Cougar men keep streaking, women fall to Midland in battle of top 10 teams

Submitted by Jeremy Woznick, Star-Herald Sports

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - The Western Nebraska Community College men's basketball team ran its winning streak to six in a row with a 75-69 win over Air Force Prep Friday in the Air Force Prep Tournament.
The Cougars are now 6-1 under Russ Beck, who is in his first season as WNCC's head coach.
"It was a good win for us," Beck said. "Air Force has a great team with good size. For us to get a win at their place is a credit to how well the guys played."
Francisco Cruz ignited for 25 points to pace the Cougars in scoring. Jasen Williams also provided plenty of offensive support by pouring in 19 points.
The Cougars were playing without sophomore Scott Bamforth for the second straight game. Bamforth dislocated his elbow in a game last Saturday and could miss an extended amount of time.
Also for WNCC on Friday, Geoffrey Firmin scored nine points and Geddes Robinson added seven. Brylie Kamen led the Cougars on the glass.
In addition to playing well on offense, Beck said his team received a strong defensive performance.
"Air Force runs a Princeton offense with a lot of screening and cutting. It can be very difficult to defend," Beck said. "The key for us was to get pressure on the ball and I thought we did that effectively."
The WNCC women weren't as fortunate Friday. The No. 8 Cougars suffered their first loss of the season to No. 4 Midland College (Texas) in a battle of nationally-ranked teams. WNCC fell 71-63 to drop to 5-1 on the season.
"We knew coming into the game that Midland would be our best test to date," WNCC assistant coach Jennifer Pedersen said. "The effort was definitely there. The kids played hard. We gave up over 25 offensive rebounds and just didn't do the little things tonight."
Trailing by eight at the half, WNCC took a one-point lead in the second half and forged into a number of ties. However, the Cougars missed nine straight free throws at one stretch of the half and missed a couple of critical shots late in the game.
"We trailed by only four with two minutes left and missed two open shots," Pedersen said. "We executed our offense well and got good shots, but we just couldn't put the ball in the hole."
Thais Pinto led WNCC offensively in the contest with 18 points. The 6-foot-7 freshman from Brazil also totaled a team-high six blocks and grabbed five rebounds.
Amber Kistler and Stormye Everett each scored 10 points. Shelby Campbell knocked down a pair of 3-pointers to finish with nine points and Yuki Morimoto added seven.
Campbell collected a team-high five steals for WNCC. Everett led the Cougars with six rebounds and four assists.
"The last five games we played haven't been too hard, so the kids got used to things like not coming to the ball hard or not playing defense hard all the time. They were able to get away with things like that. They definitely couldn't get away with those things tonight," Pedersen said. "I think it was a good thing that they came out here against a team that plays hard all 40 minutes. We competed and played well with them. We just need to do a few of the little things better."
The WNCC women will look to get back on the winning track today. The Cougars will take on Air Force Prep at 11 a.m.
The WNCC men will next be in action at its Thanksgiving Classic Tournament next weekend in Scottsbluff.

WNCC men (6-1) 39 36 - 75
Air Force Prep 28 41 - 69
WNCC
Jasen Williams 19, Geoffrey Firmin 9, O'Rion Hughes 4, Francisco Cruz 25, Al-Akeem Watson 6, Brylie Kamen 5, Geddes Robinson

WNCC women (5-1) 26 37 - 63
Midland 34 37 - 71
WNCC
Amber Kistler 10, Stormye Everett 10, Shelby Campbell 9, Yuki Morimoto 7, Ariane Brown 4, Tiffany Moorer 1, Michelle Glaze 1, Thais Pinto 18, Khayla Gladney 3

WNCC volleyball falls at national tournament, plays Salt Lake for third place

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – The look on the faces of the Western Community College volleyball team said it all; their bid for a national title was abruptly halted after suffering a heartbreaking five-set loss to Missouri State-West Plains.

What makes the 25-18, 17-25, 16-25, 25-23, 15-8 loss hard to take was the Cougars were in the driver’s seat to compete in their third national tournament final in four years. The Cougars held a 20-14 lead in the fourth set before the Grizzlies outscored the Cougars 26-11 the rest of the way. The Grizzlies fierce comeback punched their ticket into the national championship game today against the College of Southern Idaho. CSI topped the No. 1 seed Salt Lake Community College 21-25, 25-17, 25-23, 16-25, 15-10.

Salt Lake and WNCC will battle for third place today at 3:30 p.m. Last year, the Cougars fell in the semi-finals and then topped Iowa Western Community College in five sets for third place.

While the mood on the Cougar’s team is one of heartbreak, they realize they have one more game to pick things up and bring home a trophy back to western Nebraska.

“I don’t really know what happened,” sophomore Brooke Blomenkamp, a Gering graduate, said. “I do know that everyone gave their hearts out there today. Tomorrow is just a new day. We need to forget about today and move on.”

The only reason for the sudden turnaround that Blomenkamp or WNCC coach Giovana Melo offered was maybe the team thought they had the match won too early. Still, as much as the Cougars were hitting on all cylinders in sets two and three, and the first half of the fourth set, it is a mystery of why the energy key was turned off with the team leading 20-14 in the fourth set.

“Maybe we got ahead of ourselves and thought we had it,” Blomenkamp said. “We kind of let the game slip away. We tried to take back control but by then it was too late.”

Melo, who was a loss of words after the game, was still trying to figure out what happened.

“I think we thought we had it won and then I think we got too excited and let it go,” she said.

The Cougars could have easily gave up after dropping the first set 25-18 after leading 8-3 on a Cami Weimer ace serve.

WNCC quickly turned things around in set two and it was the Cougars hitting game and defense that stepped up. WNCC combined for 18 kills in the second set and it was two big kills from Blomenkamp and Kaleinani Kabalis that pushed the Cougars to a 15-10 lead. WNCC opened up a 20-14 lead and kept hitting on all cylinders for the 25-17 win.

The Cougars played extremely well in the third set, racing to a 7-3 lead on three Kathryn Stock service points. Later, Sabina Piegza served up seven straight points for a 17-6 lead. The Grizzlies came back to cut the lead to 20-15, but WNCC received a kill from Paulina Piegza and three Weimer service points to win 25-18.

The Cougars took control of the fourth set early as Weimer had three points for a 4-0 lead. West Plains came back to tied the set at 7-7 only to see Tania Torres hammer home two kills and team up with Blomenkamp on a block to help WNCC to a 16-10 lead.

