Final act for Kuhrt, Caldwell: A 2nd title in 3A

CEDAR RAPIDS -- Eight years, they've played together.

And after the match was won and the pictures were taken, Morgan Kuhrt and Kinsey Caldwell shared a long, emotional embrace.

"We've been playing together since fourth grade, and we've been through so much together," Caldwell said. "It's kind of sad that it's over, but it's fun the way it ended."

Third-ranked Waverly-Shell Rock dropped its first set in a long time, but shrugged it off and handled No. 4 Sioux City Heelan for the Class 3A state volleyball championship Saturday afternoon at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.

Scores were 28-26, 25-18, 25-27 and 25-15.

The championship was the second in three years for the G0-Hawks (48-3). They won it in 2009, then slipped in the semifinals last year.

"I don't like losing anyway, but to win it as a senior, it's a great way to go out," said Kuhrt, the all-tournament captain after spanking 31 kills.

Kuhrt will play at Iowa State next year; Caldwell is headed to UNLV.

Caldwell (51 assists) made the all-tournament team, too -- along with Sioux City Heelan's Natalie Vondrak and Madeline Hanno, Union's Tori Zempel and Dubuque Wahlert's Amy Ihm.

The first game was the pivotal game. Heelan (46-12) led, 26-25, but Waverly-Shell Rock scored the final three points on two kills by Kara Roggemann and one by Kuhrt.

Heelan fought off a match point in Game 3, scoring the final three points to hand WSR its first set loss in 28 matches. But the Go-Hawks owned Game 4.

Roggemann added 12 kills for WSR. Vondrak, who plans to walk on at Iowa State in the fall, had 24 kills for Heelan. Hanno collected 42 assists.

[gallery columns="2"]