Gehlen makes it all the way back from 2-set deficit in state volleyball quarterfinals

CEDAR RAPIDS — The momentum shift was swift and irreversible.

It was a matter of mind.

'I just told them they needed to relax,' said LeMars Gehlen Coach Mike Meyer. 'The sooner we relax, the better we play.'

Once the third-ranked Jays gained their footing, they didn't let up. They rallied from a two-set deficit to outlast No. 7 Tripoli, 18-25, 25-27, 25-14, 25-12, 15-10, in a Class 1A quarterfinal at the state volleyball tournament Wednesday night at the U.S. Cellular Center.

'I'm amazed we were able to come back and win that, as poorly as we played in the first two sets,' Meyer said. 'Sometimes the moment is too big.'

But when the moment of reckoning arrived in Game 5, the Jays were ready.

Down 5-4, Gehlen (28-6) scored six of the next seven points for a 10-6 advantage. Tripoli (25-14) got within 12-10, then a tip and a block by Katie Peters got the Jays to match point, and an attack error by the Panthers concluded the comeback.

'Everything finally clicked,' said Peters, who led the Jays with 18 kills. 'We thought we needed some big swings. After the first two sets, it was time to hit harder and put the ball away.

Gehlen advances to face No. 2 Springville (39-2) in a semifinal match at 6 p.m. Thursday.

Tripoli won the first set with an early knockout, jumping to an 11-1 behind a bevy of aces. The Panthers rallied from a 23-21 deficit to take Game 2, but were never in a position to take any of the next three.

'Like (teammate) Brooklyn Heissel always says, we needed to take one point at a time,' Gehlen's Kayla Mayer said. 'This was a good reminder of that.'

Tripoli made six attack errors in the first two sets, 23 in the final three.

Down 10-8 in the third set, Gehlen scored nine of the next 10 points, and a comeback was under way. The Jays pulled away from the midpoint of Game 4, scoring eight straight points to turn a 14-10 battle into a runaway.

Kennedy Drewis led Tripoli with 21 kills. Zoe Semelroth added 15 kills and six aces.

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