The Cougars pushed the lead to 20-14 late and led 21-15 before the Grizzlies Patricia Figueiredo had three service points to cut the deficit to 21-19. West Plains tied the score at 22-22 on two Perla Quintana. Paulina Piegza hammered home a kill to put WNCC up 23-22, but the Grizzlies scored the last three points to force a fifth game.

In the fifth set, WNCC held a 4-3 lead, but that was the last time they would lead as the Grizzlies’ Janel Glidden had five service points for a 9-4 lead and WNCC could never get back on track.

Melo said that her team fought hard, especially to come back to win sets two and three, and expects her team to rebound.

“I think we started to play with a lot of heart in the second set, but we just let it go,” she said. “We showed a lot of character all year [in tough situations] so I am sure they are going to come back and play hard.”

WNCC had four players net double-figure kills. Kaleinani Kabalis finished with 21 kills, followed by Paulina Piegza with 16, Kathryn Stock with 13, Blomenkamp with 10, and Tania Torres with six. Torres also had three solo blocks, while Paulina Piegza had two solo blocks.

Also for WNCC, Sabina Piegza had 57 set assists, six points and nine digs; Kaleinani Kabalis had eight points and 22 digs; Kuulei Kabalis had seven points and 19 digs; Weimer had nine points, two aces, and 10 digs; Stock had seven points and 11 digs; and Paulina Piegza had five points and three digs.

The tournament today has Hutchinson facing San Jacinto for ninth place at 11 a.m., Frank Phillips facing Hillsborough for seventh place at 11 a.m. Iowa Western taking on Miami Dade for fifth place at 1:30 p.m., WNCC meeting Salt Lake for third at 3:30 p.m. and Southern Idaho facing West Plains for the championship at 5:30 p.m.

Former WNCC coach, player leads Alaska Anchorage to West Region win

For tournament photos see the University of Alaska Anchorage athletic website at goseawolves.com

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. - Sophomore Jackie Matthisen had a match-high 19 kills and made three consecutive huge plays in the final three points of the match Thursday to lift the Alaska Anchorage volleyball team to its first-ever NCAA Tournament victory, 29-27, 28-26, 21-25, 16-25, 15-12, over 14th-ranked Hawaii Hilo at Coyote Gymnasium.

The Seawolves (23-7) - the tournament's No. 5 seed - also got 11 kills from sophomore outside hitter McKenzie Moss as they handed the Vulcans just their second loss of the season and avenged an 0-3 setback in Oahu in September.

The 4th-seeded Vulcans (25-2), champions of the Pacific West Conference, were led by 12 kills apiece from outside hitters Josimara Pinheiro and Kawena Cubi-Otineru.

UAA pulled out nail-biting wins in the first and second sets to take an early 2-0 advantage. In the first, the Vulcans fought of three set points to tie it 24-24, and Pinheiro gave her team 25-24 and 26-25 leads with a pair of kills. Tied at 27-27, Pinheiro hit into the block of freshman Marie Borowikow and senior Ashley Bates. Moss then registered a kill on an off-speed attack to give the Seawolves the set.

The second set was tight throughout, featuring 14 ties and six lead changes. Trailing 24-23, Bates rescued the Seawolves with a kill just inside the endline, and Bates and Borowikow followed with a solo block. Cubi-Otinera ripped a kill to make it 26-26, but Borowikow notched one of her six kills, and Moss came through on set point again.

But UAA fell behind early in sets 3 and 4 as the Vulcans seemed to grab all of the momentum.

Hilo led 8-6 in the fifth when the teams switched sides of the court, and took a 10-7 lead moments later. That provided the cue for UAA's final rally, with Borowikow and Moss making consecutive kills, and UHH's Morgan Bonney hitting the ball out of bounds.

The Vulcans took a 12-11 lead on Pinheiro's final kill before UAA rallied with the final four points of the match. Junior Cortney Lundberg (8 kills, 6 total blocks) slammed a kill into the middle of the court for yet another tie, and Matthisen overpowered Bonney on a joust at the net to go up 13-12. The next point was almost a carbon copy as Matthisen met Katie Swenson at the net and forced the Vulcan setter into a double-hit.

With senior libero Stacie Meisner serving on match point, the Vulcans were unable to get off an attack, and UAA took advantage by setting Matthisen, who blasted a cross-court kill, setting off a Seawolf celebration.

Meisner finished with a match-high 29 digs, while senior setter Scott - the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player-of-the-Year - dished 45 assists and contributed on three of UAA's season-high-tying 15 blocks.

"Our block was a lot stronger than the first time we played them," said UAA head coach Chris Green, whose team extended its school-record win streak to 13. "I think we played nervous throughout, but the players have really bought into our philosophy and stuck with it. Just like all season, they never panicked."

Bates, a senior middle blocker, notched four kills and matched her career-high with seven total blocks (all assists). Borowikow also had total seven blocks.

The Great Northwest Athletic Conference champions now move on to Friday's regional semifinal match (6:30 p.m. AST) against the winner of top-seeded and nationally 2nd-ranked Cal State-San Bernardino vs. GNAC rival Seattle Pacific.

Thursday's early results included 6th-seeded Cal State-Los Angeles upsetting 3rd-seeded Sonoma State in five sets, while 2nd-seeded and nationally 3rd-ranked UC San Diego disposed of 7th-seeded San Francisco State, 3-0.

WNCC women's basketball team goes to 5-0 with win over Northern Oklahoma

COLORADO SPRINGS, Wyo. — The Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team continued its stellar start to the season Thursday, combining a stingy defense with an efficient offense to roll past Northern Oklahoma 75-57 in the first day of the Air Force Prep Tournament.

The victory boosted the No. 8 Cougars’ season record to 5-0. All of WNCC’s wins have been by more than 10 points.

“We came out defensively pretty strong tonight and went on a big run to get a big lead going into halftime,” WNCC assistant coach Jennifer Pedersen said. “I thought we played better as a group than we did last week. We ran our offense a little bit better tonight, and I thought we did some good things on defense early in the game.”

WNCC spurted ahead by 30 points at one point in the second half; however, Northern Oklahoma heated up from the 3-point line to close the gap a bit. Twenty-four of Northern Oklahoma’s points came on 3-pointers.

“In the second half we went on about an eight-minute scoring drought, and they picked up their play,” Pedersen said. “They hit some key threes and were able to come back in a hurry. They went on an 18-5 run, so we kind of let down on our defense a little bit. That’s something we’re going to have to step up.”

Yuki Morimoto, a freshman from Tokyo, Japan, sparked the Cougars with 11 points, five rebounds, three steals, and two blocks. Thais Pinto had 13 points and two blocks, and Kelli Culver contributed 15 points, including three 3-pointers. Stormye Everett had five rebounds, and Shelby Campbell collected three steals.

