WNCC wins three matches in first day of Wyo-Braska Shootout

It’s going to feel strange today when Western Nebraska Community College coach Giovana Melo and Northwest College coach Flavia Siqueira face each other in the second day of the Wyo-Braska Shootout.

The two first-year head coaches for their respectful teams, along with WNCC assistant coach Nicole Gonzalez, were teammates for the Cougars in 2001 when they went 57-5 and finished third in the nation. Now, all coaches will square off against each as coaches instead of players, at 10 a.m. today at Cougar Palace.

Melo and Siqueira led their respectful teams to three wins in the first day of the Shootout on Thursday, and both said it will be strange when they face each other for the first time.

“It is going to be something different because we played with each other [at WNCC] and we played against each other [in Brazil], so it will be different coaching against each other,” Melo said about coaching her long-time college teammate. “I think it will be just a great match. They have a good team and I wish her good luck. I think whatever happens on the court, happens on the court and off the court is something completely different. I am going to treat her as well as I treat other coaches and any other team. It will be a tough match [today] because she has a good team.”

Siqueira, however, will be wearing red instead of the blue and gold that she wore when she starred for the Cougars. She did say that there it feels great to be back.

“Emotionally for me, it feels great to be back and knowing that I am back home, seeing the people I miss. Giovana has always been great,” she said. “It will be a very competitive game, I can tell you that much. Our goal is to play up to their level and have a good match. That is all we came here for. I am excited for the morning.

The Trappers enter today’s competition with an 18-6 record and Siqueira said they have to be patient in order to come out on top over her former team.

“Patience,” she said. “They can come and hit the ball hard at times and we have to be focused and say, ‘hey, good for them, but let’s do what we do best.’ That is play defense and put the ball away smartly.”

WNCC enters the second day with a record of 28-2 after breezing to wins against Casper College 25-16, 25-10, 25-13; Sheridan College 25-10, 25-12, 25-12; and Colby Community College 25-10, 25-8, 25-15. Northwest also claimed three wins, but they had a tougher go of it, defeating Colby 25-23, 25-19, 25-23; McCook Community College 25-11, 25-15, 25-10; and then Trinidad State Junior College 25-20, 25-12, 25-18.

Melo was pleased with how her team played today, especially with the serving that kept their opponents off balance with powerful jump serves and floaters that die just inside the hitting line.

“We did a pretty good job. Every one of our players got in and did their job. We got better today,” Melo said. “We have been serving well and if we can go on runs, we can get a lot of points and stop the other teams. That is the thing that we have been working on, to keep serving tough and making good serves.”

Siquiera has also pleased, despite playing short-handed after some injuries hit them earlier this week.

“I don’t think we played to the best of our ability. We had our best hitter sitting on the bench [Thabata Galvao], who got injured a couple days ago. Our outside captain became a middle this morning and our rightside became an outside, so if you look at that, our play was good, but there were several times they were not up to what I expect them to be. “

WNCC flexed its depth while showing why they are the No. 2 team in the country with a dominating performance. The Cougars received a stiff test from Casper, a team that also competed at last year’s national championship, in the first game and then cruised throughout the tournament.

Paulina Piegza paced the Cougars in the contest with 12 kills and three blocks. But, it wasn’t just Piegza doing the hitting, it was a team effort. Kaleinani Kabalis hammered home nine kills, followed by Fatiba Balza and Paloma Alvarez each with seven, and Cami Weimer with five.

Kabalis, besides her nine kills, also finished with 11 digs, three aces, nine points and three blocks. Also for WNCC, Nayka Benitez had 13 digs, four aces, and eight points; Sabina Piegza had 35 set assists; Balza had three blocks, seven points and two aces; and Quinones had six points.

WNCC was just as dominating in its second match against Sheridan as Balza finished with 12 points, nine kills, three blocks and four digs. Also for the Cougars against Sheridan, Benitez had eight digs, three points and three aces; Kabalis had five kills and seven digs; Paulina Piegza had nine kills; Quinones had 10 points and five points; and Sabina Piegza had two blocks, seven points and 28 set assists.

The Cougars finished off the first day with an all-around team effort where everyone contributed in some fashion in the win. Kabalis led the team with a double-double, collecting 12 kills, 16 points, 1 solo b lock, three aces and five digs.

Balza and Paulina Piegza each contributed seven kills. Balza also had four blocks, four aces and 10 points. Piegza added two blocks.

Also For WNCC, Sabina Piegza had 27 set assists; Benitez finished with three blocks, one ace and seven digs; Cami Weimer hauled in one kill, one block and one dig’ Whitney Roth had one block’ Quinones had eight points and two digs; Naomi Flinders had one ace and 11 set assists; Gabriela Aviles collected one ace and four points’ and Paulina Alvarez finished with three kills and one dig.

Other first-day scores in the tournament saw Sheridan defeat McCook 25-16, 25-10, 25-10; Casper over Trinidad State 25-14, 25-17, 25-9; Casper over Colby 25-23, 26-24, 25-18; Sheridan over Trinidad 25-17, 25-14, 21-25, 18-25, 16-14; Laramie County over Williston State 12-25, 25-16, 25-17, 24-26, 15-13’ Northeastern Junior College over Miles Community College 25-15, 25-10, 25-12; Seward County defeat Laramie County 25-15, 23-25, 25-15, 25-20; Williston State over Miles 27-25, 25-15; 25-13; North Platte over Laramie County 25-18, 22-24, 25-9, 25-21; Seward County over Northeastern Junior College 23-25, 25-27, 25-22, 25-14, 15-10; North Platte over Miles 24-20, 25-14, 25-20; Seward County over Eastern Wyoming 25-20, 25-21, 25-21; North Platte over Eastern Wyoming 25-22, 19-25, 25-22, 25-18; and Northeastern Colorado over Eastern Wyoming 25-14, 25-23, 25-8.

Today’s Schedule

At Scottsbluff

10 a.m. – WNCC vs. Northwest Wyoming, Colby vs. Sheridan; Noon – Williston State vs. Casper College; 2 p.m. – Williston State vs. Northwest Wyoming; 4 p.m. -- Northeastern Colorado vs. Sheridan College; 6 p.m. – WNCC vs. Williston State, Northeastern Colorado vs. Casper College; 8 p.m. – Seward County vs. Sheridan College, North Platte vs. Northwest Wyoming.

At Torrington, Wyo.

10 a.m. – Seward County vs. Miles City, Northeastern Colorado vs. Laramie County; Noon – Eastern Wyoming vs. McCook, Trinidad State vs. North Platte; 2 p.m. – Colby vs. Laramie County, Trinidad State vs. Miles City; 4 p.m. – Colby vs. North Platte, Seward County vs. McCook; 6 p.m. – Eastern Wyoming vs. Trinidad State, McCook vs. Laramie County; 8 p.m. – McCook vs. Miles City.

WNCC sweeps Casper in first match of Wyo-Braska tournament

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team opened the Wyo-Braska Shootout with a sweep over Casper College 25-16, 25-10, 25-13.

Paulina Piegza paced the Cougars with 12 kills and three blocks. But, it wasn’t just Piegza doing the hitting, it was a team effort. Kaleinani Kabalis hammered home nine kills, followed by Fatiba Balza and Paloma Alvarez each with seven, and Cami Weimer with five.

The first game, however, was a dog fight between two teams that competed at the national tournament a year ago. Both teams were tied at 14 until Nayka Benitez served three straight aces to put the Cougars up 18-14. Later, Gering’s Brooke Blomenkamp brought the score to 24-15 with some clutch serves and the 25-16 win.

The second game, WNCC jumped out to a 6-1 lead on pin-point serving by Gregner Quinones and Fatiba Balza. Casper cut the deficit to 9-4 at one time, but that was as close as the T-Birds could get.

The Cougars flashed their depth in the third game as well. Balza served up three points, including two aces, and Kabalis had four service points to push WNCC ahead 10-3.

Kabalis, besides her nine kills, also finished with 11 digs, three aces, nine points and three blocks. Also for WNCC, Nayka Benitez had 13 digs, four aces, and eight points; Sabina Piegza had 35 set assists; Balza had three blocks, seven points and two aces; and Quinones had six points.

The other noon matches at Cougar Palace saw Sheridan defeat McCook 25-17, 25-22, 25-21. In a match at Torrington, Laramie County Community College won a thriller in five games 12-25 25-16, 25-13, 24-16, 15-13. Eastern Wyoming College also had a battle before falling to Seward County Community College 25-20, 25-21, 25-21.

WNCC will have two more matches today as they face Sheridan at 4 p.m. and Colby Community College at 8 p.m.

WNCC scores 11 goals in defeating Northwest Wyoming Monday evening

Morgan Wall, Lazaro Torres and Raul Sanchez each scored two goals Monday, and the Cougars quickly erased Sunday’s nightmare match with an 11-2 win over Northwest College at Landers Soccer Complex.

On Sunday, the Cougars out shot Cloud County Community College 14-4 but came up short on the score board falling 3-0.

Monday, things were reversed as the Cougars scored 11 goals and were making goals at an alarming rate in registering the 11-2 win over the Northwest College, out-shooting the Trappers 21-5.

