Iowa
Bishop Heelan sweeps its way through Iowa state volleyball championship, first since 2007
Bishop Heelan’s Maddie LaFleur discusses state title win over Pella
Bishop Heelan’s Maddie LaFleur breaks down state title victory, the first since 2007 for the program
CORALVILLE — Both Bishop Heelan and Pella volleyball were battle-tested heading into the Class 4A Iowa high school state volleyball tournament championship match.
Bishop Heelan and Pella both played over 40 games on the season, setting them up to play through any potential adversity.
Ultimately, the biggest beneficiary of that was Bishop Heelan as it rolled to a state title sweep in three sets (25-10, 25-13 and 25-17) at Xtream Arena on Thursday afternoon. This is Bishop Heelan’s fourth state title in volleyball and the program’s first since 2007.
“We came into the match ready to play,” senior setter Maddie LaFleur said. “We knew that we only had one game and we’re going to give it all we had, leave it on the court.”
The Crusaders opened with a dominant 25-10 in the first set. The offense was incredibly efficient behind LeFluer, who assisted on all 13 of Bishop Heelan’s kills in the set. While Ava Lloyd and Maliyah Hacker each had five kills, four different Crusaders posted kills in the set, showing LeFluer’s efficiency in distributing the ball.
In the second set, Bishop Heelan’s efficiency continued. With 14 kills in the set, the Crusaders had just four total errors in the second frame. That was in comparison to Pella’s 10, gifting the Crusaders an additional 10 tallies on the scoreboard in a set they were already dominating of offense.
Pella continued to improve throughout the matchup, but Bishop Heelan’s dominance ultimately was too much to overcome. The Crusaders rolled in the third set as well, winning it 25-17 with 17 kills among the team to cap off a dominant tournament.
In total, Lloyd and Hacker combined for 34 kills and just four errors. LaFluer had 36 of the team’s 44 assists. Between the three, they had 38 of the squads’ 59 digs.
The second-seeded Crusaders did not concede a single set in three matches during the tournament and defeated the 2023 state champions, North Scott, along the way.
Bishop Heelan head coach Lauren Boatman pointed to the senior leadership of LaFleur and Hacker in particular for the success. Both of them came into the season intending to put the Crusaders back on top in the state of Iowa.
“I think it goes back to Maddie and Maliyah being great leaders on and off the court, keeping everybody focused all week long,” Boatman said. “It was great to see.”
Pella has a lot to be proud of this season, finishing 41-8 and making the state tournament for the first time since 2018, making the state title match in head coach Joel Allman’s first season.
“This group is just such a special group of people,” Allman said. “They spread so much light in this world and I’m glad the state got to see them up here this whole week.”
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23.
Coming off a great campaign, the Iowa State Cyclones will be a different-looking team on the hardwood next year. Unfortunately, a lot of key players for the team last season will no longer be around.
After a successful trip to the Sweet 16, the Cyclones will be entering next season with a mostly new group. Due to players like Joshua Jefferson, Nate Heise, and Tamin Lipsey all graduating, the team was always going to have a different look.
While it appears likely that both Lipsey and Jefferson are going to be drafted into the NBA, it goes to show the level of talent that Iowa State is losing. These two players were arguably the two best on the team last year, and replacing that level of production will not be an easy task.
Since both of those players were seniors, the program knew that they would be playing elsewhere. However, the decision by Milan Momcilovic, who was their third star to enter the NBA Draft and transfer portal, likely wasn’t something the team expected before his breakout campaign.
However, due to his success last year, Momcilovic testing the waters of the NBA and entering the portal made a lot of sense for the talented sharpshooter. Eventually, he made the decision to join the Kentucky Wildcats, and losing him will be a big blow for the Cyclones.
Iowa State Will Miss Star Potential of Milan
Even though the Cyclones were able to bring in a lot of good players in the transfer portal, figuring out who the star of the team is going to be next year might be a bit tricky. If Milan were to have returned following one of the best shooting years in the history of college basketball, it would have undoubtedly been him as the featured player of the team.
Now, since Momcilovic is gone, Iowa State is going to need some of their returning players and their new additions to step up. While having quality depth is important, the Cyclones were a team that had arguably three of the top 50 players in college basketball last season.
With their three best players gone, it will be interesting to see who steps up and becomes the top players for Iowa State. Of the transfers, it could be JaQuan Johnson who looks to step up into that role. He is coming off a really strong year with Bradley and very well could be the top-scoring option for the team.
