Illustrated COUGAR
Four sports all going during month of Febrary
What’s Inside
Page 9 — Baseball preview
The WNCC baseball team opens the season February 7 and 8 in New Mexico and they have a young team of experience but one with plenty of talent. Check out the season preview with rosters and schedule.
Page 16 — Softball preview
The WNCC softball team opens the season February 7 and 8 in Texas and they have a a talented team with some key returners and some talented freshmen. Check out the season preview with rosters and a schedule.
Page 25 — Schul signs with Western Colorado
Finja Schul inked with Western Colorado in January after a stellar two years at WNCC. Schul is the first of many Cougar volleyball players to sign to continue playing at the next level.
Page 35 — Who are the Cougars top athletes
Here is something for everyone to think about and that is who are the top players of all the sports to put on a Cougar uniform through the years. Then, look at who are the best in each sport. Even coaches and families. This is an interesting look into the history of Cougar athletics.
Any story ideas, pictures, or updates on former Cougar athletes, send the information to Mark at mrein2963@gmail.com or mrein@wncc.edu.
Cougar athlete alumni, also send updates what you are doing. Will be putting something in the next Cougar Illustrated of what the former players are doing now.
—— Cougar Sports Calendar ——
Saturday, February 8
Men’s Basketball: AWAY – WNCC at Lamar, 4 p.m.
Women’s Basketball: AWAY – WNCC at Lamar, 2 p.m.
Softball: AWAY – WNCC at Cisco College, Cisco, Texas Baseball: AWAY – WNCC at New Mexico Military, DH
Monday, February 10
Men’s Basketball: HOME – NJC at WNCC, 7:30 p.m.
Women’s Basketball: HOME – NJC at WNCC, 5:30 p.m.
Tuesday, February 11
Women’s Basketball: HOME – Colorado State Club, 5 p.m.
Friday, February 14
Men’s Basketball: AWAY – WNCC at Trinidad State, 7 p.m.
Women’s Basketball: AWAY – WNCC at Trinidad State, 5 p.m. Softball: AWAY – WNCC at Trinity Valley/Howard, Athens, Texas
Saturday, February 15
Men’s Basketball: AWAY – WNCC at Otero, 3 p.m.
Women’s Basketball: AWAY – WNCC at Otero, 1 p.m.
Baseball: AWAY – WNCC at Barton CC, Great Bend, Arizona, DH Softball: AWAY – WNCC at Trinity Valley/Howard, Athens, Texas
Sunday, February 16
Baseball: AWAY – WNCC at Barton CC, Great Bend, Arizona, DH
Tuesday, February 18
Men’s Basketball: HOME – North Platte at WNCC, 6:30 p.m.
The Scottsbluff High drill team performed at halftime of the WNCC and Otero men’s basketball game on January 24.
Cougar Faces
Charli Blackman
Charli Blackman, a WNCC 2024 graduate, is moving on to the DIvision I level after signing with Cal State University-Santa Barbara. Blackman played the fall semester at the University of Mary, and transferred to the California school for the spring semester.
“I transferred to California State University - San Bernardino this semester for a new start,” Blackman said.
Do you know any former or current athletes or coaches
Jayla Owen
Former Cougar Jayla Owen is in her junior year at the University of North Dakota and has played 22 games this season and is averaging three points a contest while making 16 3-pointers. Owen played just one season at WNCC where she averaged 12.3 points a game. At North Dakota this season, her best game was a 10 point contest against Western Kentucky on November 24.
This is a new feature in the newsletter and if there are little things that former or current WNCC athletes or coaches have done or accomplished or honors received, please forward them on with a photo if possible. You can send them to mrein@wncc.edu or text them to 308-631-0459. Any sort of honor or activity or something good can go in here to showcase the good things of Cougar athletics.
Conference races heating up
Both Cougar basketball teams are among the leaders in the South Sub-region
The WNCC men’s and women’s basketball teams are in the heart of the Region IX South Conference race and the two teams are both in first place entering away contests at Lamar Community College on Feb. 8.
The Cougar women are at 16-5 on the season but more importantly they are 3-0 in the South Sub-Region. The winner of the South gets to host the women’s Region IX tournament March 13-15.
The men are also in first place in the sub-region standings with a 3-1 record. The Cougar men are 8-12 on the season, but have put together some impressive contests to stay on top of the sub-region standings.
The Cougar men, however, easily could be 4-0 as they opened up conference play with a 112-105 loss to Otero College. That loss was one where the Cougars failed to hit free throws as each team combined for 125 second-half points. WNCC was outscored 65-60 in that second half.
After that loss, though, the Cougar men reeled off three straight wins and they did by scoring over 100 points in those three games. So, entering Saturday’s game at Lamar, the Cougar men have scored 100 points in four straight games.
The Cougar men are averaging 91 points a contest and have scored 100 or more points in seven of the 20 contests. The Cougar men have also scored 90 or more points in 12 of the 20 games.
In the last three games, the Cougars defeated Trinidad State College 110-101 on January 25 followed by topping McCook 102-83 on the road and then earning an empressive road win over North Platte Community College 101-97 on January 31.