“[Sunday] we were just having a day where we couldn’t get them in. We were having a bad day,” Torres said. “ We have been practicing our shooting. We have a shooting drill we do before every game, and I think we will pick it up in future games.”

Whatever the shooting drill was, it paid dividends Monday evening as the Cougars were hitting shots at an alarming rate and it didn’t take them to get things rolling. Austin Albers started things by taking a pass from Tony Rocha to score less than a minute into the match.

WNCC added three more goals in the first seven minutes of the match. Rocha netted the second goal off an Luis Anaya assist with 41:01 to play. A few seconds later, Austin Roy scored off an assist by Mark Zigray.

Morgan Wall made it 4-0 with 38:07 to play off an assist by Nikko Ouzounis.

“If we pick up the pace in every game like we did in this game, this team does a pretty good job,” Torres said. “We just need to play with that intensity every day and we might have a chance to have a winning record this year.”

WNCC wasn’t through scoring as they took a 6-0 lead into intermission. Torres scored the fifth goal as he headed the ball into the back of the net off an assist by Wall. Then, with 15 minutes to play in the half, Alliance’s Raul Sanchez, who is listed as a goalkeeper, took a long pass from goalkeeper Cesar Bazana, bounced the ball off his chest and kicked the ball into the net.

Rocha scored his second goal eight minutes into the second half for a 7-0 lead.

Northwest avoided the shut out as Dusty Curtis scored with 32:40 to play in the match. Northwest would score a second goal with 6:20 to play as Tylan Jones took a free kick and went high into the net.

WNCC, however, had four more goals between the Trappers scores. Torres hit his second goal of the match off an assist by Roy with 27:33 to play. Wall added his second goal off a pass from Jesus Duque.

Sanchez added his second goal with 12:31 to play as Alliance’s Tanner Herien received the assist to make the score 10-1.

Freshman Nathan Southard, of North Platte, picked up the Cougar’s final score with 8:19 to play off an assist by Gustavo Rincon.

The Northwest win was definitely a match that Cougars needed to get its confidence up after Sunday’s disappointing loss against Cloud County.

In that match, the Cougars definitely had many, many opportunities to score goals all day long. Right off the bat, the Cougars Albers and Roy had golden scoring opportunities, but couldn’t convert.

Then, it was Cloud County’s Alberto Navel-Gimeno who netted the first goal as he scored just seven minutes into the match. Ten minutes later, Enrique Becerra put Cloud County up 2-0 as he hammered a shot in the top right corner with 27:04 left in the half.

WNCC, however, continued hammering away at shots on goal. The Cougars had a prime scoring opportunity with 10 minutes to go in the half as Duque delivered a pass to Torres, who hammered one to the goal. Cloud goal keeper Jose Ocampo went vertical and with one arm extended, pushed the ball outside the frame of the net.

Cloud County added another goal to take a 2-0 lead into halftime and then added an insurance goal in the second half as Navel-Gimeno netted his second score of the match.

The Cougars, who had seven scoring opportunities in the first half, had nine more in the second half. WNCC’s offensive attack started early as Albers missed on three shots and then Tony Rocha had a shot that just missed.

The Cougar men (4-4) will be back in action Sunday when they will face the University of Colorado Gold team in Boulder, Colo.

Morgan Wall, Lazaro Torres and Raul Sanchez each scored two goals Monday, and the Cougars quickly erased Sunday’s nightmare match with an 11-2 win over Northwest College at Landers Soccer Complex.

On Sunday, the Cougars out shot Cloud County Community College 14-4 but came up short on the score board falling 3-0.

Monday, things were reversed as the Cougars scored 11 goals and were making goals at an alarming rate in registering the 11-2 win over the Northwest College, out-shooting the Trappers 21-5.

“[Sunday] we were just having a day where we couldn’t get them in. We were having a bad day,” Torres said. “ We have been practicing our shooting. We have a shooting drill we do before every game, and I think we will pick it up in future games.”

Whatever the shooting drill was, it paid dividends Monday evening as the Cougars were hitting shots at an alarming rate and it didn’t take them to get things rolling. Austin Albers started things by taking a pass from Tony Rocha to score less than a minute into the match.

WNCC added three more goals in the first seven minutes of the match. Rocha netted the second goal off an Luis Anaya assist with 41:01 to play. A few seconds later, Austin Roy scored off an assist by Mark Zigray.

Morgan Wall made it 4-0 with 38:07 to play off an assist by Nikko Ouzounis.

“If we pick up the pace in every game like we did in this game, this team does a pretty good job,” Torres said. “We just need to play with that intensity every day and we might have a chance to have a winning record this year.”

WNCC wasn’t through scoring as they took a 6-0 lead into intermission. Torres scored the fifth goal as he headed the ball into the back of the net off an assist by Wall. Then, with 15 minutes to play in the half, Alliance’s Raul Sanchez, who is listed as a goalkeeper, took a long pass from goalkeeper Cesar Bazana, bounced the ball off his chest and kicked the ball into the net.

Rocha scored his second goal eight minutes into the second half for a 7-0 lead.

Northwest avoided the shut out as Dusty Curtis scored with 32:40 to play in the match. Northwest would score a second goal with 6:20 to play as Tylan Jones took a free kick and went high into the net.

WNCC, however, had four more goals between the Trappers scores. Torres hit his second goal of the match off an assist by Roy with 27:33 to play. Wall added his second goal off a pass from Jesus Duque.

Sanchez added his second goal with 12:31 to play as Alliance’s Tanner Herien received the assist to make the score 10-1.

Freshman Nathan Southard, of North Platte, picked up the Cougar’s final score with 8:19 to play off an assist by Gustavo Rincon.

The Northwest win was definitely a match that Cougars needed to get its confidence up after Sunday’s disappointing loss against Cloud County.

In that match, the Cougars definitely had many, many opportunities to score goals all day long. Right off the bat, the Cougars Albers and Roy had golden scoring opportunities, but couldn’t convert.

Then, it was Cloud County’s Alberto Navel-Gimeno who netted the first goal as he scored just seven minutes into the match. Ten minutes later, Enrique Becerra put Cloud County up 2-0 as he hammered a shot in the top right corner with 27:04 left in the half.

WNCC, however, continued hammering away at shots on goal. The Cougars had a prime scoring opportunity with 10 minutes to go in the half as Duque delivered a pass to Torres, who hammered one to the goal. Cloud goal keeper Jose Ocampo went vertical and with one arm extended, pushed the ball outside the frame of the net.

Cloud County added another goal to take a 2-0 lead into halftime and then added an insurance goal in the second half as Navel-Gimeno netted his second score of the match.

The Cougars, who had seven scoring opportunities in the first half, had nine more in the second half. WNCC’s offensive attack started early as Albers missed on three shots and then Tony Rocha had a shot that just missed.

The Cougar men (4-4) will be back in action Sunday when they will face the University of Colorado Gold team in Boulder, Colo.

WNCC women notch win over Cloud County 5-1 in action Sunday

The Western Nebraska Community College women’s soccer players realize that Sunday’s match with Cloud County Community College wasn’t their best as they defeated the Thunderbirds 5-1.

The Cougars, 4-3-1, out shot Cloud County 13-2, but could have had a lot more goals as the WNCC women dominated play from start to finish.

“Our team did okay for the team we played against,” sophomore Terri Huntington said. “We have a long ways to go though and we need to pick it up a lot.”

WNCC’s Alicia Ropkin echoed Huntingon’s observation of the game.

“We played a fair game with good possession, but we needed to take advantage of the gaps in the defense,” the sophomore said. “We need to play to our full ability even against lesser skilled opponents.”

The one thing the contest did was give the Cougar women an idea what they need to work on before next month’s regional tournament.

“We missed a lot of open shots to make the score better, but it was a nice game to see what we have to improve on,” sophomore Andrea Ardito said. “

Cloud County, however, made things interesting early, scoring the opening goal with just under two minutes gone in the match. Beatriz Castillo scored as she took a rebound off of Cougar goal keeper Andrea Burger for the 1-0 lead.

The goal woke the Cougar offense up as they scored four times in the first half. Jamie Gastille started things when she fed Ashley Quintana a perfect pass, who found the back of the net with the tying goal with 37:18 to play.

The Cougars took the lead 10 minutes later as LeeAnna Paxton scored off an assist by Keah Brost. Four minutes later, Quintana delivered Gastille a pass to put the Cougars up 3-1.

WNCC added one more goal before half as Shaylee Williams earned the assist on a goal by Ana Jacobo with 4:27 to play.

The Cougars added just one goal in the second half as Huntington delivered a pass to Taylor Johns with 16:43 to play.

The Cougars managed 12 shots on goal in the first half and nine in the second half to out shot the Thunderbirds 12-2.

Cloud County goal keeper Kadie Kutschka registered 13 saves, while Burger had just one save.

WNCC coach Todd Rasnic said he will take the win, but wasn’t overly excited with the performance.

