REGION ROYALTY
No. 3 Tritons capture another 11-B crown
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Third-ranked Iowa Central wrapped up another regional volleyball championship in dominating fashion here Wednesday night.
The Tritons picked up a three-set sweep over Hawkeye to earn the Region 11-B Tournament title.
Scores were 25-17, 26-24 and 25-21.
Iowa Central (32-3 overall) now advances to the North Central District championship on Saturday, where the Tritons will host Region 13 winner North Dakota College of Science for a spot in the NJCAA Div. II National Tournament at 1 p.m.
Annie Elbert was named the most outstanding player of the tourney, with Fort Dodge Senior High graduate Meah McCaleb and Abby Jensen joining her on the all-tournament squad.
After exchanging points in the first, it was a 7-1 run that broke things open. Iowa Central went up 15-9, with Hawkeye getting it down to two points before the Tritons finished things off by scoring the final five.
"Hawkeye came in playing its best volleyball of the season," ICCC head coach Sara Horn said. "They run an extremely fast offense and put a lot of pressure on you in other areas.
"I thought our girls did a great job of adjusting to their tempo and working hard to string some points together."
Clara Newton had a team-high 10 kills, while Cooper Griffin and Kampbell Bryte each added eight. Rylyn McCarty had seven kills, Elbert six and Madison Rogers four.
The second was much closer, as Hawkeye (20-17) held a lead through the early points. Down 22-20, the Tritons scored four in a row to take a lead before the Redtails rallied. But it was the ICCC defense that came up big, ending the set with a block.
McCaleb finished with 22 digs, four assists and an ace. Devon Rodewald had 12 digs and Jensen, 11.
"Our defense was picking up everything," Horn said. "We had some big offensive games from Clara and Annie."
Hawkeye had won seven in a row entering the regional final, including a win over Western Iowa Tech last Saturday.
Iowa Central is 13-1 at home this season, with the lone loss coming to second-rated Cowley County. They are They are 83-8 over the last 91 matches played inside Hodges Fieldhouse.
The Tritons have reached nationals each of the past six years and now have six regional titles over the last seven seasons.
No. 1 Kirkwood claimed the Region 11-A Tournament crown with a win over DMACC. The Eagles qualify for nationals with the victory.
The national tournament is Nov. 18-21 in Cedar Rapids.