As a team, WNCC registered seven blocks and 33 rebounds.

Pedersen said she expects WNCC to get tested a lot more today against Midland College (Texas), which is ranked No. 4 in the nation.

“They’re good,” Pedersen said. “They’ve had a pretty long week of traveling so, hopefully, they’re worn out a little bit. But they’re always a solid team. They have some big kids, and they have some sophomore leadership that we’re going to have to contend with.”

WNCC 40 35—75
N. Okla. 22 35—57
WNCC
Amber Kistler 9, Stormye Everett 4, Shelby Campbell 5, Yuki Morimoto 11, Ariane Brown 2, Tynetta Turner 2, Carolina Alves 2, Michelle Glaze 8, Thais Pinto 13, Kelli Culver 15, Khayla Gladney 4.

WNCC moves into Final Four at National Volleyball Tourney with two wins

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team earned a berth in the NJCAA national tournament Final Four for the sixth straight year with a pair of victories Thursday in the first day of the national tournament in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

The Cougars opened the tournament as Kaleinani Kabalis and Kathryn Stock combined for 24 kills to help WNCC sweep Wallace State-Hanceville 25-21, 25-20, 25-14.

WNCC then picked up win No. 41 as they needed four sets to get past Frank Phillips College 25-17, 25-22, 20-25, 25-16 and a berth in the Final Four. The Cougars will face Missouri State-West Plains at 6:30 p.m. (CST) with a berth in the championship match at state.

The two wins also was a monumental achievement for WNCC coach Giovana Melo, who picked up her 100^th career coaching victory in just two years at WNCC.

Sophomore Cami Weimer said not only does it feel good to be in the Final Four, but the team is excited that Melo registered her 100^th win at the national tournament.

“It feels good knowing that we have been successful for the last two years and we are able to contribute to coaches’ 100^th win,” Weimer said. “Hopefully she can get two more wins the rest of the tournament.”

WNCC, however, didn’t play its best, but found the right combinations to become one of only four unbeaten teams left in the tournament.

“I think at the beginning [against Wallace State] we started off a little slow and then in the second game we picked it up a lot and we started playing like we know how to play,” Weimer said. “It feels good to be in the Final Four especially since last year when we lost [in the semifinals].”

Kabalis and Weimer recorded a double-doubles against Frank Phillips. Kabalis finished with 13 kills and 17 digs, while Weimer had 11 digs and 11 points. Brooke Blomenkamp also came up big with eight kills, while Paulina Piegza ahd six kills and three blocks.

WNCC opened up a tight first set. Frank Phillips trailed 11-10 before the Cougars received clutch kills from Kabalis and Blomenkamp for a 17-13 lead. Stock then served four points for a 22-14, and then Blomenkamp hammered home the set winner.

WNCC held a 17-10 lead in the second set on two Weimer service points and pushed the lead to 21-14 on a Kabalis kill. Frank Phillips came back to slice the lead to 22-21 before kills from Kabalis, Blomenkamp and Torres gave WNCC the win.

The Cougars ran out to a 17-11 lead in the third set as Kuulei Kabalis served three points. Frank Phillips’ Artzeilka Lukjanska and Aisiniya Savcheva combined for 10 service points and four aces to give the Plainsmen a 23-19 lead.

The fourth set was close to start as the teams were tied at 7-7. WNCC changed things quickly as Stock had two kills and then Paulina and Sabina Piegza combined for six service points for a 20-11 lead. WNCC put Frank Phillips away on two Stock kills to move into the semi-finals.

Also for the Cougars against Frank Phillips, Kathryn Stock had five kills, nine digs, eight points and three aces; Tania Torres had four kills; Kuulei Kabalis had 10 digs and seven points; and Sabina Piegza had 32 set assists and 10 points.

Weimer said while they are playing well, they need to pick up their game for Friday’s contest.

“I think we are playing really, really well,” she said. “I think we can play even better then we played in the last two games. We are looking forward to the next game.

In the national tournament opener, WNCC struggled at times against the No. 15^th-seeded Wallace State. The Lady Lions held a 10-8 lead in the first set and the Cougars were tied with the Alabama squad 17-17. WNCC fought back on kills by Paulina Piegza and Stock to take a 24-21 lead. Kabalis finished off the first set with a service point.

Wallace State started set two off with a bang, grabbing a 6-0 lead behind the serving of Cassie Daniels. WNCC fought back to tie the set at 11 on a Sabina Piegza kill. WNCC pushed the lead to 16-14 only to watch the Lady Lions come back to tie the set on back-to-back ace serves by Jessica Wilburn.

Stock hammered home a kill to stop the bleeding and then Ariel Austin hammered home a kill to make it 20-18. Stock hammered home two kills and then served the final three points to give the Cougars the second set 25-20.

WNCC made easy work of the Lady Lions in the third set, getting clutch kills from Kabalis hammered home two early kills and two points to give the Cougars to a 7-4 third set win. Torres then had the final three kills for points, including the match winner.

Stock finished with a double-double of 10 kills and 11 digs. Stock also had four points. Kabalis finished with 14 kills, nine points and eight digs; while Paulina Piegza had nine kills and four points.

Also for the Cougars, Austin had seven kills and three blocks; Torres with five kills; Sabina Piegza with four kills, four digs and 29 set assists; Cami weimer had six digs; and Kuulei Kabalis had 11 set assists.

In other scores from the national tournament, Missouri State-West Plains topped Northwest (Wyo.) College 18-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-23; Iowa Western Community College topped Temple College 25-19, 21-25, 25-16, 23-25, 15-8, Frank Phillips beat San Jacinto 25-22, 17-25, 17-25, 25-17, 19-17; Salt lake topped Spartanburg Methodist 25-8, 25-12, 25-16; Hillsborough beat Hutchinson 25-21, 25-17, 25-18; Miami Dade topped Panola 15-25, 25-20, 25-21, 25-23; Southern Idaho topped Seminole State 25-17, 25-12, 25-19; Missouri State West Plains beat Iowa Western 17-25, 25-16, 25-13, 25-20; Salt Lake beat Hillsborough 25-21, 25-15, 25-20; and Southern Idaho beat Miami Dade 25-21, 21-25, 25-20, 25-14.

