Iowa’s Top Volleyball Athletes Seeing Success in Track and Field – Part 1
Spending time on the club volleyball courts, it’s so obvious the athleticism that emanates with the ability to jump, swing, and move so fluidly. For many of Iowa’s top volleyball players, they also have some accolades in track and field…
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Continue ReadingSpending time on the club volleyball courts, it’s so obvious the athleticism that emanates with the ability to jump, swing, and move so fluidly. For many of Iowa’s top volleyball players, they also have some accolades in track and field to go along with what they can do on the volleyball. This past weekend at the Drake Relays featured some of the best athletes in the nation and some just happened to be some volleyball players out of Iowa. Here are some of the top athletes who are having a strong year in both sports.
Madison Harms of Sergeant Bluff-Luton is the reigning Class 3A high jump champion and has already cleared 5’7 this season. She has been playing club volleyball for Nebraska Elite and will play at South Dakota in the fall.
Aliyah Carter has a couple of state volleyball team titles to her resume, but she is also a state champion long jumper when she jumped 18 feet last year at the state meet. This season she has jumped 18’5. Carter most recently finished third at the Drake Relays.
Helaina Hillyard has had a big club season for Iowa Rockets and is a hammer in the middle that can approach touch over ten feet. This track season she has cleared 5’4 in the high jump and 16’10 in the long jump which ranks her top in her district.
Faith DeRonde has the top throw in 3A in the discus with a throw of 138’09. She finished top ten at the Drake Relays and then went and played at the Northern Lights Qualifier over the weekend. A top outside for CIS 16M, DeRonde is an exceptional all around athlete. Club teammate Layanna Green of Waukee competed in the high jump at Drake.
Paige Kisley of Osage was on their state semifinal team this past season and played for Flight 18U as a Sophomore. Kisley is one of the top hurdlers in the state.
Sallee (Neon Headband) going up for the block at Northern Lights Qualifier.CIA – A Track Team In Itself
CIA has a whole club of athletes who have been able to find success on the track. In Class 1A, Kyah Luhring, a top libero for Grundy Center and CIA 17 Black is one of the state’s top 200/400 runners with a top five time in the 200 and 400 hurdles. The Grundy Center 4×400 Meter Relay also has the top time in Class 1A.
CIA 16 Black has a full squad of athletes with Meredith Street, a Class of 2022 outside hitter from Osage who has some of the top times in 2A. Only a Freshman she has a top five time in her District in the 100, 200, 400, and high jump. Osage also has top relay teams in the 4×200 and 4×400. Outside hitters Saari Kuehl and Kaylee Sallee are teammates on the court as outside hitters, but are often times squaring off against each other in track meets across the Cedar Valley with Kuehl competing for Gladbrook-Reinbeck and Sallee for Hudson. Kuehl has cleared 5’4 in the high jump while Sallee is right there with a jump of 5’3. Sallee also has top five times in her district in the 100, 200, 400, and long jump, finishing in the top ten in the long jump at Drake Relays.