Iowa City West claims The Spike in five sets

IOWA CITY - Iowa City West's 6-foot-2 middle hitter Colby Greene reached up and blocked the final City High shot in the annual Battle for the Spike.

'It was so awesome,” Greene said amid the bedlam on the Trojans' court. 'It was great

for my team to get me there, to a point I needed to.”

The 10th-ranked Women of Troy prevailed over No. 1 City High, 24-26, 25-15, 25-22, 20-25, 15-12, in a 2-1/2 hour marathon in a hot and humid gym that seemed like a sauna.

'We were not going to lose this year,” West hitter Emma Norris said. 'We had so much determination we were going to win.”

The first set was close the whole way before City came away with the victory on a block by Shannon Stamp and a West serve-receive error. But then West dominated the second set.

City led 11-4 in the third set but West rallied and won.

City took a lead in the fourth, gave it up and then pulled it out behind a kill from Alexa Aldrich-Ingram and a couple West errors.

City led 8-4 in the final set before West scored five points in a row on two kills by Anna Mabry and three City miscues.

At 12-all, West's Maddie Fay served it out. Emma Norris had a kill, City was called for a hold and Greene finished it off.

'Tonight was all about aggression and which team wanted to swing and which team at times was just going to pass,” City coach Craig Pitcher said.

'The first set we came out swinging. The third set we had that opportunity, but down the stretch we weren't making good swings to get West out of position.”

Stamp had a fine match as did the all-stater Aldrich-Ingram.

Norris was a whirlwind at the net. She led the Women of Troy in kills and in energy expended after making kills.

'That's just pure excitement,” she said. ' I love it.”