Season preview number three, here we go. Maybe the most exciting division in 2023, the 2A girls side could be very competitive all around, in individual tournaments later on and the team tournament rounding out the year. Instead of a big intro, I will get right to it below.
Key Dates:
March 10 - First Practices
March 27 - First day of matches
May 10 - Individual regionals
May 13 - Team regionals begin
May 26-27 - Individual state tournament
May 30 - Team final four
Storylines
Two time defending team state champions, Dowling looks to reload for the new season after losing star Allison Szalay and two other key starters to graduation. Coach Chalstrom will have his team ready, will it be enough for a three-peat?
Iowa City West - there is a number of storylines out of Iowa City especially with a few things going on from last season. Brenda Guan (Centennial grad) is the new head coach for the Women of Troy. How many former players that skipped out on last season will be back this time around? Reports say Ella De Young is not playing this spring, and that CR Prairie standout Sasha Postnikov has transferred to West.
Will there be repeat singles and doubles state champions in 2023? Gu for Valley returns for her senior season as the heavy favorite to repeat. Kock/Zylstra are back together in Cedar Rapids and there are rumblings they are looking to go doubles again this season.
Team State Title Contenders
Dowling Catholic: The Maroons are the two-time defending team state champions. Is this year rebuild or reload for Coach Chalstrom's squad? Time will tell over the next few months! Ava Petersen figures to move to the top spot this year with Allison Szalay's departure, and some experienced players to support Petersen along the way filling up the rest of the lineup. It will be interesting to see how their depth looks this season compared to the last couple of years, but I expect them to still be a very strong team up and down the lineup as their quest for a three-peat begins next week.
CR Washington: A team that became very good by the week last year only lost I believe one or two starters from the lower half of the lineup. Led by defending doubles state champions Katelynn Kock and Kathryn Zylstra, the Warriors have a lot of pieces to get to the team title match this spring. Kock and Zylstra form the best 1-2 in the state on the same team, and they will be leaned on again for a deep postseason run. While the top two will provide almost a guaranteed three points per meet, will their depth be strong enough to contend. Coach Brandon Hornback has departed, and former Xavier Saint Nina Marquardt has taken over the reigns.
Cedar Falls: The Tigers out of Cedar Falls, like Wash, only lost limited starters from last year with their #5 graduating. Coach Tara Sagers bunch has a lot of returning experience led by 3rd place singles state finisher Maya Mallavarapu. In what will be the most likely battle for the MVC crown with the Warriors, CF has good depth to challenge for a team title match berth. It may come down to a semi-final battle with Wash (each team won once last year in their two meetings) to make that final meet. A few players down the lineup are going to need to step up.
Other teams to watch: Johnston, Pleasant Valley, Valley
Players to Watch
Claire Gu, Valley
Katelynn Kock - CR Wash
Ava Petersen - Dowling
Maya Mallavarapu - Cedar Falls
Kathryn Zylstra - CR Wash
Abbie Peterson - Centennial
Andrea Porubcin - Bettendorf
Kira Smith - Ankeny
Lily Holland - CR Jeff
Ella Gilbert - IC Liberty
2A Girls is going to be very competitive this year. Those are only 10 of many players on the watch list that are out in the high school world this year. Claire Gu obviously leads the pack as the defending singles champion as she looks to defend that, but is also joined by the Warrior duo of Kock/Zylstra who may be trying to defend their doubles title. I think there are a lot of girls that can play on many teams which makes the state tournaments and regionals so exciting in a few months. I also think the field of teams is going to be very competitive with maybe 6-7 teams that could really make a run into late May. The most interesting part to me this season is going to be seeing who goes singles/doubles when regionals rolls around. There could be an absolutely loaded singles field, or more of a balance when it's all said and done. Many of these girls are not seniors either and will be back for more in the future. Grab your popcorn this spring!
Team State Prediction
SF: Dowling def. Pleasant Valley
SF: CR Wash def. Cedar Falls
F: Dowling def. CR Wash
Singles State Champion Prediction
Claire Gu, Valley
Doubles State Champions Prediction
Katelynn Kock/Kathryn Zylstra - CR Wash
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