Janesville takes down North Tama to move to finals

CORALVILLE - Janesville upset St. Ansgar in the first round of the 2024 Class 1A state tournament.

If they can duplicate the feat this year, the prize will a state championship

The No. 2 Wildcats, after losing in the semifinals last year to BCLUW, now have a shot to win the school's seventh state title after taking down No. 3 North Tama, 25-19, 25-19, 25-19 on Wednesday night at Xtream Arena.

Thursday's title match is set for 7 p.m. No. 1 St. Ansgar advanced with a straight set win over Dunkerton.

Janesville (32-11) is in its first final since 2018 when it won a fourth straight 1A crown.

"It's really special," said junior setter Tayah Pollock about the opportunity to play for a title against St. Ansgar. "We upset them last year here, but they beat us this year in the regular season."

Pollock added that remaining in the moment will be key for the Wildcats.

"I think we just have to really focus in on our side," she said. "We need to work on our game and like our communication and everything that goes well for us. If we do that, I think we can pull through.

Veteran Coach Shelley Sorensen was asked to compare this team to the group that won four straight.

"That four-peat team was so special," she said. "They had some (NCAA Division I) athletes all in that class. You don't get that very often at a 1A school.

"This group has done a great job as well," continued Sorensen. "They just have such a passion for volleyball and they play so great together."

And they will not likely be going away soon as there is only one senior on the roster.

"We might have only one senior, but we have a lot of experience," Sorensen said. "We have a lot of girls who played here last year so the future does look bright.

Freshman Quinn Sweeney led the winners with 14 kills. Pollack had 28 assists and 11 digs.

For North Tama (29-13) Alaney Sienknecht had 11 kills.