No. 1 Iowa City Liberty closes fast, defeats Cedar Falls in 4

Lightning finish final set of MVC showdown with an 11-2 flourish

Sep. 21, 2021 9:47 pm, Updated: Sep. 22, 2021 11:24 am

Iowa City Liberty’s Cassidy Hartman high-fives teammates after a point during Tuesday’s volleyball win over Cedar Falls. (Nick Rohlman/Freelance)

NORTH LIBERTY — Now, that’s how you finish.

All-stater Cassidy Hartman had three of her match-high 22 kills in a closing 11-2 run, and Class 5A top-ranked Iowa City Liberty downed No. 9 Cedar Falls in a four-set MVC Mississippi Division volleyball match Tuesday night at Liberty High School.

Scores were 25-22, 21-25, 25-12 and 25-15.

“I was just seeing the court well at the end,” Hartman said. “Everything was connecting for our team.”

Liberty (17-3, 5-0 MVC Mississippi) rolled through the third set — not allowing a Cedar Falls point on service — then pulled away in the fourth after a back-and-forth start.

“We really picked up our energy a lot. We started swinging away,” Hartman said. “When we’re in system, we can put the ball away.”

With the Lightning in front 14-13, a kill by Sam Harvey gave the host team a point and service to Gabbie Schroeder. And it was the prelude to a match-defining run.

“This is a team that needs to feel things click,” Lightning co-coach Allie Kelly said. “Once we get into a rhythm, they really ride each other’s energy.”

It was Harvey that provided that energy in Game 3, when she collected five kills and two blocks.

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“I play with a lot of adrenaline, energy and passion,” she said. “We talk about fighting for each other. This match was about who was going to win (the division).”

Liberty built an eight-point lead in the first set, then hung on after Cedar Falls (15-5, 4-1) got within 23-22. Sydney Stratton’s block and Carlie Schroeder’s ace closed it out.

Cedar Falls evened the match, then the Lightning regained momentum.

Wake-up call?

“Yeah it was, trust me,” Harvey said. “Sometimes, when you’re No. 1, you think, ‘We’ve got this.’”

Liberty owned a 32-17 kill advantage in the final two sets. Shelby Kimm added 14 kills, Harvey 11.

Mariah Rollins and Asta Hildebrand combined for 56 assists.

Katie Remmert paced Cedar Falls with 18 kills.

IOWA CITY LIBERTY 3, CEDAR FALLS 1 (25-22, 21-25, 25-12, 25-15)

At North Liberty

Serving: Cedar Falls 67-76 (.882), Liberty 86-93 (.925)

Aces: Cedar Falls 3 (Nohea Mahi 2), Liberty 3 (Gabbie Schroeder 2)

Kills: Cedar Falls 43 (Katie Remmert 18), Liberty 61 (Cassidy Hatman 22)

Assists: Cedar Falls 43 (Mahi 42), Liberty 57 (Mariah Rollins 33)