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<p>Before I go any further into a recap of the day, I can't say how much I love covering the Iowa State Volleyball Tournament. I cover events across the country - high school and club, and this one is the best. </p>
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<p>Throughout the day I am taking photos, tweets, and plenty of notes. What I'm looking for are the new players, the performances that maybe don't show up on the stat sheet, and what would people miss that aren't in the arena. I could write plenty more, but I still have 12 matches left today. Bring it on. </p>
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<p>Here is what you need to know from day one of the Iowa Girls State Volleyball Tournament. </p>
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<p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=PrepDigIA&set=a.1048299806585727">Class 5A Quarterfinal Gallery </a></p>
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<p><a href="https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=PrepDigIA&set=a.1048304589918582">Class 4A Quarterfinal Gallery </a></p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215427' first='Ava' last='Groeteke'] - Dowling</strong></p>
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<p>Dowling has a lot of length. I knew about the likes of [player_tooltip player_id='168151' first='Kenzie' last='Dean'], [player_tooltip player_id='215412' first='Ella' last='Rogers'], and [player_tooltip player_id='389933' first='Ellie' last='Muller'] who are over six feet tall with quite the wingspan. I was not familiar with [player_tooltip player_id='215427' first='Ava' last='Groeteke'] on the right side. The 6'2 sophomore came up key offensively and defensively. Her upside is huge with her high contact point. She is a 2026 who is soaring up the radar. </p>
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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/10/DSC03741.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-473606" style="aspect-ratio:1.501466275659824;width:545px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Jaeger and Finley McAndrew</figcaption></figure>
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<p><strong>Elise Jaeger - Valley</strong></p>
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<p>Jaeger brings some swag to the court and rightfully so, she's going to be one of the top athletes out there. The UNI basketball recruit showed how dynamic she could be with her block, and then transitioning to hit a variety of tempos with different shots.</p>
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<figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepdig.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2023/10/DSC03863.jpg?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-473607" style="aspect-ratio:1.501466275659824;width:503px;height:auto"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">Carslen and Scheib</figcaption></figure>
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<p><strong>The Ankeny Juniors - [player_tooltip player_id='207016' first='Baileigh' last='Carlsen'], [player_tooltip player_id='204529' first='Kamryn' last='Scheib'], and [player_tooltip player_id='215465' first='Reagan' last='Hanfelt'] </strong>played a statement match today. Ankeny was down 0-2 with Centennial carrying all the moment. The season hasn't gone as planned for the Hawks with two D1 commits out with injury in [player_tooltip player_id='168190' first='Tanith' last='Roush'] (North Dakota State) and [player_tooltip player_id='168153' first='Aowyn' last='Schrader'] (Middle Tennessee State). The Hawks found their momentum in set three with [player_tooltip player_id='215465' first='Reagan' last='Hanfelt'] serving lasers and dominating with the slide out of the middle. [player_tooltip player_id='204529' first='Kamryn' last='Scheib'] has been a breakout player to know who did it from every rotation taking a bulk of the serve receive while continuing to swing to put pressure on the defense. Carlsen was everywhere. She's heading to Auburn, which is one of the hottest programs in the SEC. This might not have gone how the Hawks wanted but they showed what could be an exciting season in 2024. </p>
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<p><strong>Anna Sash - Ankeny Centennial</strong></p>
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<p>[player_tooltip player_id='215425' first='Jaeden' last='Pratt'] and [player_tooltip player_id='215749' first='Delaney' last='Miller'] were going to score a lot of points from the outside. But Sash was there when the Jags needed her the most. She would tip, throw, swing, and close the block while also keeping tabs on [player_tooltip player_id='215465' first='Reagan' last='Hanfelt'], the dominant middle from Ankeny. This resulted in a state record, seven solo blocks in a match. </p>
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<p></p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='261088' first='Mya' last='Lei-Butters'] - Ankeny Centennial</strong></p>
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<p>For being a sophomore in a very intense situation, Mya Lei Butters was cool, calm, and collected. Whether it was putting up a three point pass, coverage on a block, picking up a tip, she did a lot of dirty work in this match to keep the rally alive and for the Jags to play another day. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='508627' first='Stella' last='Smith'] and [player_tooltip player_id='243182' first='Isabelle' last='Kremer'] - Pleasant Valley</strong></p>
