Sumner-Fredericksburg ends Dike-New Hartford’s reign in 2A semifinals

CEDAR RAPIDS - Sumner-Fredericksburg had the four-time defending state champions on the ropes, then found itself lying flat on its back.

The No. 9 Cougars were four points away from a sweep, then scrapped and clawed to claim a five-set test of wills, 25-22, 25-13, 22-25, 12-25, 17-15, over sixth-ranked Dike-New Hartford in a Class 2A volleyball state semifinal at the U.S. Cellular Center on Thursday.

'We knew it was our time to shine,” junior Jaydlin Seehase said. 'This is our year if any year.”

Sumner-Fredericksburg (32-3) is in the 2A championship for the first time in four trips to the state tournament. The Cougars will face top-ranked Western Christian (42-5), 2A runners-up in each of the past four years.

Seehase and fellow junior Becca Pagel were brilliant in the first two games, the last a 12-point Cougars' romp. But Dike-New Hartford did not win the last four state titles by rolling over. The Wolverines - who lost four all-state players to graduation - seized momentum late in Game 3, closing the game with five of six points for a 25-22 win.

'That third and fourth game, they were not done for sure,” said Pagel, who finished with 14 kills and 27 digs. 'That's what a good team does, They came out strong and they were not giving up and they made us battle and battle and battle.”

The fourth game was a Dike-New Hartford rout, winning by 13 but the Cougars gained some momentum by fighting off four game points.

'We knew that each point, if we can keep gaining points that would give us momentum for the next game,” Pagel said. 'We just kept fighting and never gave up and I think that's what helped us in the fifth set. We had more energy, we weren't dead.”

Dike-New Hartford scored the first three points of the winner-take-all fifth game, and four kills from sophomore Baylee Petersen pushed the Wolverines' lead to 6-2.

'We knew we needed to calm down,” Seehase said. 'Get our passes, get our sets, get our hits and stay calm throughout the game.”

Five points away from elimination, Sumner-Fredericksburg rallied. A Seehase kill capped a five-point surge and a 12-10 lead. There were three more ties in the decisive fifth set before Seehase's 23rd kill and a Dike-New Hartford attack error sealed it, 17-15.

'I knew it was meant to be,” Pagel said. 'It was our time.”

Sophomore Jenna Brandt chipped in 43 assists and 17 digs for the Cougars, while Destiney Mohlis added 21 digs.

Petersen recorded 21 kills for Dike-New Hartford (38-10), which suffered its first loss in the state tournament since 2010.

'They happened to make the play that they needed to at that time to take care of the match,” Dike-New Hartford Coach Diane Harms. 'It's tremendous for this group to make it down to state.”

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