No. 1 Clear Creek Amana sweeps Xavier in a 4A volleyball regional final

TIFFIN — What does No. 1 look like, you ask?

It looked like that. Precisely like that.

Top-ranked Clear Creek Amana played brilliant, lull-less volleyball and swept Cedar Rapids Xavier (25-15, 25-15, 25-15) in a Class 4A regional final Tuesday night at Clear Creek Amana High School.

“We came out with a vengeance tonight,” setter Emily Henderson said. “If we play like that (at state), I like our chances a lot.”

The Clippers (41-3) advance to the state tournament for the fourth consecutive year; they’ll face No. 9 Sergeant Bluff-Luton (19-12) in a first-round match at 4 p.m. Monday at Xtream Arena in nearby Coralville.

CCA played with the lead virtually the entire match. Only twice all match did Xavier (15-16) score three consecutive points.

“Our biggest focus, especially the last couple of weeks, is a next-point mentality,” Averie Lower said. “It’s a matter of staying confident, not letting one mistake affect us.”

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Lower smoked 14 kills, sophomore Julia Schlarbaum added 13 and CCA enjoyed a whopping 47-22 advantage in kills. The Clippers missed only two of their 76 serves.

Henderson ran the attack with 40 assists, and libero Kendall Ronnfeldt led a defense that regularly kept the ball off the floor.

The Clippers avenged an Aug. 30 loss to Xavier, and denied the Saints a 10th consecutive state trip.

“Revenge was a goal, yes,” CCA Coach Jackie Clubb said. “We wanted to prove that we’re a better team than the first time we played.

“We weren’t going to give up on any point. All gas, no brakes.”

Each of the three set followed a similar script, and all ended with an identical score.

CCA scored seven consecutive points for an early 10-4 advantage in the first set. It scored eight of nine for a 12-5 cushion in the middle set. And it stormed to a 9-2 lead in the finale.

“THIS is BOR-ing,” the home student chanted, briefly. But there’s nothing boring when a team plays at this high of a level.

A future Arizona State University basketball player, Lower has been a mainstay during CCA’s four-year state run. The rapid emergence of Schlarbaum has given the Clippers added versatility.

“She’s improved greatly,” Henderson said of Schlarbaum. “She’s become more consistent, and she has a great arm swing.”

Kyanna Harbeck led Xavier with eight kills. Maddie Ireland distributed 22 assists.

Clear Creek Amana 3, Cedar Rapids Xavier 0

(25-15, 25-15, 25-15)

Class 4A Regional Final, at Tiffin

Serving: Xavier 37-44 (.841), CCA 74-76 (.974)

Aces: Xavier 3 (three with 1), CCA 5 (Bailey Simpson 2)

Kills: Xavier 22 (Kyanna Harbeck 8), CCA 47 (Averie Lower 14)

Assists: Xavier 22 (Maddie Ireland 22), CCA 44 (Emily Henderson 40)

Blocks: Xavier 4 (Macie Lupkes 3), CCA 2 (two with 1)

Comments: jeff.linder@thegazette.com