That win was impressive as the Cougars trailed 49-43 at halftime and then outscored North Platte 58-48. The big key in that win was the Cougars minimized North Platte runs to at least four points. North Platte did
have an 8-0 run early in the first, but after that the Cougars were answering buckets with them.
The big key was the Cougars were 20of-29 from the charity stripe and had five players in double figures, led by Kellon Harris with 22 and Elijah Hollins with 21.
So, if the Cougar men keep winning they could be the top seed from the South
sub-region, but there are still plenty of conference games left beginning Saturday with Lamar followed by road trips to NJC, Trinidad State and Otero.
The winner of the South gets a firstround bye at regionals and the next three get to host a first-round playoff game March 8. And the race to host a playoff game or get Continued on next page
WNCC’s Reece Randolph looks for an open player to pass the ball to in the game with Otero College on January 24.
WNCC Cougar Illustrated
n Cougar basketball teams leading sub-region ....
that bye is anyones.
WNCC is at 3-1 while NJC and Lamar are a 3-2 followed by North Platte at 3-3. North Platte has lost two straight after falling to WNCC on January 31 and then they lost a close contest to McCook 60-59 on two buckets that were called off with under two seconds to play twice.
The men’s Region IX tournament will be at the North sub-region winner and that could be either Casper or Gillette. Casper is 6-0 entering this weekend while Gillette is 5-1. Casper defeated 93-92 back on January 25.
While the men can’t host regionals, the women are in a different boat. The Cougar women have a chance to host the regional tournament which would be the third straight year WNCC has host regionals. The Cougar women hosted regionals in 2023 and then the Cougar men hosted regionals in 2024.
The Cougar women are quietly putting together a nice run. The Cougars moved into the NJCAA Top 25 before the holiday break, but fell out after going 1-2 in the first games back oaver the new years. Since then, the Cougars re-emerged into the polls at No. 25 when the polls were released February 3.
The WNCC women are averaging 73.5 points a game while giving up just 57.7 points a contest. In the wins in December and January, the Cougars allowed less than 60 points a contest. The two losses in January, the team allowed more than 70 points and the two losses were contest that they could have won, falling to Gillette 78-71 and then to Casper on a last-second trey 74-71.
In the win, the Cougars started the conference with a 65-53 win over Otero in a game that they had nearly two weeks off without a game.
After that “warm-up” game, WNCC came back with two impressive wins, topping Trinidad State 98-56 that saw the Cougars go on a 24-0 run in the second quarter while holding the Trojans to just four second-quarter points.
WNCC followed that up with a confer-
Continued on next page
Arianna Myers shoots a 3-pointer in a game with Trinidad State at Cougar Palace in January.
Two of the referees in the WNCC and Trinidad State men’s basketball game check out the instant replay to verify a call in the second half of their game January 25.
n Cougar basketball teams leading sub-region ....
ence win over McCook, who entered the game unbeaten in the conference. In the end, WNCC out-scored McCook in all four quarters, leading 14-9 after one period and then 37-24 at halftime.
McCook, then in a non-conference game, fell to North Platte on February 4 by a score of 57-33.
What makes the Cougars a team to watch is their defense. Of all the Region IX teams, WNCC has given up the fewest points, allowing just 1,212 points through games played February 4.
On the flipside, the Cougars offensive output has six players with double figure scoring. Freshman Zozefine Sipollina leads the way at 13.9 points a game followed by sophomore Adelina Urtane at 13.3.
The next four include Nata;y Dunka at 11.2, Lidia Hernandez at 11.2, Helena Kuck at 10.3, and Laura Montiel at 10.0.
Any given game anyone of those six will lead the team in scoring.
The one thing that is a strength for the Cougars is their 3-point shooting. Against McCook, the Cougars buried 12 3-pointers, nine of which were in the first half as WNCC held a 37-24 lead at intermission.
On the season, WNCC has made 186 triples and Sipolina has 61 3-pointers this season while Kuck has 56.
Kuck bruied 67 3-pointers last year as a freshman and she now has 123 triples, which moves her to third on the all-time 3-point made list. She trailes Tishara Morehouse wo made 136 from 2018-2020 and Merle Wiehl, who has 160 made triples from 2017-19.
As a team, the Cougars have buried double-figure 3-pointers only 10 times this season. The most was 13 triples in the 9856 win over Trinidad State. They also had 12 threes in wins over Miles Community College, Gillette College, and McCook.
In the five losses, the team only hit eight or less triples. The fewest they buried was three against Salt Lake Community College. They also only hit four triples in a game against previously unbeaten North Dakota State College of Science in a win.
