Iowa Class 1A Standouts Provide Top Returners Along With New Names
Iowa has some extremely strong small school volleyball. Division 1 players who have taken the Class 1A courts with enrollments of sometimes less than 100 students, still provide plenty of top volleyball players. One of the best ever to come…
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Continue ReadingIowa has some extremely strong small school volleyball. Division 1 players who have taken the Class 1A courts with enrollments of sometimes less than 100 students, still provide plenty of top volleyball players. One of the best ever to come out of Iowa is Mikaela Foecke who prepped at Holy Trinity and went on to three final fours and two national championships at Nebraska. This past summer she was a member of US National Team. These are stories told in the cafes around town, the gyms where a sky ball might just hit a light, and the banners on the wall. These 1A players are in the process of writing their own legacy at their respective schools. Here are some of Iowa’s top 1A Players.
Kills
Saari Kuehl – Gladbrook-Reinbeck
219 kills – 3.84/set
Maysun Marshall – Lisbon
207 kills – 3.29/set
Allie Petry – Council Bluffs St. Albert
199 kills – 4.63/set
Kelsie Hobby – Sidney
193 kills – 3.51/set
Hannah Erickson – Central Decatur
180 kills – 3.4/set
Saari Kuehl leads the way in Class 1A with the top total number of kills. Last year Kuehl had a breakout Sophomore year, leading her team to the Class 1A state tournament while also earning 1st Team All State honors. Allie Petry is also a Junior from Council Bluffs where she has had big time success with Nebraska Elite Volleyball club. An all around six rotation play for St. Albert, but will head to Iowa State where she will most likely fill in as a defensive specialist/libero. Sidney and Lisbon are off to a strong start led by Hobby and Marshall. Sidney has not lost to a Class 1A team so far this season.
I am so excited to announce my commitment to Iowa State to continue my academic & volleyball career! Thank you to all my amazing coaches and teammates that got me here! Go Cyclones❤️💛 pic.twitter.com/KtDrgnb74N
— allie (@alliepetry1) August 16, 2019
Assists
McKenna Nelson – Lisbon
561 Assists – 8.77/set
Olivia Larsen – Sydney
437 Assists – 7.95/set
Bethany Greenfield – Newell-Fonda
393 Assists – 7.15/set
Brynn Salge – North Butler
372 Assists – 6.91/set
Hope Ward – Burlington Notre Dame.
372 Assists – 6/set
These are the quarterbacks, they get the ball to the attackers where they can terminate. No surprise to have a correlation between Nelson of Lisbon being paired up with a top kill leader in Maysun Marshall. Same goes for Olivia Larsen of Sydney setting to Kelsie Hobby. A setter/attacker combo where they just know where each other are going to be in various situations is tough to stop. Others setters to note who are some of the leaders among assists per set would be:
Desirae Drake – East Mills – 9.69 Assists/Set
Sophie Klynsma – Siouxland Christian – 8.59/Set
Kaci Beesacker – Wapsie Valley – 8.59/Set
Olivia Barnes – St. Albert – 8.13/Set
Gabby Gergen – Janesville – 8.00/Set
Some of these names may be very familiar in the Class 1A volleyball world. Gabby Gergen earned 2nd Team All State honors as a Sophomore, having each year of her high school career end in a win with a state title while playing for Janesville. Wapsie Valley has dropped down from Class 2A to 1A which adds yet another strong team out of the Cedar Valley area with Janesville, Gladbrook-Reinbeck, Tripoli, and Janesville. Throw in North Tama and some of the regional pairings could be very interesting as to how these top teams will be separated.