The second-ranked Ankeny Centennial volleyball team appears to be ready for Tuesday’s showdown against No. 1 Dowling Catholic.
The Jaguars defeated three opponents on Saturday to win the Little Hawk Invitational at Iowa City High for the third consecutive year. They raised their record to 10-2 on the season.
“It was a good day!” said Centennial coach Jessica Rinehart. “We took care of business, and we put ourselves in a couple of tight situations–which was positive pressure and it was good for our players to figure out how to get out of them!”
Centennial posted a 25-14, 25-22 win over Council Bluffs Lewis Central, the No. 7 team in Class 4A. The Jaguars handed Lewis Central (5-1) its first loss of the season.
Delaney Miller had 15 kills and two aces against the Titans. Anna Sash added five kills while hitting .455 for the match.
Kambria Leazer dished out 20 assists, while Ava Kronenberg made three blocks. Addie Pollock contributed six digs, and Mya Lei-Butters added five.
Miller served the first 14 points of the match in Centennial’s 25-5, 25-11 romp over Bettendorf (2-4). She went 20-of-21 from behind the line with five aces and also had five digs.
Jaeden Pratt racked up eight kills, two blocks and three aces. Kronenberg chipped in three kills, and Maegen Cheeseman had eight assists.
The Jaguars also posted a 27-25, 25-8 win over Iowa City High (3-4). Pollock completed all 15 of her serves and had three aces in the match.
Miller finished with 13 kills and 10 digs. She hit .429 in the win.
Pratt had seven kills, and Leazer added 23 assists. Leazer and Kronenberg each had three blocks.
“I’m proud of what our whole team brought to this day,” Rinehart said. “We’ve got more players ready to go…should we need them. Overall, it was another step in the right direction for our team.”
The Jaguars will now host Dowling in a 1 vs. 2 showdown that will also be a battle for first place in the CIML Conference. The Maroons swept No. 10 Valley in a conference match on Tuesday before losing to the Tigers in the Marj White Classic on Saturday at Valley.
