'Underdog' Clear Creek Amana volleyball pushes past North Scott to advance to 4A state title match

Put through the wringer for the second consecutive match Wednesday, the Clear Creek Amana volleyball team showed its grit after surviving a five-set state semifinal battle against North Scott at Xtream Arena in Coralville (25-22, 22-25, 18-25, 25-18, 15-6).

In an unrelenting performance with its season season on the line, the following takeaways explain how the Clippers managed to get it done:

The Clippers are thriving in the role of 'underdog'

Coming into the state tournament, the Clippers had not played a match that went beyond three sets. In the span of 72 hours, they have played in back-to-back matches that went to a decisive fifth set.

Despite the unfamiliar territory, the Clippers have found a way to pull out wins even when it seemed like all hope was lost. To make things more impressive, they have managed to do that against teams that were favored to beat them.

Clippers coach Jackie Clubb said her team has begun to embrace being underestimated.

“This is a group of kids who do not give up,” Clubb said. “They are really scrappy and know that they want to keep playing. So, they had the confidence after that fourth set that they had a chance to win.”

Though they are considered underdogs heading into the state title match as well, the Clippers have proven that anyone who doubts them is in for a rude awakening.

Bliss Beck is in a class of her own

As balanced as the Clippers are, it is no secret that junior Bliss Beck is the star of the show.

The two-time WaMaC-West Player of the Year has been the team’s most reliable playmaker, making her the player that opponents usually key on.

Unfortunately for them, they can do little to stop her when she gets hot.

She was dominant Wednesday as she finished the match with four blocks and 19 kills, including the match-winner.

Facing so much pressure, Beck said her team had to keep its spirits high in order to finish off its rally.

“I didn’t want to think about this possibly being our last game,” Beck said. “So, we all got down after losing in the third set, but we all knew that we did not want our season to end like that. So, we did our best to get out of our defeatist attitude so that we could be proud of the game that we played.”

So, what comes next?

Clear Creek Amana will have little time to rest after another grueling match, since its will be back on the court Thursday to square off against Cedar Rapids Xavier in the Class 4A state championship match.

With little recovery time before the biggest match of the year, junior Meg Berkland said that the next 24 hours are going to be crucial to their chance at victory.

“We are going to spend a lot of time working on our mental preparation,” Berkland said. “Our coaches do a good job of scouting our opponents, so we will start finding ways to attack them.”

That will be especially important because the Clippers have not faced Xavier this season.

Getting a start on scouting as soon as they can, Clubb said that the most important thing remains focusing on her team's strengths.

“We are going to let them have their moment, but after that we are going to get started right away,” Clubb said. “We are going to get right back to the drawing board to break things down for them. We have to keep doing what we do well, and then get prepared for what they are going to bring to us."

The state title match begins at 12:15 p.m. Thursday.

This article originally appeared on Iowa City Press-Citizen: CCA punches its ticket to the Class 4A state volleyball title match