 digs.

Of the 21 losses for Liberty High 20 have come to ranked teams including 10 to top-five teams and six to teams currently ranked number one.

About the Hawks: Among the most successful 5A programs in the state over the past several seasons Ankeny is seeking a sixth straight state tournament appearance.

Included in the string of state title trips for the Hawks is a 5A title in 2020 in which Ankeny defeated Liberty High in the title game.

As always Ankeny enters the postseason prepped by a rugged regular season slate.

The Hawks are 16-14 against ranked opponents this season with nine of the 14 losses for Ankeny coming to top-five ranked teams.

Ankeny has four players with 100 or more kills this season led by Hanfelt and junior Kamryn Scheib who has a team-high 276 kills.

Ava Wille, a 6-foot-2 senior middle, has 144 kills and ranks fourth in 5A with 98 blocks.

What to watch: With Wille and Hanfelt Ankeny poses a serious threat with their size at the net.

Liberty High counters with an athletic attack led by Maassen and Hildebrand and a scrappy back row headed by Edie Miller.

The game within the game on Tuesday could be how the Lightning can defend the Hawks size at the net while dealing with the Ankeny block in attack.

Breakdown: These two 5A powers have gotten to know each other well over the past several seasons.

This will be the seventh meeting between the two teams over the past two seasons with Ankeny owning a 4-2 edge over the Lightning the past two seasons including two wins in three matches this season.

Ankeny won the first two meetings this season (21-17, 21-14) at West Des Moines Valley on September 2 and (25-15, 24-26, 15-13) at West High on September 9.

Liberty High won the most recent meeting (21-18, 19-21, 15-13) on September 30 at Waverly-Shell Rock.

Something to keep an eye on in the rematch on Tuesday.

Hildebrand has been the constant in the Lightning attack all season and had nine and 11 kills in the losses to Ankeny.

However, Maassen and Wilson combined for 10 kills in the two losses to the Hawks but had a combined 15 kills in the three set win over Ankeny at Waverly-Shell Rock.

Class 4A, Region 8

Oskaloosa (16-16) at No. 1 Clear Creek Amana (44-0)  

Where: Tiffin

When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Player to watch: Oskaloosa senior Hannah Quang (5-10) leads the Indians with 216 kills on .171 hitting and has a team-high 58 blocks.

About the Clippers: Clear Creek Amana has been on a mission since its runner-up finish at the 4A state meet last November.

The Clippers have been among the most dominant and overall best teams in the state all season.

One of only two remaining undefeated teams along with Class 2A top-ranked Dike-New Hartford, the Clippers have dropped only four sets all season.

Class 5A top-ranked West Des Moines Dowling, 4A No. 9 Nevada, Muscatine and 3A No. 10 West Delaware are the lone teams to win a set from the Clippers this season and all of those came in three-set matches.

Clear Creek Amana is led by senior Drake recruit Bliss Beck who has a team-high 378 kills on .474 hitting and leads Class 4A with 106 blocks.

Sophomore Averie Lower has had a breakthrough season with 262 kills on .231 hitting while senior Sam Schrage has 162 kills and 70 blocks.

Senior libero Meg Berkland leads Class 4A with 468 digs while sophomore Emily Henderson has a team-high 489 digs and senior Kenadi Wood has 437 digs.

About the Indians: A state qualifier in 2021, Oskaloosa is attempting to return to the state tournament for the second time in three seasons after falling to North Scott in the regional title game last season.

Oskaloosa advanced to the regional title game with a semifinal sweep of Burlington that pulled the Indians second record back to .500.

Of the 16 losses for Oskaloosa 10 have come to ranked opponents and two more losses have come to 5A foes.

Quang leads a list of four Oskaloosa players with at least 100 kills on the season.

Junior Gracie DeRonde has 194 kills while junior Dasia Foster has 126 kills and freshman Cylee Smith has 122 kills.

Senior setter Lily Bonnett directs the offense and has 630 kills while senior Lydia Van Veldhuizen has a team-high 225 digs.

What to watch: Last season Clear Creek Amana used an incredible state tournament run that featured wins over the number two and three ranked teams to finish runner-up at the 4A state meet.

The rest is history as they say as the Clippers opened the season top-ranked and have flexed their muscle throughout an unbeaten regular season.