“I was, to say the least, disappointed with the performance of the ladies. The ladies certainly had many, many opportunities to put the ball away and didn’t do it,” he said. “We were just not on our shooting today. Hopefully, it is not a cycle. We have a big tournament coming up this weekend at CU and we will see how the ladies bounce back after this game and put together some high pressure matches.”

Another reason for the scoring woes, Rasnic said, is that he played got everybody into the match in some capacity.

“We did do a lot of different things in the match,” he said. “We played a lot of our subs today and got everybody a chance to play in the game. So, that had something to do with it as well.”

WNCC will next be in action Friday through Sunday at the CU Boulder tournament, where they will play the University of Nebraska Club team among others.

WNCC men fall to Cloud County in soccer action, host Northwest Wyoming on Monday

The Western Nebraska Community College men’s soccer team out shot Cloud County Community College 14-3 Sunday afternoon at the Landers Complex, but it wasn’t enough as the Thunderbirds won the battle on the scoreboard in registering a 3-0 win over the Cougars.

WNCC coach Todd Rasnic said it is becoming old in looking at the shooting disparities.

“We had 14 shots on goal and you can’t win soccer matches unless you are finishing your opportunities,” he said. “We certainly weren’t doing that today and we haven’t done it in the last couple of games. We have out shot our opponents and quite honestly until it changes, we are going to have a difficult go of it.”

The Cougars definitely had many, many opportunities to score goals and they had shots all day long at the net. Right off the bat, the Cougars Austin Albers and Austin Roy had golden scoring opportunities, but couldn’t convert.

Then, it was Cloud County’s Alberto Navel-Gimeno who netted the first goal as he scored just seven minutes into the match. Ten minutes later, Enrique Becerra put Cloud County up 2-0 as he hammered a shot in the top right corner with 27:04 left in the half.

WNCC, however, continued hammering away at shots on goal. The Cougars had a prime scoring opportunity with 10 minutes to go in the half as Jesus Duque delivered a pass to Lazaro Torres, who hammered one to the goal. Cloud goal keeper Jose Ocampo went vertical and with one arm extended, pushed the ball outside the frame of the net.

The Cougars, who had seven scoring opportunities in the first half, had nine more in the second half. WNCC’s offensive attack started early as Albers missed on three shots and then Tony Rocha had a shot that just missed.

WNCC also had one shot that that hit the front of the goal and bounce back into play, and then had three shots on goal with under eight minutes to play.

In the meantime, the Thunderbirds added another goal at the 14:13 mark as Navel-Gimeno scored on a shot that sailed over the head of Cougar goal keeper Juan Sanchez.

WNCC had five corner kicks to Cloud County’s three. Cloud County’s goal keepers Ocampo and Julio Tovelin had 12 saves compared to just one for WNCC’s goal keepers Sanchez and Cesar Bazana.

Rasnic said that finishing goals will be an emphasize in practice this week.

“I think they will improve. We have a lot of freshmen that are learning the ropes out here and learning to play in this type of system,” he said. “We are continuing to be hopeful that they will step up to the challenge and start finishing well. The other team had four shots on goal and put three of them in the back of the net. We have to be a team that performs that way. Unfortunately we weren’t that team today. We will keep working and will do some finishing work this week.”

The Cougar men (3-4) will be back in action Monday as they host Northwest (Wyo.) College beginning at 5 p.m. at the Landers Soccer Complex.

“We have a game [Monday] against Northwest Wyoming so hopefully we will see some of those things corrected by tomorrow evening,” Rasnic said. “Hopefully we will get a good crowd for that game and perform to the level that we should be performing.”

WNCC softball stops Chadron State, Wyoming in Fall Classic

The Western Nebraska Community College softball team finished the WNCC Fall Classic in dominating fashion Saturday night, with two impressive wins against Chadron State College 7-0 and the University of Wyoming 9-1.

The Cougars earlier that day defeated Weber State University 8-0.

Kelsey Garner was simply dominating in the win against Chadron State. The NJCAA all-American who set nearly all the pitching records a year ago, struck out 10 batters in 5 1/3 innings of work. In fact, Garner allowed just two base runners by hitting a batter in the fourth inning and then allowed a single in the bottom of the sixth, just before time limit was called.

But, while Garner was sensational in the circle, the Cougars young defense and explosive offense was scoring runs left and right. WNCC plated two runs in the first inning as Adena Hagen led things off with single and scored on a Casey Simpson double to right centerfield. Simpson came in to score on a Alyssa Hickey single.

WNCC added single runs in the second and fourth innings. In the second, Karleen Crone walked and came around to score on Hagen's single. In the fourth, Alex Voci walked and scored on Garner's single to left field for a 4-0 lead.

The Cougars put the game away in the fifth inning by plating three runs. Katie Groves started things by drawing a walk. Pinch runner Tonya Atencio later scored on a double by Hickey. WNCC added singles by Voci and Brittany Chacon in the inning for their seven runs.

Hickey paced the team with a 3-for-4 performance, including a double and a run scored. Hagen went 2-for-2 with two RBIs and two walks, while Simpson finished with a double.

The Cougars were just as dominating in their final Classic game as Stephanie Townsend tossed a 2-hitter in getting the shutout against Wyoming. The freshman from Roosevelt, Utah, struck out five in the win.

WNCC pounded out 10 hits in the win. The Cougars got things started with two runs in the second inning. Hannah Strauss led off by drawing a walk and scored on a Jaclyn Bourdon single. Atencio later singled to score Chacon.

The Cougars went up 3-0 in teh fourth inning. Strauss led off by blasting a double in a stiff win that hit the top of the fence. Pinch runner Mandy Pounds later scored on a Bourdon single.

WNCC put the game away in the fifth inning by plating six runs on five hits and two walks. WNCC started off by loading the bases and then had two straight singles by Crone and Sofia Gomez. WNCC also got run-scoring singles by Bourdon and Atencio.

Bourdon paced the team with a 3-for-3 performance, including two runs scored and two RBIs. Atencio and Crone each had two hits as well. Atencio added two RBIs.

WNCC volleyball turns back Pratt, Garden City in second day of tournament

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team made a clean sweep of the Pizza Hut Invite in Sterling, Colo., Saturday by claiming straight-game wins over Pratt Community College and Garden City Community College.

WNCC, after sweeping both matches on Friday, were even more impressive on Saturday. The Cougars defeated Pratt 25-12, 25-12, 25-20 before turning back Garden City 25-14. 25-9. 25-14. It was the third tournament of the season in which the No. 2 team in the country has swept through a tournament unscathed.

On Friday, the Cougars swept North Platte Community College and Colby Community College in three straight games each.

In Saturday’s opener, Paulina Piegza paced the Cougars against Pratt with eight kills and four blocks. Fatima Balza was just as impressive, recording seven kills, three blocks, and five points.

Also for WNCC, Sabina Piegza finished with 16 points, 24 set assists, and four kills; Paloma Alvarez finished with six kills, five digs and five points; Kaleinani Kabalis had three kills; Nayka Benitez had 14 digs; and Gregner Quinones had eight digs and eight points.

In the Garden City win, Balza finished with 11 kills, two blocks, four digs, nine points and three aces.

Paulina Piegza also collected double-digit with 10 kills followed Kabalis with nine kills. Kabalis also had seven digs, five points and three aces.

Also for WNCC, Sabina Piegza had 11 points, five aces, 30 set assists, and four kills; Benitez had nine digs and two aces; Quinones had seven digs, four points, and two aces; Alvarez with three kills; Whitney Roth two kills.

The Cougars return to action next weekend when they host the Wyo-Braska Shootout that begins Thursday and runs through Saturday.

WNCC volleyball turns back Pratt, Garden City in second day of tournament

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team made a clean sweep of the Pizza Hut Invite in Sterling, Colo., Saturday by claiming straight-game wins over Pratt Community College and Garden City Community College.
WNCC, after sweeping both matches on Friday, were even more impressive on Saturday. The Cougars defeated Pratt 25-12, 25-12, 25-20 before turning back Garden City 25-14. 25-9. 25-14. It was the third tournament of the season in which the No. 2 team in the country has swept through a tournament unscathed.
On Friday, the Cougars swept North Platte Community College and Colby Community College in three straight games each.
In Saturday’s opener, Paulina Piegza paced the Cougars against Pratt with eight kills and four blocks. Fatima Balza was just as impressive, recording seven kills, three blocks, and five points.
Also for WNCC, Sabina Piegza finished with 16 points, 24 set assists, and four kills; Paloma Alvarez finished with six kills, five digs and five points; Kaleinani Kabalis had three kills; Nayka Benitez had 14 digs; and Gregner Quinones had eight digs and eight points.
In the Garden City win, Balza finished with 11 kills, two blocks, four digs, nine points and three aces.
Paulina Piegza also collected double-digit with 10 kills followed Kabalis with nine kills. Kabalis also had seven digs, five points and three aces.
Also for WNCC, Sabina Piegza had 11 points, five aces, 30 set assists, and four kills; Benitez had nine digs and two aces; Quinones had seven digs, four points, and two aces; Alvarez with three kills; Whitney Roth two kills.
The Cougars return to action next weekend when they host the Wyo-Braska Shootout that begins Thursday and runs through Saturday.

