Recap, Reaction: Grundy Center Outlasts A-P in 5 Sets

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 30% off your first billing cycle with code: howe30 in the coupon code area</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepdig.com/2026/11/recap-reaction-cherokee-takes-down-dike-new-hartford/" data-type="link" data-id="https://prepdig.com/2026/11/recap-reaction-cherokee-takes-down-dike-new-hartford/">Recap, Reaction: Cherokee Takes Down Dike-New Hartford</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><a href="https://prepdig.com/2026/11/recap-reaction-western-christian-tops-roland-story/" data-type="link" data-id="https://prepdig.com/2026/11/recap-reaction-western-christian-tops-roland-story/">Recap, Reaction: Western Christian Tops Roland-Story</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CORALVILLE -</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='702527' first='Ryanne' last='Brubaker']'s stomach lets her down sometimes. Fortunately for Grundy Center, the senior middle hitter deals with it and pushes through. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>At the end of the fifth set of Tuesday's Class 2A quarterfinal match against North Iowa Cedar League rival Aplington-Parkersburg, Brubaker started feeling queazy. The Spartans called a quick timeout seeing that their star was in distress. She ran to the bench and an assistant coach was ready with a garbage pail. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After "getting it out," Brubaker was smiling and ready for action. Grundy Center was prepared for her to take it home. The Marquette commitment received a set and slammed it down onto the court for the match's final point. The upset stomach was gone, replaced by joy. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brubaker, teammate [player_tooltip player_id='891599' first='Charlee' last='Kirkpatrick'] and coach Lori Willis said after the match that they weren't worried. They'd managed the health issue before. It was business as usual. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was the second year in a row Grundy Center advanced with a five-set victory in the quarterfinals. The Spartans outlasted Beckman Catholic in the 2025 tournament. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 6-foot-8 Brubaker led the team with 17 kills, three solo blocks and seven assisted blocks. As usual, her presence in the middle of the net proved too much for the opponent to overcome. And, she had help. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='902985' first='Jenna' last='Blythe'] produced 14 kills for the winners. [player_tooltip player_id='891599' first='Charlee' last='Kirkpatrick'] had nine, and [player_tooltip player_id='1004312' first='Haleigh' last='Kiewiet'] and Ava Mundt each chipped in with five. [player_tooltip player_id='839302' first='Trinity' last='Jirovsky'] handed out 38 assists. Blythe came up with a team-best 15 digs, while Kirkpatrick, [player_tooltip player_id='545984' first='Kamdyn' last='Moore'] and Raelyn Stinemeyer each had 13. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='763037' first='Adri' last='Allan'] led Aplington-Parkersburg with 18 kills and 23 digs. [player_tooltip player_id='934818' first='Jenzen' last='Klooster'] and [player_tooltip player_id='827792' first='Shelby' last='Arkulari'] teamed up for 26 kills. Julia Mostek found teammates for 43 assists and came up with 14 digs. Kennedy Kalkwarf contributed 18 digs, and Payten Ostercamp had 13. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Grundy Center improved to 36-7 with the victory. Aplington-Parkersburg finished 26-10 with its fourth consecutive trip to the state tournament. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://youtu.be/MVq7Pf2LbDE","type":"video","providerNameSlug":"youtube","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://youtu.be/MVq7Pf2LbDE </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->