Power aplenty in the River Valley

The River Valley Conference is a land of high achievers in girls' basketball.

Overachievers, perhaps.

'I definitely think we have the top 2A/3A league in the state,' said Matt Bolger, coach at unbeaten and 2A second-ranked Iowa City Regina. 'By the time you get ready for your postseason run, you've seen a little of everything — man defense, zone, junk ... good posts and perimeter players.'

As the season pauses for the holiday break, consider this — the 13 teams that comprise the RVC have combined for a 22-2 record against non-conference foes.

And consider this — according to the BC Moore computer, the RVC ranks No. 4 among Iowa's 32 high school athletic conferences in overall strength, despite ranking 15th in average enrollment. The only leagues ranked ahead of the RVC are the 5A-centric Mississippi Valley Cconference, Central Iowa Metro League and Mississippi Athletic Conference, in that order.

'Every night, you've got to come to play, or you're going to get beat,' said Monticello Coach Donnie Kremer. 'We know that if we don't play to our potential, somebody's going to get us. There are a lot of second-tier teams on the verge of reaching that upper level.'

That upper level consists of Regina (7-0 overall, 6-0 RVC) and West Branch (9-1, 6-1) in the South Division, and Monticello (6-2, 5-2) and Cascade (7-2, 5-2) in the North.

For now, Regina has established itself as the top squad, based on the Regals' 46-44 win at West Branch on Dec. 18.

'The kids have adjusted to the changes in their roles,' Bolger said. 'Nobody wanted to be a post at the beginning of the season, but in our system, the post isn't just going to be standing with her back to the basket all the time. We don't have any size, but we play to our strengths and that's paying off for us.'

The most improved team in the league is Tipton (5-3, 4-3), which has won four straight games. The Tigers were 2-20 last season.

'They're extremely young and talented,' Kremer said. 'There are so many young, athletic teams in this conference. We start four seniors, and so does West Branch, but everybody else is pretty young.'

TORN MCL FOR NORTH-LINN'S BOER

The season's first substantial loss due to injury has been suffered by North-Linn.

Morgan Boer, a third-team 2A all-state selection last year, sustained a partially torn MCL in her left knee early in the Lynx's 48-38 loss to Cascade on Monday.

Boer was hurt while battling for a loose-ball rebound. She was averaging 18.4 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.

'We're kind of in a wait-and-see situation right now,' said Lynx Coach Brian Wheatley, who indicated that Boer would be out 3-6 weeks. 'The knee was too swollen to do an MRI. Once we get that done, we'll know a lot more.'

A 6-foot junior forward, Boer was a key figure in the Lynx's run to the 2A state finals last year. This year, North-Linn is 9-1.

Tuesday, Wheatley earned his 200th career win, 61-8 over Clinton Prince of Peace. Wheatley is in his 12th year and owns a mark of 200-70.

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