— Written by Mark Rein
Region IX South Games Yet To Be Played
Men’s Region IX South Games
February 6
Otero at Trinidad State
February 8
WNCC at Lamar
February 10
NJC at WNCC
February 11
Lamar at North Platte
February 14
WNCC at Trinidad State
NJC at Otero
McCook at Lamar
February 15
WNCC at Otero
NJC at Trinidad State
February 18
North Platte at WNCC
NJC at McCook
Lamar at Trinidad State
February 21
McCook at WNCC
NJC at North Platte
Otero at Lamar
February 25
North Platte at McCook
Trinidad State at Otero
February 28
Lamar at WNCC
Trinidad State at McCook
Otero at North Platte
March 1
WNCC at NJC
Otero at McCook
Trinidad State at North Platte
Women’s Region IX South Games
February 6
Otero at Trinidad State
February 8
WNCC at Lamar
February 10
NJC at WNCC
February 14
WNCC at Trinidad State
NJC at Otero
McCook at Lamar
February 15
WNCC at Otero
NJC at Trinidad State
February 18
NJC at McCook
Lamar at Trinidad State
February 21
McCook at WNCC
Otero at Lamar
February 25
Trinidad State at Otero
February 28
Lamar at WNCC
Trinidad State at McCook
March 1
WNCC at NJC
Otero at McCook
Region IX South Standings through February 6
Time to hit diamond Cougar baseball team opens season with a young, but talented team
The Western Nebraska Community College baseball team have been outside a lot last week in preparation for this weekend’s season opener when the Cougars head to New Mexico to face New Mexico Military Institute in doubleheaders on February 7 and 8.
WNCC head coach Mike Jones, who begins his 24th year as head coach, said the team is excited to be beginning the season this weekend down in New Mexico.
“We are going to be able to make the trip and it will be organized and we will be ready to play,” he said. “Will we be at our best and at 100 percent; probably not. But we will be ready to play.”
New Mexico Military Institute opened the season this past weekend against another Region IX opponent, Northeastern Junior College, and went 3-1. New Mexico Military won 15-2, 12-6 and 6-5 before falling in the series final game 16-3 on Sunday.
Jones said NMMI is a team that will be well-coached and have strong pitching.
“What I know is they are well organized and they always have a very strong offense,” he said. “Pitching-wise, it is a lot of threepitch mix guys. They will have a combination of velocity guys and some other guys with secondary pitches that will come at us. So, we will get a variation of a lot of different things.”
This year’s team will be different from last year’s team that went 30-30 with plenty of sophomores on the team with experience. This year’s team will be young in experience.
“Experience,” Jones said about this year and last year. “When you look at all the experience we had returning last year and then you look at this year with last year’s freshmen that will be out there this year, we will definitely lack a lot of college experience. We are talented and we play with a lot of energy and competitive attitude which is
good. We are just really young right now.”
Jones said the pitching should be a bright spot with plenty of arms that saw action last year or two years ago. Leading the way is Clayden Brandon, who played two years ago before red-shirting a year ago because of an injury. Brandon, from West Herriman, Utah, had 11 appearances on the mound in 2023 with 27 strike outs while going 3-3 on the hill.
Also to keep a watch out are returners
Rocco Harmon from Ft. Collins, Colorado
Julian Garza from Aurora, Colorado, and Zane Hendrickx from Antwerp, Belgium.
“Clayton Brandon on the mound will be
extremely important for us along with Rocco Harmon. Those two guys will be big for us on the mound, and I think they had a really good fall,” Jones said. “Julien Garza and Zane Hendrickx are other returners who will have a chance to get a lot of innings on the mound. Pitching-wise we have some experience and those four guys we will be counted on.”
Offensively will feature guys that hasn’t seen a lot of at bats a year ago. The two that saw plenty of at bats a year ago are Kensei Oikawa of Miyagi, Japan, and Calab Caciari of Evans, Colorado. Those two will be
Vaughn Wilson throws the ball to first base during an outdoor practice the last week of January.
n It is baseball season ....
counted on this year.
As for newcomers, there are plenty of guys to watch. Jones said the Wilson brothers from Riverton, Utah, will be key on the infield.
“Both of the Wilson brothers, Cooper Wilson and Vaughn Wilson, are guys to be paying attention too,” Jones said. “Jin Kobayakawa will be a catcher and Jase Satterfield will be a catcher and play a lot for us. The outfield will be a whole mix of guys. Austin Cooper has a chance to see a lot of innings for us.”
The catchers Jin Kobayakawa of Kanagawa, Japan, and Jase Satterfield of Grand Junction, Colorado, will be young in talent. Kobayakawa was here in the summer playing for the Western Nebraska Pioneers, while Satterfield red-shirted a year ago. Austin Cooper is an outfielder from Bozeman, Montana, who should anchor the outfield.
Another player that transferred to WNCC after playing in the summer for the Pioneers is Cooper Burgess of Spring Ranch, Texas.
The Cougars have several players that played a year ago or red-shirted for the Cougars. The other returners besides the ones already mentioned include Landon Lockwood of Great Falls, Montana; Tucker Deal of Arvada, Colorado; Cameryn Spence of Douglas, Wyoming; Matt Levesque of Gatineau, Quebec; Catcher Gladysh of Brighton, Colorado; Cameron Meyer of Scottsbluff; and Kyler Adams of Erie, Colorado.
Also a sophomore transfer is Alex Renfrow of Houston, Texas.
The Wilson brothers are from Riverton and Vaughn is a sophomore transfer while his brother, Cooper, will be a freshman.
The freshman on the team starts with Scottsbluff’s Carter Reisig, who was on the WESTCO Zephyrs team last summer.
The other freshmen on the team includes Ian Grafmank of Las Vegas, Nevada; Jack McCrea of Berthoud, Colorado; Matt Hazzard of Cedar City, Utah; Marshall Forsyth of Houston, Texas; Will Harbison of Parker, Colorado Austin Neeley of Severance, Colorado; Allard Helms of Utrecht, The Netherlands; Ren Soto of Japan, and Garrison Burns of Kearney.
