Iowa state volleyball tournament: Class 5A team capsules, stat leaders, predictions

CEDAR RAPIDS — Capsules for the Class 5A qualifiers for the state volleyball tournament:

 No. 1 Cedar Falls (38-3)

Nickname: Tigers

Coach: Matt Johnson (3rd year at Cedar Falls, 103-19; 13th year overall, 406-135)

Tournament history: 18th appearance, and second in a row. Advanced to the semifinals last year.

No. Name Ht. Yr. Pos.

1 Abby Hendrickson 5-2 Jr. DS

5 Majda Suljic 5-5 Jr. DS

7 Grace Burken 6-1 Jr. MH

10 Tayah Mahi 5-10 Jr. S

12 Claire Gerdes 6-0 Jr. MH

14 Taylor Lynch 5-11 Jr. OH

18 Cynthia Wolf 6-3 Jr. MH

No. 11 West Des Moines Dowling (27-15)

Nickname: Maroons

Coach: Mary Beth Wiskus (8th year, 243-78)

Tournament history: 5th appearance, and fifth consecutive.

No. Name Yr. Pos.

3 Ellie Flynn Jr. DS

4 Kara Grossman Sr. OH

8 Susie Gaul Sr. S

9 Sally Gaul Jr. MH

11 Morgan Meilander Sr. OH

13 Anna Harman Jr. OH

16 Jacey Koeth So. MH

No. 4 Linn-Mar (33-8)

Nickname: Lions

Coach: Teresa Bair (4th year at Linn-Mar, 111-43; 27th year overall, 690-183)

Tournament history: 3rd appearance; most recent was 2010.

No. Name Yr. Pos.

3 Isabel Schminke Jr. L

4 Ellie Von Lehmden So. OH

5 Emilee McGowan Sr. OH

6 Megan Renner So. S

8 Ellie Anderson Sr. S

10 Carly Spies Jr. MH

11 Anna Gorsich So. MH

No. 5 Ankeny (37-5)

Nickname: Hawkettes

Coach: Joe Morton (2nd year, 62-20)

Tournament history: 16th appearance. Won four titles between 2004 and 2009.

No. Name Ht. Yr. Pos.

1 Alyssa Ballenger 5-11 Sr. OH

2 Elise Blatt 5-3 Sr. DS

5 Hannah Murray 5-8 Sr. OH

6 Riley Dresser 5-10 Sr. MH

10 Liv Winker 6-0 Sr. S

12 Isabelle Vacek 5-10 Fr. MH

27 Miranda Greathouse 5-11 Jr. L

No. 2 Ankeny Centennial (32-3)

Nickname: Jaguars

Coach: Jessica Rinehart (4th year, 142-20)

Tournament history: 4th appearance, and fourth consecutive. Two-time defending 5A champion.

No. Name Yr. Pos.

2 Kylee Macke Sr. L

5 Olivia Sandquist Sr. OH

9 Kenna Sauer So. OH

11 Devyn Robinson Fr. MH

20 Meredith Sieck Sr. S

22 Kayla Jensen Sr. OH

23 Maddi McCullough Sr. MH

No. 8 Iowa City West (23-14)

Nickname: Women of Troy

Coach: Randy Dolson (3rd year at West, 78-38; 31st year overall)

Tournament history: 13th appearance, and third straight. Won titles in 2010 and 2011.

No. Name Ht. Yr. Pos.

4 Madi Ford 5-6 Sr. L

7 Emma Norris 5-9 Sr. OH

10 Ali Tauchen 6-0 Sr. MH

11 Emily Halverson 6-3 Sr. MH

12 Gabby Klemme 5-5 Sr. DS

17 Maddie Fay 6-0 Sr. S

26 Colby Greene 6-2 Jr. MH

No. 3 West Des Moines Valley (40-4)

Nickname: Tigers

Coach: Jeremy Mikesell (7th year at Valley, 212-91; 19th year overall, 468-230)

Tournament history: 7th appearance, first since 2009.

No. Name Ht. Yr. Pos.

2 Camryn Anonson 5-4 So. DS

4 Olivia Curry 5-7 Fr. S

6 Stephany Twit 5-10 Jr. OH

9 Taylor Gion 5-10 Jr. MH

10 Madi Kubik 6-1 So. OH

11 Baylie Katcher 6-0 Sr. MH

16 Hannah Lockin 6-0 Sr. OH

No. 7 Dubuque Hempstead (23-10)

Nickname: Mustangs

Coach: Travis Wills (3rd year, 68-35)

Tournament history: 17th appearance. Won titles in 1975 and 2003.

No. Name Ht. Yr. Pos.

2 Aliyah Carter Fr. MH

4 Jada Wills Fr. OH

6 Alana Cooksley Jr. S

9 Nikki Houtakker Sr. MH

14 Morgan Kluesner Sr. OH

15 Amber Cooklsey Jr. OH

31 Hope Splinter Sr. L

Stat Leaders

KILLS PER SET

Alyssa Ballenger, Ankeny 5.83

Hannah Lockin, West Des Moines Valley 4.48

Madi Kubik, West Des Moines Valley 3.83

Kenna Sauer, Ankeny Centennial 3.39

Taylor Lynch, Cedar Falls 3.30

ASSISTS PER SET

Liv Winker, Ankeny 10.43

Tayah Mahi, Cedar Falls 10.35

Alana Cooksley, Dubuque Hempstead 8.19

Maddie Fay, Iowa City West 7.75

Susie Gaul, West Des Moines Dowling 7.26

DIGS PER SET

Miranda Greathouse, Ankeny 6.43

Hope Splinter, Dubuque Hempstead 5.79

Kylee Macke, Ankeny Centennial 4.54

Madi Ford, Iowa City West 4.34

Alyssa Ballenger, Ankeny 4.34

ACES PER SET

Quincy Strawhecker, West Des Moines Dowling 0.80

Madi Kubik, West Des Moines Valley 0.77

Morgan Wessels, Ankeny 0.67

Ellie Anderson, Linn-Mar 0.60

Tayah Mahi, Cedar Falls 0.60

BLOCKS PER SET

Devyn Robinson, Ankeny Centennial 1.16

Isabelle Vacek, Ankeny 1.12

Jacey Koeth, West Des Moines Dowling 1.10

Maddi McCullough, Ankeny Centennial 1.07

Elizabeth Relph, Cedar Falls 0.88

Predictions

Quarterfinals

Cedar Falls over West Des Moines Dowling in 4

Linn-Mar over Ankeny in 4

Ankeny Centennial over Iowa City West in 4

Dubuque Hempstead over West Des Moines Valley in 5

Semifinals

Cedar Falls over Linn-Mar in 5

Ankeny Centennial over Dubuque Hempstead in 4

Championship

Cedar Falls over Ankeny Centennial in 5

l Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com