MARION — Sofia Schulte provided a plug for a fitness center in Dyersville. Her play reflected it even more than her words.
“I go about once a week to Bar Raising Fitness,” she said. “A lot of agility stuff, working on speed. Now that it’s volleyball season, I’m working a lot more on jumping.”
A junior at West Delaware, Schulte doesn’t exactly tower over the competition at 5-foot-6. Not until she leaps.
She recorded 15 kills — against only one error — in 27 swings as Class 3A 15th-ranked West Delaware swept a pair of matches Thursday at the Linn-Mar Quad.
The Hawks handled Linn-Mar (25-15, 25-17), then dropped Cedar Rapids Jefferson (25-14, 25-12), sending their record to 6-1.
“(Schulte) definitely has a lot of shots,” Coach Brett Mather said. “That’s a big thing as an outside hitter.
“I’ve been recording all of our outsides’ swings, and it’s fun to see the vertical (jump) on some of them.”
The two Wamac Conference teams (West Delaware and Williamsburg) went a combined 4-0 against the two Mississippi Valley Conference squads (Linn-Mar and Jefferson).
Williamsburg outlasted Linn-Mar, 26-24, 19-25, 17-15, in the only three-set match of the night, rallying from a 24-22 deficit in the first set and climbing out of a 14-10 hole in the third.
“We’ve been working a lot on staying calm and collected in big moments,” Raiders Coach Brittni Powell said. “Every practice, we put them through some stressful stuff.”
Such as a drill called “10 and 6,” according to junior Kylee Suhr: “We have 10 serve-receive (opportunities) and we have to get six kills. It puts pressure on us.”
Williamsburg (3-3) beat Jefferson in its first match, 25-11, 25-23.
West Delaware has been an elite program throughout Mather’s lengthy tenure; he earned his 1,000th career win in 2024. The Hawks were 30-12 last season but were ousted from the postseason in the 3A regional semifinals.
“I think culture is a big deal this year,” Schulte said. “That’s been one of our focuses … the bench support, girls cheering on the floor.”
“We want to be excellent,” Mather said. “We know we’re not going to be perfect, but I like the direction we’re moving.”
Through seven matches, Schulte is averaging 3.80 kills per set with a .441 kill efficiency.
Bar-raising, indeed.
West Delaware def. Linn-Mar, 25-15, 25-17
West Delaware def. Cedar Rapids Jefferson, 25-14, 25-12
Williamsburg def. Cedar Rapids Jefferson, 25-11, 25-23
Williamsburg def. Linn-Mar, 26-24, 19-25, 17-15