Scouting Report: Cedar Falls-Liberty
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CORALVILLE, Iowa – Xtreme Arena played host to a cool volleyball event Tuesday. Sixth-ranked Cedar Falls and No. 10 Iowa City Liberty tipped off a high school triple-header in Class 5A. The defending state champion Lightning won the first two…
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Continue ReadingCORALVILLE, Iowa – Xtreme Arena played host to a cool volleyball event Tuesday. Sixth-ranked Cedar Falls and No. 10 Iowa City Liberty tipped off a high school triple-header in Class 5A.
The defending state champion Lightning won the first two sets before Cedar Falls responded by sweeping the next three. The match featured competitive, high-end play.
Here’s a closer look at some of the players standing out:
My first live look at Bakula happened during a Prep Dig showcase in Grimes in July. She stood out then and did so again Tuesday. The sophomore dished out 55 (!) assists in this match. She anticipates and tracks the ball incredibly well. That positions her to set from all around the court. From there, she sets up teammates where they can do damage. Only in 10th grade, Bakula is already good with time to develop even more.
Hildebrand is one of the soundest six-rotation players in the state. Her future might be at setter. It maximizes her skill set as an explosive, quick-twitch athlete. Now, she produces from everywhere on the court. She is a leader on a very young team. Tuesday, she accumulated 19 assists, 13 kills, 15 digs and 3.0 blocks. That’s a full day’s work.
Highlights
Paige Paup
Paige Paup
Paup performed at a high level in this match, leading all participants with 29 kills. The daughter of former NFLer Bryce Paup gets to her big swing with super leaping ability and good timing. She sees the court well and alters her offerings to keep defenses on their toes. She helps out elsewhere in the rotation as evidenced by her nine digs in this match.
Gracie Hennings
Gracie Hennings
Hennings flashed glimpses of her upside last season in a much smaller role. Now playing throughout the entire rotation, the senior stands out as one of the top all-around performers on the court. She impresses the most with her vertical jump and powerful swing. In addition, she showed good lateral movement and reflexes when lining up in the back row. She notched 15 kills, 14 digs and 4.0 blocks here.
Lucy Maassen Lucy Maassen 5'8" | OH Liberty | 2026 State IA
Lucy Maassen Lucy Maassen 5'8" | OH Liberty | 2026 State IA
Liberty boasts a special freshman class which I’m sure we’ll write about before long. It was Maassen’s consistently good all-around effort in this match that got her a writeup this time. Her 10 kills ranked third on the team behind Hildebrand and Hennings. Maassen added five digs and 3.0 blocks. She showed a knack for making big plays when the pressure was the greatest.
Wedgbury stood out when I watched her club team this spring and summer. Solid and sound work as adjectives in describing her game. The sophomore calms hard hits with her digs and passes well. She displays quick lateral movement and reflexes. She led all players in this match with 24 digs.
Schmadeke is another player we watched during the club campaign. That performance put her at No. 27 in Prep Dig’s latest ’25 state rankings. She looked comfortable hitting on the right side in this match. That helped her use her athletic skill set. Her 13 kills ranked second on the Tiger team. She hit .423.