WNCC volleyball runs record to 25-2 with sweeps over Pratt, Garden City in second day of Pizza Hut Classic

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team improved to 25-2 on the season by sweeping through the second day of the Pizza Hut Classic with wins over Pratt Community College and Garden City Community College.

In the opener, the Cougars earned a 25-12, 25-12, 25-20 win over Pratt, before dismantling Garden City 25-14, 25-9, 25-14 to finish the tournament not dropping a set.

The No. 2 ranked WNCC team will next be in action next week when they host the Wyo-Braska Shootout along with EWC Thursday through Saturday at Cougars Place.

WNCC opens fall season with 8-0 win against Weber State

The Western Nebraska Community College softball team received steller pitching performances from Kelsey Garner and Stephanie Townsend to open the fall season with a dominating 8-0 win over Weber State University in the WNCC Fall Classic at Volunteer Field in Scottsbluff.

WNCC will have two more games today in the classic against Chadron State College at 6:30 p.m. and the University of Wyoming at 8:15 p.m.

Garner, a sophomore who set nearly all of WNCC’s pitching records a year ago while leading them to the Region IX championship, threw three perfect innings, while striking out three. Townsend, a freshman from Roosevelt, Utah, finished the game in throwing four innings and giving up three hits.

While the pitching was sensational, the defense was just as solid, not allowing a Weber State runner past second base. Weber’s State’s first hit came in the top of the fifth inning.

Offensively, the Cougars flexed their hitting and quickness on the bases. The Cougars got on the scoreboard in the first inning. With two outs, Casey Simpson earned a walked and scored on a Alyssa Hickey single for a 1-0 lead.

WNCC added two more runs in the second inning. With one out, Tonya Alencio and Kelsey Garner recorded back-to-back singles. Alencio scored on Garner’s single to right field. Later that inning, Adena Hagen earned a walk and scored for a 3-0 lead.

WNCC plated a single run in the fourth inning as Brittany Chacon scored on a Karleen Crone single.

The Cougars pushed the lead to 7-0 in the sixth inning. With one out, Alyssa Hickey singled. Kelly Pearson then earned a walk. Pinch runner Alec Voci and Pearson each scored on a Tiffany Lookabill double to center field. Pincher runner Mandy Pounds scored the third run of the inning on a Crowe single for a 7-0 lead.

Hagen scored the team’s final run in the seventh inning after leading off with a single.

Hagen, a freshman from Birch Hills, Saskatchewan, finished the game going 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored. Hickey, a freshman from Boulder, Colo., went 3-for-3 with a RBI, while Crone, a freshman from Annaheim, Saskatchewan, finished with a double and two RBIs.

WNCC volleyball team claims two wins at the Pizza Hut Invite

STERLING, Colo. — Kaleinani Kabalis hammered home 29 kills as the No. 2 Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team picked up two wins Friday in the first day of the Pizza Hut Classic in Sterling, Colo.

WNCC received a bit of a scare in its tournament opener against Division II 13^th ranked North Platte Community College, but came out on top by sweeping the Knights 28-26, 25-10, 25-22.

WNCC then registered a 25-20, 25-14, 25-10 win over Colby Community College to close out the first day of action.

WNCC assistant coach Nicole Gonzales said the team needed to everything they had to get by a talented North Platte squad.

“We started slow against North Platte, but once we got going we did better,” she said. “Then, against Colby, we played a lot better and pulled it through with good serving.”

Gonzales said it got scary against North Platte, as the Knights pushed the Cougars to the limit.

In the first-set, WNCC had set point at 24-23, before North Platte came back to get set points at 24-25 and 25-26. The Cougars, however, fought back with Naomi Flinders serving the final two points to give WNCC the win.

The second set was all WNCC as the defending national champions cruised to a 25-8 win.

The third set started all WNCC's way with the Cougars taking a 11-7 lead at one time. North Platte, however, fought back, tying the set at 16-16. WNCC regrouped after a time out and pushed ahead to win 25-21, including clutch kills by Paulina Piegza, Kaleinani Kabalis and Palomo Alvarez.

Four Cougars finished above or near double figures in kills, led by Kabalis’ 15 kills. Alvarez also pounded home 11 kills, followed by Fatima Balza with nine and Paulina Piegza with eight.

Nayka Benitez and Gregner Quinones also had a good match. Quinones finished with 12 digs and eight points, while Benitez had 11 digs.

Sabina Piegzaalso added 42 set assists, seven digs, seven points and two aces.

In the win against Colby, Balza and Quinones each recorded double-doubles. Balza finished with 11 points, 11 kills and two aces, while Quinones had 12 digs, 11 points, and two aces.

Also for WNCC, Kabalis had 14 kills, nine digs and two blocks; Benitez had 11 digs; Paulina Piegza had 12 kills; and Sabina Piegza had 31 set assists.

WNCC, 23-2, will finish off the Pizza Hut Invite with two days today. The Cougars will face Pratt Community College at 9 a.m. and then Garden City Community College at 11 a.m.

Former Cougar Alison Cheney makes Colorado State basketball tea

CSU women's basketball coach Kristen Holt finalized her 2008-09 roster Friday by announcing the addition of three players.chool, and Alison Cheney, a 5-8 junior guard from Kersey who transferred from Western Nebraska Community College, were selected as walk-ons. The Rams also signed freshman Chatilla van Grinsven, a 6-2 forward from the Netherlands.

The additions give Holt 14 players for her first season as the Rams' coach. Eight are returnees - sophomore guard Bonnie Barber, senior forward Amaka Uzomah, senior forward Britney Minor, senior guard Kandy Beemer, sophomore guard Zoi Simmons, senior forward Carine Reimink, redshirt junior center Devran Tanacan and junior forward Juanise Cornell, the only player to have completed two or more seasons with the Rams.

The other players are recruits Kim Mestdagh, a freshman guard/forward from Belgium; Natalie van den Adel, a second-year freshman guard from the Netherlands; and Meghan Heimstra, a freshman forward from Silver Creek High in Longmont.

The Rams will begin practice in about five weeks. They went 4-28 overall and 0-6 in Mountain West Conference play last season with both records the worst in school history.

WNCC volleyball team defeats North Platte Community College

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team started the Pizza Hut Invite in Sterling, Colo., off on the right foot, but it wasn't easy.

The North Platte Community College Knights, No. 13 in the NJCAA Division II poll, gave the Cougars a battle, but the No. 2 team in the nation survived in straight sets 28-26, 25-8, 25-22 to go to 22-2 on the season.

In the first-set win, the Cougars won a tight contest as each team had set points. WNCC had set points at 24-23, before North Platte came back to get set points at 24-25 and 25-26. The Cougars, however, fought back and Naomi Flinders served the final two points to give WNCC the win.

The second set was all WNCC as the defending national champions cruised to a 25-8 win.

The third set started all WNCC's way with the Cougars taking a 11-7 lead at one time. North Platte, however, fought back, tying the set at 16-16. WNCC regrouped after a time out and pushed ahead to win 25-21, including clutch kills by Paulina Piegza, Kaleinani Kabalis and Palomo Alvarez.

WNCC will be in action later tonight at 7 p.m. against Colby Community College. Then, on Saturday, they will face Pratt Community College and Garden City Community College. The games can be heard on KOSY 101.3 FM or on the Internet at www.kozy1013.com.

Revamped WNCC Fall Classic softball schedule after Friday's game washed out because of rain

The First day of the WNCC Fall Classic has been postponed because of the wet weather. The tournament will be held at Volunteer Field in Scottsbluff.

The tournament will pick up Saturday with a revamped game schedule. The Cougars will play three games on Saturday, beginning with an 8 a.m. contest against Weber State University. The Cougars will then face Chadron State College at 6:30 p.m. and then the University of Wyoming at 8:15 p.m.

Chadron State will have four games on the day. Besides the contest with WNCC, the Eagles will face Weber State at 9:45 a.m., Wyoming at 11:30 a.m. and North Platte Community College at 4:45 p.m.

Other games in the WNCC Fall Classic will see Weber State taking on North Platte at 1:15 p.m. and Wyoming meeting North Platte at 3 p.m.

WNCC softball opens fall season with home tournament this weekend

The last time the Western Nebraska Community College softball team played at Volunteer Field, they captured the Region IX championship in May.

This weekend, the Cougar softball team will be back on that same field as they host the WNCC Classic to signify the start of the fall season. Action begins Friday night and runs all day Saturday with two-year and four-year teams from Wyoming, Nebraska and Utah taking part.

WNCC coach Maria Winn-Ratliff said the focus of the tournament is to gain experience for this year’s team that features just four players back from last year’s championship team that went 54-10.

“We are not trying to focus on what the team did last year,” she said. “We are only trying to focus on what this team is capable of doing.”

The Cougars will play two games each day, beginning with Weber State University Friday at 5 p.m. WNCC will also battle the University of Wyoming at 8:30 p.m. Weber State and Wyoming will battle at 6:45 p.m.

Saturday action begins at 8 a.m. with seven games scheduled with Wyoming meeting Weber State to kick things off.

