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‘We had great energy’: Hawkettes sweep C.R. Jefferson, will host City High next

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Ankeny’s Kamryn Scheib celebrates after recording one of her 19 kills during Thursday’s match against visiting Cedar Rapids Jefferson. The Hawkettes posted a 25-10, 25-10, 25-18 victory in a Class 5A regional semifinal. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

There were a lot of mismatches on Thursday in the semifinal round of the Class 5A regional volleyball tournaments.

One of the lopsided affairs came at Ankeny, where the third-ranked Hawkettes rolled to a 25-10, 25-10, 25-18 victory over Cedar Rapids Jefferson. The J-Hawks finished the season with a 7-28 record.

“We had great energy and controlled our side of the court,” said Ankeny coach Liz Baethke.

Ankeny’s Baileigh Carlsen prepares to serve the ball during Thursday’s match. She had three of her team’s nine aces and notched her 100th career ace during the Hawkettes’ win. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

Senior libero Baileigh Carlsen had three of her team’s nine aces and racked up 21 digs in the win. She reached a milestone by recording her 100th career ace.

“I feel like we played really well and as a team,” said Carlsen. “It felt like we were all playing with joy and all had so much fun playing together!”

Kamryn Scheib pounded 19 kills as Ankeny (35-4) extended its winning streak to 10 matches. The Hawkettes haven’t lost since falling to No. 2 Ankeny Centennial in four sets on Sept. 26.

Reagan Hanfelt contributed eight kills and four blocks. Olivia Eike also had eight kills, Maya Ridgeway chipped in seven, and Raquel Risk added five.

Miya Steinkamp dished out 27 assists. Gracyn Adams added 15 assists and also had three aces, while Ilana Coleman recorded 11 digs.

Ankeny’s Reagan Hanfelt and Maya Ridgeway try to block a spike attempt by Cedar Rapids Jefferson’s Lexi Haller during Thursday’s match. Hanfelt had eight kills and four blocks for the Hawkettes, while Ridgeway added seven kills. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

Fifteen of the 16 semifinal matches in Class 5A resulted in sweeps. The lone exception came in Region 7, where Dubuque Senior took a set from No. 10 Iowa City Liberty.

Last year, Ankeny defeated Iowa City Liberty to advance to the state tournament. Now, the Hawkettes will have to get past another opponent from Iowa City in order to earn another trip to Coralville.

Ankeny will host No. 11 Iowa City High (17-12) in the regional final on Tuesday at 7 p.m. The Little Hawks advanced by defeating Waterloo West for the second time this season.

Ankeny’s Raquel Risk hits the ball over the net during Thursday’s match. She had five kills in the Hawkettes’ win. (Photo by Evan Reiter)

“(Friday) is the day we are watching film on our own and as a team in order to create our game plan, so as of right now we don’t know too much about them,” Carlsen said.

Iowa City High boasts a balanced attack. Hattie Galloway and Emmy McComas are tied for the team lead with 178 kills apiece, while Kaitlin Loria has 177. 

“We have a decent amount of video on them, so we are going to start breaking that down first,” Baethke said.

Ankeny’s Marlee Ellison spikes the ball during the Hawkettes’ victory. She finished with three kills. (Photo by Evan Reiter)