Prep Volleyball- The Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union (IGHSAU) released their preseason volleyball rankings for the 2026 season yesterday and three local teams broke into the top 15 for their respective classes, including two top 10 teams from the Southeast Iowa Super Conference (SEISC).
Class 5A
Waukee Northwest, the defending champions, start this year at poll position after going 38-1 last year. The Wolves graduated only two players from their state championship squad last year and return all of their main hitters for their senior campaigns. Avery Vogt left behind a massive hole in the offense after nearly tabbing 1,000 assists last year, but this team will again prove tough.
Iowa City West and Ankeny round out the top three teams, while last year’s runner-up Ankeny Centennial slots in at #10 and the only team to beat the Wolves last year, Waukee, who missed out on the state tournament last season will begin the year at #12.
Class 4A
North Scott shocked everyone as the #5-seed last year by winning the Class 4A championship, but the Lady Lancers will be playing up a league this year after their move to Class 5A. So, there will be a new champion this year. Norwalk enters the year as the favorite.
The Warriors still have Elle Hatlevig for two more years after she collected 465 kills last year. The team returns their main trio of Hatlevig, Delaynee Steele, and Hadley Michael, as they hope to finish on top. Sioux Center, last year’s runner up, sits right behind the Warriors with Bishop Heelan at #3.
Clear Creek-Amana, who has experienced some incredible seasons end in heartbreak recently, slots in at #5, while Waverly-Shell Rock, who clocked a losing season last year is at #6.
Burlington is ranked at #14 to start the season as they look to build off of a 31-13 record last year that saw the Grayhounds reclaim the Southeast Conference title and advance to the Regional Semifinals. Burlington had five players tab over 140 kills last year and return three of those players, while also returning both of their setters in Lauren Schrader and Sela Rascon. They start the season on the road against Galesburg on Monday, August 24th.
Class 3A
Just like Class 4A, Davenport Assumption–#12 in Class 4A–moved up a class after winning the championship leaving a power vacuum with #1 Cherokee, #2 Humboldt, or #3 Western Christian ready to swoop in. #4 Dike-New Hartford enters the fold after moving up from Class 2A, which saw the Wolverines win three of the last five state championships, including a perfect 50-0 record in 2023.
Class 2A
After going 50-1 last year and winning the state championship, Denver is not the favorite to repeat. In fact, the Cyclones just snuck into the top 15 at #15. Moreover, last year’s runner-up Hinton is located back at #7. Grundy Center is expected to take over at #1 followed by Union and Beckman Catholic.
Class 1A
The SEISC always provides formidable competition for the rest of the state and this year is no different as the Class 1A rankings slotted Wapello in at #7 and Holy Trinity Catholic at #3. The two teams have met in the postseason each of the last two years with the Arrows nearly coming back to knock off the Crusaders in five sets last year.
Mila Jordan is set to return as Wapello’s top attacker, as she tabbed over 300 kills and 70 aces for the season. The Arrows will also bring back both setters in Taeya Wagner and Annaka Greiner, who combined for 768 assists and 54 aces. Wapello will compete in a quad at Burlington on August 27th to begin the season.
Holy Trinity Catholic fell one game short of the state tournament a year ago, snapping a four-year streak. The Crusaders will have to replace Presley Myers, but Adalyn Kruse, with nearly 400 kills last season, is considered one of the best hitters in the state as she shared SEISC-S Player of the Year honors with Myers. Matching the theme for our local teams, the squad’s two setters from last year, Elizabeth Griffin and Callie Kruse, return to the court. Additionally, for a team that always dominates from the service line, they return 81% of their total aces from last year. The Crusaders ring in the new year with an outdoor match against Burlington on August 31st at Bracewell Stadium.
Janesville finished just short of their state championship aspirations but they will start the 2026 season as the favorites. Wapsie Valley is at #2, while Ankeny Christian, who recently won three state titles in a row, enters at #4. Dunkerton, who knocked out Holy Trinity Catholic last year, slides in at #6.