Other games include Chadron State College facing Weber State at 9:45 a.m., Chadron State meeting North Platte at 11:30 a.m., Wyoming taking on North Platte at 1:15 p.m., Chadron State facing Wyoming at 3 p.m., WNCC meeting Chadron State at 4:45 p.m., and WNCC taking on North Platte at 6:30 p.m.

Winn-Ratliff said this year’s WNCC fall classic looks to be a competitive 2-day tournament.

“Chadron just continues to get better,” she said. “I really don't know a whole lot about Weber State except that they were very good last year. Wyoming always comes to play hard and North Platte is always scrappy and finds ways to win.”

But all eyes will be on this year’s Cougar squad, which features four returners and 16 new faces to the team. Kelsey Garner, of Regina, Saskatchewan, leads the returners. Garner set practically every pitching record a year ago while being named a NJCAA all-American. The other three returners include Alec Voci and Mandy Pounds of Colorado Springs, Colo., and Lauryn Smith of Berthoud, Colo.

Five of the newcomers come from north of the border. They include Casey Simpson of Nokomis, Saskatchewan, Adena Hagen of Birch Hills, Saskatchewan, Karleen Crone of Annaheim, Saskatchewan, Christy Degano of Surrey, Britsh Columbia, and Jaclyn Bourdon, of Duck Lake, Saskatchewan.

The other members of the squad include Brenda Hearn of Tijeras, N.M., Hannah Strauss of Arvada, Colo., Megan Burditt of Las Alamos, N.M., Stephanie Townsend of Roosevelt, Utah, Tiffany Lookabill of Spokane, Wash., Alyssa Hickey of Boulder, Colo., Kelly Pearson and Tonya Alencio of Denver, Colo., Katie Groves of South Jordan, Utah, Brittany Chacon of Broomfield, Colo., and Sofia Gomez of Riverton, Utah.

Winn-Ratliff said with this many newcomers it is hard to compare teams, but the talent is there to possibly repeat as champions.

“Offensively when it all come together, I think they will be the strongest offensive team we have had at WNCC,” she said. “We are very deep all the way around and have lots of competition for each position.”

Admission for the tournament is $5 for adults and $3 for children.

WNCC volleyball ranked second in national polls

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team will have a little bit more to play for now that the first National Junior College Athletic Association polls have been released.

The Cougars, who are off to a blistering 21-2 start after capturing the national championship a year ago, are ranked No. 2 in the nation behind No. 1 Iowa Western Community College. WNCC was unranked in the pre-season poll that came out last month.

“It feels good but it does not mean much to me because it is only the beginning of the season,” first-year coach Giovana Melo said. “I am excited and proud of my kids but we still have so much to improve if we want to stay up there on the rankings. It is just the beginning of the season.”

The Cougars only losses this season came to the hands of Iowa Western twice at last weekend’s Central Invite in Columbus. Before that, the Cougars ran off 19 straight victories, inclduding the tournament titles at the Molten Invite in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and the Salt Lake Invite.

Melo said they rankings will give them a little bit more to play for, but she is not putting a lot of stock in them this early in the season.

“The rankings should motivate us a little but definitelyl not the motivation for our season,” she said. “We know this is only the beginning and we need to keep getting better to be able to beat teams like Iowa Western.”

WNCC has played six schools that are ranked in this week’s top 20 poll, including four of the top – Iowa Western (No. 1), College of Southern Idaho (No. 3), Salt Lake Community College (No. 4), and Missouri State University-West Plains (No. 6).

WNCC will take its No. 2 ranking into this weekend’s matches at the Pizza Hut Invite in Sterling, Colo. The Cougars will battle four opponents in two days, including a match-up with North Platte Community College, who is ranked No. 13 in the NJCAA Division II polls. The contest is slated for 3 p.m. on Friday.

The Cougars will also battle Colby Community College on Friday, and then Pratt Community College and Garden City Community College on Saturday. After that, the Cougars will be at home Sept. 18-20 for the Wyo-Braska Shootout.

“I am sure it will be good competition at this weekend’s tournament,” Melo said. “No matter who is out there, we need to play to get better every day. Every time we step on the court, we need to get better so that is our mentality.”

This year’s team did have plenty of unanswered questions when they started practice in August. Those questions were quickly answered as a number of players are listed in the top 50 of the NJCAA national statistics.

Fatima Balza, one of two returners from last year’s team, is 3^rd in blocks, 12^th in hitting efficiency, and 29^th in kills per game. Nayka Benitez, the other lone returner, is 38^th in digs per game.

Others that are listed in the individual statistic categories include Sabina Piegza 5^th in setting assists, 20^th in blocks, and 33^rd in aces; Paulina Piegza 5^th in blocking and 16^th in kills; Kaleinani Kabalis 14^th in kills and 28^th in blocking; and Naomi Flinders 14^th in blocking.

With all the success the team is having right now, Melo still thinks there is room for improvement in order to capture a second straight national title.

“We are playing really well at times,” Melo said. “But we need to be more consistent and be able to play that well for a long period of time.”

WNCC women tie LCCC 2-2 in soccer action, Cougar men fall in overtime 2-1

CHEYENNE, Wyo. -- The Western Nebraska Community College women’s soccer should a lot of heart in earning a 2-2 tie in double overtime against No. 11 Laramie County Community College Wednesday in Cheyenne, Wyo.

And, it was the way the Cougar women played as they faced defeat late, overcoming a 2-0 deficit with under 15 minutes to play to record two goals while out-hustling the Golden Eagle players to the ball.

“I can’t say enough of how the ladies battled to get back in the match,“ Rasnic said. “We got several key opportunities and Shsy [Williams] did an excellent job of drawing the goal keeper out and putting her in a bad position. She had to foul her and we got the PK and we put it in this time. I just can’t say enough about the performance and the heart of these ladies. They are going to go somewhere this year if they continue to play with this kind of heart they played out here tonight.“

While the women’s team was all smiles with their gutsy performance, the men’s team suffered a heartbreaking defeat, falling to LCCC 2-1 in overtime. Te loss snapped the Cougar men’s three-game winning streak.

Both games were in tight matches, but it was the women’s game that had the most drama. Both women’s squads failed to score in the first half. LCCC cracked the scoreboard first as Megan Erickson scored with 36 minutes to play for a 1-0 lead.

Ten minutes later, Yala Fowler went one-on-one with WNCC’s goal keeper Terri Huntington and won the battle for the 2-0 lead. That goal, however, was the last for the Golden Eagles as Huntington and the rest of the Cougar defense frustrated the Golden Eagle offense.

In fact, Rasnic couldn’t have said enough about the play of Huntington late in the game as well as the defense.

“Terri did an outstanding job in the net,” he said. “Also, in every game our defense has stepped up and tonight was no exception. The work of all the backs today was nothing short of heroic. I certainly think we have some good things coming up in the season and we will look forward to each game. We will just come out the next couple times with LCCC and show them we can play with them.”

With about 15 minutes to play, the Cougars picked up the pace and scored two goals. The first one with 9:30 to play, was a huge momentum swing. LeeAnna Paxton delivered a pass to Shaylee Williams in front of the net, who hit a shot that squeezed underneath the goal keepers hands and trickled over the line for the score.

The tying goal was even more dramatic. With only 1:53 to play, Williams dribbled the ball to the center of the box, going one-on-one with the goal keeper, who ran into Williams causing a penalty kick. Ana Jacobo too the kick and nailed the shot in the right corner for the tie.

In the first overtime, WNCC had a prime scoring chance with 2:37 to play with a shot on goal that just sailed astray.

In the second overtime, the Cougar defense came up big, including Huntington in net. The Golden Eagles had a free kick about 40 feet from net that went for naught. LCCC also had scoring opportunities twice more, including a corner kick that the Cougar defense stuffed out.
Huntington recorded six saves in the contest. LCCC out shot WNCC 7-5.

Rasnic said he is expecting great things from the women’s team after their performance Wednesday.

“You will see us improve as the season goes along. That is always our goal,” he said. “The ladies definitely did an outstanding job tonight, especially coming back from a 2-0 deficit in the second half of the game. I take my hat off to them.”

In the men’s game, LCCC scored first in the 38th minute, but the lead was short lived as Morgan Wall tied the game with a shot from in front of the net. Both teams didn’t score the rest of the half, or second half to force overtime.

Both teams, however, had a multitude of scoring opportunities in the second half after a 45-minute lightning delay. The best chance for a goal game with 3:20 to play when the Cougars had two opportunities in the box, but couldn’t connect for the score.

The Cougar’s defense also came up big to force overtime as LCCC had three consecutive corner kicks within a minutes time, which the Cougars stuffed out.

In the extra period, LCCC had the first chance for the winning goal with eight minutes to play but it was no good. Two minutes later, Tony Rocha took a pass inside the box and had a prime close shot, which he couldn’t get enough on the ball to put it in the net.

LCCC followed with the winning goal with 5:30 remaining in the overtime period as Cameron Shumway scored the winning goal as the Golden Eagles went 2-on-1 with Cougar goal keeper Cesar Bazana.

