State Tournament Quarters: 2A And 1A

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We are onto day two of the state tournament and the 1A-3A classes are continuing to raise the bar. Every team has came on the court full of energy ready to get to work. With the end of their season on the line, all of these groups are playing like they were fighting for their life. There is passion, there were tears, and there was all around amazing volleyball. Here is a recap of some 2A &amp; 1A matches.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Hudson vs. Hinton</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Hudson showed a lot of promise in the first two sets and I think Hinton was even taken back a little bit with how well they played throughout the match. There was a lot of passion and aggression in the Pirates' game play, I feel like they were playing like they had nothing to lose and just wanted to give it their best shot. Although there were times where Hinton wasn't playing their best game, they still stayed the course and took care of their side of the net. The first two sets were extremely close and went point for point throughout most of the sets, but Hudson started to fall apart in the third as their chances of advancing were slowly fading away. A huge props goes to coach Zac Ceresa and the Hudson Pirates for giving it their absolute all and giving us 3 hard-fought matches. Hinton takes down Hudson in 3 (25-16, 25-22, 25-12). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Stat leaders:</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kills: <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/paige-davis/" data-type="players" data-id="889843">[player_tooltip player_id='889843' first='Paige' last='Davis']</a> (Hudson) with 9 kills on the night and <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/elliotte-friessen/" data-type="players" data-id="769009">[player_tooltip player_id='769009' first='Ellie' last='Friessen']</a> (Hinton) with 13.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Assists: <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/addison-dunkel/" data-type="players" data-id="902966">[player_tooltip player_id='902966' first='Addison' last='Dunkel']</a> (Hinton) leading with 31 assists and Brinn Olsen (Hudson) with 19.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Digs: Brynlee Boeve (Hinton) finished the match with 25 digs and [player_tooltip player_id='798807' first='Siri' last='Olsen'] (Hudson) finished with 14.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Denver vs. Beckman Catholic</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both teams came into this match level headed and showed a lot of great, consistent volleyball, Once Beckman started to find their groove, it didn't take long for them to start pulling away from Denver in the first two sets. However, Denver refused to give up and definitely made Beckman work for each and every point. In the third set, with being down 0-2 in sets, it seemed like the Cyclones had an "oh no" moment where they realized it was either win the third or go home. And just like that, there was a new spark lit within Denver and they managed to take the third set from the Trailblazers. However, although the Cyclone spirits were running high, it didn't take long for the Trailblazers to come right back in and and assert their dominance in the fourth set. Denver looked pretty tired and defeated in the fourth set and Beckman definitely took advantage of that and although the Cyclones fought to the very end, it just wasn't quite enough and the Trailblazers won it in four (25-18, 25-11, 22-25 25-15).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Stat leaders:</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Kills: <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/adeana-murch/" data-type="players" data-id="755663">[player_tooltip player_id='755663' first='Adeana' last='Murch']</a> (Denver) leads the Cyclones with 9 kills and <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/joy-burkle/" data-type="players" data-id="791383">Joy Burkl</a>e (Beckman) leads the match with 21 kills. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Assists: <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/addison-koelker/" data-type="players" data-id="936308">[player_tooltip player_id='936308' first='Addison' last='Koelker']</a> (Beckman) ended with an impressive 47 assists and <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/brehanna-murch/" data-type="players" data-id="1002745">[player_tooltip player_id='1002745' first='Brehanna' last='Murch']</a> (Denver) led with 20. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Digs: <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/adeana-murch/" data-type="players" data-id="755663">[player_tooltip player_id='755663' first='Adeana' last='Murch']</a> (Denver) led the Cyclones with 31 digs and <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/addi-hogan/" data-type="players" data-id="800696">[player_tooltip player_id='800696' first='Addi' last='Hogan']</a> (Beckman) led the match with 41. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Marissa's players of the game:</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Denver: I'm going to have to give the players of the match to the Murch sisters, <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/brehanna-murch/" data-type="players" data-id="1002745">Brehanna</a> Murch and <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/lucy-murch/" data-type="players" data-id="1003009">[player_tooltip player_id='1003009' first='Lucy' last='Murch']</a>. I can't begin to explain how impressed I was with these two, and it's just an added bonus and shock that they're only in 8th grade! The pressure you have on you as a setter and a lib is already a lot in a normal game, but when your season is on the line and you're in a giant arena with hundreds of fans, it's a whole other level of terrifying. But these two didn't look even the slightest bit phased. They just played their game as if it was any other match </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Wapsie Valley vs. Holy Trinity Catholic</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After the way the first set went, I think everyone thought that HTC was down for the count, but this group showed exactly why they belong in the state tournament. You could tell this young group (over half of this squad is underclassmen) had first game jitters, and Wapsie definitely used that to their advantage and took the first set with ease. However, HTC had a quick turn around and found their groove fairly early in the second set, and thankfully it was just enough for the Crusaders to take set two. Things really started to heat up in the third set for both teams, connections were getting stronger, hitters were swinging with confidence, and the defense was working together to keep the ball in play. Wapsie Valley was able to just barely outscore HTC and take the third set. Losing the third set definitely lit some fire withing HTC because they came into the fourth set ready to out the hammer down, and that;s exactly what they did to start, getting a decent lead right off the bat. The Warriors were able to stop the bleeding pretty quickly and were able to chip away at the gap throughout the set, but the Crusaders refused to let them back in and they force Wapsie into a 5th. HTC come into the 5th set fired up and ready to advance to the semis. Similar to the fourth set, the Crusaders were quick to go on a run in the 5th set, getting Wapsie all out of sorts just within the first few point. Wapsie calls and timeout and comes out of it and quickly closes the gap. It is a point for point battle as both teams are trying to inch their way to the finish line. The Crusaders make some big plays to create the momentum shift and that's when Wapsie starts to fall under the pressure. HTC manages to take set five and move on to the semifinals (12-25, 25-22, 23-25, 25-18, 25-12)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":4} --> <h4 class="wp-block-heading">Marissa's players of the game:</h4> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Holy Trinity Catholic: <a href="https://prepdig.com/player/adalyn-kruse-3/" data-type="players" data-id="493659">[player_tooltip player_id='493659' first='Adalyn' last='Kruse']</a>- Kruse's swings from all over the court played a huge role in the Crusaders' success. She managed to stay aggressive and get the Warriors out of system as much as possible.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Brynn Denning- Brynn Denning was an absolute beast in the back row and wasted no time getting to work. The freshman made digging off of Wapsie look easy, with cleand and beautiful first touches on both serve receive and defense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="https://prepdig.com/player/kate-pieper/" data-type="players" data-id="790527">[player_tooltip player_id='790527' first='Kate' last='Pieper']</a>- [player_tooltip player_id='790527' first='Kate' last='Pieper'] brought a little bit of everything to the court against the Warriors. She brought the skill, the speed, the energy, and my favorite thing, the high IQ. Piper did a fantastic job of reading her opponents and thinking exceptionally quick on her feet. She knew when to hammer the ball down, but she also knew how to score with her various off speed spots. She might be one of the smallest middles in her class, but you can tell she definitely makes up for it in every other aspect of her game play.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->