Iowa HS Volleyball Bracketology – Who Gets a Top Regional Seed?
I emphasize this every year, but Iowa is extremely unique in how they make their regional pairings. They are not pre-set like most states. They are made later in the season, much like the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Geography does factor…
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Continue ReadingI emphasize this every year, but Iowa is extremely unique in how they make their regional pairings. They are not pre-set like most states. They are made later in the season, much like the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Geography does factor into play, but the IGHSAU does try and get the top eight teams to the state tournament. Illinois, Minnesota, and Wisconsin the road to state is paved in the spring. There isn’t any wiggle room if a certain geographic area is stacked. Imagine a region with Dike-New Hartford, Grundy Center, Denver, and Sumner-Fred all knocking each other after the first week of the postseason. In other states – that’s the case.
Here are some teams who are locks and who could be on the bubble when it comes hosting a regional final (if seeding goes according to plan.
Class 5A
Locks (As of 9/27)
Dowling Catholic
Ankeny Centennial
Waukee NW
Cedar Falls
Ankeny
Pleasant Valley
Bubble
Johnston
Valley
Linn-Mar
The locks are teams who have essentially just beat each other up all season long so far. On the bubble, Johnston is in a bit of a skid right now having lost their last four matches to Ballard, North Polk, Dowling, and Ankeny Centennial. These are no mean bad losses, but when you’re fighting for a top eight spot and a chance to host a home regional final match you want every match you can. Valley dropped a tough match to Waukee at a recent tournament, but will be going head to head in a dual where a win would greatly increase their chances of hosting a regional final. However, Valley was the Cinderella story last year who knocked out some ranked teams. They might thrive in that underdog role. Linn-Mar dropped a tough match to Dubuque Hempstead who is quietly having a strong season, same with Dubuque Senior. The MVC has been extremely balanced. These teams will want to avoid a trip to Des Moines to face any of the CIML schools.
Class 4A
Locks (As of 9/27)
Clear Creek-Amana
Indianola
ADM
Cedar Rapids Xavier
North Scott
Bubble
Lewis Central
Norwalk
Marion
Ballard
Heelan
North Polk
I think geography could play a little bit into this. Eastern Iowa and Central Iowa are making their statements to host, but who gets paired up with them. For the likes of Lewis Central and Heelan, they don’t want to make the two to three hour trip to the Des Moines Metro, however Heelan did it last year and pulled an upset to advance to state with win over Norwalk. At 20-5 the Crusaders definitely make a case to host. Lewis Central has some big matches against Carroll-Kuemper and ADM on September 30 where if they could snag a win there it would essentially be a lock to host a regional final. Norwalk may have ten losses, but they have played a rugged schedule. They are a team I don’t think I would want to face in the post season. Marion has a huge couple weeks ahead of them with going to the Columbus Tournament and the Westside Tournament at CR Jeff that is one of the best in the state. They will be battle tested heading into the postseason. However, with 4A the middle of the pack is dangerous. I see CCA and Indianola as the top dogs that everyone is chasing. This could be an interesting October run for everyone.
Class 3A
Locks (As of 9/27)
Western Christian
Mount Vernon
Des Moines Christian
Assumption
Cherokee
Bubble
New Hampton
Solon
Union
Center Point-Urbana
Currently in the top 15, there are only two teams in Western Iowa with Western Christian and Cherokee and I don’t see them being in the same region. Who gets sent West to take on these two teams? Solon has shown they can beat some top teams with Xavier in Class 4A and Center Point-Urbana. New Hampton has the wins, but their schedule in comparison to some of these other bubble teams isn’t as heavy. They have a chance this upcoming weekend when they take on the Waverly-Shell Rock tournament where they will see Xavier and Mount Vernon. I think Union finds a way to host a regional. Their schedule is tough and they have some ranked wins that will be key when it comes to seeding. They also host their own invite and make a trip to CCA for an invite that would only add to their resume.
Class 2A
Locks (As of 9/27)
Dike-New Hartford
Hinton
Grundy Center
Denver
Sumner-Fred
Carroll-Kuemper
Bubble
Treynor
Aplington-Parkersburg
I’m not sure if Iowa has gone to straight digital rankings for postseason like some of their other sports, but I’d be really curious if there was an RPI. The ones who are “locks” are the ones who I feel have played the difficult schedule that has put them in position to be among the best. Treynor is undefeated. They have won the games they have needed to and have put themselves in position to be a top seed, but what happens if A-P meets Treynor for a regional final in Fort Dodge? A-P has played against all the top NICL schools. I am also interested how the state splits up the NICL. Dike, Grundy, Denver, Sumner-Fred, and A-P will essentially have their own state tournament with a conference tournament in the next couple of weeks.
Class 1A
Locks (As of 9/27)
Ankeny Christian
Holy Trinity
North Tama
Boyden-Hull
BCLUW
Stanton
Bubble
River Valley
AGWSR
Janesville
Ed-Co
Don Bosco
There was a lot of movement in the Class 1A rankings with Ed-Co and Don Bosco dropping down quite a bit. However, I wouldn’t rule them out of getting back in the conversation of being a top seed in their region. River Valley had a tough conference tournament and will open some doors for teams to move up. AGWSR made it to state last year with a below .500 record. They play a brutal schedule. Whether they are a top seed or not, they are a really tough opponent to draw in the post season. And then there’s always Janesville. They just keep coming back. Their recent losses are to New Hampton, Cedar Falls, and Waukee NW. They have played ranked teams in bigger classes.