Top Player in Iowa's 99 Counties - Woodbury to Jackson

I'm back on my tour of Iowa where I go through all the top players in each county. I'm a bit of a geography nerd, combine that with finding the top players across the state, and this article only makes sense as it is in my wheelhouse. What has been fun in this article series is seeing where school districts land within county lines (and noticing how many counties these school district lines cross into). Some of these counties have multiple school districts, some used to have multiple districts but have now consolidated into a county school, and even some of the smallest districts I have actually biked through on RAGBRAI.   <a href="https://prepdig.com/2023/11/top-players-in-iowas-99-counties-the-northern-border/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Top Players In Iowa's 99 Counties – The Northern Border</a>   <a href="https://prepdig.com/2023/11/top-players-in-iowas-99-counties-hwy-18-and-3/">Top Players in Iowa's 99 Counties - HWY 18 and 3</a>   <a href="https://educateiowa.gov/sites/default/files/2023-04/2023-2024IowaPublicSchoolDistrictMap24x36.pdf">Iowa Counties and School Districts</a>   Here is the next part of the tour heading through the central part of Iowa.    Woodbury   [player_tooltip player_id='217136' first='Maliyah' last='Hacker'] - Sioux City Heelan   Class of 2025   Hacker was a 1st Team All State player for Sioux City Heelan who has surged back into being one of the top programs in their class.  They fell one match short of state this past season, but Hacker once again was one of the top players in Siouxland.  She won a national title in the American Division with MVP United out of Sioux City.  She is one of the top available 2025s in Iowa where this will be a big time recruiting year for her.    Ida   [player_tooltip player_id='251665' first='Rowan' last='Jensen'] - Ridge View   Class of 2024   [player_tooltip player_id='251665' first='Rowan' last='Jensen'] had a huge season for Ridge View who won the Western Valley Conference.  Jensen had over 400 kills on the season and was named 2nd Team All State in Class 2A.  They collided with state tournament team in Carroll-Kuemper in the post season and ended with a 34-9 record.  Researching this district was interesting with the consolidation of Galva-Holstein and Schaller-Crestland.  The high school is located in Holstein which is in Ida County.    Sac   [player_tooltip player_id='168169' first='Kate' last='Vondrak'] - East Sac County   Class of 2024   East Sac County were champions of the Twin Lakes Conference and finished with over 20 wins on the season.  A big part of that was senior [player_tooltip player_id='168169' first='Kate' last='Vondrak'], a Class 2A All State player who did a little bit of everything with 400 assists, 200 kills, and nearly 100 digs.     Calhoun   Brenna McAlister and Jayci Graeve - South Central Calhoun   Class of 2025   This junior duo had nearly identical seasons as they were options 1A and 1B for the Titans who won nearly 30 matches this season.  They combined for over 700 kills and over 500 digs.  They will be ready for a big time senior season come fall of 2024.    Webster   Meah McCaleb - Fort Dodge   Class of 2025   Fort Dodge finished 20-14 and were champions of the Alliance Conference.  They were lead by an electric athlete in Meah McCaleb who was an unanimous 1st Team All Conference selection with nearly 200 kills, nearly 300 digs, and 45 aces for the Dodgers.    Hamilton   Olivia Gallentine - Webster City   Class of 2025    Webster City was part of an extremely balanced North Central Conference where Gallentine was named 1st Team All Conference.  She had just under 200 digs and 35 blocks on the season.    Hardin   [player_tooltip player_id='215400' first='Ava' last='Paige'], [player_tooltip player_id='215401' first='Ava' last='Salvo'] - South Hardin   Class of 2025   South Hardin dropped a tough five set marathon to AP in the regional final, but these Tigers have a loaded junior class coming back next season who will be focused on getting to Xtream Arena.  Two of those athletes are [player_tooltip player_id='215400' first='Ava' last='Paige'] and [player_tooltip player_id='215401' first='Ava' last='Salvo'], both named Class 2A All State.  [player_tooltip player_id='215400' first='Ava' last='Paige'] had over 900 assists while Salvo had nearly 300 kills and 300 digs.    Grundy   [player_tooltip player_id='168149' first='Payton' last='Petersen'] - Dike-New Hartford   Class of 2024   Sioux County in Northwest Iowa is known as one of the top counties in Iowa in regards to high school volleyball.  However, Grundy County is right up there with the likes of Dike-New Hartford, Grundy Center, Janesville, and parts of BCLUW, AGWSR, and Gladbrook-Reinbeck.  With all of the top talent, [player_tooltip player_id='168149' first='Payton' last='Petersen'] is at the top as she was named the top player in all classes and is a front runner to win the Iowa Gatorade Player of the Year.    Tama   [player_tooltip player_id='389932' first='Addison' last='Hochstetler'] - North Tama   Class of 2026   North Tama is another program who has been to state and fell just short in 2023 with a tough loss to Don Bosco.  However, a lot of these athletes are coming back including multiple All Staters.  [player_tooltip player_id='389932' first='Addison' last='Hochstetler'] was one of the top liberos in Class 1A where she picked up 2nd Team Class 1A All State honors where she collected 519 digs.    Benton   Emma Townsley and Piper Nelson - Benton Community   Class of 2024   We're heading into WAMAC territory where the talent runs deep.  In Benton County there is Benton Community and Vinton-Shellsburg and I'm going with the senior duo of Emma Townsley and Piper Nelson.  Townsley did a little bit of everything with over 400 assists and over 200 kills.  Nelson was a big time attacker with over 400 kills.    Linn   [player_tooltip player_id='215385' first='Chloe' last='Meester'] - Mount Vernon   Class of 2025   So many options from Linn County with the Cedar Rapids schools and all of the surrounding schools outside within the county.  However, I'm going with one of the top players overall in the state with junior [player_tooltip player_id='215385' first='Chloe' last='Meester'].  She was named Captain of the Class 3A All Tournament team, Elite All State, and Class 3A Player of the Year. Meester has verbally committed to Louisville.    Jones   Jadyn Kuper - Monticello   Class of 2025    Jones County - The Great Jones County Fair.  And Creed is playing here in 2024? Sign me up.  As for volleyball, the county was dominated by Monticello and Anamosa with Jadyn Kuper having a huge season, landing 2nd Team All State in Class 3A.  Her numbers are video game like with over 450 kills and 400 digs.     Jackson   Hadley Farrell - Easton Valley   Class of 2025   Easton Valley School District is along the Mississippi River where the high school resides in Preston.  This past season, Hadley Farrell was named 1st Team All Tri Rivers Conference where she had over 130 kills.

I'm back on my tour of Iowa where I go through all the top players in each county. I'm a bit of a geography nerd, combine that with finding the top players across the state, and this article only makes sense as it is in my wheelhouse. What has been fun in this article series is seeing where school districts land within county lines (and noticing how many counties these school district lines cross into). Some of these counties have multiple school districts, some used to have multiple districts but have now consolidated into a county school, and even some of the smallest districts I have actually biked through on RAGBRAI.