Jones said where their isn’t a lot of playing experience from last year’s team, this team will be deep in depth with players that can play any place.
“We should be fairly deep on defense,” he said. “but we lack some experience offensively.”
After this weekend’s season opening games in New Mexico, the Cougars will be on the road February 15-16 when they travel to Barton Community College. They will then begin 11 straight days at home from February 19 through March 6. The first home game is slated for February 19 when they host Northeastern Junior College followed by games with Miles Community College, Dawson Community College, and
Northeast Community College.
Jones said if the weather holds out, it will be nice to play at home with all the improvements that have been made to Cleveland Field. One improvement is a new outfield fence with the hold wooden fence being retired.
“We will see how the weather works out,” Jones said. “If the weather works out it will be nice to get those games in at home early in the season. We have a beautiful facility. The upgrades to Cleveland field have been outstanding and I can’t thank the City of Scottsbluff because it has been super impressive to see the upgrades to Cleveland Field.”
— Written by Mark Rein
Freshman Marshall Forsyth of Houston, Texas, delivers a pitch during a simulated intersquad contest in Janyuary.
2025 WNCC Cougar Baseball Roster
Hoboken, Antwerp, Belgium /
Bozeman, Montana / Gallatin
Houston / Texas
Carter Reisig OF/RHP FR Scottsbluff, Nebraska / Scottsblufff
27 Matthew Hazzard LHP SO Cedar City, Utah /
28 Alex Renfrow RHP SO Houston, Texas /
30 Ian Grafmank LHP/1B FR Las Vegas, Nevada /
32 Cooper Burgess IF SO Spring Ranch, Texas /
RS Dakota Alber OF FR 5-8 165 Commerce City, Colorado / Riverdale Ridge
RS Trevor Beutner OF FR Colorado /
RS Jens Boermans C/SS/U FR 5-11 145 Belgium / Immaculata Secundair
RS Ty Buetner OF FR Colorado /
RS Kaden Ferguson RHP FR Alliance, Nebraska / Alliance
RS Ben Firminhac IF RS FR 6-1 190 Torrington, Wyoming / Torrington
RS David Fleischer LHP RS FR 6-5 300 Parker, Colorado / Legend
RS Steven Jackson OF RS FR 6-0 195 Aurora, Colorado /
RS Jahrell Mendez OF FR Scottsbluff, Nebraska / Gering
RS Jack McCrea OF/RHP FR Berthoud, Colorado /
RS Jack Robinson IF FR Colorado /
RS Adan Vargas RHP FR Scottsbluff, Nebraska / Scottsbluff
RS Brandon Waltermatch IF FR Brighton, Colorado /
RS Cameron Wright IF SO 5-10 175 Surrey, British Columbia, Canada /
Head Coach: Mike Jones
Assistant Coaches: Ryan Burgner and Jack Jones
2025 WNCC Cougar Baseball Schedule
February 8
February 15
February 16
February 19
February 22
February 23
March 10
March 11
March 13
April 25
April 26
May 15-17
May 24-June 1
NOTE:
and
Leading by example Calab Caciari ready to lead the team as the Cougars get set to open the season this month
WNCC sophomore Calab Caciari is one of the returning position players that will be counted on this year to help lead a team to what Caciari hopes is a Region IX title.
That all begins in February when the Cougars open the season at New Mexico Military Institute February 7 and 8.
“The team is very excited to get out and start competing again,” Caciari said. “The goal for everyone is always to reach the Region IX tournament and win it all.”
Caciari said that this team totally different from a year ago and this team could be dangerous later in the season.
“This team is different from a year ago because of our depth,” he said. “We have a strong bullpen and a strong lineup of position players.”
The Cougars definitely do have a good nucleus of returners, but like Caciari, the returners were spot starters a year ago as WNCC graduated a ton of players from last year’s 30-30 team. Many of those players are now playing collegiately as 10 players went on to continue playing.
Three players are at the Division I level as Shintaro Inoue is at Kansas State, Ashton Ross is at St. Bonaventure, and Gus Allred is at the University of Northern Colorado.
The other seven who are playing at a 4-year college include Bryce Peterson at the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, Adrian Short at Fort Hayes State University; Tyler Easter at Colorado School of Mines; Hunter McCollum at Southeastern University in Florida; Arturo Montiel at Peru State; Alex Ainsworth at Clarke University and Garrett Dodd at Ottawa University.
As for Caciari, he played in 26 games a year ago and finished with a .280 batting average with 18 runs scored, five RBIs and one home run.
His goal this year is simple, to increase those numbers.
“An individual goal that I have for this year would be to bat over .300 this year,” he said. “A team goal is obviously a Region 9 championship.”
The potential is there, Caciari said. A lot will depend on how this team can come together on the field.
“Some of the keys to the season for us will be our pitching,” he said. “I feel like the arms we have this year will keep us competitive in games.
“We have good depth this year. We have a good mix of sophomores and freshmen to make impacts in our line-up,” the Evans, Colorado, infielder said. “Some of our returners are Rocco Harmon and Clay Bran-
don that will be big for us on the mound.”
