The Ankeny Christian Academy volleyball team will take a 26-match winning streak into next week’s state tournament.
The top-ranked Eagles advanced to state with a 25-19, 25-18, 25-12 victory over Riverside in a Class 1A regional final on Wednesday at Van Meter. They raised their record to 36-3, while Riverside ends the season at 27-11.
“We accomplished what we had been working for all season–a ticket to state,” said ACA coach Michele Quick. “Now we begin our focus on the next three matches.”
ACA, the defending state champion, outhit the Bulldogs by a .363 to .077 margin. The Eagles racked up 46 kills and 15 aces in the win.
Carley Craighead led the way with 20 kills and five aces. Anna Weathers had 13 kills on just 16 attacks and hit .688 on the night, while Katie Quick dished out 42 assists.
“We were prepared and fueled to come out fast and powerful,” Quick said. “Anna and Carley were a dynamic duo–they were pounding on the ball. Katie did her job getting the ball to our hitters.”
Quick completed all 12 of her serves and had a pair of aces, increasing her state-leading total to 144 on the season. She also had a team-high 12 digs.
Macey Nehring contributed nine kills, four aces and 10 digs for the Eagles.
“We stayed focused throughout each set with priority on one point at a time, staying poised and aggressive,” Quick said.
ACA will play unranked Newell-Fonda (21-8), the No. 8 seed, in the quarterfinals on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Xtream Arena in Coralville. The Mustangs qualified for state with a four-set victory over AGWSR.