Postseason 2024 is in full swing and next up is the girls team regionals. All teams have a shot in claiming a state title and the road begins on Friday with one or two rounds taking place. While there are some state contender favorites, this is a great opportunity for many teams to do some damage and end their season on a high note. Check out my predictions and quick tidbits below before play begins in less than 24 hours!
2A Team Regionals
State Quarterfinals Prediction
#2 Pleasant Valley v Waterloo West
Region 1:
#1 ranked Dowling appears in Region 1 to kick things off as they get their quest underway tomorrow for state supremacy once again after a runner-up finish in 2023. The Maroons have dominated almost every team they have played this year and I don't expect anything different in these first few regional rounds. Waukee NW and Ankeny Centennial are on the bottom half of this region and are expected to clash in their mini regional final. Both of these teams are fairly young for a few different reasons with the Wolves having 4 freshmen occupy the top 4 spots in the lineup, and the Jags without their top player Abbie Peterson due to injury. Peterson will not be back the rest of this season per the Ankeny Fanatic Podcast this week. A tough draw for Waukee NW who has proven to be a top 4 team in the state this season. Predicting a Dowling and Waukee NW state quarterfinal matchup here which could get interesting. Waukee NW played the closest with Dowling out of anyone all year. It's going to take a lot from the youngsters to overcome the Maroons.
Region 2:
#4 Valley has looked a lot different this year compared to 2023. No Claire Gu, no Maddie Hockmuth, and the Tigers have really come into their own especially down the stretch. Top player Lexi Moen is ranked #2 in the state going into the postseason this week, she along with all of her teammates qualifed for the individual state tournament on Monday, the only team in 2A girls to get all their entries through. #6 Johnston looms on the other half of the region, along with Cedar Falls. CF has stepped it up over the last few weeks, most notably beating top 10 ranked at the time Waterloo West while missing a couple lineup players it looked. The Johnston/Cedar Falls match for a state berth is going to be a lot closer than I think some people think. Mackenzie Sagers is the #5 ranked player in 2A girls and could realistically grab two points for the Tigers in that meet herself. Predicting a Valley v Johnston state quarterfinal.
Region 3:
This has got to be the most competitive region in 2A by a mile. Preseason top 4 team CR Washington, undefeated #9 Marshalltown, #5 ranked IC Liberty, previous top 10 Dubuque Hempstead. That is just the top half of this region! Add in top 10 teams Clinton and Linn-Mar along with a tough Marion squad, this regional is brutal. Where do I even start here. The Warriors have started to find their groove the last week or so down the stretch, and have the runaway best player in the state in Katelynn Kock, thats 2 points for Wash. Marshalltown is undefeated coming into regionals, but has not had a very tough scheudle to date. Will their confidence outweigh potential nerves and tougher opponents? The Bobcats get through to set up a dual with Dubuque Hempstead, and this is where things are going to get spicy. I am not sure on this, but Hempstead may be missing two starters from their lineup for team regionals, which would be a big blow to them and potentially moving along, and also opens the door for Marshalltown. Liberty has been taking care of business and can they keep that going. They are the team to beat in this half of the region. Some uncertainty and opportunity in the bottom have of region 3 as well. Clinton is the highest ranked team here and should take care of business in their first round. The story will be a battle between the Marion squads with Linn-Mar and Marion. Marion is tougher than people think, they would be a top 3 ranked 1A team if they didn't get moved up, and Michaela Goad/Natalee Hartman have a lot of matches under their belts, also qualifying for 2A doubles on Monday. Doubles will be key in this probable matchup. Predicting a Liberty v Marshalltown and Clinton v Linn-Mar mini regional finals. Liberty and Clinton advance to the state quarterfinals out of this brutal region.
Region 4:
My second most competitive regional in 2A, region 4. #2 ranked Pleasant Valley headlines this section of the draw along with top 10 Iowa City West. Former top 10 ranked team Waterloo West is also in this section. This one should be a bit more straight forward to which four teams make it to the mini regional finals. I got PV v North Scott and IC West v Waterloo West. The PV/NS matchup could be very tricky, if you might remember, they played earlier in the season and PV won 5-4. Freshman Madelyn Jepsen of the Lancers has had Lauren Masengarb's number as of late, defeating her for the second time in their regional final on Monday. PV I think is just a little too strong here at the end and gets it done, but again very close. The battle of the "Wests" is going to be very tight! Just a few weeks ago, Iowa City West took the dual 5-4, and this is one that I think they could play ten times and it turns out 5-5 in the spread. On the flip of a coin, I have Waterloo West moving on 5-4 to set up a state quarterfinal with Pleasant Valley.
State Quarterfinals Predictions:
Region 1:
The largest regional as 1A has 70 total teams this year. Good thing is the state finally organized this region so when they get to the quarterfinals, it is caught up and the same day as the other regions, and they for once are not behind by a few days. I don't foresee too much excitement at the top of the bracket here with Columbus and Bishop Heelan most likely advancing to face each other in the first round of state. This is a tricky match as the Sailors are down big compared to what seems like two decades of dominance for them. Heelan comes in undefeated but with a not as tough SOS. I'm looking at St. Albert and Spirit Lake to be the challengers to Heelan come the mini regional final. Otherwise there is a lot of opportunity for a bunch of teams to win a few rounds and press their luck!
Region 2:
What is easily the most intriguing region of the bracket, #2 Pella is the frontrunner here to come out of this region and into the final four. Their top half of this section will probably be straight forward for the Dutch and they will see who they will take on in the quarters. The bottom half of this section on the other hand, buckle up everyone. 3 more top 10 teams in Lewis Central, Clarinda and Red Oak all will battle it out for a QF spot to most likely face Pella. Clarinda and Red Oak just played recently with Clarinda winning 5-4, I will expect another close battle like that and too bad that is in the second round of the regional. Lewis Central beat both of these teams 7-2 earlier in the season and unless something crazy happens, I think the Titans make it through. Dutch v Titans for final four berth.
Region 3:
After a disappointing end to the 2023 season in the QFs, the Saints are ready to begin their quest for their 3rd state title in four years. Xavier boasts the top ranked 1A player in the state Gabi Fleming, as well as veterans Avery Link, Izzy Tobin and Ruby Smith who all have a lot of experience late in the season. I don't expect Xavier to have much trouble getting through their regional and into the QFs. Who will their opponent be? Look for a mini regional final matchup of North Polk and Kuemper Catholic. Kuemper is ranked #6 and would battle a North Polk team who had been in the top ten for a number of weeks. I think Kuemper gets through to take on the Saints for a chance at the final four.
Region 4:
If the two ranked teams of Central Dewitt and Decorah take care of business and work their way through the draw, they will meet up in the first round of state. In what is an overall down year in 1A girls where many are expecting a clash of Xavier and Pella in the state finals, this is a good opportunity for one of these two teams to reach the final four. The Sabers upset Xavier last year on their way to their first final four in program history, and Decorah has had a rich history of their own as a program. Dike New-Hartford who has had a great season of their own along with Maharishi, are teams I think can oppose CD and Decorah in their mini regional finals.
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