The ninth story in our countdown of headlines from the last school year for Hillcrest Academy athletics takes us to the court at Hillcrest Union for Raven volleyball. The 2024 edition of Raven volleyball reached new heights including a Keota Tournament championship to start the year. The Ravens went 2-1 in Southeast Iowa Superconference Tournament pool play at Holy Trinity Catholic, scoring wins over Louisa-Muscatine and Van Buren to advance to Superconference Championship Saturday for the first time since 2018. The Ravens opened the playoffs with a sweep of Keota to earn their first postseason win since 2018.

Hillcrest had five players named All-Southeast Iowa Superconference including Malia Yoder, Claire Withrow, Kylee Statler, Lydia Beachy and Niva Helmuth. Yoder was named Superconference Co-Player of the Year, All-District and All-State in Class 1A. The Ravens 255 aces were ninth most in Class 1A. Yoder led the Superconference with 353 kills, a .303 kill efficiency and 60 aces. Withrow led the North Division with 667 assists.

The Ravens placed in the top 10 in Hillcrest history in 15 different team and individual categories. The 2024 Ravens had a 10 kill per set average, third highest in Hillcrest history. Their .213 team kill efficiency is the fifth best mark for the program and their 91.3% serve efficiency is the 10th best ever for the Ravens.

Individually, senior Malia Yoder’s campaign ranked second all-time on defense with 389 total digs and 4.6 digs per set. On offense, her 4.2 kills per set are fifth all-time, Yoder’s 353 total kills are sixth most and her .303 kill efficiency makes her the ninth most accurate sniper in a season. Yoder put up a staggering 26 kills in a four set win over WACO in Wayland, sixth most for a Raven in a single match, and her career high.

Junior Claire Withrow handled out helpers all season long for Hillcrest. Her 7.9 assists per set are third best in Hillcrest history. Withrow’s 667 total assists this year are sixth most for a single season and her 44 assists in a match against Highland this year are her career high and sixth most for a Raven ever in a match.

Junior Adrianne Blauvelt now sets the standard at Hillcrest. Her 97.6% serve efficiency is the best in Raven history, passing Lindsey Erb, now current assistant coach Lindsey Widmer. Senior Lydia Beachy is third in Hillcrest history from the service line with a 97.4% mark. Beachy also finishes ninth in program history for a season averaging 3.7 digs per set.

Hillcrest finished with a 20-11 overall record, their 14th 20 win season all-time for the program, and first since 2013.