Even with the loss, Bazana had an excellent game in net, recording nine saves. WNCC had seven shots on goal.

Rasnic said his men’s squad needs to learn to play a complete game.

“I think the stats showed that we outplayed the opponent, but we struggled again tonight as we have every game with the first half play,” he said. “If we had played the first half like we played the second half, it probably would have been a different result. For some reason they have to get scored on before we start stepping up and playing the game”

Both squads will next be in action Sunday when they host Cloud County Community College at the Landers Soccer Complex. The women kick off at 10 a.m. followed by the men’s game at noon.

WNCC ladies fall 1-0 to No. 2 ranked Iowa Western

The Western Nebraska Community College women’s soccer team knew they were up against a brick wall when facing the No. 2 Iowa Western Community College women’s soccer team Sunday at the Landers Soccer Complex in Scottsbluff.

Iowa Western entered Sunday’s contest with a 5-0 record and have yet to give up a goal. Sunday, the Reivers were just as solid defensively, in thwarting numerous Cougar scoring opportunities to register an 1-0 win.

WNCC women’s coach Todd Rasnic was pleased with his team’s efforts against a solid squad like Iowa Western.

“I told the ladies after the game, I was happy with their performance,” he said. “Obviously we would like to win every match. We are playing with a lot of freshman this year. I know looking at their line up, they had eight or nine starting sophomores. I think experience came into play.”

Sunday’s match up didn’t look like a No. 2 team facing an upcoming squad; it resembled more of a top five battle as both squads put up great defensive efforts in cold and windy conditions.

The Cougars had five prime scoring opportunities in both the first and second halves, but couldn’t cash in on the chances.

“Right now our players are not finishing their opportunities to score,” Rasnic said. “Until we do that, we will continue to struggle. Defense and our composure for freshmen players, is pretty amazing. They are composed and they are patient to the ball. They work the ball around. If things break down, they reset. I can’t say enough about that.”

Freshman Brooke Dudley had the first scoring opportunity eight minutes into the match as she couldn’t catch up with a pass that left her one-on-one with the goal keeper. LeeAnna Paxton also had two chances to score within 30 seconds of each other. The other first half scoring opportunities came from attempts from Jaime Gastelle and Ashley Quintana.

Iowa Western, on the other hand, had four shots on goal, and it took just one to find the back of the net for the game winner. With 10:06 left in the half, Lyndie Heaps took a pass in front of the Cougar bench and out-raced the Cougar defender for a one-on-one encounter with Cougar goal keeper Terri Huntington. Heaps blasted the shot in the left corner for the score.

WNCC had plenty of opportunities to net the tying score in the second half, including back-to-back corner kicks with seven minutes into the second half. The prime scoring opportunity, though, came with 15:47 to play when the Cougars had a penalty kick, but Shaylee Williams boot sailed right.

The Cougars had another prime scoring chance with just over four minutes to play, only to see Iowa Western’s goal keeper Mileena Bucher gobble up Dudley’s shot attempt.

Rasnic said the way his ladies played against the No. 2 team in the nation, fortifies that this team is capable of being a top 10-ranked team.

“I think right now I believe they are a top 10 team, and you obviously saw that today with the effort they put out on the field,” he said. “I think you will see some great things from them this year.”

WNCC, 3-3, will look to get back on the winning track against another ranked team on Wednesday when they travel to Laramie County Community College for a 4 p.m. kick off.

Rasnic said the key in picking up a win is finding a way to score.

“I think with both squads, the final one-third is our issue,” he said. “We move the ball well. We organize and we reset plays when they are breaking up, but our final one-third needs to be a bit more organized. We need to be more structured in what we are doing. We have some days to get that figured out. We will certainly work through those issues and see if we can’t go down to LCCC and come back with some wins.”

Albers goal lifts WNCC men to 1-0 win over Iowa Western Community College

The Western Nebraska Community College and Iowa Western Community College men’s soccer match on Sunday was headed to overtime.

Except WNCC’s Austin Albers had different ideas. The freshman from Spearfish, S.D., changed the complexion of the match in a heartbeat by scoring the winning goal with under four minutes to play to give the Cougar men their third straight victory with a 1-0 win over Iowa Western at the Landers Complex.

“It was one of those well-timed runs where you get the space at the right time and the ball came across the field,” WNCC men’s soccer coach Todd Rasnic said. “We got fortunate. The game went back and forth, all match long.”

Both teams were locked into a knockout match until Albers amazing shot. Albers received the ball from Nikko Ouzounis and dribbled the ball to the left side of the net and then knocked the ball home with 3 minutes, 7 seconds remaining in regulation. Albers score was the only scoring the Cougars needed as Cougar goalkeeper Cesar Bazana like a brick wall in net for WNCC, recording six saves in getting his second straight shutout.

“Actually Iowa Western had some key opportunities in the first half that really could have put the game away,” Rasnic said. “Cesar Bazana came up big today. He did an outstanding job in the net. He actually saved the game for us.”

Iowa Western had three prime scoring opportunities in the first half as the Reivers controlled the tempo of the contest, frustrating the Cougar offense with their hard-nosed defense.

The second half was a different story. WNCC had the wind advantage and took advantage with keeping play mostly in their half of the field. Rasnic also said he made some offensive adjustments, which paid off.

“Having the wind in the second half for us was a good thing; however, the adjustments we made at halftime were much different then that,” he said. “We were not playing the ball well to the opposite side and switching in the first half. We did that better in the second half and we got more penetration.

“The number one thing in the second half was we started winning the 50/50 balls/ The first half they beat us to everything and the second half our guys came through and started to win some balls.”

WNCC had three early scoring opportunities in the second half. Austin Roy had a good shot on goal 13 minutes into the half that the pass just was out of his reach. Then, Albers had two scoring opportunities with just over 20 minutes to play. The second shot just sailed over the net.

Both team’s defense went into second gear as neither team had a good shot until with 8 minutes to play when Iowa Western had a free kick just outside the box. The shot went astray.

The turning in the point came with over four minutes to play when Iowa Western’s Daxton Beausoled was issued a red card, putting the Reivers down a player. A minute later, that is when Albers scored the winning goal.

Rasnic said that the Cougars’ late score might have been due to fatigue setting in on the Reivers late in the game.

“Iowa Western played [Saturday] and it is tough to play two days back-to-back at a full rate of speed,” he said. “I take my hat off to them, they did an excellent job today and we were fortunate to win. Toward the end of the match, some bad things happened and they ended up down a player and that helped us with an unfair advantage as well. They played the numbers really well and ended up scoring at the end of game.”

Iowa Western out shot the Cougars 6-1, while WNCC registered more corner kicks, 2-1, on the cold and windy Sunday afternoon.

“It was a win and the W’s count and that is what I like to see,” Rasnic said. “Whether it is 1-0, or whether it is not pretty, it doesn’t make any difference in the books. It is a W and that is what we were looking for.”

WNCC, 3-2, will be looking for its fourth straight win Wednesday when they travel to Cheyenne, Wyo., to face Laramie County Community College. The men’s contest begins at 2 p.m. with the women’s match starts at 4 p.m.

WNCC volleyball team falls to Iowa Western at Raider Invite

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team run at an undefeated season came to a screeching halt in the second day of the Raider Invite in Columbus, Neb.

After winning all three of their matches on Friday, the Cougar women went 1-2 on Saturday, falling twice to Iowa Western Community College. The second loss to IWCC ended the opportunity for the Cougar women to win their third straight tournament this season.

In a pool play match early Saturday morning, the Cougars suffered a straight set loss to the Reivers25-17, 25-19. That put the Cougars into a bracket play match up with Southeast Nebraska and the WNCC squad easily defeated the Storm 25-12, 25-13.

That sent the Cougars into a rematch with Iowa Western. The Cougars opened the match by winning the first set 25-15. WNCC, however, couldn't keep the momentum going as the Reivers won the next two sets 25-17, 15-12.

WNCC, 20-2, will return home for its home debut on Tuesday when they face Eastern Wyoming College at 7 p.m. Before the match, however, there will be a high school volleyball match taking place as the Leyton and Lingle-Ft. Laramie teams will battle around 5:30 p.m.

WNCC women's, men's soccer down Western Wyoming

Photos of the contests can be found on the Cougar Photo Gallery

The Western Nebraska Community College men’s and women’s soccer teams used strong defense to open the home portion of their season with sweeps over Western Wyoming Community College Friday at the Landers Soccer Complex Friday afternoon.

The women snapped a 2-game losing skid in dropping the Mustangs 2-0, well the men defeated Western Wyoming 1-0 on a early goal by Scottsbluff’s Morgan Wall.

“Overall it was a good match for both teams,” WNCC soccer coach Todd Rasnic said. “In the men’s game, we had a lot of pressure and we out shot them 6-4. I wasn’t displeased with that. Certainly there was a little bit of luck on our side this evening.

“The women’s game was much the same. We got a late goal to make it 2-0. Again both [Western Wyoming] teams are stronger this year then they have been so we will have to continue to work hard. We are going to see them again [in the regular season] and we are going to see them again [probably at regionals]. We need to continue to improve as a team and that should help us maintain some strength in the region.”

