Southeast Iowa takes the spotlight

Four area schools ready to compete at state tournament.

Southeast Iowa has always been known for producing good volleyball teams. But somehow, in the grand scheme of things, this corner of the state always seemed to get overlooked in the wider scope.

That has all changed this year. The area has landed four teams in this year's state tournament, which gets under way today at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids.

Representing southeast Iowa will be Holy Trinity and New London in Class 1A, Mediapolis in Class 2A and Mount Pleasant in Class 3A.

That represents the most southeast Iowa teams to ever advance to the state tournament in the same year.

"I've never seen it like this before," said New London coach Maureen Heath, who is taking the Tigers to state for the second time in five years. "For this many teams to qualify for state ... I've never seen it quite like this. It's fantastic."

"For the last 25 years, the eastern part of the state has played some very, very good volleyball," said Mediapolis coach Dennis Jandrey, who is taking the Bullettes to state for the third time in his 19 years at the helm.

There are several factors which have gone into the recent success of volleyball in southeast Iowa.

The recent influx of players into offseason club volleyball has gradually raised the level of play in the area. From the Great River Juniors to several other team clubs, players are getting exposure to different types of play and different levels of competition. Not to mention the extra work on their game during the offseason.

"Club ball is huge," said Holy Trinity coach Melissa Freesmeier, who is taking a team to state for the sixth time in 15 years and has one state championship to her credit. "All four teams that are going to state have players who played on a club team all year round. That has a lot to do with it."

"Playing club ball more than doubles their season," said first–year Mount Pleasant coach Kelly Chaplin, who previously coached a club team in Iowa City and was a second assistant for the University of Iowa volleyball team. "That allows them to pick up different techniques and tactics. They pick up stuff that other girls are using. That helps out a ton. A lot of times college coaches don't go to a lot of high school matches because their seasons are concurrent. A lot of college coaches go to club tournaments where they can see maybe 20 of the best players around at the same time."

Another factor is the level of competition teams in southeast Iowa play. In addition to the top teams in the area — including Wapello, Central Lee, Fairfield, Iowa Mennonite School and Keota, to mention a few — teams are venturing out farther to get better competition. By playing better competition, it forces them to pick up their level of play.

For example, Holy Trinity ventured to St. Louis late in the season to play Incarnate Word, the eighth–ranked team in the nation. While the Crusaders were swept in two games, they made the games close and picked up the confidence which carried them to 12 straight game wins in the postseason.

"You've got to go out and play good teams and not be afraid to lose," Freesmeier said. "That gave us a chance to see what the next level has. That turned things around for us. That showed us what we needed to do and showed us that we can play with just about anyone."

The SEI Superconference Tournament also brings up the level of play. Year after year, the best small–school teams from southeast Iowa go head–to–head. More often than not, the team that wins that tournament ends up advancing to state. This year is no exception as Holy Trinity won the event.

"We always beat up on each other in the SEI Superconference Tournament," Jandrey said. "You know if you win that tournament you are good enough to go on to state."

Yet another factor is the state going from a three–class system to a four–class system. That opened doors for many teams which were on the borderline in the three–class system.

"We used to sit down here and everyone was clumped into one region," Jandrey said. "We all used to beat up on each other. When they went to four classes, they split us up. Now, they send us north and the 1A and 2A teams get split up. That allows more southeast Iowa teams to have a chance."

"We were able to get New London and Holy Trinity out of the same region this year," Freesmeier said. "That gave two great teams an opportunity to get to the next level instead of sending one of us home."

Another major factor is the level of coaching in southeast Iowa. Heath, Freesmeier and Jandrey have a combined 1,345–377–49 record, a winning percentage of 78.1 percent over a combined 54 years. Together they have taken teams to state 12 times. Not to mention the other top coaches in southeast Iowa who have been around for a while, including Ken Spielbauer at Wapello, Don Ford at Central Lee, Dwight Gingerich at IMS and Nancy Diers at Fairfield.

It has all added up to a banner year.

"Southeast Iowa has had some very good volleyball for a long time. We were just never given the respect we were due," Freesmeier said. "This is a chance to show southeast Iowa is a powerhouse. We can show the rest of the state we are all right over here."