It’s easy to forget through all that success that Clear Creek Amana was on the road for its regional final last season, sweeping West Delaware in Manchester.

The Clippers are at home on Tuesday and a special group of seniors will have one final opportunity to play at home.

Clear Creek Amana must take care of business but this regional final sets up as a perfect opportunity to celebrate what has already been a magical run for this Clipper team.

Breakdown: Clear Creek Amana has simply been dominant through the regular season.

The Clippers lead 4A in blocks and serve efficiency, are second in digs, kills and assists and rank third in hitting efficiency.

Nearly half of the 44 wins for Clear Creek Amana have come against ranked competition with the Clippers going 20-0 in matches against ranked teams with wins over 5A top-ranked West Des Moines Dowling and 5A seventh-ranked Ankeny.

Clear Creek Amana will look to enter the state meet on a high note after sweeping Keokuk in its regional opener.

Class 3A, Region 8

No. 13 Solon (22-14) at No. 4 Davenport Assumption (26-7)

Where: Davenport Assumption

When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Player to watch: Davenport Assumption junior setter Ellie Schubert was a starter on the Knights’ state title team last season and is among the best in Class 3A. Schubert has 766 assists to go with 76 kills and a team-high 40 ace serves.

About the Knights: Defending 3A state champion Davenport Assumption is seeking its sixth consecutive trip to the state tournament.

The Knights lost their final two matches of the regular season to 5A fourth-ranked Pleasant Valley and 4A fourth-ranked North Scott but have responded with back-to-back sweeps in the Region 8 play to return to the regional title game.

Of the seven losses for Davenport Assumption this season six have come to ranked teams including five to top-five ranked squads.

The Knights are 8-7 against ranked teams this season, a mark that includes a pair of wins over Solon.

Senior Maggie Johnson has a team-high 232 kills and leads a list of four players with a least 100 kills for Davenport Assumption.

Sophomore Ellah Derrer has 228 kills on .479 hitting ranks eighth in Class 3A with 99 blocks.

About the Spartans: Solon returns to the 3A regional title game for the second consecutive season after falling to West Liberty in four sets in a regional final last season.

The Spartans have taken another step forward this season in the second year under head coach Makayla Siddell and will be seeking a big breakthrough on Tuesday in the form of the program’s first state tournament appearance since winning the 3A title in 2014.

Solon has been solid this season going 5-9 against ranked opponents with wins over 3A seventh-ranked Center Point-Urbana and 4A third-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier.

Four Spartans have at least 125 kills this season led by junior Yasmine Sell who has a team-high 258 kills and 66 blocks.

Sophomore Jozie Lahr has 196 kills on .304 hitting and ranks third in 3A with 114 blocks while junior Grace Erwin has 180 and ranks fifth in 3A with 111 blocks.

Junior Addie Miller has 127 kills for the Spartans as senior Brynn Deike directs the attack and has a team-high 547 assists.

What to watch: Solon has been among the best blocking teams in Class 3A this season ranking second in the Class in total blocks with 438.

The Spartans will need to have a strong blocking game from its leaders at the net in Lahr and Erwin to slow down an Assumption attack that is among the best in the state.

Assumption enters the regional final hitting .321 as a team, the second-best hitting efficiency in 3A this season.

Each of the top eight hitters for the Knights are hitting above .200 with its top two options, Johnson and Derrer hitting over .300.

Solon will have to be its best in every aspect defensively to pull the upset on Tuesday but look for the Spartan block to play a key role if this match comes down to the wire.

Breakdown: A couple of teams that met twice in the regular season have been on a collision course for a regional title meeting since the pairings were released.

Both teams have been dominant in back-to-back postseason sweeps.

Neither team has allowed an opponent to reach 20 points in a set during the postseason with Solon downing Central Lee and Tipton and Davenport Assumption posting wins over Washington and Fairfield.

The Knights won both regular season meetings over the Spartans in straight sets.

Davenport Assumption won (25-19, 25-20) at Clinton on September 16 and (21-19, 21-15) on October 7 at Center Point-Urbana.

Davenport Assumption has home court advantage in the third meeting this season but Solon enters playing perhaps its best volleyball of the season.

Did you enjoy this subscription free article? Help keep Your Prep Sports free by donating.