What To Know On Day 1 of the IGHSAU State Tournament

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I'm a block away from Xtream Arena, feeling the anticipation of the first IGHSAU State Tournament to be held in Coralville. There are teams hanging out on this beautiful day, the shops near the stadium are going to crush it, perfect for teams to walk around in this unseasonably warm weather.&nbsp; This is the perfect storm for this area.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As for volleyball - same.&nbsp; Iowa truly has a unique experience from the number of teams who get to participate, how the IGHSAU gets the best teams to state, and the branding around the whole area that makes these athletes feel first class.&nbsp; It truly makes the state tournament an experience. This is why I love coming back to cover Iowa events.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What Do People Need To Know About in 5A? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Class 4A and 5A kick off play today and hometown Iowa City Liberty heads into day one as the favorite in Class 5A.  They had an early exit, an upset in the 2021 quarterfinals and will have their eyes on the prize.  There will be two future UNI Panthers going head to head with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='79685' first='Cassidy' last='Hartman']</strong> of Iowa City Liberty and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='79678' first='Lily' last='Dykstra'] </strong>for Urbandale, two of the top 2023 prospects in the state of Iowa.  </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":168383,"width":167,"height":254,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2021/12/97-Emma-Tallman-674x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-168383" width="167" height="254"/><figcaption>[player_tooltip player_id='135831' first='Emma' last='Tallman']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Dowling Catholic/Ankeny Centennial match is going to be very intriguing.  Dowling has a really talented and young roster that is led by Junior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='168151' first='Kenzie' last='Dean'] </strong>who is heading to Kansas along with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='135831' first='Emma' last='Tallman']</strong> going to North Dakota State.  However, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215412' first='Ella' last='Rogers']</strong> is only a sophomore will be a prospect a lot of coaches will be looking forward to recruiting, one of the top setters in the state.  They also have a freshman in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='389933' first='Ellie' last='Muller'] </strong>who will be one of the top players in her class.  On the other side of the net is a really balanced attack for the Jaguars. Dowling won the conference dual 3-2 back in September. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Pleasant Valley is back as the defending Class 5A state champions and they have a roster full of athletes. <strong> [player_tooltip player_id='193194' first='Halle' last='Vice']</strong> is a Marquette basketball recruit, but they also have some big time players out of the middle in Evansville commit <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='79675' first='Chloe' last='Cline'] </strong>and Western Kentucky recruit <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='135830' first='Isabelle' last='Van De Wiele']</strong>.  They will take on Waukee Northwest who is making their first appearance as a high school.  To think ten years ago there was no Waukee Northwest or Iowa City Liberty, and twenty years ago no Ankeny Centennial. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Valley is coming to the state tournament with a little bit of Cinderella magic as they beat Cedar Falls, a perennial state tournament team, on the road.  They have a really dynamic freshman in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='261075' first='Kaelyn' last='Wieland'] </strong>who leads the team in assists and also has nearly 200 kills on the season.  They will take on Ankeny who is all too familiar with the state tournament, however this arena is new to everyone.  Ankeny has defeated Valley four times already this season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>What Do People Need To Know About in 4A? </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>4A seems extremely wide open to me.&nbsp; Everyone had played a tough schedule, they've all had their share of big wins and some tough losses along the way.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Xavier comes in as the top seed and are solid all the way around.  Omaha commit <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='79686' first='Anika' last='Ivester'] </strong>is a blocking machine and their defense, led by libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='136422' first='Brooklyn' last='Miller']</strong> is really clean and controlled.  They always find a way to stay in system.  Bishop Heelan is on fire right now.  They made the long trip to Norwalk for the regional final and made quick work winning 3-0.  Sophomore <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='217136' first='Maliyah' last='Hacker'] </strong>is a key player for the Crusaders averaging just over three kills per set. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":222348,"width":272,"height":273,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/08/DSC01217-scaled-e1661960195111-1020x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-222348" width="272" height="273"/><figcaption>[player_tooltip player_id='79696' first='Ella' last='Meyer']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indianola is a new team to the state tournament and have quite the youth movement leading the Indians.  <strong>Aspen Nelson</strong> is part of a really talented Class of 2025 and is leading the team with 3.4 kills per set.  They will take on defending state champions in Western Dubuque who had some question marks at the beginning of the season with a lot of new positions to fill after losing key players to graduation off the title team. <strong> [player_tooltip player_id='79696' first='Ella' last='Meyer']</strong> has played in eight state tournament matches for the Bobcats and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='79692' first='Libby' last='Lansing']</strong> is extremely dynamic out of the middle and will be key to scoring points as well as making a presence blocking. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bondurant-Farrar beat North Polk on the road to advance to state and will take on North Scott.  The Jays have a really talented squad and a middle blocker who has potential to be an impact player at the next level.  <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='194001' first='Hannah' last='Ditsworth']</strong> is 6'2, long, athletic and creates a lot of havoc in the front row.  North Scott is back again, but a lot of new names for the [program_tooltip program_id='431978' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431978' first='[program_tooltip program_id='431978' first='Lancers' last='']' last='']' last=''].  <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215406' first='Abbey' last='Hayes']</strong> is one of the top outside hitters in the sophomore class and will be key to scoring points. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='79714' first='Avery' last='Van Hook']</strong> will be leading Marion again into her third state tournament.  She is the most dynamic player in the state as a left handed setter who can do it all.  The Wolves have experience, a tough defense led by libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='168180' first='Natalee' last='Hartman']</strong>, and are always very gritty. CCA is a new team to the tournament and the crowd will be excited to see <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='168155' first='Bliss' last='Beck']</strong>.  Beck is a Drake commit and can score from multiple spots on the court.  Marion defeated CCA a few weeks ago in the WAMAC tournament. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->