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<p>[player_tooltip player_id='508627' first='Stella' last='Smith'] is incredibly efficient. She adjusts well to her setter and what's open on the other side of the net. If the opening isn't there, she's not going to force it. However, if she has an opening - it's done. She's got the shots and physicality to cause a lot of problems for the other side. The numbers don't lie where she had 14 kills, hitting .429.</p>
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<p>Kremer is a mismatch nightmare where she would be on the right side and play a bit on the outside as well. She is long, athletic, and is starting to become the big dog for PV after coming in as a freshman last year. Her efficiency is high and her block gives problems for whatever attacker she is matched up against. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='432365' first='Chloee' last='Hayes'] - Waukee NW</strong></p>
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<p>What a fast arm. I knew Northwest had the experience. I had seen a lot of their players during the club season. I think [player_tooltip player_id='251675' first='Kamryn' last='Vogt'] is an amazing athlete out of the middle, their pins are terminal, and there is very little weakness to expose on this team. I did not know much about Hayes.. The block was not ready for her at all. She was hitting all the angles, tooling the block, and making it look easy picking up 9 kills while hitting over .350. If NW can stay in system with their middles they are going to be tough to stop. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215468' first='Makenzie' last='Sloan'] and [player_tooltip player_id='215469' first='Maci' last='Lerseth'] - Indianola</strong></p>
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<p>So dynamic. Sloan was everywhere where she could close the block, transition, and be available for a variety of tempos. She was also clutch with her block. Her connection with setter [player_tooltip player_id='193202' first='Tori' last='Runyan'] was money. Runyan's experience of knowing when to go to the middles was key. With their ability to feed the middles, outsides [player_tooltip player_id='215470' first='Camryn' last='Overton'] and [player_tooltip player_id='215466' first='Aspen' last='Nelsen'] could terminate with one on one opportunities. It was only fitting that Sloan got the final block to win the match in set five. </p>
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<p>Lerseth should be creeping up the depth chart in terms of top liberos out or the Class of 2025 in Iowa. She has shown tremendous improvement in the past year and gets better each time I see her take the court. She has a great IQ, anticipates well, and is efficient with her platform. What does that mean? She's relaxed, there's no wasted movement when she's passing the ball. She makes it look easy. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='447490' first='Carlee' last='Webber'] - Marion</strong></p>
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<p>I wasn't very familiar with [player_tooltip player_id='447490' first='Carlee' last='Webber'] before today, but she made a huge statement! The 5'11 middle blocker was causing havoc for the outside duo for Indianola with multiple stuff blocks. She did her damage offensively looking for the corner with the slap shot to left back. Marion was so scrappy, great battle today in a five set loss to Indianola. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='206931' first='Kaci' last='Johnson'] - North Scott</strong></p>
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<p>Be a player before a position. As a coach I talk to the 8th graders about that the most. Do you want to be the fourth outside, or do you want to be someone who can play anywhere when called upon? [player_tooltip player_id='206931' first='Kaci' last='Johnson'] will play whatever she needs to. I've seen Johnson swing on the outside for Iowa Select. She's an athlete, but playing setter and middle is not a common combination we see in the volleyball world. In the front row she plays middle (she's 5'7 and works extremely hard) where she had 9 kills and hit over .300. She sets when she goes to the backrow and had 16 assists in their four set win. All in a day's work. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='168158' first='Marissa' last='Gerleman'], Kaylee Smith, and [player_tooltip player_id='261081' first='Madi' last='James'] - ADM </strong></p>
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<p>[player_tooltip player_id='168158' first='Marissa' last='Gerleman'] and Kaylee Smith were really unique as they were in the front row together. Having a lefty swing on the outside is difficult to navigate. Madie James was also very impressive commanding the backrow with a really soft, controlled platform where her serve receive was rock solid. </p>
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<p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='215458' first='Brooke' last='Larsen'] - Lewis Central </strong></p>
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<p>19 kills, 18 assists, 14 digs. Absolutely electric. Larsen does it all for Lewis Central who ended the night with a 17-15 set five win to knock off defending state champs Xavier. The energy from the Titans (on the court and in the fan section) was unmatched. Same goes for Larsen where she was assisting, scoring, blocking, defending, she is impacting every play of the game and has a well balanced team to go with. Their matchup with Indianola is going to be quite the battle. </p>
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Before I go any further into a recap of the day, I can't say how much I love covering the Iowa State Volleyball Tournament. I cover events across the country - high school and club, and this one is the best.
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