EDITOR’S NOTE: Some more photos will be added to this story later.
(Story by Stephen McDaniel)
There was nothing the Ankeny volleyball players wanted more than to be the team that dethroned top-ranked Waukee Northwest as the Class 5A state champion.
But that dream fell short by one match and a few points.
No. 3 Ankeny rallied from a two-set deficit to force a fifth set against No. 2 Dallas Center-Grimes before eventually falling short in the Class 5A semifinals on Wednesday at Xtream Arena in Coralville.
DC-G, competing in 5A for the first time, prevailed by scores of 25-16, 25-21, 16-25, 21-25, 15-11. Now the new kids on the block will be the ones to challenge the reigning champs.
“We just knew what we wanted from the start (of the season), and this has always been our end goal,” said Ankeny junior outside hitter Hailey Wiederin, whose team finished with a 32-7 record. “Obviously we came up short, but I’m just proud of the journey that we’ve had along the way. So many amazing milestones hit and so many goals reached. I’m just proud of everyone on this team.”
It was a nightmarish start for the Hawkettes, who struggled to capitalize on early leads in the first and second sets. That allowed DC-G (35-2) to grab the early advantage.
Senior middle hitter Raquel Risk teamed up with sophomore setter Kellen Roush on a block to give Ankeny a 7-5 lead in the opening set. Risk then answered a kill from DC-G’s Madison Messerly with one of her own to put the Hawkettes ahead, 8-6.
But another kill from Messerly turned the tide in the Mustangs’ favor.
DC-G rattled off nine unanswered points in a 12-1 run to build an 18-9 margin. The two teams split the next 14 points, but that was all that the Mustangs needed to close out the set.
“(The team talks) were intense, but sweet to try and lock us back in and not sink ourselves into a bigger hole like we have in the past,” said Roush. “They helped rebuild us up and focused us on the next point like none of that happened.”
The Hawkettes got another early lead in the second set by scoring four of the first five points. They got a block from Risk and kills from Wiederin and senior Marlee Ellison to maintain a 7-4 advantage.
Back-to-back kills from Messerly and Avery Edgington sparked a 6-1 run that allowed DC-G to take a 10-8 lead. The Hawkettes were then stuck trying to overcome the two-point deficit the rest of the way.
Ankeny pulled within 18-17 before a 3-0 run gave the Mustangs the cushion they needed to close out the set.
“I think we were just playing as individuals and not playing for each other,” Wiederin said of her team’s early struggles. “That’s what we came in and said, ‘Hey we need to stop playing for ourselves, we need to play for each other and just go play.’”
With their backs against the wall and the season officially on the line, the Hawkettes responded.
A kill from junior Elle Isaacson and a couple hitting miscues by DC-G gave Ankeny a 3-0 lead in Set 3, and it opened up the door for Wiederin to heat up.
Wiederin hammered a trio of kills and also teamed up with Risk for a block to get some momentum going in the Hawkettes’ favor.
She landed the 12th of her 20 kills and served back-to-back aces to power a 5-2 run midway through the set, giving Ankeny a seven-point lead.
The Hawkettes closed the set out with five straight points off two hitting errors from DC-G, a Roush ace, a block from Quinn Roush and an Isaacson kill.
“It was a really fun experience,” Kellen Roush said of playing in her first semifinal. “All the girls on that court are so special, and everyone really fought to the last point. It’s a fun experience to play (in state), but especially with this group and the seniors. It was even more special than I could’ve imagined.”
Even when facing a three-point deficit early in the fourth set, the Hawkettes found the response they needed.
Ellison landed a kill, and Wiederin followed shortly thereafter with two kills and an ace on three straight points to tie it at 6-6.
Isaacson opened up the set for Ankeny with one of her 13 kills to spark a 7-1 run that also saw the Hawkettes get a kill from Quinn Roush, back-to-back aces from Kellen Roush, another kill from Isaacson, and a block from Ellison and Quinn Roush.
DC-G later pulled within three points before Wiederin and Ellison each had a kill to force the fifth set.
“It just showed how resilient we are,” said Roush, who finished with 48 assists, 17 digs and four aces. “We knew what we needed to work on the next set. Especially with all our players, we took that information to heart and continued playing until we could stop that one (problem) and keep moving on.”
Ankeny just couldn’t find its groove with the winner-take-all fifth set.
The Hawkettes overcame an early two-point deficit, but they were never able to regain the lead.
Kellen Roush tied it at 7-7 with one of her two kills, but DC-G proceeded to go on a 7-3 run that put the Hawkettes on the brink of defeat.
They stayed alive with a ball landing just out of play, but a final kill from Messerly officially ended Ankeny’s season in the semifinals for the third time since the program won the 5A crown back in the 2020 season.
“(Momentum) really flipped and I’m glad that we fought to force that fifth (set), but we just came up short,” said Wiederin, who also had 15 digs and four aces in the loss.
Ankeny will have a few holes to fill as it starts to look toward the 2027 season. Ellison, Risk and Quinn Roush will all graduate along with libero Katelyn Mescher, who racked up 19 digs in Wednesday’s match.
Macie Kohl, Jenna Harbour and Haylie Eimers will also have to be replaced.
“(Our) squad is super gritty, and I’m just super proud of all our seniors because they’re just amazing people,” Wiederin said.
But even with the losses to the roster, the Hawkettes will return a very strong foundation with Wiederin, Isaacson and Kellen Roush all slated to return.
“(The seniors) really taught me to trust in my team and that it’s not just me out there,” Roush said. “They really helped me learn new things, they pushed me in practice, and I wouldn’t trade that for the world.”