Crusaders one game from State

FORT MADISON - Holy Trinity’s goodbye to Shottenkirk Gym for the volleyball season was quick, but there was some emotion with the farewell.
It took the Crusaders less than an hour to defeat Wayne 25-13, 25-12, 25-11 in Monday’s Class 1A Region 5 semifinal.
But it was the final home match of the season — the sixth-ranked Crusaders (29-6) play No. 12 BCLUW (32-14) in Wednesday’s 7 p.m. regional final at Williamsburg, with the winner advancing to next week’s state tournament in Coralville.
The realization of the moment came to senior Elizabeth Griffin earlier in the day.
“My mom and I were talking about how it was my last time playing here, and it's just a little sad,” Griffin said. “But I'm glad we still can keep playing.”
Fellow senior Adalyn Kruse wasn’t as emotional, but she knows the time is running out on her volleyball career. It’s a subject she said she’s trying to avoid.
“I try to keep it stress-free, just because if it's stressful, I'm going to overthink everything,” Kruse said.
There is a motivation for the Crusaders, considering last season they were eliminated in the regional final and had their four-year streak of state tournament appearances snapped.
“I think it's really big,” Kruse said. “I mean, we want to prove that we are better this year.”
“I think this team wants to go far, and I think everyone pushes each other, and I think we all just want to keep playing,” Griffin said.
“When you don't get your goal the year before, you have 365 days before you get the opportunity again,” Holy Trinity coach Melissa Freesmeier said. “My seniors and my juniors and sophomores who were there last year are hungry for the chance, and my freshmen, they just love to compete and love to play. So I think Wednesday is going to be a good night.”
Getting to Wednesday meant getting through Monday, and the Crusaders had control from the beginning. Kruse set an early tone with five consecutive kills in the first set.

“She’s on fire,” Freesmeier said. “ I know if she gets the ball, most likely she's going to get a kill. She's just seeing the court so well. She hits the line shot, the cross court, the roll in the middle, the tip. I mean, she's got it going on.”
“She’s on fire,” Griffin echoed. “She always is. But I feel like there's something in her that just wants to keep going even further than last year.”
Kruse was 24 of 25 hitting with 11 kills. Olivia Bendlage also had 11 kills.
Freesmeier was also able to get freshman middle hitter Kymber Jones some work in the third set. Freesmeier had said two weeks ago that Jones was going to miss the postseason with an illness, but she was cleared to practice with the team over the weekend.
“I don't think she's quite 100%, but I believe that by Wednesday she's just going to get stronger,” Freesmeier said. “I know that she's a competitor and she wants to be out there. She's got a couple touches tonight, and just to get her back in the flow of things with our offense was big.”
One step remains for the Crusaders in their quest to get back to the state tournament.
“I think Wednesday is going to be a good night,” Freesmeier said.
HOLY TRINITY STATISTICS
Kills — Adalyn Kruse 11, Olivia Bendlage 11, Kate Pieper 5, Brynn Denning 4, Makayla Simpson 4, Elizabeth Griffin 2, Kymber Jones 1. 
Serving — Griffin 14-15 (1 ace), Pieper 12-12 (2), Bendlage 11-13 (1), Calli Kruse 10-11 (2), Denning 9-9, A.Kruse 8-9 (1), Layne Schmitt 4-4.
Digs — Bendlage 13, Denning 11, A.Kruse 10, Pieper 9, Brooklyn Scheetz 8, Simpson 5, Griffin 5, C.Kruse 1.
Assists — Griffin 35, Scheetz 1.
Blocks — Pieper 3, Griffin 2, Denning 1.