Stunning first-set rally helped Cedar Rapids Xavier volleyball stay unbeaten

CEDAR RAPIDS — Play out the string? Get ready for Game 2?

The Xavier Saints had other plans.

“We needed to start clicking,” setter Anna Shoger said. “We needed to play defense. Serve-receive and defense. We were really struggling before that.”

Facing deficits of 21-12 and 22-14, Class 4A second-ranked Cedar Rapids Xavier went on a late-set scoring spree to win the first set of their MVC Mississippi Division showdown with 5A No. 1 Cedar Falls. The Saints carried that momentum for a sweep: 26-24, 25-18, 25-18, Tuesday night at Ron Thillen Gymnasium.

What are the odds in coming back from a 22-14 deficit against an elite team like Cedar Falls? One-in-100, maybe, at best.

But the Saints (8-0 overall, 3-0 division) gave in a whirl.

The recipe for a stunning comeback like that? Libero Brooklyn Miller made it sound simple:

“Don’t let the ball drop,” she said.

An attack error by the Tigers (7-3, 2-1) accounted for the first point of the rally. Then Anika Ivester, the Saints’ 6-foot-4 middle, put down back-to-back kills. Maci Kadlec added another to make it 22-18 and force a Cedar Falls timeout.

A pair of aces by Miller sandwiched a couple more Cedar Falls hitting miscues to tie the set at 22-22 and induce another timeout.

The Tigers regained the lead, 24-22, and had two set points.

Ivester registered another kill. Another Cedar Falls error tied the set. Shoger’s second-ball kill put the Saints ahead, then Carley Jonker’s ace completed the comeback.

“Once we got our defense going, it all came together,” Shoger said.

The rest of the match was relatively easy, and the Saints moved to 18-0 in sets this season.

Players come and players go, but Xavier has been a model of consistent, massive success in Austin Filer’s reign. The Saints have been 6-for-6 in state-tournament appearances on Filer’s watch, including a Class 4A championship in 2020.

The Saints were upset by Marion in the quarterfinals last year. Five starters from that team are back.

That includes sophomore Libby Fandel, probably the top volleyball/basketball combo athlete in the area. The 5-foot-11 outside hitter collected 12 kills Tuesday and leads the Saints at 3.73 kills per set.

Ivester adds 2.74 kills per set and is hitting above .500; Kadlec is at 2.58 kills per set.

In her first year as the Saints’ full-time setter, Shoger is distributing more than 10 assists per set, and Miller (3.53 digs per set) gives the team a veteran presence along the back line.

“In the past, we had a lot of tall girls,” Shoger said. “We’re not as tall now, but we play well together and we all want the same thing.”

No matter what that thing is (you can probably guess), the Saints appear capable. They topped 4A No. 1 Marion in the semifinals of the Warrior Invitational at Cedar Rapids Washington on Saturday, and probably will replace the Wolves at the top when the new rankings come out Thursday.

Xavier is the lone remaining area unbeaten.

“We know that when we play to our potential, we’re a good team,” Miller said. “We proved that at the tournament Saturday.”

And they proved Tuesday that no lead against them is safe.

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com