The North Tama volleyball team pictured with their Class 1A State Quarterfinal trophy at Xtream Arena in Coralville on Tuesday, Nov. 5. PHOTO COURTESY OF ROSS THEDE

CORALVILLE — The North Tama volleyball team opened the state tournament at Xtream Arena on Tuesday, Nov. 5, in heartbreaking fashion – falling to No. 4 Riverside in the Class 1A quarterfinals after what had been a glorious regional run.

Fifth-seeded North Tama started hot, fell behind, rallied and ran out of time to make a comeback in the five-set loss (18-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-16, 15-11) to the Bulldogs, ending their fifth state tournament appearance in the last eight years short of its goal.

For five seniors, the lasting legacy will be three trips to state in four seasons, but the state quarterfinalist trophy won’t stand as tall as the one they were hoping for.

“Being at state three out of four times is a great accomplishment,” North Tama senior defensive specialist Kylie Calderwood said. “Not a lot of people can say that and I’m just really grateful we got an opportunity to do that.”

“It’ll be rough knowing we beat two of the teams that are moving on.”

PHOTO BY ROSS THEDE

Riverside (39-3) entered the state tournament with a glossy record but ran into a challenge with North Tama (25-16) right off the opening serve.

The Redhawks used a six-point run served up by Calderwood to take a 15-11 lead in the first set and gradually pulled away to take the game. North Tama junior Kruiz Ewoldt had six of her match-high 26 kills in the opening set and helped rocket the Redhawks to a 1-0 lead.

“I think it was just the momentum of the team,” Ewoldt said. “All the good energy, all the positive vibes helped carry me through, but we get stuck in ruts sometimes.”

The two teams slugged it out in the second set, with a five-point run by Riverside giving the Bulldogs their first lead since scoring the first point of the set. Riverside found its offense through senior Sophia Taylor and junior Bentley Rone, who combined for seven of the last nine points to take Game 2.

Riverside rode the wave of momentum through the start of set three, pounding out a 9-2 lead that eventually ballooned to 16-5 before North Tama regained its balance. The Redhawks outscored the Bulldogs 12-3 to get within 19-17, and another four-point surge pushed North Tama to the front, 21-20. Freshman outside hitter Lily Sell stepped up in some big moments with some bigger swings, including the final point of a 25-23 triumph.

Redhawk junior outside hitter Kruiz Ewoldt pictured on Thursday, Nov. 7, during the 2024 IGHSAU Volleyball State Tournament held at Xtream Arena in Coralville after being named to the Class 1A All-Tournament Team. Ewoldt is only the third Redhawk in school history to receive the recognition. PHOTO COURTESY OF IOWA GIRLS HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETIC UNION

Leading 2-1, North Tama couldn’t close the door. The Redhawks trailed 10-9 before Riverside rattled off a 9-1 surge that gave the Bulldogs the edge down the homestretch. Ewoldt served up an ace and Sell had consecutive kills that got the Redhawks back within 21-15, but Riverside regained its form with a timeout and scored four of the final five points to push the match to a deciding fifth set.

A pair of serving errors in the fifth plagued North Tama’s chances, but Riverside couldn’t put them away either. The Bulldogs’ right-side attack lost its footing so Riverside found a spark in the middle with sophomore Lilli Reed, who recorded back-to-back kills to give her team a 9-5 advantage.

North Tama senior middle hitter Briar Blake countered for her squad, and Ewoldt got a pair of kills to drop to make it 13-10 Bulldogs. A swinging error sent Riverside into its first timeout of the set leading 13-11, and the Redhawks felt the comeback was at their fingertips.

Instead, Rone got a kill off the North Tama block and a swinging error sent the Redhawks to elimination.

“There were a lot of momentum shifts in there,” North Tama head coach Channing Halstead said. “I definitely think this was a semifinal matchup and not a first-round matchup, but we played that loaded schedule really early and it gave us some losses and we did it without Zoey (Rausch) so I guess it is what it is.

“We were pretty hot at the end of the year and ran into another team that was pretty good.”

Ewoldt’s 26 kills were accompanied by 13 more from Sell. Blake added eight, junior setter Cayleigh Heller had four, and sophomore Kahlia Even had three. Senior Faith Dvorak chipped in a kill during her partial role on the court.

Rausch, the Redhawks’ senior setter who sat out most of the team’s losses due to a concussion, totaled 31 assists. Heller had 18 more.

North Tama served 89-for-98 with eight aces as well, with three aces apiece for Calderwood and Ewoldt.

“These seniors this year have truly taught me so much,” said Ewoldt. “I would not be the player I am without them guiding me every day in practice.”

Rausch is eager to see what the Redhawks do once her senior group has moved on.

“This team will carry it on to next year,” she said. “They’re a strong team.”

Even still, with next year still on the horizon, Halstead had plenty to say about her seniors and their final season.

“Those girls have always been committed,” she said. “The team culture, these seniors have always loved the game and that’s what we base our program around is loving the game — loving each other just kinda happens naturally. Those girls set that example for years to come.

“Without their leadership or their examples, that doesn’t happen. They’ve got nothing to hang their heads about after getting to state three out of four years. Our culture is huge and that’s something I take a lot of pride in.”

Iowa Girls State Volleyball Tournament

At Xtream Arena, Iowa City

CLASS 1A

Quarterfinals

Tuesday, Nov. 5

Ankeny Christian def. Don Bosco, 25-18, 25-18, 25-22

Riverside def. North Tama, 18-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-16, 15-11

Janesville def. St. Ansgar, 25-23, 27-25, 25-22

BCLUW def. Holy Trinity Catholic, 25-22, 25-16, 25-19

Semifinals

Wednesday, Nov. 6

Ankeny Christian Academy def. Riverside, 25-12, 25-21, 25-18

BCLUW def. Janesville, 25-17, 25-23, 25-19

Championship

Thursday, Nov. 7

Ankeny Christian Academy def. BCLUW, 25-15, 25-13, 25-13

Class 1A All-Tournament Team

Carley Craighead, Ankeny Christian

Cassie Nason, BCLUW

Anna Weathers, Ankeny Christian

Kruiz Ewoldt, North Tama

Grace Farnsworth, BCLUW

Macey Nehring, Ankeny Christian

Katie Quick, Ankeny Christian (captain)