Regional Volleyball Preview: 1A and 2A quarterfinals
The regional volleyball tournament continues Tuesday night around much of the area.
In Class 2A Region 4, the Southwest Valley Timberwolves take to the volleyball floor for the first time this postseason when they host a quarterfinals match against Mount Ayr.
The Timberwolves had a first round bye, while Mount Ayr went five games in their first round match to defeat Central Decatur.
Southwest Valley and Mount Ayr have played each other twice this season, both times the Timberwolves won. The first meeting took place Sept. 10 when Southwest Valley won 3-0 at home.
Oct. 10 was the next occurrence when they defeated Mount Ayr 2-0 during a quadrangular at home.
The player to watch for Southwest Valley is Marie Palmer. The junior hitter is second in the Pride of Iowa Conference in kills with 299.
For Mount Ayr, keep an eye on Paige Daughton, who leads the team in kills with 147. In the win against Central Decatur, Daughton had 16 kills and 12 digs.
This will likely be the only home match possible for Southwest Valley. If they advance farther in the tournament, they would be in Greenfield Friday for the semifinals and at Pella Christian Nov. 1 for the regional final.
The other quarterfinal match-ups in Class 2A Region 4 will feature Earlham at Des Moines Christian, Van Meter at BGM and Pella Christian at Eddyville-Blakesburg.
In Class 1A Region 3, Stanton takes to their home floor Tuesday for another meeting with Bedford.
The Viqueens have played Bedford multiple times this season, only in tournament in play. They defeated the Bulldogs twice at the Shenandoah tournament and once at Bedford's tournament.
Stanton reached the quarterfinals after a 3-0 win against Nishnabotna. Bedford also had a 3-0 win in the first round, defeating Diagonal.
Both teams have faced each other in recent years. Last season, Stanton defeated Bedford in the regional semifinals at Corning. In 2010, the Viqueens defeated Bedford in the regional finals to clinch their first ever trip to the state tournament.
For Bedford, keep an eye on hitter Madison Walston. The senior is third in the Pride of Iowa Conference in kills with 271. Walston had 15 kills in the first round Diagonal win.
Meanwhile, Carmen Subbert continues to add to her career-high season total in kills. Heading into the quarterfinal match, Subbert has 438 kills, most in the Corner Conference.
The other key area match-up in 1A-Region 3 features Griswold against Essex in Griswold. Winner of this match plays the winner of Stanton-Bedford Friday night in Stanton.
Both Essex and Griswold are coming off of 3-0 first round victories. Essex defeated South Page, while Griswold defeated Exira-EHK.
This will be the first meeting between both teams this season. Kym Graham is the player to watch for Essex. Graham has 126 kills this season, most on the team. Candice Howell is the player to watch for Griswold. Howell leads the team in kills with 161.
THe other quarterfinal matches will feature Orient-Macksburg against East Union in Lenox and Southeast Warren at Murray.
Go to IGHSAU.org to see the full brackets for all five classes of the state volleyball regional tournament.