Kenyon-Wanamingo is Top Seed in Class 2A State Volleyball

It could be an all Hiawatha Valley League state championship match in Class 2A at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul next weekend.

The top -ated Kenyon-Wanamingo Knights did receive the top seed in the tournament and will open against the Academy of Holy Angels Stars at 5PM Thursday.

No. 9 rated Kasson-Mantorville recieved the third seed and is in the opposite bracket. They will open against the Hermantown Hawks at 7PM.

The No. 2 seed Maple Lake Irish face the Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton Rebels in the other 7PM game and the No. 4 seed and No. 8 ranked Concordia Academy of Roseville Beacons play against the No. 6 ranked and No. 5 seed Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta Tigers

The Knights are 32-1, with their only loss in the championship of the Wabasha-Kellogg Tournament against the Class A No. 5 rated Caledonia Warriors, who are the Section 1 representatives in Class A.

Kenyon-Wanamingo has a 19-match winning streak.

The Stars are not an easy draw, but as I always say, anything worthwhile in life should not be easy.

Holy Angels has a five-match win streak heading into the showdown at the X with a 28-4 record. Their losses were to DeLasalle twice, Concordia Academy of Roseville and Benilde-St. Margaret's.

The Stars defeated No. 10 rated Hill-Murray in their section final in four sets, losing the first and reeling off three straight wins.

In the same bracket with the Knights are Concordia Academy of Roseville and Morris Area/Chokio-Alberta.

The Beacons are 24-7 with 11 straight wins and the Tigers have a 22-3 record, with their only losses coming to Belle Plaine and Kasson-Mantorville in a tournament and Sauk Centre in four sets.

Concordia Academy losses were to Hill-Murray in three sets, Cretin-Derham-Hall in five sets and to Hastings, Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton, Southwest Christian, Rocori and Roseville Area in tournaments.

The Komets of Kasson-Mantorville enter the tournament on a four-match winning streak and are 21-11 with tournament losses to Waconia, Prior Lake, St. Michael-Albertville, Chaska and Maple Lake. They also succumbed to Faribault Bethlehem Academy, Stewartville, Goodhue, Hayfield and Kenyon-Wanamingo in the H-V-L and Rochester Century.

Kasson-Mantorville's first opponent Hermantown is 26-3 with 12 straight wins. The Hawks lost to Becker and Greenway in tournaments and Grand Rapids in four sets.

The No. 2 seed and No. 2 rated Maple Lake Irish are 26-3, with all of their losses coming in tournament action to Kenyon-Wanamingo, DeLasalle and Benilde St. Margaret's.

It will be fun and KDHL will be broadcasting.

Win or lose Thursday, the Knights play Friday at 5PM. Kasson-Mantorville also plays win or lose Friday at 7PM.

The state title match is scheduled for 3PM Saturday and the consolation final is 11AM Saturday.

There will be a fan bus for Kenyon-Wanamingo, with sign-up Monday. Fan bus tickets will cost $5 each for students or adults and sign-up is taking place at the high school office. Students younger than seventh-grade need an adult responsible for them on the bus.

There are no advance ticket sales for admission to the state volleyball tournament. Tickets are $14 for adults and $9 for students.

The bus is scheduled to depart from the high school at 3:20PM Thursday and Friday and return at the conclusion of the matches.