A year ago, Caciari put up some big numbers in a number of contests. In a 2212 win over Otero on April 14 a year ago, Caciari recorded a home run with four runs scored and three hits. That home run was his first in college and high school where he played for Valley High School.
Last year he also went 4-for-5 from the plate in a 7-4 win over Paradise Valley with two doubles. In a 19-6 win over Miles last year, Caciari went 3-for-6.
Caciari came to WNCC a year ago with strong numbers from high school where he was a contact hitter. His senior year, he bat-
Continued on next page
Calab Caciari takes a swing at a pitch last spring in a game at Cleveland Field. Caciari will be one of the returners that will be key this season for he Cougar baseball team.
n Caciari ready to lead the team ......
ted .463 with 29 RBIs and 23 runs scored with eight doubles and a triple. As a junior, he hit .483 with 14 RBIs, 13 runs scored with four doubles and four triples.
His quickness on the base paths is something that makes Caciari a dangerous weapon. In high school, he had 39 stolen bases in three years of playing varsity. In his freshman year at WNCC, Caciari had just one stolen base, but also earned 12 walks and had an onbase percentage of .368.
So, as a sophomore, Caciari will be a main cog in leading the Cougars. He knows that and he leads by example for the other members of the team.
“I would say my role as a sophomore is to share my knowledge of what I’ve learned from last year with the freshmen,” he said.
That role of being a leader is simple for Caciari as he aims to be one of those players to continue playing after this year.
But, for now, his only goal is to help this team win and after these back-to-back weekends on the road to New Mexico and then Kansas, the Cougar men will be home for six straight contests beginning February 19 when they host Northeastern Junior Col-
lege, weather pending, followed by home weekend series with Miles and Dawson and then a mid-week showdown with Northeast (Nebraska) Community College on March 6 before they head on their Spring Break
Arizona trip.
“I am just excited for the season to get started and looking forward to a great year with this team,” Caciari said. “Roll Cougs!” — Written by Mark Rein
Calab Caciari is congratulated by head coach Mike Jones last year after he his a home run against Otero at Cleveland Field.
Softball ready to roll Cougar softball team loaded with plenty of talent for run to regional title
The goal for the Western Nebraska Community College softball team is to win a Region IX title and it is a goal that has realistic potential with the talent level of this year’s team.
The Cougars will begin that goal of a regional title when they open this weekend at Ranger College and Cisco Community Colleges in Texas. WNCC head coach Courtney Medina, who is in her third year at the college, believes this team has the potential to do good things.
“The goal is simple; get better every day and have a lot of grit and compete. We don’t want to get too wrapped up into anything else,” Medina said. “Everyone wants to win a Region IX title; our goal is to focus on the path to get there. It’s about the journey, not the destination.”
So, when the Cougars open this weekend with games at Ranger College in Ranger, Texas, on Friday followed a doubleheader dip with Cisco Community College on Saturday, Medina said the team is ready to get going.
“The team is very excited to get going,” she said. “The focus for the weekend is just progress every game, get better at the little things every game, focusing on getting 1 percent better every time we take the field. We know that Ranger and Cisco are two well-coached ball clubs and have been able to get some games under their belt so we’re excited to go compete.”
Ranger will have had 10 games under their belt before taking on the Cougars. Ranger is 0-8 on the year dropping a pair of contests to Trinity Valley Community College on Monday. Ranger hosts Western Texas on Wednesday in a pair of games.
Cisco will be a team that will have played six games before the Cougars come to Cisco, Texas, on Saturday. Cisco is 0-2 after dropping contests to Tyler Junior College 18-0 and 20-0. Cisco is scheduled to face
Howard College on Wednesday and then Clarendon College on Friday before hosting the Cougars on Saturday.
Come this weekend, the WNCC softball team will begin the quest as they hope to improve upon last year’s 14-24 record. That could happen as Medina said there is a lot of talent on the roster this season with six returning sophomores from a year ago along one transfer sophomores. The Cougars also have a very talented freshmen core of players of 12 players on the squad.
“The talent on this year’s team is great. I think what I like more is their competitive drive,” Medina said. “Talent doesn’t really
matter if there is no competitive drive and I think that we have a good balance of both. We are really deep in terms of positions. We can rotate a lot of infielders from the middles to the corners. Our catchers and pitchers all play other positions as well. Our outfield does a great job of being able to play any of the three positions as well.” The sophomores have been good leaders on and off the field and each sophomore brings something different to the table. The returning players from a year ago include 5-8 outfielder Mykah Klumpp of Valley Center, Kansas; 5-6 catcher Randi
Continued on next page
WNCC’s Alyssa Albaugh gets set to catch a fly ball during a drill the last week of January outside. Albaugh, a graduate of Torrington High School, is ready for the season.
WNCC Cougar Illustrated
n Cougar softball ready to open season ......
Mitchell of Greeley, Colorado; 5-4 pitcher Kayli Cooper of North Battleford, Saskatchewan; 5-3 infielder Sierra Hilgner of Divide, Colorado; 5-9 pitcher/infielder Jenika Fuentes of Sweetwater, Texas; and 5-4 outfielder Reagan Werth of Farmington, New Mexico.
The transfer sophomore includes 5-9 outfielder JoLee Huffaker of Wellington, Colorado. Huffaker transferred to WNCC from Iowa Western Community College.
