Ankeny Centennial makes it 3 in a row

CEDAR RAPIDS — Ankeny Centennial was ready for the bright lights. The noise and the cameras.

And the Jaguars were ready for Cedar Falls.

Second-ranked Centennial dominated the first two sets, then rallied to complete the sweep, 25-17, 25-20, 27-25, to capture its third consecutive Class 5A championship at the state volleyball tournament Friday morning at the U.S. Cellular Center.

'We knew it was going to be crazy,' said Kenna Sauer, the all-tournament captain. 'The bright lights, the cameras, all that stuff.

'But we kept our composure and stayed calm.'

Centennial is its fourth year of existence, and has been a powerhouse since Day 1. The Jaguars got to state in their first season, and now have won three titles in a row.

'Since our first practice, this has been the big goal,' Sauer said.

Centennial finished 35-3. After zipping through the first two sets — they trailed just 1-0 in the opener and not at all in the second — the Jaguars rallied from a 19-15 deficit in the third to finish it off. A four-point run turned the advantage into Centennial's favor, 23-19.

Cedar Falls (40-4) reclaimed the lead, 25-24, on Grace Burken's block, but Centennial answered with the next three points.

The final three points.

Olivia Sandquist's kill got the Jaguars even at 25-all, Sauer knocked down the go-ahead kill, then Maddi McCullough's block ended it.

'We knew this was going to be tough. We definitely didn't expect a sweep,' Centennial libero Kylee Macke said.

'But we knew we could win. We have amazing coaches, probably the best staff in the state. We go hard and get after it.'

Sauer collected a match-high 16 kills, and Sandquist added 11.

Macke and setter Meredith Sieck joined Sauer on the all-tournament team, along with Taylor Lynch and Tayah Mahi of Cedar Falls and Hannah Lockin and Madi Kubik of West Des Moines Valley.

Claire Gerdes led Cedar Falls with nine kills. Mahi collected 29 assists.

Cedar Falls started an all-junior lineup.

'Centennial came out, and they were used to this,' Mahi said. 'We were a little shell-shocked at first. We weren't playing like ourselves.'

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