Top Matchups and Storylines For 3A, 4A, 5A Regional Finals

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Regional Finals are set, teams have the nervous energy (parents have even more), but at the end of the day we’re playing volleyball for a state tournament while other states are moving their seasons to other parts of the year or some have just had their seasons put to an abrupt stop.  Got a game, got a chance, another chance to compete, be grateful, and for these high school kids to play alongside some of their best friends once again.  Here are some storylines I’m watching and maybe others will have an eye on as well. </span></p> <p><strong>Toss Ups </strong></p> <p><strong>Assumption and West Liberty </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">They could play ten times and split five and five.  They are both experienced, well coached, and are very familiar with each other.  There is going to be plenty of firepower and big swings from the likes of [player_tooltip player_id="17227" first="Martha" last="Pace"] and [player_tooltip player_id="17323" first="Macy" last="Daufeldt"] of West Liberty and the Schubert sisters in Emma and Ava of Assumption.  Hate to see one of these teams lose with them both being highly talented teams. </span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Waverly-Shell Rock and Gilbert</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">WSR is the favorite in this and will host Gilbert, but both of these teams have plenty of talent and firepower.  [player_tooltip player_id="79237" first="Avery" last="Beckett"] has risen to another level for the Go-Hawks with over 550 kills, but Gilbert has a balanced attack of Seniors that includes [player_tooltip player_id="17250" first="Thea" last="Rotto"], [player_tooltip player_id="79015" first="Nessa" last="Johnson"], [player_tooltip player_id="41254" first="Taylor" last="Grinley"], and Erin Bathie.  </span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Ankeny Centennial and Urbandale </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I really do think this will be a toss up.  Centennial might have the edge on paper, but the Central Iowa teams have such a small margin of error.  If Sophomore attacker [player_tooltip player_id="79678" first="Lily" last="Dykstra"] can take over for Urbandale then watch out.  She had 18 kills in their narrow win over Waukee carrying plenty of momentum into this match. </span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">I<strong>ntriguing Match Ups</strong></span></p> <p><strong>MOC-FV and  Humboldt </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Humboldt has a Senior class who will be in their third straight regional final where they have lost to Osage and Carroll-Kuemper, two power houses.  They have similar records, but not necessarily a lot of common opponents with Humboldt’s being to CGD, Osage, and WSR (three teams going for a state berth tonight).  MOC has [player_tooltip player_id="41241" first="Jazlin" last="DeHaan"] who is one of the top attackers in NW iowa and was a key part of their 2018 run to the state tournament.  This is going to be a fun matchup of teams who really don’t see much of each other throughout the year. </span></p> [caption id="attachment_113549" align="aligncenter" width="459"]<img class=" wp-image-113549" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/10/DSC01115.jpg" alt="" width="459" height="306" /> [player_tooltip player_id="41257" first="Corinne" last="Meier"] of Hempstead attacking against Linn-Mar[/caption] <p><strong>Scary Momentum </strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Linn-Mar scored a minor upset over Dubuque Senior which would have pitted two teams in the same town vying for a state tournament appearance with Senior and Hempstead.  Now it’s Linn-Mar heading to Hempstead who is full of firepower that includes [player_tooltip player_id="41257" first="Corinne" last="Meier"] who committed to Middle Tennessee State this fall. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Another Dubuque matchup that just kind of has a weird Deja Vu to it would be Western Dubuque and Dubuque Wahlert.  Last year it was Western Dubuque who upset Wahlert and then went on to finish as state runner-up.  The tides have turned where WD is the clear favorite over Wahlert with Wahlert coming off of two sweeps against Central DeWitt and Clinton. Teams playing with plenty of momentum are always a little scary come tournament time. </span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Sioux County Staying Alive</strong></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Unity Christian out of Orange City plays Sheldon (which is partly in Sioux County), MOC-FV, Boyden Hull, and Western Christian are all still alive in tournament play.  There is a possibility there could be four teams from Sioux County heading their way to the state tournament.  A route these teams are extremely familiar with. </span></p> <p>&nbsp;</p>