Medina said all the sophomores will play a key roll this season and will be players to watch.
“I think all of our sophomores have played such a great role into building the culture this year that they will all be players to watch,” she said. “Randi will be great for us in the line up and behind the plate, she is definitely one of our most vocal leaders and has been really solid for us both in the field and at the plate.
“Mykah has had the most inspiring bounce back of a story that you could ever imagine. She’s a great leader for us on and off the field. We’re excited to see what she does. Coop suffered a pretty gnarly wrist injury last year that impacted her pitching quite a bit and she came on really strong for us at the end of last season so we’re excited for her to start from where she left off. JoLee coming in has been really great in terms of not only her softball knowledge but her ability to command and lead an outfield. She picked up on everything so quickly and it was a seamless transition. Her and Randi being able to be triple threats at the plate with their ability to bunt, hit for power and slap is going to be fun to watch.
“Sierra will be a clutch hitter for us and she’s very versatile in the field, she had to take on a lot of different roles last year and now were going to be able to see her more relaxed and play to the best of her ability. Jenika is going to be fun to watch pitch and hit for us this year, she had a lot of innings last year so we’re excited to see her flourish this year. Reagan has grown a ton in the outfield and we’re excited to see her continue to grow their and at the plate.
Then, when you add the 11 talented freshmen to the list of sophomores, you
will see a team with plenty of depth. Leading the list is Torrington High graduate Alyssa Albaugh. Albaugh, a 5-6 catcher and utility player, played summer traveling softball for the Cheyenne Extreme.
The other newcomers to the squad include Ellie Soper, a 5-6 catcher/infielder/outfielder from Sterling, Colorado; Kay’Leigh Blair is a 5-4 outfielder from Morenci, Arizona’ Vivi-Anne Amparan, a 5-5 outfielder from Newark, Texas; Viktoria Sarkanyova, a 5-5 utility player from Bratislava, Slovakia; Lydia Tibbals, a 5-4 infielder from Springville, Utah; Adi Duke, a 5-5 infielder from Santaquin, Utah; 5-6 Tori Travers, a utility player from Sammanish, Washington; Stevie Firkins, a 5-11 pitcher from Montrose, Colorado; Tina Horton, a 5-6 infielder from Sydney Australia; Faythe Lafirenza, a 5-7 catcher/infielder from Kingman, Arizona; and Kallie Stocking, a 5-9 utility player from West Valley City, Utah.
“All of our freshman are key newcomers for us,” Medina said. “This freshman class is hungry, and it’s been so fun to be around. They don’t care where they play or where
they hit, they just want to play, and they want to compete.”
Mediina said the freshmen all bring different things to the table.
“Kay’Leigh and Vivi have been huge additions for us as slappers. They have bought into the process and it’s fun to see them be able to see their work pay off. Ellie, Vik and Alyssa are three that will play just about everywhere. They are middle infielders, catchers and will see time in the outfield as well. Tina and Tori are going to be all over the infield and have a competitive nature that you can’t teach so it is going to be fun to just watch them go. Adi and Lydia are two of our most level-headed but highest energy athletes. They have such high softball IQ and are truthfully a coach’s dream. I can put them wherever in the lineup or on the field and know they will give it their all while being the best teammates that they can be.
“Faythe and Stevie have both probably grown the most from the fall to the spring that they are almost unrecognizable from the two girls that walked on campus in August. They will both be huge role players
Continued on next page
WNCC’s Adi Duke gets set to throw the ball to first in the teams’ first outdoor practice in late January. Looking on is Faythe Lafirenza of Kingman, Arizona.
n Cougar softball ready to open season ......
for us. Kallie is going to be fun to watch in the circle, she is equal parts fun and competitive, she has the kindest nature outside of the field but in the circle she is a competitor, she faced really tough offensive competition this fall against good hitting teams like CCU and UNCO and held her ground so it will be fun to watch that transfer this spring.”
This weekend will be a good chance for the team to play games and see their strengths and what they need to work on. It is also a good weekend to get some games in before their next road trip to Texas Feb. 14 and 15 when they face two ranked teams in No. 13 Trinity Valley Community College and Howard College.
nical College). The Cougars will then host Miles Community College on February 24 and 25 followed by home games on March 1 and 2 against Dawson Community College.
After that, the Cougars are set for 12 straight games at home. The team’s home-opener will be Saturday, February 2223 when they host Fort Hays Tech Northwest (formerly Northwest Kansas Tech-
Medina said playing at home the end of February through March 2 will get them ready for their Spring Break trip to Arizona before they start conference action on March 15.
“It’s always the best to play at home, there is nothing like it,” she said. “We are going to be playing great competition, but the focus has to be internal and controlling what we can control. We always talk about getting 1% better every day and playing in the spring is no different, we can’t dictate our level of play based on who is across from us; we just have to be better than who we were the day before.”
Medina said the team’s success is because of the community and all the families for their support in different ways.
“We want to just thank the community and families for all of their continued support,” she said. “It takes a village to be able to do what we do and we have the best village.”
— Written by Mark Rein
WNCC freshman pitcher Kallie Stocking delivers a pitch during an intrasquad scrimmage on January 31.
