Playing schools bigger than Knoxville, the class 4A #14 Panther Volleyball Squad went 3-2 at the Waukee Invitational on Saturday. The Panthers lost to the host Warriors in two sets 21-12 and 21-15, beat Gilbert in two sets 21-12, and 21-12, lost to class 4A #2 Indianola in two sets 21-15 and 21-17, defeated Sergeant Bluff-Luton in two sets 25-15 and 25-20 and class 4A #6 Norwalk in three sets 25-21, 22-25, and 15-13. Brittany Bacorn had 62 assists on the day while Ella Breazeale put down 38 kills. Abbie Keitges had the most successful serves going 48/52 on the day while Hannah Dunkin was near perfect at 30/31. Coach Mollie Keitges tells KNIA/KRLS Sports the Waukee Invitational and next Saturday’s Boone Meet are big for her team if they want to potentially climb in the rankings and raise their regional profile.

Keitges: “Getting some signature wins in these tough tournaments will be big for us and maybe guarantee a home game or two. But no matter what you’re going to have to beat a really good team.”

The Panthers jump back into South Central Conference play at Clarke on Tuesday.