State Volleyball: Predictions, quick breakdown of each class

Class 4A

This field looks familiar.Six of the eight qualifiers are back from last year, including defending champion

Ankeny and 2009 runner-up

Iowa City West.Ankeny is rated No. 1 and seeking its third consecutive championship. The Hawkettes return four starters back from last year's title team and are 23-0 against 4A competition this season.West has endured a number of injuries, most notably the offseason ACL tear of all-stater Alli O'Deen, and the third-rated Women of Troy have played only 10 matches as a full team. O'Deen is back now, and West has caught fire.Two regional-final upsets rocked the bracket - No. 6

Cedar Rapids Xavier took down No. 2 Iowa City High, and unranked

Linn-Mar shocked No. 4 Bettendorf.Xavier, Linn-Mar and No. 5

Cedar Rapids Kennedy give the Metro a trio of hopefuls. A semifinalist the last two years, Kennedy returns with a largely new cast of characters.At 29-11, Xavier is enjoying its best season in school history and has a very opportunity to get past the first round for the first time. And Linn-Mar righted its ship in time for the postseason after losing eight of its last nine regular-season matches.We're picking three No. 1 teams to win state championships this weekends. This is the exception.

LINDER'S PICKS

QuarterfinalsAnkeny over Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln in 3Cedar Rapids Xavier over Waukee in 4Iowa City West over Linn-Mar in 3Cedar Rapids Kennedy over Urbandale in 4

SemifinalsAnkeny over Cedar Rapids Xavier in 3Iowa City West over Cedar Rapids Kennedy in 4

ChampionshipIowa City West over Ankeny in 5

Class 3A

This, quite simply, should be a blast. Especially once we get to Friday.How strong is the 3A field? Well,

Mount Vernon and

Waverly-Shell Rock are ranked in the top 25 nationally and most observers consider them the two best teams in Iowa regardless of class. And neither of them are guaranteed to reach the championship match.No. 1 Mount Vernon is 37-0 in matches, 86-1 in games, won the 2A championship last year and has three Division-I recruits in Ali Stark, Amanda Platte and Courtney Kintzel. Prepvolleyball.com lists the Mustangs at No. 6 in the nation.No. 2 Waverly-Shell Rock is 48-1 in matches (the only loss came to Mount Vernon in the finals of the WSR Invitational) and 107-3 in games, won the 3A title last year, beat 4A No. 1 Ankeny twice and has three D-I recruits in Rachel Peth, Morgan Kuhrt and Kelsey Roggemann. Prepvolleyball.com lists the Go-Hawks at 25th nationally.Shoo-ins to square off for the championship on Saturday, right? They're certainly championship-caliber teams. But at least two others have title dreams of their own.Neither of the co-favorites can fall asleep on their likely semifinal opponents. No. 3

West Delaware is perennially one of the best defensive teams in the state. The Hawks are 39-3, with all three defeats coming at the hands of Mount Vernon. The Hawks pounded tournament staple Dubuque Wahlert in the regional finals, a victory that gave Coach Brett Mather 500 for his career.And what of the resume of

Sioux City Heelan? The fourth-rated Crusaders are in town for the 13th straight year, the second-longest streak in tournament history and the longest active string.Everything all season has pointed toward a Mount Vernon-WSR final. But neither team will advance to Saturday's anticipated showdown without breaking a serious sweat.

LINDER'S PICKS

QuarterfinalsSioux City Heelan over Pella in 3Mount Vernon over Red Oak in 3Waverly-Shell Rock over Union in 3West Delaware over Williamsburg in 4

SemifinalsMount Vernon over Sioux City Heelan in 4Waverly-Shell Rock over West Delaware in 4

ChampionshipMount Vernon over Waverly-Shell Rock in 4

Class 2A

Is the toughest competition already behind

Western Christian? Quite possibly.Top-ranked Western was placed in a regional bracket with two other top-five teams. The Wolfpack promptly swept through regional play, dumping No. 2 Sheldon in the regional final to avenge last year's state-semifinal defeat.There is still quality competition to wade through, but Western is the class of this class. The school is making its 28th state appearance, surpassing Dubuque Wahlert (27 trips) has made as the most frequent qualifier, and is seeking its 13th championship.No. 8

Dike-New Hartford is another regular. The Wolverines lost Elite all-stater Hannah Willms to graduation, but remain a force and qualified for the 21st time. Five of the team's eight losses were to state qualifiers. The Wolverines have a tough test right off the bat against  No. 7

Grundy Center, a North Iowa Cedar League rival and one of the tournament's younger teams.The bottom half of the bracket ought to be competitive. No. 3

Mediapolis is the highest ranked team in the bunch. The Bullettes started the season by winning 26 straight matches and 59 consecutive games. No. 6

Lake Mills is 43-1 and on a 26-match win streak but has a challenging opener against No. 9

Pella Christian, which always plays a strong schedule and is a tournament regular. The Eagles are in town for the fourth straight year.We'll play a hunch of an all-Dutch final. And a predictable, familiar champion: Western Christian.

LINDER'S PICKS

QuarterfinalsWestern Christian over Ridge View in 3Dike-New Hartford over Grundy Center in 4Mediapolis over Clarinda in 4Pella Christian over Lake Mills in 4

SemifinalsWestern Christian over Dike-New Hartford in 3Pella Christian over Mediapolis in 5

ChampionshipWestern Christian over Pella Christian in 3

Class 1A

You'd think the well would run dry eventually, wouldn't you?A small-school volleyball program just isn't supposed to be this good for this long.But here's

Tripoli again, back in the field for the 12th time in 13 years. The Panthers are seeking their ninth Class 1A state championship in that span. Judging by the number of underclassmen (only two starters are seniors), it's a run that should extend beyond this season.Who's to stop the top-ranked Panthers?

Alta is No. 2 and has a little motivation on its side. The Cyclones are making their first trip to Cedar Rapids in their final year of existence. They'll move into a sharing agreement with Aurelia next year.No. 3

Grandview Park Baptist has 11 losses, but none to 1A competition. The quality of competition should benefit the Defenders.Also unbeaten against 1A foes is No. 6 

Fort Madison Holy Trinity. The Crusaders are young, and their starters are short (none taller than 5-7), but this is a team that can never be discounted.I think

Janesville is a dark horse. The Wildcats, making their first state appearance in any girls' sport, are from the same conference (Iowa Star) as Tripoli and have seen good volleyball throughout the season. They won't be seeing anything they haven't viewed before.Then again, neither will we. We'll see the same story unfold we've seen eight previous times since 1999. We'll see Tripoli celebrating on Saturday night.

LINDER'S PICKS

QuarterfinalsFort Madison Holy Trinity over LeMars Gehlen in 4Tripoli over East Union in 3Grandview Park Baptist over Stanton in 3Janesville over Alta in 5

SemifinalsTripoli over Fort Madison Holy Trinity in 4Grandview Park Baptist over Janesville in 4

ChampionshipTripoli over Grandview Park Baptist in 3