Today’s Schedule

9 a.m. – Temple vs. Northwest Wyoming, San Jacinto vs. Wallace State

11 a.m. -- Spartanburg Methodist vs. Hutchinson, Seminole State vs. Panola

1:30 p.m. – Iowa Western vs. Frank Phillips, Hillsborough vs. Miami Dade

3:30 p.m. – Winners of the 10 a.m. and noon games

5:30 p.m. – West Plains vs. Western Nebraska, Salt Lake vs. Southern Idaho.

WNCC men's basketball wins fifth straight, Cruz egnites for 26 points

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Francisco Cruz nailed six 3-pointers and finished with 26 points as the Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team recorded its fifth straight win with a 97-75 win over the Pac West All-stars Thursday at the Air Force Prep Invite.

Cruz, though, wasn’t the only Cougar to shine offensively as four other players recorded double figure scoring. Geddes Robinson finished with 18 points followed by O’Rion Hughes with 13, jasen Williams with 12 and Brylle Kamen with 10.

WNCC coach Russ Beck said he was pleased with the team’s offensive output, but they still need to work on the defensive end.

“I am not worried about our offense because we got guys that can score,” he said. “I am more concerned with our defense and holding teams down. If you can hold a team down defensively, you will win games.”

Beck said that what helped in this game was that his squad got out in front of the Pac West early, holding a 54-33 lead. Beck said they got good play from his bench to help with the team’s depth.

The Cougars will be back in action Friday when they face Air Force Prep. Beck said he expects a tough contest considering Air Force Prep topped North Platte Community College by double digits Thursday evening.

WNCC (5-1) 54 43 – 97
Pac West 33 42 – 75
WNCC
Francisco Cruz 26, Geddes Robinson 18, O’Rion Hughes 13, Jasen Williams 12, Bryalle Kamen 10, Al-Akeem Watson 6, Saul Torres 4, Geoffrey Firmin 2.

Photos from Frank Phillips and WNCC volleyball match

WNCC volleyball opens national tourney with sweep over Wallace State

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – Western Nebraska Community College’s kaleinani Kabalis and Kathryn Stock combined for 24 kills and the Cougars opened the NJCAA national tournament with a sweep of Wallace State-Hanceville Thursday at the Mid-America Center.

The Cougars topped the Lady Lions 25-21, 25-20, 25-14 ro advance into the quarterfinals today at 5:30 (CST). The Cougars will face Frank Phillips who registered a dramatic five-set win against San Jacinto College 25-22, 17-25, 17-25, 25-17, 19-17.

It took a while for the Cougars to get warmed up against the No. 15 seeded Wallace State. The Lady Lions held a 10-8 lead in the first set and were tied with the Alabama squad 17-17 on a Raegen Key ace serve. WNCC fought back on kills by Paulina Piegza and Stock to take a 24-21 lead. Kabalis finished off the first set with a service point.

Wallace State started set two off with a bang, grabbing a 6-0 lead behind the serving of Cassie Daniels. WNCC fought back to tie the set at 11 on a Sabina Piegza kill. WNCC pushed the lead to 16-14 only to watch the Lady Lions come back to tied the set on back-to-back ace serves by Jessica Wilburn.

Stock hammered home a kill to stop the bleeding and then Ariel Austin hammered home a kill to make it 20-18. Stock hammered home two kills and then served the final three points to give the Cougars the second set 25-20.

Kabalis hammered home two early kills and two points to give the Cougars to a 7-4 third set win. WNCC pushed the lead to 9-5 on two Paulina Piegza service points and two Kabalis kills. The Cougars continued playing well as Sabina Piegza had three points and then Cami Weimer served up two points for a 17-9 lead. WNCC put the game away as Tania Torres had two of the final three kills for points, including the match winner.

Stock finished with a double-double of 10 kills and 11 digs. Stock also had four points. Kabalis finished with 14 kills, nine points and eight digs; while Paulina Piegza had nine kills and four points.

Also for the Cougars, Austin had seven kills and three blocks; Torres with five kills; Sabina Piegza with four kills, four digs and 29 set assists; Cami weimer had six digs; and Kuulei Kabalis had 11 set assists.

In other scores from the national tournament, Missouri State-West Plains topped Northwest (Wyo.) College 18-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-23, and Iowa Western Community College topped Temple College 25-19, 21-25, 25-16, 23-25, 15-8.

WNCC volleyball team ready for national tournament; tournament begins Thursday at 10 a.m. against Wallace State

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team’s quest for a second national title in three years will begin Thursday as the No. 3 ranked Cougars participate in its 11^th straight NJCAA national tournament.

There is definitely a sense of excitement in the Cougar players’ eyes. They are ready to get the show on the road.

“We are enthusiastic and really excited to be here,” sophomore outside hitter Kaleinani Kabalis said. “We are prepared to play the best of the 16 teams in the nation. We are really excited because one doesn’t know how much this means to us.”

The Cougars’ quest begins at 10 a.m. when they face the No. 15 seed Wallace State-Hanceville in the first round at the Mid-America Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The Lady Lions enter the tournament with a sparkling 34-4 record. WNCC enters the tournament with a 39-3 record. The winner moves on to play a quarterfinal contest at 4:30 p.m. Thursday against the winner of the Frank Phillips College or San Jacinto College. The loser falls into the consolation bracket and 9 a.m. match on Friday against the loser of the Frank Phillips/San Jacinto match.

Salt Lake Community College, ranked fourth in the final regular season polls, leap-frogged the Cougars to garner the No. 1 seed in the tournament. Salt Lake defeated the Cougars back in the first weekend of September. Salt Lake faces Spartanburg Methodist. Salt Lake and WNCC earned the No. 1 and 2 seeds after the top two teams in the polls, North Idaho College and Blinn College, lost in their regional tournaments. Blinn won the championship last year.

Kabalis said that it doesn’t bother the team that they are the No. 2 seed since you will have to play the best to be No. 1.

“It doesn’t matter if you are seeded one or two because you still have to play the best,” she said. “it will take heart and teamwork to win. We all just love volleyball and it will take everything we worked for throughout the season to make us No. 1.”

WNCC definitely holds the advantage of national tournament appearances over Wallace State. Wallace State is making its 7^th tournament appearance all-time, the last time in 2003. The Cougars have been to the national tourney 12 times, including the last 11 years. WNCC has finished in the top four the last five years, including a national title in 2007 and a runner-up finish in 2006

Kabalis said the key to success is playing like the Mid-America Center is Cougar Palace.

“Our sophomores have been there and we tell the freshmen that they need to play like it is our gym and we won the gym; it is our house,” she said. “We just need to keep playing as a team and as won because we know how to get there.”

