Regional Volleyball Preview 1A and 2A Quarterfinals
After the big schools faced off yesterday, it is back to action for Class 1A and 2A as the quarterfinals take place all across the state Tuesday night.
Class 1A Region 3
We start in Region 3 of Class 1A as there are two area teams still competing in the region.
The Stanton Viqueens face a big test Tuesday night when they go on the road to play Bedford.
Stanton advanced to the quarterfinals with a 3-0 win against South Page, last Tuesday. Bedford had a first round bye and didn't play last week.
The Viqueens have not lost a regional tournament match since 2009 and have made four straight state tournament trips.
Stanton has played Bedford plenty of times over the years in the regional tournament. The two teams met last year in the regional quarterfinals with the Viqueens winning 3-0.
The Bulldogs enter Tuesday night with a 30-13-2 record. They have a pair of junior hitters who are among the Pride of Iowa leaders.
Callyn Bonde leads the team in kills with 302, while teammate Callie Calfee has 262 for the year.
If there's one thing Bedford has done a lot of this season, it's record kills. They're third in the state as a team for kills with 1,001. Only Holy Trinity Catholic and Turkey Valley have more kills this season.
Stanton has its fair share of hitters who can score points, including senior Haley Weis, who is fourth in the Corner Conference in kills with 198.
The Viqueens can also turn to Chelsea Weis, Ally Focht and Heidi Vanderholm. Chelsea, the younger sister of Haley, has 163 kills this season. Focht, who can also set up the attack for Stanton, has 144 kills. Vanderholm has 133 kills this season.
Stanton has played Bedford multiple times this season, mainly during tournaments. The two faced off twice at the Clarinda Tournament, each winning a match. They faced off again at the Bedford Tournament with Stanton winning 2-1.
The only area team playing at home Tuesday night will be the Griswold Tigers as they host a quarterfinal match versus Lenox.
Griswold is fresh off a 3-0 win last Tuesday in the first round versus Essex. Lenox meanwhile advanced to the quarterfinals with its win last Tuesday versus Orient-Macksburg.
Griswold is led by hitters Melodie Anstey and Sydney McLaren. Anstey, a senior, had 11 kills in last Tuesday's win against Essex. McLaren meanwhile is among the 1A leaders in kills as she's second with 410.
Lenox has struggled this season, compiling only a couple of non-tournament wins, including against Orient-Macksburg Oct. 9 and East Union Sept. 9.
Lenox is led by Katie Dukes, who has 153 kills for the season.
This is the first meeting between Griswold and Lenox this season.
The winner of Stanton/Bedford and Griswold/Lenox will face off in the semifinals Friday night in Griswold.
The other quarterfinal match-ups feature Grand View Christian at Martensdale-St. Marys and Mount Ayr at Murray.
Grand View Christian had a first round bye for the regional tournament. Martensdale-St. Marys meanwhile defeated East Union 3-1 in the first round, last week.
Murray and Mount Ayr both had first round wins last week. Murray defeated Diagonal 3-1, while Mount Ayr defeated Lamoni.
The winner of Grand View Christian/Martensdale-St. Marys and Murray/Mount Ayr will face off in Murray for the semifinals Friday night.
Class 2A Region 4
The only area team competing in Class 2A is Southwest Valley. They're back in action Tuesday night when they hit the road to face Earlham.
Southwest Valley cruised to a 3-0 win last week against Clarinda Academy. They play an Earlham team that had a first round bye.
The Timberwolves are powered by senior hitter Marie Palmer, who leads the team in kills with 326.
Earlham is 18-4 on the season. Their last loss was to Woodward-Granger on Oct. 13. They have not played in nearly two weeks.
Earlham is led by Alex Potzner, who has 162 kills for the season. Jess Igarashi has 152 kills for Earlham.
The other quarterfinal match in Southwest Valley's half of the bracket features Woodward-Granger at Central Decatur. Woodward-Granger had a first round bye and will serve as the host for this round. Central Decatur is coming off a 3-0 win over Interstate-35.
The winners of Southwest Valley/Earlham and Woodward-Granger/Central Decatur will face off in the semifinals Friday night in Woodward.
The other quarterfinal match-ups feature Pella Christian versus Des Moines Christian and Pleasantville against Eddyville-Blakesburg-Fremont.
The winner from both quarterfinals will face off in Eddyville Friday night for the semifinals.
All match-ups in 1A and 2A are scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Go to IGHSAU.org to see brackets for all five classes.