Sioux City Heelan answers challenge and downs Charles City

CEDAR RAPIDS — The set slipped away but it didn't take Sioux City Heelan long to grasp control of the match.

The Crusaders overcame that brief challenge to make a return appearance in the state semifinals.

Heelan dominated the final two sets and defeated Charles City, 25-23, 26-28, 25-12, 25-16, in a Class 4A state volleyball quarterfinal Tuesday night at U.S. Cellular Center. The Crusaders (35-8) face top-seeded Pella (37-4) Thursday at noon.

Heelan thwarted a late rally with two straight points, including a kill from Allie Cooke and Nicole Jacobson block, to win the opening set. The Comets rebounded, staving off two set points and winning five of the last seven points to take the second.

'We knew what to expect from them,' Cooke said. 'We weren't playing our game those first two sets. When we lost that second one, it was a wake-up call.

'We realized what we needed to do. It was like now or never. We kicked it in gear.'

The Crusaders began to roll with a 5-0 run to start the third, building a 21-8 edge after one of Cooke's match-high six aces. Heelan opened the final set with a similar run, taking an 8-1 lead before the Comets took a timeout.

'We knew they were a good team,' Heelan junior middle hitter Samantha McCabe said. 'They have a good team.

'We weren't stunned. We knew we had to play at our best level.'

Cooke and Claire Brobst each had 10 kills, while Mary Volz had 38 assists. Brobst added two blocks and assisted on three more.

Cooke said individual play improved, which led to a better team performance. The Crusaders also had a sense of urgency.

'We wanted to be able to come into the arena one more time and play the next game,' McCabe said. 'We had to go out there and believe we wanted it more than the other team. We did. We just kept working and that's how the momentum changed.'

Even as the Crusaders doubled up the Comets in the third and fourth, they couldn't afford to relax. Charles City didn't quit, rallying for five straight points before Heelan closed the match.

'Anything can happen at any time,' Cooke said. 'Throughout the entire match I was like, this is good but it isn't over yet. We had to play hard the whole game.'

Charles City (37-6) was led by Katie Foster's 14 kills. Sydney Loeckle added 32 assists for the Comets.

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