In 2009, the Wolves aren't quite as flashy, dominating or experienced as their predecessors, but the season will once again finish inside the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids.
Proving the naysayers wrong and overcoming any lingering doubts of their own, IKM-Manning clinched a State Volleyball Tournament return on Tuesday night in Harlan with a hard-fought, four-game decision over Underwood, prevailing 26-24, 25-22, 20-25, 25-21, in a Class 2-A, Region 2 final.
The ninth-ranked Wolves (33-5) will face No. 2 Western Christian of Hull (37-9) in a 2-A state quarterfinal next Thursday, November 12, at 6:00 p.m.
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And she's not alone. In their two state tourney matches last season, only two current Wolves - Shelby Hansen and Becky Halbur - saw extensive playing time. But what this season's team lacks in big-match experience, it has made up for with hard work and a determined spirit.
"They came together," said IKM-M head coach Kathy Lage. "We have to realize that these are the girls that pushed the teams of the past. All the teams that came before us made IKM-Manning what we are today. It's good to get back."
The trip to Cedar Rapids will be the Wolves' second in two years as a consolidated program, although Manning also went in 2006 and 2007, giving Lage four straight state qualifiers. This year's squad might have been the toughest of the four to convince early on that 'State' was attainable.
"In August, we set our theme as 'Believe: all is possible,' Lage said. "I think the day we talked to the whole team about that, there were definitely two or three people who were 'Yes, we're going to be there,' there were some going, 'Well, we probably could' and there were some like 'Are you crazy?' That was probably the community feeling, too."
A senior-dominated squad, Underwood (26-10) was a strong contender to dash the Wolves' state tourney dreams on Tuesday, and the Eagles might have missed their big chance early to do just that.
Back to back ace serves by Lindsay Campin staked Underwood to a 20-14 lead in game one before IKM-M rattled off four straight points. The Wolves still trailed 22-18 but never faced a set point, securing the win on consecutive kills by Hagedorn and Becky Halbur that capped an 8-2 finish.
The Eagles also let a six-point lead slip away in game two when IKM-M erased a 15-9 deficit with a 10-3 run. Underwood took one final lead at 20-19, but the Wolves scored six of the next eight points to win, 25-22.
Even though IKM-Manning swept its way through conference play this season, as well as its first three regional matches, Hagedorn credits a tough series of Saturday tournaments for making the team battle-tested for situations such as Tuesday's first two games.
"We've been down a lot before and we've come back, so we know we can do it," she said, "and we believe all is possible. That's our motto."
Despite falling behind early, the Eagles finally finished off a win in game three, 25-20, when Carlie Mander recorded a kill and a block for the final two points.
In game four, IKM-Manning scored the first five points, Underwood answered with an 8-1 run and a close battle ensued to the finish. Down 17-16, the Wolves put together a key 4-0 run and were able to close out the match, 25-21.
"Underwood is a fantastic team, and what great vollies - they just kept after it," Lage said. "Balls fell our way when we needed them to."
Lage added that she expected an even match coming in, and would anticipate a similar match if the two teams played again.
"I think if we did a World Series kind of thing, it would really go seven games," she said. "I knew they had multiple hitters and ran a multiple offense. To tell you the truth, their defense kind of surprised me. We kind of backed off and tipped a little bit too much.
"But we have a lot of heart, and a lot of teamwork happened tonight."
The Wolves' team balance showed once again in the final attack numbers, which included a solid kill efficiency of 27 percent. Liz Halbur took top honors with 11 kills, followed by Becky Halbur with 10 and Hagedorn, Alex Halbur and Kaylee Blake with eight apiece. Hansen added five kills.
Also at the net, blocking leaders included Becky Halbur (6), Liz Halbur (5), Hagedorn (4) and Blake (3).
Setters Ashley Lage and Courtney Eischeid provided 23 and 17 assists, respectively.
Hagedorn topped the dig chart with 20, Alex Halbur had 17, Becky Halbur 14 and Hansen 13.
After a shaky start, the Wolves served 91 percent as a team with 10 aces. Six players tallied between 10 and 16 successful serves, with Lage leading the way at 16-for-18 with three aces.
Regional Final Volleyball Scores
(Tuesday, November 3)
Class 1-A: (Regions 3 & 4)
Southern Cal def. Council Bluffs St. Albert: 25-20, 25-16, 20-25, 19-25, 15-11.
Treynor def. Stanton: 25-10, 25-20, 24-26, 27-25.
Class 2-A: (Regions 1 & 2)
Western Christian def. Kuemper Catholic: 25-10, 25-12, 25-13.
IKM-Manning def. Underwood: 26-24, 25-22, 20-25, 25-21.
Class 3-A: (Regions 1 & 2)
Sioux City Bishop Heelan def. Storm Lake: 25-13, 25-14, 25-19.
Dallas Center-Grimes def. Atlantic: 25-22, 25-23, 25-9.
Class 4-A: (Regions 1 & 2)
Ankeny def. Sioux City East: 23-25, 25-16, 25-19, 25-18.
Council Bluffs Abraham Lincoln def. Johnston: 25-17, 25-12, 25-15.
Class 2-A State Tournament Pairings
(at U.S. Cellular Center - Cedar Rapids)
Quarterfinals (Thursday, November 12)
IKM-Manning (33-5) vs. Western Christian (37-9) - 6:00 p.m., Court One
Sheldon (37-2) vs. Dike-New Hartford (41-3) - 7:15 p.m., Court One
Camanche (42-3) vs. Wapsie Valley (36-2) - 6:00 p.m., Court Two
Pella Christian (23-14) vs. Mount Vernon (40-1) - 7:15 p.m., Court Two
Semifinals (Friday, November 13)
Top Bracket winners play at 6:00 p.m. (Court Two)
Bottom Bracket winners play at 7:15 p.m. (Court Two)
Championship (Saturday, November 14)
Semifinal winners play at 2:00 p.m. (Center Court)