The Cougars are 15-1 while playing in that arena. They were 12-0 in 2007 including going 8-0 in the season-opening tournament and then 4-0 and a national title in November. Last year, the Cougars went 3-1 at the national tournament, falling to the University of Arkansas-Ft. Smith in the semifinals and then topped Iowa Western Community College in a five=set thriller for third place.

Kabalis said they can’t take any team lightly. They just have to go out and play their game and that includes staying up and having fun.

“When we have fun, scream and yell, it just gets us excited because it puts us in a more positive mindset,” she said. “I think if we play like how we are off the court [crazy], then no one can stop us because we can dominated everyone.”

The Cougars are playing some of their best volleyball after dominating the competition at the Region IX tournament. WNCC swept through Otero Junior College in the opener. They then defeated Northeastern Junior College in three straight in the semifinals. They then topped the Plainswomen in straight sets in the final. The sweep was especially sweet since the Plainswomen defeated the Cougars in five sets on Oct. 28 and stopping a 165-match win streak that WNCC held over Region IX competition that dated back to 2005.

“We have to continue to play like we did at regionals,” Kabalis said. “We played great as a team and played really good. We played smart and played all together. We played as one instead of 13.”

WNCC has to enter the tournament expecting to get the best from their opponents, and Wallace State is not easy team. Wallace State features a young squad with just four sophomores. They also have five players that stand 5-foot-10 or taller. Middle hitter Rachel Mitchell is the Lady Lions tallest player at 6-foot. Sophomore Cassie Daniels was named the Region XXII tournament most valuable player. Daniels had 40 set assists in the championship match. Danials is a 5-8 setter from Alabama.

WNCC features a potent lineup including Kabalis who is the nation’s leading hitter and one of only nine Cougar hitters to amass over 1,000 career kills. WNCC also has the services sophom0re setter Sabina Piegza, who missed the final two weeks of the regular season with a knee injury.

The one good thing that came out of Piegza’s injury is a number of other players stepped up. The Cougars now have a very versatile team that can run either a 5-1 one offense or a 6-2 with freshmen Kuulei Kabalis and Sierra Schmidt seeing time at setter.

The Cougars also saw some strong libero play from freshman Emily Hoehn and sophomore Cami Wiemer. Weimer came up big in the two NJC regional tournament matches with some clutch saves. WNCC also have received a balanced offensive output from Kaleinani Kabalis, Kathryn Stock, Brooke Blomenkamp, Tania Torres and Ariel Austin at the regional tournament.

Kaleinani Kabalis said the team’s depth definitely has been one of the reason’s this team has posted a 39-3 record.

“We have been successful this year because we all have the same mindset. When it comes to the court, we know what we want and we go for it. We don’t hold hack,” she said. “We are all equal in talent as well and that is good because we play at the same level. We push each other to be good. If someone is down, we push each other to be at the others level or push each other to be at the level that we are suppose to be at .”

The contests can be heard live on Kozy 101.3 FM or on the Internet at www.kozy1013.com. The tournament will also be video streamed this season on the NJCAA website at www.njcaa.org.

First round action match-ups include No. 3 Iowa Western (40-4) against No. 14 Temple College (22-21), No. 6 MSU-West Plains (24-8) against No. 11 Northwest (Wyo.) College (25-8), No. 7 San Jacinto (30-7) against No. 10 Frank Phillips College (28-10), No. 1 Salt Lake (27-7) against No. 16 Spartanburg Methodist (10-17),No. 9 Hillsborough Community College (29-8) against No. 8 Hutchinson (30-8), No. 5 Miami Dade (29-4) against No. 12 Panola College (26-7), and No. 4 College of Southern Idaho (28-6) against No. 13 Seminole State (22-15). The championship is slated for Saturday at 5:30 p.m. (MST).

Three WNCC softball girls sign with four-year colleges

Katelyn Groves, Adena Hagen and Megan Burditt came to Western Nebraska Community College to achieve a goal of playing softball at a four-year institution.

The three sophomores achieved that goal last week after signing letter of intents during the early signing period. Groves and Hagen signed with the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, while Burditt will be attending Northwestern Oklahoma State in Alva.

All three are happy with their future college decisions.

“I am going to Central Missouri because there are a lot of similarities between that program and this one at WNCC in the way they are structured,” Hagen, of Birch Hills, Saskatchewan, Canada, said. “I think coach [Maria] Winn and her coaching staff prepared has prepared me by mentally getting me prepared. I learned a lot about respect by being here.”

Groves said Central Missouri has other factors that played into her selecting that school, which is 20 hours from her home in Bluffdale, Utah.

“I choose to go there because of the coaching staff and the similarities between the two programs,” she said. “They are going to push us the same wy the coaching staff here as. I also like the facilities and the business program they have for my major fits into what I want.”

Burditt was looking at schools back in her home state of New Mexico, but when she visited Northwestern Oklahome, she fell in love with the NAIA institution.

“I chose to go there because of the great academic program they have for my major,” she said. “The coaching style is the same that is here. It will be a good transition for me.”

Burditt said that she never visualized playing at a four-year school after she graduated from Los Alamos High in New Mexico.

“Softballwise I wasn’t there yet,” she said. “I think coming here has boosted my softball skills and got me prepared for the next level. WNCC has helped me extremely and I have improved a lot.”

Hagen said coming to WNCC helped her adjust being away from home and she never gets homesick.

“I don’t really get homesick because the girls do a pretty good job [of being family],” she said. “We are so busy that I don’t have time to think about it. I really enjoyed living with the girls. We are so close; we are like family being so far away from home.”

Groves said that WNCC and the Scottsbluff area has really been special to her.

“I am going to miss the family and not just between the teammates, but between the community, the school and the environment. There is no other place like here. This place really takes you in,” she said. “This area is a home away from home. I am going to miss my dorm families. I am going to miss being able to walk down the halls with people that know who you are and having teachers that actually care. It will be a change.”

All three, however, are glad to get this decision out of the way so they can concentrate on the spring season that starts next semester.

“This is just another decision and it is good to get it out of the way because now I don’t have to worry about what I am going to do after this year,” Groves said. “It is going to be a weight off my shoulders; I can now go out and play and I don’t have to impress anyone. I don’t have to do anything for anybody else except this team.”

Hagen has been the starting the centerfielder for the Cougars the past two seasons. Hagen batted nearly .400 a year ago and flashed both speed and power. Burditt was a spot player last season on the infield and outfield. This past fall, Burditt was the primarily left fielder as well as batting in the lead-off spot.

Groves made the biggest impact a year ago, earning third team NJCAA all-American honors. Groves tied WNCC’s career home run record with 17 and broke the season home run record. She also led the team in RBIs (79), runs scored (77) and batting average (.525) this season. The Cougar softball team finished last season 42-18 and as Region IX conference co-champions.