Both squads will be back on the field at the Landers Complex Sunday when they host Iowa Western Community College. The women’s contest tips off at 11 a.m. against the No. 2 team in the nation, who has yet to be scored upon. The men’s contest follows. Iowa Western, however, will battle Western Wyoming today at the Lander’s Complex beginning at 11 a.m.

The Cougar women started the day off on a quick note as Ana Jacobo fed LeeAnna Paxton with a pass, in which she delivered into the back of the next seven minutes into the game. Neither team could find the net the rest of the half.

Both teams kept playing strong defense at the start of the second half. The Cougars, however, had plenty of near misses to pop in another score. The Mustangs, on the other hand, met up with a strong Cougar defense that held the Western Wyoming with out a shot for nearly 20 minutes. Western Wyoming’s best chance to score came with 2;30 left in the game, but Cougar goalkeeper Terri Huntington came up big.

By that time, though, the Cougar women had already added an insurance goal. With 4:27 left in the match, Jamie Gastelle received a corner kick from Jacobo and positioned within point-blank range of the net, headed the ball for the score as she was collided with.

Gastelle said that she didn’t see the ball go into the net on the score.

“Usually when I take a corner kick, I just watch the kicker and then I watch the ball and I try to position my head,” she said. “I think the ball came off my head because some other girl collided with me and I closed my eyes.”

The Cougar women had 13 shots on goal compared to eight for WWCC. Huntington recorded eight saves for the shutout win.

Gastelle said the women played well, but they will have to play better on Sunday.

“We did some really good combinations together and we communicated well,” the freshman from Ft. Collins, Colo., said. “But, we will have to play a lot better on Sunday. We will have to play to our best ability and we will have to work really hard for each other and get back on defense, communicate really well and get the ball up to the midfield quickly and take our shots.”

The Cougar men also had a good defensive effort in the win against Western Wyoming. The Cougars, just like the women, scored early and then shut down the Mustang offense for the win.

WNCC’s goal, which came 14 minutes into the match was a quick strike. Lazaro Torres dribbled the ball along the baseline and then fired a pass to Morgan Wall about 25 feet in front of the goal. Wall quickly hammered the ball straight into the net for the score.

WNCC had two prime scoring opportunities in the second half, one coming off a free kick, which sailed over the cross bar with 16 minutes left. Then, Nikko Ouzounis pushed the ball to within the box only to have his shot sail just right of the net.

The Cougars out shot the Mustangs 6-4. WNCC goalkeeper Cesar Bazana had four saves on the night.

WNCC will need even a better showing on Sunday when the Cougars host Iowa Western Community College. The women’s contest kicks off at 11 a.m. followed by the men’s contest at 1 p.m. Rasnic said the Reivers will be a challenge.

“We will have to put twice the games on the field on Sunday in both games,” he said. “The Iowa Western women are ranked No. 2 in the nation and they didn’t get that ranking for no reason. They are a quality team and a quality opponent and we will have to play our best game all season to compete with them and win. Same with the men. Their team is strong and traditionally they put a good team on the field so we have a lot of work to do. We understand that and we are working to become a better team and I think today we came out with two wins and that is the important thing as long as we see our mistakes and continue to improve as the season goes along.”

WNCC volleyball wins three matches at Raider Invite

COLUMBUS -- The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team continue to roll along after picking up three wins at the Raider Invite in Columbus Friday.

The Cougar women, who ran their unbeaten streak to 32 matches in a row dating back to last season, did not drop a game in earning wins over Casper College 25-11, 25-13; Cloud County Community College 25-6, 25-12; and Central Community College-Columbus 25-23, 25-17.

The Cougar women will have one more pool play contest today, against Iowa Western Community College at 7:30 a.m. IWCC entered the tournament unbeaten and fell to Butler County Community College in three games.

Assistant coach Nicole Gonzalez said they played well Friday, however, they will need to keep serving well today to claim another tournament title.

“We will definitely need to play our game and make sure we serve well,” Gonzales said. “A lot of times when we start losing is because we are not serving well. We are a good enough team in blocking, hitting and other areas, but if we start missing our serves, the other team starts getting points. If we serve well, we will be O.K.”

In the opening match against Casper, Fatima Balza paced the team with nine kills and five blocks. Kaleinani Kabalis finished with nine points, five digs, three aces and three kills, followed by Paulina Piegza with three kills; Sabina Piegza with 15 set assists; Gregner Quinones with seven points; Brooke Blomenkamp with six points; and Nayka Benitez with five digs.

Against Cloud County, Balza had 10 points and seven kills, while Sabina Piegza had six kills and 22 set assists. Also for WNCC, Quinones had eight digs and eight points; and Benitez had three aces and seven points.

Kabalis paced the Cougars in the Central-Columbus win, pounding home dight kills and getting three aces. Balza, Paulina Piegza and Cami Weimer each had six kills, while Balza also had six points, two aces and three blocks. Sabina Piegza finished with 25 set assists and five digs, while Quinones had two aces.

WNCC soccer teams set for home openers Friday against Western Wyoming

The Western Nebraska Community College men’s and women’s soccer teams will make their home debut Friday and Sunday at the Landers Soccer Complex.

The Cougar men and women will face Western Wyoming Community College on Friday. The women will kick it off at 2 p.m. followed by the men at 4 p.m. The Western Wyoming women enter the contest with a 1-1 record, while the Cougar will are 2-2. The WNCC ladies are looking to stop a 2-game losing skid, in which they 2-1 to Paradise Valley Community College and 2-1 in double overtime to Butler Community College.

The Cougar men, however, are heading into the home opener on a positive note, after downing Paradise Valley 2-1 on Saturday. The Cougars enter the Region IX showdown at 1-2, while the Western Wyoming Mustangs enter the contest with a 2-1 mark.

WNCC will then face Iowa Western Community College on Sunday at the Landers Complex with tip off of the women’s contest slated for 11 a.m. followed by the men’s match at 1 p.m. The women’s game can be heard on 106.9 Wild Country, while the men’s contest will be aired on 101.3 KOZY. Both matches will be on the Internet at www.kozy1013.com.

Both Iowa Western squads enter the contest with impressive teams. The IWCC women are ranked No. 2 in the nation and enter with a 4-0 mark. In fact, the Reivers have yet to be scored upon, including a 7-0 win against the University of Nebraska Club team.

The Iowa Western men enter the contest at 4-1 and have out scored their opponents 16-4. The Reivers fell to Marshalltown 2-0 the last time the team stepped on the field.
Iowa Western and Western Wyoming will also battle each other on Saturday at the Landers Complex, with the women’s match starting at 11 a.m . followed by the men’s.

WNCC volleyball goes to 16-0 with three set win over Casper College

Story courtesy of Jeremy Woznick, Scottsbluff Star-Herald

CASPER, Wyo. - The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team kept rolling merrily along Tuesday evening in Casper, Wyo., as the defending national champion Cougars disposed of Casper College by scores of 25-13, 25-12, 25-23.

The victory improved WNCC's record to a perfect 16-0 this season. With the win, WNCC also extended its winning streak to 29 matches in a row dating back to last season.

"It was a good match for us," WNCC coach Giovana Melo said. "The first two games we came out and played really good. But in the third one I thought we went in a little too relaxed and fell behind. But we got our focus back and we were able to come back."

After cruising through the Salt Lake Invite over the weekend against a field of nationally-ranked teams, WNCC showed no signs of a letdown against No. 11 Casper by steamrolling the Thunderbirds in the first two sets of the match. In the third set, the Cougars managed to overcome a double-digit deficit to earn the sweep.

Kaleinani Kabalis and Paulina Piegza paced WNCC in hitting in the match with 10 kills each. Fatima Balza added eight.

Kabalis and Nayka Benitez both served four aces. Benitez also led the Cougars defensively with seven digs.

Sabina Piegza totaled 32 set assists from her setter's position and also tallied three blocks. Also for WNCC, Balza finished with three blocks and Naomi Flinders had four digs.

WNCC, which is off to its best start in school history with 16 wins in a row to begin the season, will face another test against nationally-ranked teams at the Raider Invite in Columbus on Friday and Saturday. Also in the field with the Cougars will be undefeated Iowa Western Community College.

"I expected we'd do well, but I didn't expect to still be undefeated by this time," Melo said. "I'm really happy with it and happy with the way they've been playing and performing. It's exciting."

WNCC women's soccer falls to Butler County in double overtime

The Western Nebraska Community College women’s soccer team dropped two matches Saturday and Monday on their Arizona trip, while the men capped off the trip with a 2-1 win over Paradise Valley Community College.

The women, however, fell 2-1 to Paradise Valley Community College on Saturday, and then lost 2-1 in double overtime to Butler Community College in Denver.

WNCC coach Todd Rasnic still said he learned a lot about his teams after the weekend’s contests.

“It has been a very encouraging weekend,” Rasnic said. “We have two teams that are in a building process. If we continue to get better as the season goes long, it will be a good year for us.”