2025 WNCC Cougar Softball Roster
Head
2025 WNCC Cougar Softball Schedule
NOTE: Game dates and locations may
Solid behind the plate Catching has been something Randi Mitchell has done since playing T-ball in Texas
Randi Mitchell has always been a catcher from her T-ball days to playing competitive in the Triple Crown organization in Ft. Collins.
At WNCC, Mitchell will be one of those players that will lead the team.
And, as a catcher, that is the position that sees the entire field and has a lot of responsibility. It is also a position that she definitely love as a left-handed catcher.
“I love catching. I’m a lefty catcher and just really fun for me,” Mitchell said. “I like being the leader and just being assertive and caring for my pitcher, that’s definitely my favorite position.”
When she isn’t catching, she also plays first base. And when asked if she has ever played outfield, well, she said she wasn’t an outfielder and you didn’t want to see her play that position.
So, when she started playing softball in the T-Ball league in Borger, Texas, which is located in the Panhandle of Texas, it was a position that she has grown to love all the way through T-Ball to traveling ball in Colorado.
Mitchell, who is from Greeley, Colorado, and from Severance High School, said she started catching when she was just 8-yearsold.
“I caught in T-ball and I caught all through high school, that’s all I did,” she said. “We didn’t have any other catchers and then in club ball, I only really ever caught and played some firstbase. Last year (in college) I caught majority of the games. That’s kind of my thing.”
Being a catcher in T-Ball is one of those positions that there isn’t a whole lot of action. Still, she enjoyed putting on the catching gear.
“You just stand there and wait for the ball to be thrown at you and hope it doesn’t just tip off your glove,” Mitchell said about
Randi Mitchell, a sophomore catcher, catches the ball during a fall scrimmage with the University of Northern Colorado. Mitchell will be a key player for the Cougars this year
catching in T-Ball. But, I don’t remember too much.”
After her family moved to Colorado when she was nine, Mitchell made the jump to traveling ball. All she remembers when she traveled in Texas, her team didn’t travel to a bunch of tournament because they were so young.
“I never played rec ball or anything, just went straight into competitive travel ball,” she said. “I lived in Texas so played in Texas and then in Colorado when I was nine, and
automatically started playing club ball.”
Mitchell’s competitive nature definitely is something posititive on the team and it is because she played competitive softball for 10 years in Colorado.
“It’s kind of hard to compare softball in Colorado and Texas just because I only ever played up until eight years old in Texas and obviously we didn’t travel too far because we were just eight years old,” she said. “When I came to Colorado, it was a Continued on next page
n Mitchell: A leader behind the plate ......
lot more competitive, especially because I was older. When I was probably 14 that is when I went to Triple Crown and they’re a super competitive organization, with really good facilities, and they work with a lot of D1 colleges and coaches. So, the competitiveness of that was huge.”
When she made the jump to college, it was a learning curve her first year. This year, some weight has been lifted from her shoulders as the depth behind the plate is deep and that is something that she likes about this team.
“We definitely have a lot more that’s for sure. I mean, towards the end of the season last year, it was only me, so that was really hard,” she said. “So as you know, as the only sophomore catcher, I’m just really happy that we have extra freshman catchers to come in cause it’s a lot easier when you have people behind you that can help you and it’s not all on you.”
But while there is plenty of depth at the catching position, Mitchell said there is plenty of depth all over the field and that is something that will be a plus this season. Mitchell said coach is going to have a tough time making a line-up with the versitility of the players.
“No, it’s definitely going to be tough for her to make a starting lineup,” she said. “I mean, we have girls that their bats are definitely there and so are their defense. So, I mean offense and defense-wise, it’s gonna be really hard for her to make a lineup.”
The Cougars open the season with two weekends in Texas when they face Ranger and Cisco February 7 and 8 and then face Trinity Valley and Howard on February 14 and 15.
After that, the Cougars will have a string of six dates of home games from February 22 through March 2 against Fort Hayes Technical Northwest, Miles and Dawson. Mitchell said that this team has all the potential to do good things because of that depth they have.
“We are a lot deeper than last year. We have a lot more utility players, so we don’t only have like third basemen or shortstops. They’re so many utility girls and wherever they are asked to play, they go and they play
hard,” she said. “We just have a lot of girls like they want to be here, they want to win. I think the competitiveness and the grit that this team shows is a lot deeper than I think what we had last year.”
And this team will showcase several different styles of offense from slappers to gap hitters to power hitters.
Last season, Mitchell was more a
base-hitter or power hitter. This year she learned the art of being a slapper to make her a triple threat.
Last season, Mitchell has some big offensive numbers, which she is hoping to improve upon. Mitchell hit .221 a year ago with 22 runs scored, 19 RBIs, five doubles,
Continued on next page
Randi Mitchell takes a swing at a pitch during a fall scrimmage with the University of Northern Colorado. Mitchell will be a key player for the Cougars this year.
n Mitchell: A leader behind the plate ......
and three home runs.
One of her best games last year was a 15-10 come-from-behind win over Otero where Mitchell had four RBIs with two runs scored and a home run.
This year Mitchell is excited to see the offense go to work.
