Springville superior in a 1A regional volleyball final sweep of Belle Plaine

VAN HORNE - No deep analysis required here.

The Springville Orioles simply had more weapons. End of story.

Seventh-ranked Springville displayed superior depth and swept Belle Plaine (25-21, 25-14, 25-16) in a Class 1A volleyball regional final Wednesday night at Benton Community High School.

'We're just an all-around team,” Kennady Breitfelder said. 'We have everyone we need, and we need all of us.”

The Orioles (26-9) were able to key on Belle Plaine's hitting duo of Alyssa Tegeler and Nicholaa Phillippe. They dug up enough to get their own attack rolling, and sophomore setter Nia Howard ran it with precision.

'We did have more weapons,” Howard agreed. 'And I used all of them.

'We were able to slow them down enough, and by the second set, it didn't seem they were hitting as hard.”

As a result, the Orioles return to the state tournament for the second straight year and the fifth time in the last six years. They'll face No. 4 Gladbrook-Reinbeck (32-2) in a first-round match at 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse.

'It's just like a dream,” back-row anchor Grace Matus said. 'If we keep playing like we have been, we can go pretty far.”

Give Belle Plaine (26-9) credit. The Plainsmen were forced to sit out three weeks in September due to COVID-19 quarantine, then won 20 of 25 matches upon their return.

But the Orioles were at a higher level Wednesday, posting a 43-25 advantage in kills.

Springville's Lauren Wilson led all attackers with 13 kills. Savannah Nealman added 11, and Breitfelder posted 10. Howard notched five kills to go with 33 assists.

'When you've got four people in the front that can score, that makes a big difference,” Howard said.

Phillippe and Tegeler had 12 kills each for the Plainsmen. That accounted for 24 of the team's 25.

Springville was never in crisis mode in any of the three sets. The Orioles held a 15-13 advantage in the opener before Breitfelder posted three kills and Nealman served two aces in a seven-point run to extend the margin.

The Orioles were a erratic for a short spell in Game 2, allowing the Plainsmen to tie it, 11-11, then turned it on again with a 14-3 closing run.

Springville led the finale from first serve until final celebration.

SPRINGVILLE 3, BELLE PLAINE 0 (25-21, 25-14, 21-16)

Class 1A Regional Final, at Van Horne

Serving: Belle Plaine 47-52 (.904), Springville 72-73 (.986)

Aces: Belle Plaine 4 (Jacey Reineke, Keiran Holmberg 2), Springville 6 (Savannah Nealman 3)

Kills: Belle Plaine 25 (Alyssa Tegeler, Nicholaa Phillippe 12), Springville 43 (Lauren Wilson 13)

Assists: Belle Plaine 25 (Mandy Chizek 23), Springville 41 (Nia Howard 33)

Blocks: Belle Plaine 2 (Tegeler 2), Springville 0

Comments: (319) 368-8857; jeff.linder@thegazette.com