All three are looking to lead the Cougar team to even a better season this year.

“I think we will have a great season this year,” Burditt said. “We have great things in our future.”

Groves encore from a stellar freshman season isn’t individually driven. Groves doesn’t care about the individual accolades she has, she wants the team to succeed.

“You can break all the individual records you want, but nobody will remember you if you don’t win a championship, and that is what I want,” she said. “That is my goal, a regional championship. Without that nothing else matters.”

Kistler leads WNCC women to fourth win of season

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Amber Kistler poured in 15 points and the Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball team had no trouble with the Pac West all-stars with a thundering 92-32 win in the final day of the Air Force Prep tournament Saturday.

Kister was one of five players to record double-digit scoring in the win. Tiffany Moorer and Thais Pinto each had 12 points followed by Stormye Everett with 11 points and Carolina Alves with 10 points.

Everett also finished with 12 rebounds and six assists, while Khayla Gladney had eight rebounds to go with six points. Yuki Morimoto finished with five assists and six steals, while Tynetta Turner had nine rebounds.

WNCC assistant coach Jenifer Pedersen said this was a good game for the team to work on different offensive schemes.

“It was a pretty easy win, but it was good for us to work on offensive options we have to be able to do know,” she said. “This was a good game for our kids.”

The win was never in doubt from the get go as the Cougars vaulted to a commanding 54-13 halftime lead. The Cougars allowed just 19 points in the second half.

WNCC finished with 27 offensive rebounds and had just two 3-pointers, one each from Everett and Kistler.

The No. 15^th-ranked Cougars, 4-0, will be back in action next weekend when they travel back to the Air Force Prep tournament to face Air Force Prep and Midland College.

WNCC (4-0) 54 38 – 92
Pac West 13 19 – 32
WNCC
Amber Kistler 15, Stormye Everett 11, Yuki Morimoto 4, Ariana Brown, Tiffany Moorer 12, Tynetta Turner 9, Carolina Alves 10, Madison Keller 4, Thais Pinto 12, Kelli Culver 2, Khayla Gladney 6.

WNCC men pick up fourth straight win, Cruz, Robinson combine for 48 points.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Western Nebraska Community College’s Geddes Robinson and Francisco Cruz combined for 48 points and the Cougar men captured their fourth straight victory with dominating 96-56 performance over the Air Force all-stars Saturday in the final day of the Air Force Prep tournament.

Cruz paced the Cougars with 25 points and two 3-pointers, while Robinson finished with 23 points. WNCC also received double figure scoring from Jasen Williams and Geoffrey Firmin with 12 and 11 points each.

WNCC coach Russ Beck said while his team played well, especially offensively, they still need some work on defense.

“The first half we came out and played to the level of our competition, even though it doesn’t reflect that in the scorebook,” he said. “We were not happy that we gave up 31 points at halftime. Our goal was to hold them under 50 for the game and we gave up 56.

“It wasn’t until Scott [Bamforth] got hurt that we started to pull together. We have to learn to come out with that intensity and toughness before something like that happens. We finished the game strong and had a strong second half. The guys were playing hard and they were thinking about Scott.”

WNCC held a 47-31 lead at halftime and then, with two minutes gone in the second half, Bamforth went down with a dislocated elbow on a 1-on-3 break. After that the Cougars picked up their intensity and coasted to the win.

“I think now both Geddes and Cruz are averaging over 20 points a game,” Beck said. “ Geoffrey worked a lot in the game in being assertive. We wanted to push the ball in transition, to wear those guys out.”

Beck said his team played well defensively in the second half, holding the all-star team to just 25 points.

“We want to be known as a defensive team,” he said. “We want to be one of the best defensive teams in the country. That comes with a lot of work and a lot of toughness, and a lot of communication. We are getting there, but we need to be able to do this against good teams as well.”

The Cougars, 4-1, will next be in action Thursday and Friday back at the Air Force Prep Invite. WNCC faces PacWest All-stars out of Las Vegas on Thursday and then Air Force Prep on Friday.

“PacWest is a team out of Las Vegas, and typically when an all-star team travels that distance they are usually pretty good,” he said. “I also had an opportunity to watch Air Force Prep and they are very good and physical. Everybody is about 6-3 to 6-6 and they can all shoot it. They also run the Princeton offense, so we will need a good week of practice.”

WNCC (4-1) 47 49 – 96
Air Force All-stars 31 25 – 56
WNCC
Geddes Robinson 23, Francisco Cruz 25, Jasen Williams 12, Geoffrey Firman 11, Scott Bamforth 7, O’Rion Hughes 6, Al-Akeem Watson 4, Brylle Kamen 3, Saul Torres 2.

Volleyball team send off slated for Nov. 17 at 11:30 a.m.

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team will have a public send off on Tuesday, Nov. 17 at 11:30 a.m. in the pit area of the college. The Cougars will depart for their 11th straight National Tournament appearance at 12 noon on Tuesday. The national tournament will take place in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

The send off will include congratulatory messages from WNCC President Dr. Eileen Ely, athletic director Jennifer Pedersen and volleyball coach Giovana Melo. The public is invited to attend the send off.

The Cougars will open the national title hunt Thursday at 10 a.m. (MST) against Wallace State-Hanceville. WNCC enters the tournament with a 39-3 record, while Wallace State has a 34-4 record.

WNCC men, women pick up wins Friday at Air Force Tourney

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — The Western Nebraska Community College men’s and women’s basketball teams went 2-0 in the Air Force Prep tournament after each garnered wins on Friday.

The Cougar men, after spanking Colorado Northwestern 97-44 on Thursday, dropped Buckley 80-67. Five players reached double figures for the men behind Francisco Cruz’s 22 points.

The Cougar women also went 2-0 in the tournament. On Thursday, the women came back from a 32-31 halftime deficit to claim a 79-65 win over Northwest (Wyo.) College. WNCC followed that up with an 81-56 win over Ft. Carson Army Base.

In Friday’s win, the Cougar women had three players record double-figure scoring as Yuki Morimoto finished with 17 points followed by Thais Pinto with 13 points and nine rebounds, and Stormye Everett with 11 points and 12 rebounds.

Assistant coach Jennifer Pedersen said the team came out ready to play Friday compared to their contest on Thursday.

“Tonight we came out to put on a big run to start the game and then we lost our composure there at the end of the first half with a lot of turnovers,” she said. “The defense, however, was a little bit better tonight.”

