SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. - The WNCC volleyball team finished last season with a 28-10 record and were ranked 16th in the final NJCAA volleyball polls.
This season the team has lofty goals and they have a little more incentive to play well as the Cougars are ranked 16th in the NJCAA pre-season poll that was released August 18.
Jaylen Nachtigall, one of the six returners, said being ranked makes the team want to work even harder now.
“Being ranked 16th in the preseason is a real motivator for our team this year,” the Hot Springs, South Dakota, native said. ?It gives us something to strive for and something to reach beyond. We have big goals this year and being ranked 16th gives us confidence that we can fulfill those.”
WNCC will open the season on the road and will be on the road for the first four weekends and the competition won’t be a walk in the park.
“Our schedule is very tough this year especially these first few weeks,” she said. “This will test our ability to play up against higher competition and really be able to see where we’re at this season.”
The Cougars will get the season underway this weekend (August 22-23) when they head to the Reiver Classic in Council Bluffs, Iowa.
The Cougars will play Iowa Western Community College and butler Community College on Friday and then face Salt Lake Community College and Hutchinson Community College on Saturday.
Nachtigall said the team is ready to go or at least they better be ready to go as they have a tough opening two weeks.
“The team is ready to compete coming in as one of the only ranked teams in this tournament,” she said. “We are ready to show what we’ve been working on and we have a lot of potential this year.”
After Iowa Western classic, the Cougars will have a tough classic in Salt Lake City, Utah, where they will play four Florida teams including No. 1 Florida Southwestern Community College and No. 16 Daytona State College.
The Florida Southwestern match will be interesting as the two former Cougar assistant coaches under then Cougar coach Fatima Balza will be coaching against each other. Florida Southwestern coach is Cesar Benatti
That match-up will be interesting and both teams have plenty of talent and height.
The Cougars are not a small team at all this year and the depth of the team is deep. The Cougars, under second-year head coach Fatima Balza, are looking to bring home another Region IX title.
WNCC has a talented squad with six returning players and eight freshmen that makes practices intense.
WNCC had scrimmages in NJC on August 16 and didn’t play that great, but those were scrimmages and a lot to learn from those four matches.
Nachtigall said they know what they need to do to win after the NJC scrimmages now.
“Our keys to be successful this season are going to be our communicating, staying aggressive, and being able to push through and finish each game on a high note,” she said.
As for the talent on the team, the Cougars return three players who will be in their third year after each endured a red-shirt year because of an injury. Dani Cruz of Mexico and Kyana Gabriel of Hilo, Hawaii, red-shirted last year along with Nachtigall who red-shirted two years ago.
The other returners include Alex Gonzalez-Orozco of Gering; Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia of Laie, Hawaii; and Nadiyyah Northern of Avondale, Arizona.
The newcomers have height with five players 5-foot-11 or taller. The newcomers include Emma Hergenreder, 5-11 of Scottsbluff; Elizabeth Braithwaite, 6-4, and Keira Zelada, 6-2, both from Lima, Peru; and Maria Niedzwiecka, 6-0 of Poland.
The other newcomers include Anika Davison, 5-9 of Aurora, Colorado; Reese Fleck, 5-6 of North Platte; Natalia Malinowska, 5-9 of Poland; and Allie Twamley, 5-7 of Cheyenne, Wyoming.
Nachtigall said this team has a lot of talent and they have been working hard to get ready for the season.
“Our team is very deep this year and the talent is strong,” she said. “We have multiple people for each position and it is a good problem to have for us. Our competition in the gym is high and creates a good atmosphere for practice every day.”
Any one of the 14 players could start any match. WNCC will be led by two freshmen at setter as Cheyenne Central’s Twamley along with Malinowska,
Nachtigall said this team has all the potential to do good things.
“Everyone this season has showed great promise and for how many freshman we have this year, the team is clicking very well and we have high hopes for this season,” she said.
The Cougars’ first home match won’t be until September 23 when they host Northeastern Junior College. WNCC will begin the South Sub-region schedule on September 18 and 19 when they travel to Southeast Community College and North Platte Community College. Both schools are now a part of Division I in Region IX after being in Region IX Division II for the past 10-lus years.
WNCC will also host the Region IX tournament the second weekend in November.