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Watch as Gov. Kim Reynolds reveals Iowa Office of Outdoor Recreation
Gov. Kim Reynolds signs an executive order June 8 creating an Iowa Office of Outdoor Recreation within the Iowa Economic Development Authority.
Iowa’s director of Health and Human Services has resigned after the Iowa Senate blocked his confirmation in April, but he will stay in leadership as deputy director.
Larry Johnson was appointed to succeed Iowa Department of Health and Human Services Director Kelly Garcia in September 2025. Johnson took over the department in October.
Johnson’s confirmation in April, however, was blocked by Iowa Senate Democrats. Johnson received the support of 28 senators, six votes short of the 34 needed.
“Hundreds of thousands of Iowans rely on the Department of Health & Human Services, but under Mr. Johnson’s leadership, those Iowans have been met with diminished care and services and a disrespectful lack of transparency and communication,” Iowa Senate Democratic Leader Janice Weiner said in a statement at the time of Johnson’s confirmation block. “Senate Democrats believe Iowans deserve more responsible leadership for such an important executive department.”
Under state law, 60 days after the Iowa Senate disapproves a person’s appointment, the nominee must step down. Johnson’s resignation came June 19, 58 days after his confirmation was blocked.
In a news release Friday, Gov. Kim Reynolds appointed Kraig Paulsen, the director of the Iowa Department of Management, to also serve as the director of Iowa Health and Human Services.
“This is not the first time I’ve called upon Director Paulsen to help lead executive branch departments during times of transition,” Reynolds said in a statement. “His experience across state government is unmatched, and I have full confidence in his ability to ensure our state’s largest agency has the leadership team required, not only to serve Iowans most in need of assistance, but also to advance strategic initiatives such as rural health transformation, cancer research, and child welfare technology improvements.”
Paulsen named Johnson as principal deputy director of the department to “ensure efficient and effective operations,” according to the release.
“Iowa HHS requires strong and experienced leadership at every level to ensure continuity of critical services such as Medicaid, SNAP, and child protection, and Larry Johnson is exactly that leader,” Paulsen said in the release. “I look forward to working closely with Principal Deputy Director Johnson to ensure Iowa’s strong commitment to our most vulnerable citizens continues as usual.”
Weiner, in a statement issued June 19, said Reynolds “has decided to blatantly disregard and circumvent the Senate in re-establishing Larry Johnson as the de facto head” of Health and Human Services.“This is partisan politics of the worst kind,” Weiner said in the statement. “Under Larry Johnson, the hundreds of thousands of Iowans who rely on HHS for critical services have received a diminished standard of care, a disrespectful lack of responsiveness, and a department more concerned with fealty to the governor than transparency to the public. And yet, this governor simply cannot handle a world in which she doesn’t get her way, so she has invented a title that allows Johnson to resume his work.”
Weiner said the decision to not confirm John was “not made lightly,” and “We did what was right for Iowans.”
“Our goal has been and remains to work within the bounds of the Senate for the benefit of all Iowans,” Weiner said. “Unfortunately, Gov. Reynolds would rather play politics than give Iowans the respect of a more diligent search for a qualified candidate.”
Kyle Werner is the breaking news and public safety reporter for the Register. Reach him at kwerner@registermedia.com.
The Iowa Lottery offers several draw games for those aiming to win big with rewards ranging from $1,000 to millions. The most an Iowan has ever won from playing the lottery was $343 million in 2018 off the Powerball.
Don’t miss out on the winnings. Here’s a look at Friday, June 19, 2026, winning numbers for each game:
Winning Mega Millions numbers from June 19 drawing
13-16-21-26-50, Mega Ball: 12
Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick-3 numbers from June 19 drawing
Midday: 3-2-2
Evening: 7-1-4
Check Pick-3 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Pick-4 numbers from June 19 drawing
Midday: 4-2-1-0
Evening: 9-9-0-7
Check Pick-4 payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from June 19 drawing
02-20-28-51-54, Bonus: 02
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Iowa Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 9:59 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 10:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lotto America: 9:15 p.m. CT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Lucky for Life: 9:38 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Day): 12:20 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 3 (Evening): 10:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 4 (Day): 12:20 p.m. CT daily.
- Pick 4 (Evening): 10:00 p.m. CT daily.
- Millionaire for Life: 10:15 p.m. CT daily.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by an Iowa editor. You can send feedback using this form.
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