The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball opened practice over the weekend with a new coach and 14 players that are anxious to make some noise in the region.
Fatima Balza, who won three national titles in her playing days including one at WNCC in 2007 and then two at Penn State, welcomed nine sophomores and five freshmen to the team when they reported for practice on Friday.
Jaylen Nachtigall, a 5-foot-9 hitter from Hot Springs, South Dakota, who red-shirted a year ago, is excited for the coming season.
“We are so excited to be back in the gym and being together again,” Nachtigall said. “Our focus is to be better than we were last year and reach our highest goals this year.”
A year ago, the Cougars finished 16-18 and went 0-2 at the regional tournament. This year, that outlook is totally different.
“The early practices have been great and everyone has been putting their best foot forward into creating a well-rounded team with a bright season ahead of us,” Nachtigall said.
The team has undergone individual work sessions in the morning under first-year head coach Balza and then had a team practice in the afternoon. On top of practices, Balza has the team doing several community events together, including working the Scotts Bluff County Fair on Saturday and the team will be at the National Night Out Tuesday night in downtown Scottsbluff.
What makes this team something to watch out for is the talent on the squad.
“The talent on the team this year is well spread out,” Nachtigall said. “We have strong positions all around.”
The Cougars have seven sophomores that saw action a year ago that will be playing this season. WNCC sophomore Kyana Gabriel will redshirt this season along with Nachtigall.
The other seven all saw action including hitters 5-9 Dani Cruz of Guadalajara, Mexico; 5-11 Lilly Zwart of Nelson, New Zealand; 5-11 Chloe Grady of Kaneohe, Hawaii; 6-1 Finja Schul of Bergisch Gladbach, Germany; 5-6 Dessiah Christopher of Naples, Florida, and 5-10 Tamika Eastman of Harrison, Nebraska.
Starting libero 5-4 Taylor Tyser of Laramie, Wyoming also returns.
The five freshmen are led by Gering’s Alex Gonzalez-Orozco, a 5-6 libero. Also new to the program are setters 5-9 Nora Marginean of Napoca, Romania, and 4-11 Juju Melendez of Ellenwood, Georgia, along with hitters 5-7 Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia of Laie, Hawaii, and 5-11 Nadiyyah Northern from Avondale, Arizona.
WNCC will go through two-a-days for the next two weeks. The Cougars will have a Region IX scrimmage tournament on Saturday, August 17 in Sterling, Colorado, before opening the season August 23-24 at the Reiver Classic in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The first home match is slated for Tuesday, August 27 against Eastern Wyoming College.
Nachtigall said there is new outlook for the coming year.
“All smiles and excitement heading into pre-season which will be carried into the upcoming season,” she said. “Our coach/team dynamic is going great and should be a successful season to come.”