Even though the Cougar women lost in double overtime to Butler County, Rasnic said they were better then the Kansas squad. The difference in the contest was fatigue set in for the Cougars, who traveled 2,000 miles and played three matches in four days.

“The ladies were much better then Butler. We out played them,” he said. “It is one of those things where you cut your losses and go. We are going to make some changes of how the women are playing.”

It didn’t take WNCC long to score against Butler, netting the first goal in the third minute. Freshman Jaime Gastelle took a pass from Brooke Dudley and punched the ball into the back of the net.

Butler knotted the match at 1-1, scoring in the 30^th minute. Butler won the match scoring off a free kick in the 107^th minute of the contest. The free kick was given to Butler near the goal.

WNCC outshot Butler 8-3. Terri Huntington recorded six saves in the contest.

It was, in fact, the second straight 2-1 loss for the Cougar women. On Saturday, the Cougar ladies fell to Paradise Valley in Phoenix. In that contest, WNCC had a 1-0 halftime lead as Dudley delivered the ball to Ana Jacobo who sent the ball into the net.

No. 14 Paradise Valley, however, came back and scored two bang-bang goals in the second half, one at the 62^nd minutes and the other at the 73^rd minute for the win.

WNCC had 10 shots on goal, while Huntington delivered seven saves in the match.

The Cougar men had better luck against Paradise Valley, snapping a two-game losing streak. WNCC won 2-1 after leading 2-0 at intermission.

Lazaro Torres scored the first goal in the 29^th minute, and then a minute later, Tony Rocha netted the score. Freshman Austin Roy had both assists in the match.

The WNCC men had three shots on goal. Cesar Bazana delivered eight saves in the win.

Both teams will return to action this weekend with home contests. The Cougars will entertain Region IX foe Western Wyoming Community College on Friday, beginning at 1 p.m., before hosting Iowa Western Community College on Sunday. Sunday’s contests can be heard on the radio and the Internet. The women’s match will be on 106.9, while the men’s match will be aired on 101.3. Western Wyoming and Iowa Western will play each other on Saturday.

Rasnic said the team is looking forward to be playing at home. “We are excited to play at home. For me, I am physically exhausted right now and I didn’t even play a game,” he said. “When you go on a 2,000 mile road trip and have all this trouble we had, it feels good to be at home.”

The women’s team will have it’s hands full in their next three matches, beginning with facing No. 2 Iowa Western Community College, followed by No. 7 Laramie County Community College.

“I am looking forward to this weekend’s game, after we get some rest,” Rasnic said. “We will get them back at it after taking Tuesday off to recuperate and then we will get them pumped up to play next weekend.”

Alaska Anchrage-led volleyball team wins opening tourney under Green

Just like old times, former Cougar coach Green still winning,
Ex-Cougar player Meisner named to all-tournament team.

From the Anchorage Daily News Sunday website

Somewhere along the line, volleyball became a sport where every point is cause for celebration, which means by the end of a match, the winners have hugged, hollered and high-fived at least 75 times. Every kill, every ace, every mistake by the opponent is reason to jump for joy.
But Saturday night at the Wells Fargo Sports Complex, UAA had more than the usual reasons to get giddy.

The Seawolves swept Texas Woman's University 25-19, 25-19, 25-16 to win their fourth match in a row, take the team title in the Extended Stay Deluxe Invitational, and serve notice that they might not be the pushovers they were last season.

With a 4-1 record and three three-set sweeps to their credit, the Seawolves are almost as successful as they were last year, when they won only five matches the entire season.

"We made a statement," said setter Calli Scott, a junior transfer who was named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. "Look at last year when we weren't a contender, and now we've got something to say."

The Seawolves are saying they're already better than they were on Thursday, when they lost their season opener to 13th-ranked Central Missouri. Scott is saying the players are over their early timidness, and new coach Chris Green is saying the early success means the players will buy into what he's selling.

"This gives the coaches some confidence in the players and gives them some confidence in the coaches," Green said. "I think they see our system works.

"It allows me to continue to do what I'm doing."

As a junior college coach at Western Nebraska Community College, what Green did was win. He was 453-55 in nine seasons and won last year's national junior college championship.

At this point, no one at UAA is talking national championship, or even conference championship. Coaches in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference picked the Seawolves to finish last in the nine-team league.

But it's OK to talk Extended Stay Deluxe championship. The Seawolves won it fair and square, rebounding from the loss to Central Missouri to win every tournament match, including a pair of three-set sweeps Saturday over Texas Woman's University.

In their morning round-robin match against the Pioneers, UAA triumphed 25-22, 25-19, 25-13. Sophomore middle hitter Cortney Lundberg had 10 kills and three other Seawolves had nine apiece, including Rachel Kidwell, who added 17 digs, and Joanna Johnson, who had 16 digs.

In the day's other round-robin match, Harding University defeated Ohio Valley 25-17, 25-10, 25-13. In the third-placed match, Harding beat Ohio Valley again, 25-8, 25-9, 25-3.

In UAA's championship match victory against TWU, Rhea Cardwell was the big hitter with 15 kills and Kidwell was close behind with 13. Lundberg, a 6-foot-1 middle hitter, put up a big block, notching two solo blocks and assisting on six others.

The hitting woes that plagued UAA against Central Missouri were absent during the two-day tournament.

"We had a marked improvement in offense," Green said. "We were making better setting choices and our hitters were statistically much better."

Part of the turnaround can be attributed to the fact that none of the tournament teams were Top 20 teams like Central Missouri. But all three tournament teams all had better seasons than UAA did last year.

"I honestly think we stopped playing scared," Scott said. "There was maybe some beginning nerves. We've come together as a team.

"We would love another shot at Central Missouri."

Be careful what you wish for. UAA won't get another shot at the highly ranked Jennies, but in two weeks from now, the Seawolves will play in the Concordia Classic in St. Paul, Minn., where they'll face two teams ranked in the top five of the NCAA Division II rankings.

All-tournament Extended Stay Deluxe Invitational
All-Tournament Team
Most Outstanding Player: Calli Scott, UAA
Other selections: Rhea Cardwell, UAA; Rachel Kidwell, UAA; Stacie Meisner, UAA; Manuela Nesheva, Harding University; Sharon Schaffner, Texas Woman's University; Danielle Veitenheimer, Texas Woman's University.

WNCC volleyball team wins Salt Lake tournament

Fatima Balza earned tournament most valuable honors and the Cougar women ran through the Crystal Inn Salt Lake Invite by winning all seven of their matches in capturing yet another tournament title Saturday in Salt Lake City, Utah.

After winning all four of their matches on Friday against ranked opponents, the Cougars topped No. 6 Salt Lake Community College twice and No. 3 College of Southern Idaho to earn their third consecutive Salt Lake tournament title.

"It means a lot to us to prove that we are better then what people thought of us because of the pre-season poll,” first year WNCC coach Giovana Melo said. “We played very well sometimes and then up and down sometimes. Still, we were able to pull it out. I am really happy with the win, but we still have work to do.”

The Cougars earned the title by stopping the host squad Salt Lake Community College in the championship game 25-18, 25-20, 25-17.

Balza paced the Cougars with 12 kills, eight blocks, eight points and two aces. Kaleinani Kabalis, who was also named to the all-tournament team, finished with eight kills and five digs.

Also for WNCC, Paulina Peigza had nine kills, Naomi Flinders had four blocks and nine digs, Nayka Benitez had three points, two aces and nine digs; Gregner Quinones had 10 points and two aces; and Sabina Peigza had 35 set assists.

The Cougars earned the right to face Salt Lake for the title with an impressive win against No. 3 CSI 21-25, 25-22, 25-19, 25-12.

Melo said the were pushed in the contest, after dropping the first game.

“It was a good match. We came out on the short end in the first game and they kind of destroyed us in the first one,” Melo said. “We came back and pulled together and it was awesome defense. Everybody was saying how good this team was and how good they looked in the tournament. We just pulled it out and played well after the first game and beat them.”

Balza and Kabalis each finished with a double-double in the four-game win against CSI. Balza finished with 16 kills and 14 points, while Kabalis had 18 kills and 10 digs.

Also for the Cougars, Paulina Peigza had 10 kills and eight blocks; Benitez had 14 digs; Quinones finished with 12 digs and eight points; and Sabina Peigza had 46 set assists, five aces and 10 points.

In the first match of the day, a pool play encounter with Salt Lake, the Cougars took down the Bruins in three games 25-22, 21-25, 15-10.

Paulina Peigza led the way with seven kills. Balza chipped in five kills, two aces, five points and four blocks.

Also for the Cougars, Kabalis had six kills, five points and two aces; Sabina Peigza had four kills and 27 set assists; Benitez had 12 digs, four points and two aces; Quinones had six digs; and Brooke Blomekamp had six digs.

Melo said that one of the reasons they accomplished the tournament championship was because of their strong serving.

“When they finally focused and got serious, we started to play well,” she said. “We were able to get it together. We also served really well and we were able to take the other teams out of their system. We were also able to block at the net and stop their players.”

WNCC, 15-0 on the season, and will return to action Tuesday when they travel to Casper College for a 7 p.m. contest.