In Thursday’s contest against Northwest, WNCC fell behind 32-31 at halftime and then went into a 2-3 zone to capture the 14-point win. The Cougars built a 22 point lead at one time in the second half.

Friday’s contest saw the Cougars play a solid man-to-man defense that forced 24 Ft. Carson turnovers. WNCC had 11 steals in the contest. The Cougars raced to a 46-32 halftime lead and never looked back.

Pedersen said their defense is starting to come around.

“We are still sporadic on defense where we pick and choose at times what defense to run,” she said. “Thursday night against Powell,we had to go into a zone because defensively we couldn’t cover them man-to-man. {Friday] we didn’t run any zone. We stayed pretty much man-to-man all night. It really depends on the team we are playing right now and what we are comfortable with.”

The Cougars finished Friday’s contest with six 3-pointers as Hemingford’s Shelby Campbell went 2-for-2 and nine points. Bayard’s Amber Kistler finished with seven points and six assists, while Kelli Culver had nine points and one 3-pointer.

In Thursday’s win against the Trappers, Pinto, the 6-foot-7 post player, led lead all scorers with 19 points, 17 of which came in the first half. Everett also popped in 15 points along with seven rebounds and six steals, while Morimoto had 13 points, eight rebounds and eight steals.

Tynetta Turner pulled down six rebounds, while Kistler had six steals.

The Cougar men picked up their third straight win since a season-opening loss on Nov. 3. In Friday’s contest, two players finished with 20 or more points. Cruz needed 22 points, including 18 in the first half. He also netted two 3-pointers. Geddes Robinson finished with 20 points.

Also for the Cougars, Scott Bamforth finished with 12 points and two 3-pointers, O’Rion Hughes had 11 points, with most of the points down the stretch, and Brylie Kamen had 10 points.

WNCC men’s coach Russ Beck said they had a strong start and kept playing well. The Cougars held a comfortable 46-29 lead against a Buckley team that featured a number of former Division I players.

“We came out strong right at the start. They 2-3 zoned us almost the entire game,” he said. “They had some really good players on their team. They had Jacob Birchy who started 32 games on Air Force’s team in 2006-07 where he averaged 13 points a game on a team that went 26-9 and went to the NCAA tournament. They also had John Fry, a 6=9 player. We did a good job on those two. Anytime you are playing against guys that have been former Division I players it will be really physical and they understand how to play the game and they will really be able to shoot it.”

Beck said this team is starting to find its groove on the court.

“We are starting to understand what we do well,” he said. “When we do the things that we do, we are a pretty good team. When we try to ad lib too much and try to complicate things too much, then we allow teams to stay around.”

Both teams will wrap up the Air Force Prep tournament today. The women will face Pac Sun at noon, while the men will play an all-star team from the Air Force Base at 3 p.m.

Friday’s Game

WNCC women (3-0) 46 35 — 81

Ft. Carson 32 24 — 56

WNCC

Amber Kistler 7, Stormye Everett 11, Shelby Campbell 9, Yuki Morimoto 17, Ariane Brown 2, Tiffany Moorer 4, Tynetta Turner 2, Carolina Alves 7, Thias Pinto 13, Kelli Culver 9.

WNCC men (3-1) 46 34 — 80

Buckley 29 38 — 67

WNCC

Jasen Williams 3, Saul Torres 2, O’Rion Hughes 11, Scott Bamforth 12, Francisco Cruz 22, Brylie Kamen 10, Geddes Robinson 20.

Thursday’s Game

WNCC women 31 48 — 79

NW Wyoming 32 33 — 65

WNCC

Amber Kistler 4, Stormye Everett 15, Shelby Campbell 6, Yuki Morimoto 13, Ariane Brown 4, Tiffany Moorer 5, Tynetta Turner 3, Carolina Alves 6, Thais Pinto 19, Khayla Gladney 4.

Bamforth signs with Weber State story in Omaha World Herald

Check out Scott Bamforth signing story in the Omaha World Herald including a photo. visit the story at the following link http://www.omaha.com/article/20091112/SPORTS09/711129747

WNCC men dominate Colorado Northwestern

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team put three players in double figures as they opened the Air Force Prep tournament in dominating fashion with a 97-44 win over Colorado Northwestern Community College Thursday afternoon.

The Cougars held a 53-16 lead at halftime and never were threatened in the contest.

WNCC head coach Russ Beck said his team came ready to play.

“We told them we want to come out and show them we are a defensive team,” he said. “There is a lot of opportunity with this team to put a lot of pressure on and get stops. We were aggressive defensively, hungry and after stops.”

The Cougars had 11 players hit the scoring column and finished with five 3-pointers as a team. Sophomore Geddes Robinson paced all scorers with 23 points. Scott Bamforth finished with 18 points and three 3-pointers, while Francisco Cruz had 11 points and one 3-pointer.

Al-Akeem Watson and Jasen Williams finished with nine points each. Williams had the other trey for the Cougars.

The Cougars, 2-1, will face Buckley Air Force Base Friday before taking on Peterson Air Force Base on Saturday. Beck knows these two contests will be more physical.

“It will be a physical game with guys that understand how to play. There will be former Division I basketball players playing,” he said. “We trying to approach the games like it is a tournament and win day at a time.”

CNCC 16 28 – 44
WNCC (2-1) 53 44 – 97
WNCC
Geddes Robinson 23, Scott Bamforth 18, Francisco Cruz 11, Al-Akeen Watson 9, Jasen Williams 9, Ritchie Mundende 7, Brllye Kamen 6, Joe Stock 3, O’Rion Hughes 4, Saul Torres 4, Geoffrey Firmin 2.

WNCC's Bamforth signs with Division I Weber State

Scott Bamforth has always had the dream of playing at the Division I level and when he came to WNCC in 2007 he worked hard to achieve that goal.

Bamforth officially realized that goal on Wednesday during the early signing period when he inked with Weber State University out of Ogden, Utah. It was a move that he has no regrets with.

“I signed there because I think it is a perfect fit for me,” the 6-foot-2 sophomore from Albuquerque, N.M., said. “I am really excited because it has always been a goal to play Division I. That is why you come to junior college so you get that chance. I was lucky enough to get it and I am looking forward to it, but at the same time I am not looking at it until it gets here. I am looking toward this year.”

WNCC first-year coach Russ Beck said Weber State is a perfect fit for Bamforth.

“Scott is a lock at the Division I level as a player,” he said. “I have known Coach Randy Rahe and his staff at Weber State and I have seen the way they play, and I think it is a very good fit. I think they are as lucky to get him as he is them. It is a tribute to Scott and his hard work so far this season that he has this opportunity. We are looking forward to see what he will do for us this year. It is no greater joy to a coach then to watch the players that have moved on from the program on to the Division I level.”

