Xavier High School - Cedar Rapids, Iowa

Xavier stuffs Cedar Falls in semifinals, 27-6

CEDAR FALLS - Duane Schulte and the Xavier Saints have won 99 football games since the school opened 15 years ago on the northeast side of Cedar Rapids.

If they win their 100th game next Friday, they'll be the Class 4A state champions for the second time in six years.

The third-ranked Saints used big plays and a smothering defense to subdue No. 7 Cedar Falls, 27-6, Friday night before more than 2,000 of their loyal fans who made the trip to the UNI-Dome.

Xavier (13-0) will try to play giant-killer when it faces top-ranked Ankeny (13-0) for the state title in the UNI-Dome next Friday. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:06 p.m.

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These Xavier gridders have spotless 30-0 record

Daniel Vega, Sean Ickes and Logan Clarahan have never lost a football game during their entire Xavier High School careers.

Never. Ever.

Their freshman team compiled a perfect 9-0 record in 2010.

Their sophomore team finished with an unblemished 9-0 mark in 2011.

Now that they've reached the varsity as juniors, the Saints have a glittering 12-0 record heading into the semifinals of the Class 4A playoffs against Cedar Falls Friday at 7:06 p.m. in the UNI-Dome.

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IGHSAU bestows top honor on Tom Keating

Standing just off the volleyball court at the packed Cedar Rapids Ice Arena Wednesday night, with several hundred screaming Saints fans filling the seats behind him, Xavier Principal Tom Keating couldn’t help but marvel at how the sport has grown since he first got in the game.

With 40 teams from five classes competing in the state tournament this year for the first time, it’s the largest field ever.

Keating, the most decorated volleyball coach in Iowa history during his 24 years at Dubuque Wahlert, remembers the 1970s in the game’s infancy when six teams played for the state title in small gyms passed from one high school to another.

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Charles City spikes Saints at state tourney

The Charles City Comets are ranked No. 1 in the state for a very good reason.

They have a superstar with Jesse Sindlinger, a quick-hitting offense and a bunch of girls who unleash wicked jump serves that are hard to return.

The Xavier Saints got an eyeful Wednesday night.

Sindlinger collected 24 kills as the Comets whipped the ninth-ranked Saints, 25-18, 25-17, 20-25, 25-17 in the opening round of the Class 4A state volleyball tournament at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.

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