By Ryan Murken

Your Prep Sports

IOWA CITY – Losing to a cross-town rival in one of the most anticipated matches of the season isn’t something most players would hang on to as a great memory.

That’s not the case for City High junior Ellie Evans.

Evans hasn’t been on the winning side of the annual Battle for the Spike matchup with cross-town rival West High in her previous two appearances in the series but hasn’t blocked out the memory of those two meetings.

“Last year the atmosphere at West was so great,” Evans said. “It is always such an incredible environment in that match and that’s what you remember the most about it.”

Just because Evans has fond memories of the past two Spike matchups doesn’t mean she isn’t looking for a change in outcome.

Evans and her City High teammates will be seeking their first win over West High since 2014 when the Battle for the Spike returns to City High on Tuesday for the first time in three years.

City High (5-5) and No. 9 West High (6-4) will hook up at 7 p.m. on Tuesday in a series that has needed a fifth to determine a winner four times in the last seven years.

“It’s always a close match, it’s intense and it’s especially fun with the crowd,” Evans said. “It’s always a great atmosphere to play in.”

That environment is a big part of what makes the Battle for the Spike stand out.

City High went 3-2 at its home tournament on Saturday playing in front of a sparse crowd.

With a majority of the regular season matches on team’s schedules coming at weekend tournaments matches like Tuesday’s in front of an anticipated raucous crowd become unforgettable.

“I look forward to having the big crowd and playing in that atmosphere,” City High sophomore Kelsey Law said. “That adds a lot to that game.”

The atmosphere for the Battle for the Spike is rivaled only by postseason dates like a regional final or state tournament match.

That partly explains why the home team has won each of the last three meetings dating back to City High’s five-set win in the last meeting at City High in 2014.

West High has won back-to-back matches in the series, both at West High, a five-set thriller in 2015 and a 25-9, 22-25, 25-23, 25-21 win last season. 

City High doesn’t have a player on its current roster that played in the last City High win in the series.

Junior Mackenzie Murphy, Evans and Law are the only Little Hawks with experience in a Spike matchup.

The Little Hawks are hoping the home crowd and home court advantage can help them avoid a three-match losing skid in the series.

“I look forward to it every year, I’m so excited for it and I think all the new kids coming in are excited for that experience,” Evans said. “We are just excited to come in and do what we can do.”  

West High enters a top-10 team and coming off a strong 3-2 showing at the rugged West Des Moines Valley tournament last weekend.

The Women of Troy earned wins over 4A No. 8 Charles City, 5A No. 14 Waukee and fifth-ranked West Des Moines Dowling.

Senior Colby Greene leads a balanced West High attack with five players with more than 34 kills with a team-high 74 kills.

“They have a lot of the same players but they also have a lot of underclassmen that are coming up,” Evans said. “We will just have to make sure that we communicate with each other and play our game.”
Law leads City High with 49 kills while Evans has 43 and Murphy 42.

“I think that’s the match that we look forward to the most in the year because it’s our rival,” Law said. “We know all those girls, we play club with a lot of them so it’s fun. You really want to beat them because you are friends and you know each other.” 

Battle For the Spike

5A No. 9 West High (6-4) at City High (5-5)

Where: City High, 7 p.m.

Player to Watch: West High senior Colby Greene has come up big in each of the last two meetings with City High providing the match-clinching point in both West High wins. The 6-foot-2 middle leads West High with 74 kills this season.

Key Stat: Three of the last four meetings between the cross-town rivals have gone to a fifth set including both of the last two matches at City High.

What to Watch: It’s always a tussle when these two teams meet up. There hasn’t been a sweep in the series since West High won 3-0 in 2012 and this year should be another great matchup.

Both teams have spent the first two weeks of the regular season breaking in several new starters and are coming off 3-2 performances at tournaments over the weekend.