Weber State lost in the semifinals of the Big Sky Conference last year to Montana State, but still made the NIT tournament before falling to San Diego State. Weber State finished with a 21-10 record and won the Big Sky Conference league title with a 15-1 mark.

Bamforth led the team in scoring last season with over 600 points and 50 made 3-pointers. This season, WNCC coach Russ Beck projects Bamforth to have the same kind of season.

“Scott is the kind of player that can change the outcome of the game. He has some unique abilities to really shoot the basketball at any level, whether it is NBA, college, or high school,” Beck said. “When you shoot the ball the way Scott does, that is a premium. That is the guy you want out on the floor. He is starting to demonstrate his leadership abilities in this young season. When he brings that energy and effort, a lot of guys look to him and they will follow.”

Bamforth seldom has an off night. In fact he has only been held without a point once in his basketball career and that was the season-opening contest Nov. 3 against the College of Eastern Utah. He also learned a lot from that contest and rebounded with an 18-point game against the same team on Nov. 7. Bamforth said he never was held without a point before and it was actually a good thing because he learned a lot about his game.

“That is the first time in my life I didn’t score and not scoring wasn’t in my mind because at the end of the game, I was most mad about the loss and my effort,” he said. “Just watching the film, I knew my effort wasn’t there at all. I know he [coach] seen it and he saw the change from when we played them again. The effort just changed. At the same time I think it was good [that I didn’t score] because it made me realize that I had to try. I felt like I really didn’t try. It has never happened before.”

Bamforth doesn’t try to score; it is just a natural ability. He also puts in countless hours outside of the practice to perfect his scoring ability.

“From the team’s I have been on I have pretty much been the leading scorer, but I have never think about it,” he said. “When I go into a game, it is not like I am going to score this; I think it is the abilities that God gave me that I can score the ball.”

Bamforth came to WNCC in 2007 and red-shirted during the 2007-08 season. He said red-shirting was one of the best decisions that he made.

“ I am very happy I didn’t play my first year,” he said. “It was hard not playing and it was the first time that I not played in a season. At the same time, it was good because I learned a lot of things that I never realized in my life.

Because of that red-shirt season, Bamforth had the option of transferring, especially after former Cougar coach Brian Joyce left in June for Liberty University. But after talking to Beck this summer, he realized the potential for this year’s basketball team and decided to stay for his sophomore season.

“I thought about it seriously because I don’t like change in my life,” he said. “We had a new coach coming in and I didn’t know who it was. After I met him, I got more comfortable. I think we have a chance to be really, really good. We have little things to fix up but I have learned if I control my effort and I care, that is all that matters. We will be fine.”

Former Cougar Danny Smith ready to open season at Morgan State on Friday

Former WNCC men's basketball player Danny Smith will see plenty of playing time for Morgan State, but his new team will be playing this season for an ailing teammate. Read the story at the following link from the Baltimore Sun.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/college/basketball/bal-sp.morgan12nov12,0,7547336.story

WNCC volleyball earns No. 2 seed at national tournament

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team’s quest for a second national title in three years begins Nov. 19 at the NJCAA national tournament in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and it won’t be an easy journey after the seeding for the tournament was released early Wednesday

The 39-3 Cougars earned the No. 2 seed at the tournament and will face Wallace State Community College-Hanceville Thursday, Nov. 19 at 10 a.m. (MST). Wallace State enters the tournament with a 34-4 record. A win in the first round would send the Cougars into a 4:30 p.m. (MST) contest Thursday against the winner of Frank Phillips and San Jacinto College match. The tournament runs through Saturday.

WNCC coach Giovana Melo said she likes being seeded No. 2 since it takes some of the pressure off as being the favorite. Salt Lake Community College, who defeated WNCC back in the first weekend in September, leapfrogged the Cougars to garner the No. 1 seeding. WNCC was No. 3 in the final regular season polls, while Salt Lake was No. 4. The top two teams in the polls, North Idaho College and Blinn College, lost in the regional tournament. Blinn won the championship last year.

“I am happy with the No. 2 seed,” Melo said. “The road to a national title will be very difficult. We have some pretty good opponents but we are going there to put up a big fight.”

WNCC is actually used to playing as a lower seed. In fact, back in 2007 when the Cougars won the national title, Salt Lake was the No. 1 seed and the Cougars were the No. 4 seed. That same year, Salt Lake defeated WNCC early in the season, and then the Cougars won a five-set thriller in the semi-finals of nationals on their way to the national title.

Right now the team is practicing for the upcoming tournament and Melo is researching their future opponents.

“I have not seen either of them play, but I think they are both pretty good,” she said. “They both have been going to the tourney in the past couple of years so we need to bring our A game.”

WNCC enters the tournament playing some of its best volleyball. After falling to NJC in five sets in the regular season Oct. 28, the Cougars rebounded in playing solidly in sweeping NJC twice to capture the regional title. And now since the seedings are out, the team can focus on the task at hand in winning a second national title in three years.

“I think the girls have been waiting on the seedings,” she said. “It will just take a lot of heart to bring home a championship.”

The Cougars are one of 12 teams with single-digit losses in the national tournament in a very balanced national tournament.

First round action match-ups include No. 3 Iowa Western (40-4) against No. 14 Temple College (22-21), No. 6 MSU-West Plains (24-8) against No. 11 Northwest (Wyo.) College (25-8), No. 7 San Jacinto (30-7) against No. 10 Frank Phillips College (28-10), No. 1 Salt Lake (27-7) against No. 16 Spartanburg Methodist (10-17), No. 9 Hillsborough Community College (29-8) against No. 8 Hutchinson (30-8), No. 5 Miami Dade (29-4) against No. 12 Panola College (26-7), and No. 4 College of Southern Idaho (28-6) against No. 13 Seminole State (22-15). The championship is slated for Saturday at 5:30 p.m. (MST).

Interesting match-ups in the tournament could be a WNCC and Northwest Wyoming as Melo and Trapper head coach Flavia Siqueira played with each other when they attended WNCC in 2003. Both coaches are in their second year as the head coach at their programs.

The contests can be heard live on Kozy 101.3 FM or on the Internet at www.kozy1013.com.

Former Cougar coach turning UAA volleyball program around

Former WNCC volleyball coach Chris Green is turning around the University of Alaska Anchorage volleyball program around. Check out the story at

http://www.adn.com/3530/story/995333.html