Western Nebraska Community College's Giovana Melo and Northeastern Junior College's Marci Henry know how important Tuesday's match between the two ranked teams will be.
The Cougars come into the contest ranked No. 1 in the nation with a 43-2 record, while the Plainswomen are 27-8 on the season. Tuesday's contest is also Blue and Gold night at the Palace. More importantly, the contest will go a long ways in sub-region standings for next month's Region IX tournament, especially momentum-wise.
"I expect it to be a great volleyball match," Melo said. "I think the crowd should be entertained and have fun with it."
Henry said that these two squads are the cream of the crop when it comes to Region IX volleyball.
"For NJC, this is a big game," Henry said. "Since 2004, We have been competing with WNCC for the regional championship to only come up short. We view WNCC as our conference rival. The past five years competing with them has been intense. I hope that we can again give WNCC a challenge."
The Cougars last lost to NJC back in 2004 when the Plainswomen topped the Cougars at the South Sub-region tournament. The year before, NJC topped the Cougars twice during the regular season. WNCC, however, has won the big match, the Region IX championship matc every year since the two squads were a part of the South Sub-region. The contests the two squads competed against each other, were hum-dingers with many of the matches going to five games.
Melo doesn't expect this contest to be a walk in the park by any means.
"I think this match is huge. NJC is a great team," she said. "We are going to have to play as hard as we can for every single point. Serving and passing is very important to our team."
The Cougars, fresh off winning the Ozfest Invitational in Liberal, Kan., last weekend, have won 24 straight matches since falling to Iowa Western Community Community back in September.
WNCC, however, could be without the services of setter Sabina Piegzal, who went down with an ankle injury in the championship game against Frank Phillips on Saturday. Piegza's status will be a game-time decision.
"I was very pleased with how we played at Seward. I think our team played well and got better every day," Melo said. "Not having Sabina in there changes a bit because they are different setters and they have different styles. However, they both are good setters."
WNCC did't miss a beat in the Frank Phillips contest as the Naomi Flinders came in and led the team to victory, recording 23 set assists.
NJC is also playing well. The last time they lost was at the Wyo-Braska Shootout when Seward County Community College beat them in five games. Henry expects some hard-hitting action in the sub-region showdown.
"I expect to see some hard hitting offenses with some great 'superstar' defensive saves," she said. " I can't remember when this match-up wasn't worth seeing. The fans in Scottsbluff and in Sterling have really benefitted from both teams' success as they get to see some of the best volleyball in the nation."
Several Plainswomen are among the leaders in hitting in Region IX. Brunno Kronbauer, Alexis Eliades and Suyan Leipelt lead the Plainswomen, averaging over two kills a game. Kronbauer has 266 kills on the season and is averaging 3.33 kills a game.
Amy Einspahr is leading the team in blocks, averaging 1.03 a game, while hitting at .380. Also for the Plainswomen, freshman Masa Balandzic is second in the region in setting, averaging 10.13 assists a game. Balandzic has also served up 38 aces this year.
WNCC matches the Plainswomen's explosiveness with three players that have recorded over 300 kills this season. Sophomore Fatima Balza leads the team in kills with over 350 kills. Balza also is among the leaders in blocking and serving.
Freshmen Kaleinani Kabalis and Paulina Piegza also have notched over 300 kills this season. Kabalis, who thundering kills has sparked the Cougars, is also among the leaders in digs, serving percentage, aces and blocks. Piegza has become a force along the front through her middle blocking position as well.
The key to the match will be defense and both teams bring in strong defensive players. WNCC's Nayka Benitez was named the NJCAA national tournament top libero last year. She currently is averaging over four digs a game, while leading the team in aces with over 60 served up this year.
NJC also has strong defensive players. Dera Martinez leads the team with 316 digs (3.85 a game) and Suyan Leipelt qith 2.62 digs a game.
Henry knows the contest will be decided by defense.
"For us to win we will have to play some great defense both on the back line and the block. WNCC has some phenomenal hitters in each position," she said. "For us to win we will have to play some great defense both on the back line and the block. WNCC has some phenomenal hitters in each position."
Henry is hoping her team is up to the challenge in facing the No. 1 team in the nation.
"We had some injuries that were rested the past week and I think we are ready to see if we can challenge the number one team in the nation," she said. "You always have to be happy if you beat the number one team in the nation, not to mention the team who just won a national championship. WNCC is a great team, with a great coach. Any program who could come into Cougar Palace and win would very happy."
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