(Oakland) With a record of 33-5 the Riverside Lady Dawgs embark on their first ever state volleyball tournament appearance. As the only unranked team in the field, they got the #8 seed and will oppose top ranked Springville.
KSOM will have the match at 6:00 p.m. Tuesday from Xtream Arena in Coralville. The Orioles are 37-3. “They are a good team and we are just going to get ready and play our game.” Riverside coach Brooke Flathers and her team have built a lot of momentum throughout the postseason, especially with their four set win over #3 Gehlen Catholic in the Regional Final. “I think our girls are very confident and ready. We are going to get a good practice in Monday night and take it one point at a time. These girls are capable of big things so we are going to take it one point at a time and get ready to roll.”
Don’t expect the Lady Dawgs to be phased by the environment. “We’ve played at some different facilities like playing in the WIC Tournament and being at Iowa Western. That’s just a different atmosphere. We’ve had a lot of big games this year where the atmosphere has been different than a regular game, so that’s been fun. Our girls play club volleyball too so they play
The community has been on cloud nine since the team punched their ticket last Wednesday. “It’s been really awesome. This is the first time Riverside has ever been to state in volleyball. The community support has been amazing. A couple of kids were at a gas station the other day and got hugs and congratulations on the season. The girls at practice have been really focused and energetic.”
Springville made the Class 1A state finals last year. Their only losses this season are to Class 2A #12 Beckman Catholic, Class 1A #10 North Cedar, and Class 2A #6 Lisbon. Prematch coverage starts at approximately 5:45 p.m. on 96.5 KSOM.
Riverside coach Brooke Flathers:
