The Register's 50 greatest Iowa high school volleyball players of all time

Iowa high school volleyball had humble roots. But the sport has hit its stride.

Since the first state tournament was held in 1970, Iowa has produced Olympians, All-Americans and NCAA champions.

The Register has selected its top 50 Iowa high school players of all time.

The list includes Olympic team members Nancy (Meendering) Metcalfe, who played at Western Christian of Hull, Kayla Banwarth of Dubuque Wahlert and Cathy Noth of Bettendorf.

Two current athletes — Devyn Robinson of Ankeny Centennial and Madi Kubik of West Des Moines Valley — will be competing in the state volleyball tournament this week at the U.S. Cellular Center in Cedar Rapids.

Here's the Register's list of the 50 greatest Iowa high school volleyball players.

SHANNON ASCHOFF, Ankeny. Graduated in 2006. A powerful hitter, she led Ankeny to back-to-back state championships in 2004-05. Compiled 1,239 kills in her career. Went on to play at Northern Iowa.

KATIE AUSTIN, Spencer. Graduated in 1995. A member of Iowa's high school Volleyball Hall of Fame, Austin was a force at the net. A first-team all-stater as a junior and senior. She played at Texas.

MEGAN BALLENGER, Ankeny. Graduated in 2015. Set a school record with 1,491 career kills. Versatile hitter who earned all-state honors three times. Currently playing at Creighton.

KAYLA BANWARTH, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 2007. One of the greatest defensive players in Iowa history, her crowning achievement (so far) was playing libero for Team USA in the Rio Olympics.

BOBBI BECKER, Dike. Graduated in 1986. Becker was one of the first players inducted into the state’s high school Volleyball Hall of Fame. Her greatest impact on the sport has been as the longtime coach at Northern Iowa.

JEN BOLEYN, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 1993. A key part of Wahlert’s volleyball dynasty. As a senior, led the team to a 45-1 record. Boleyn went on to play at Ohio State.

ABBIE BROWN, Eldora-New Providence. Graduated in 1996. Led her school to a 1995 state title. Brown’s tremendous hitting power was intimidating to foes. Went on to become a Central College All-American.

KAZ BROWN, Cedar Falls. Graduated in 2015. A tall and talented middle hitter, she hit .447 as a senior, with 3.91 kills per set. Played at Kentucky.

ANGELA BYS, Marion. Graduated in 2007. A strong hitter who compiled more than 2,000 kills in her career. Went on to play at Drake.

ALEXIS CONAWAY, MOC-FV (Orange City). Graduated in 2014. A versatile performer who was named the Sunday Register Athlete of the Year. Went on to play at Iowa State.

HALEY ECKERMAN, Waterloo East. Graduated in 2011. Earned Des Moines Register all-state honors all four years. Earned All-American honors at Texas.

MIKAELA FOECKE, Fort Madison Holy Trinity. Graduated in 2015. Dominant middle hitter who could attack at the net or in the back row. Became an All-American at Nebraska.

KARA GALER, Iowa City West. Graduated in 1992. A dynamic setter who continued her success at Northern Iowa.

MEGAN GILBERT, Tripoli. Graduated in 2013. Gilbert’s attacking skills helped her school win four consecutive state championships.

TRACY GRAHAM, North Scott. Graduated in 1987. Strong and athletic, Graham was one of the state’s best athletes of her era. Helped her school win state in 1985.

JANINE GREMMEL, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 1988. Gremmel, a multi-sport athlete, had the ability to both attack and play defense. Starred at Texas.

JILL GREMMEL, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 1997. A tremendous setter, Gremmel went on to start for three seasons at Texas. Led Wahlert to two state titles.

KRISTEN HAHN, C.R. Kennedy. Graduated in 2010. A superb defensive star, able to change the momentum in a match. Earned All-American honors at Iowa State.

MONIQUE HARRIS, Clinton. Graduated in 2014. A Des Moines Sunday Register Elite setter in 2013. So versatile that she played both setter and libero in college at Iowa State.

HALI HILLEGAS, Charles City. Graduated in 2015. A skilled setter whose ability to work the court let her transition to libero at Iowa State.

AMY JELTEMA, Unity Christian (Orange City). Graduated in 1991. Led Unity Christian to the Class 1A state championship in 1990. She was named the 1A player of the year.

KIM KESTER, Center Point-Urbana. Graduated in 1999. Averaged nearly seven kills as a senior. An accurate hitter who was named to the Volleyball Hall of Fame.

SHELBY KINTZEL, Mount Vernon. Graduated in 2009. A tall (6-3) and agile middle hitter, Kintzel was a dominant force at the net.

TARYN KNUTH, Johnston. Graduated in 2017. Earned high school All-American honors as one of the top middle hitters in recent years. Now playing at Florida State.

MADI KUBIK, W.D.M. Valley. Scheduled to graduate in 2019. Averaging 5.11 kills per set. Has traveled the world for Team USA play.

MORGAN KUHRT, Waverly-Shell Rock. Graduated in 2012. An accurate and strong hitter, she helped her team win a state championship in 2011.

HANNAH LOCKIN, W.D.M. Valley. Graduated in 2017. An offensive force from a setter position. She hit .368 as a senior, with 4.65 kills per set. Currently playing at Baylor.

TAYAH MAHI, Cedar Falls. Graduated in 2018. Led her school to a 43-2 record and a Class 5A state championship last season. A gifted setter.

ERIN MARTIN, Ames. Graduated in 2001. An agile outside hitter, she developed one of the state’s top jump serves. Played at Minnesota.

PIPER MAUCK, D.M. Roosevelt. Graduated in 2017. Mauck played setter, using her height (6-1) to her advantage. A defensive stopper at the net.

MACKENZIE MAY, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 2017. Averaged a state-leading 6.8 kills per set. A beach volleyball talent for UCLA.

STEPHANIE MAY, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 2003. A versatile player who could take several spots on the floor. Attended Northern Iowa.

KIM McCAFFREY, Carroll. Graduated in 1997. A gifted outside hitter, McCaffrey combined size, quickness and accuracy on the court. As a senior, helped her team take state runner-up honors.

JENNIFER McFADDEN, Dubuque Wahlert. Graduated in 1993. As a senior middle hitter, averaged two blocks and nearly four kills per game.

JILL McWILLIAMS, D.M. Grandview Park Baptist. Graduated in 1997. Hard-hitting attacker who went to Nebraska, where she transitioned to setter.

NANCY MEENDERING, Western Christian (Hull). Graduated in 1996. Meendering was a three-time Des Moines Register all-stater, a standout at Nebraska and an Olympian.

CATHY NOTH, Bettendorf. Graduated in 1981. Hit .436 as a senior, leading her team to a state runner-up finish. Played at Nebraska.

MOLLY O’BRIEN, Williamsburg. Graduated in 2000. Averaged 4.7 kills as a senior. A strong player at the net, she went on to play at Northern Iowa.

BRE PAYTON, Waterloo Columbus. Graduated in 2008. One of the state’s top setters, Payton helped her team win a state runner-up finish in 2007.

SYDNEY PETERSEN, Dike-New Hartford. Graduated in 2018. A tremendous defensive player, Petersen guided her team to a state championship as a senior. Now at Texas.

LISA REITSMA, Western Christian (Hull). Graduated in 1994. Tall and dominant at the net. Named to the state’s Volleyball Hall of Fame in 1999.

DEVYN ROBINSON, Ankeny Centennial. Scheduled to graduate in 2020. Strong, tall and forceful at the net, Robinson is hitting .439 this season. A Wisconsin recruit.

JESS SCHABEN, Harlan. Graduated in 2014. Compiled more than 500 kills during her senior season. The Sunday Register’s Athlete of the Year in 2015. Currently at Iowa State.

RILEY SENTS, Grundy Center. Graduated in 2015. Had 596 digs as a senior while earning Des Moines Sunday Register Elite all-state honors as a libero. Currently at Missouri.

ASHTEN STELKEN, West Delaware. Graduated in 2005. Posted a hitting efficiency of .472 as a senior, when she helped her team take state runner-up honors.

ASHTYN VEERBEEK, Western Christian (Hull). Graduated in 2018. A strong force at the net, Veerbeek averaged nearly five kills per set as a senior. Now playing basketball at Nebraska.

BRI WEBER, Dike-New Hartford. Graduated in 2015. Weber played on four consecutive state championship teams.

HANNAH WILLMS, Dike-New Hartford. Graduated in 2010. Tremendous athlete who played volleyball and ran track at Iowa State.

JAALI WINTERS, Ankeny Centennial. Graduated in 2015. Helped Centennial win a state championship in 2014. Finished her career with 1,635 kills. Currently playing at Creighton.

TONI ZEHR, Fort Dodge. Graduated in 1985. Led the Dodgers to a 1984 state championship. Strong hitter who went on to play at Iowa.