The Iron have their sights set on a 4A Regional Championship title when they host the 11-19 Pekin Dragons on Oct. 29 in the first round of regional play at 6 p.m.

The goal won’t be an easy one, though, as head coach Ms. Christine Konopasek said postseason matches are the most emotionally charged of the season.

“There’s something to be said [about playing] when you’re always on the brink of going home,” the coach said. “If you don’t show up, you go home.”

Pivotal to the team’s success then, Konpasek said, is the ability to handle stressful situations and come back from undesirable scenarios.

“We’ve talked a lot about being … mentally tough,”  the coach said. “One point is not the be-all and end-all.”

Neither are three points, Konopasek said. It’s how the team responds to adversity.

Mental fortitude is only one factor in a long postseason run, though, as without a solid defense, those points can continue to rack up.

Defense is where the Iron will lean on junior Maggie Michaels and senior Maya Blumenshine.

The duo, averaging 8.4 and 7.7 digs a game, respectively, “have a lot of heart,” Konopasek said.

At this point in the season, the Iron have been focused on “fine-tuning” their game.

“It would be great if we could block a little bit better,” Konopasek said, “if we could get our middles involved a little bit more. At this point, it really is little stuff.”

If it wasn’t, the coach said, the team would be pretty “exposed” heading into Regionals.

Service has been a focal point at practice as the Ironmen look to improve from the line heading into the postseason.

“We consistently talk about having to serve tougher and be more aggressive at the service line,” Konopasek said.

Freshman Evie Mounce, the coach said, “has been pretty solid” serving this season. “Hopefully, that’s something that anchors us” through the postseason.

The Iron front row has been stressing their targeting, with the team’s hitters working on adding to an already “full toolbox of attack.”

“It’s great to go and hit the ball really hard for a kill,” Konopasek said, “but sometimes you just need to place it.”

Those practice points have seemed to be paying off, as in Community’s match against Prairie Ridge on Oct. 19, junior Sam Lakamp served 13 consecutive points.

That feat isn’t Lakamp’s to celebrate alone. That streak, the coach said, is a sign all six players on the floor were “doing their job.”

“Everybody has to be executing right to be able to win those points,” Konopasek said.

“You can’t do 52 jobs,” Konopasek said, “you just need to worry about yours.”

Lakamp is just one Ironman to find time in the spotlight and on the stat sheet; as Konopasek said this season, in “any given match, someone is rising to the challenge.”

“We have a number of kids who are really talented,” the coach said. “[I’ve] had random people coming up and telling me about how scrappy we were defensively, how great our middles were, how great number so and so was.”

This season, on the way to a 27-8 overall and 9-1 conference record, good for second in the Big 12, the roster has all had “their opportunities to stand out.”

With a win over the Pekin Dragons, the Iron will extend those opportunities, adding another contest to the schedule.

A victory could mean a rematch against the Minooka Indians in the Regional Championship and avenging last season’s “frustrating” 2-0 season-ending loss.

“I would like to just play as long as we can,” the coach said, “because I really like our group.”

“I think they’re fun to watch,” Konopasek said, “I think they’re really high character kids. So the longer that we get to stay together and practice, the better.”