“We have a little bit of everything,” Mitchell said. “We have some slappers, and the coaches taught me and one other sophomore how to slap now, so we’re kind of a hybrid lefty now, so that’s a lot of fun. We have a lot of power hitters and still a lot of gap hitters though. So just a lot that’s gonna help us in the lineup to kind of string together hits and runs.”
With that being said, Mitchell is ready to begin her final year at WNCC. Her hopes after this year is to continue playing at a 4-year level because she isn’t ready to hang up the cleats just yet.
“I don’t think I’m ready to give it up,” she said. “It’s kind of weird to think about it if I didn’t play because this would be my last season. And, since it has been a part of my life for so long, I just can’t see myself
giving it up yet. So, the plan, I hope is to transfer to a four-year college and I want to go back down to Texas, so hopefully that’s where I’ll end up. I like the warm weather, a lot of family down there. It’s kind of cold and windy here.”
In the meantime, she is taking in all the friendships and memories of playing at WNCC this last semester. She really enjoys the oneness of the team and getting to know players from different states and countries.
“It’s cool especially just like we have an Australian player, Tina. She’s it’s really cool to hear about her and especially our girl from Slovakia,” she said. “It just not how they play, but you can definitely see how things might have been taught differently or even just their mentalities. I mean, they’re super competitive, so that’s fun to see.”
When the team hits the field on February 7, Mitchell said they will be ready.
“Yes we are ready,” she said. “We have been working pretty hard. We all worked hard in the off season over Christmas
break. We have been working on building our team chemistry and talent on and off the field as people and players.”
The month of February will tell a lot about the team this year and the players are hoping for success if they can get some wins. Last year the team went 3-6 in the month of February. This year they already have more games scheduled with 16 potential February games, weather pending.
“It would mean a lot, especially just because last year was pretty rough and so as a sophomore, if we came out 2-2 or 4-0 or even just competing, that would be huge for the sophomores just to see like ‘wow, like look what we have this year.’ I think it will just be a big confidence boost and it’ll show that our hard work is paid off.
“I just like the competitiveness of the team like I said. It really is a sweet group of girls on and off the field. They really do feel like your best friends, so it’s just exciting to see how the team chemistry is. That’s one of the biggest things for me, I think..”
— Written by Mark Rein
The Top 20
Volleyball player Finja Schul signs with Western Colorado in Gunnison
When Finja Schul came to Western Nebraska Community College two years ago from Bergisch Gladbach, Germany, she came here for a chance to play volleyball and get an education.
Her time at WNCC was more than that as she also gained new friendships that will be cherished for a while.
On Friday, Schul became the first of several WNCC volleyball players to sign to continue their volleyball playing as the 6-foot-2 middle hitter inked Friday afternoon with Division II Western Colorado University, which is located in Gunnison, Colorado.
It was a decision that Schul is pleased with as she stays close her friends in the Midwest while getting to continue her volleyball playing.
“I picked Western Colorado because as soon as I started talking to the assistant coach and the coach, I felt comfortable,” Schul said. “The teammates were very welcoming and I also liked the community and the town.”
Western Colorado is part of the RMAC (Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference)
and finished last season 12-16. Western Colorado plays teams such as Chadron State, Black Hills State, South Dakota School of Mines, Metro and Regis in Denver.
At WNCC, WNCC helped the Cougars to a 28-10 record this past season and really developed as a player. WNCC finished last season with 271 kills with 138 blocks, 24 ace serves, and 95 blocks. As a freshman, Schul finished with 167 kills and 115 blocks.
Schul was also named a Region IX South Second Team All-region player.
Schul said playing that last competitive match in November was heartbreaking realizing her time at WNCC was coming to close.
“It was really sad (playing that last match),” she said. “I was really emotional in the last game because I knew with this team we would never be on the
court together again. But, we have the rest of the semester so I am happy to be with the team and the girls.”
What Schul will take with her to Western Colorado is the friendships that she has made while at WNCC.
“I have met a lot of friends that I will keep for the rest of my life,” she said. “I had great experiences playing volleyball. I am excited for the new challenge and the new colors and the new team. I will always remember WNCC.”
When Schul came over here two years ago, she adapted being away from her family because of her teammates and all the friends she made while at WNCC. That, she said, will be something that she will cherish as she finishes out her last semester at WNCC before graduating in May.
“I thought it would be harder, but I had a lot of fun with the girls and I found my best friends here and that is what made it easy,” she said. “We had some great memories on the court and off the court with the girls just spending the weekends together, doing all the fun activities. I am just grateful for everything that has happened over the last two years from the coaches, my teammates, and my friends.”
— Written by Mark Rein
Finja Schul poses with her teammates and Coach Balza after she signed with Western Colorado in January.
Finja Schul signs to continue playing at Western Colorado, which is located in Gunnison, Colorado.
Future Cougars signed to play at WNCC for 2025-26, Cougar Sophomores that have signed to continue at a 4-year school
Newcomers signed for 2025-26
Volleyball
Allie Twamley Cheyenne, Wyoming
Men’s Soccer
Robert Connolly St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
Tomoaki Kamiya Aichi, Japan
Aurele Cuenot Dr hamps-Vennes, France
Jean Lord...........Montreal, Ontario, Canada
Nicolas Selvaggio Domonguez.... A Coruna, Spain
Pau Vera Montoya ............................ IES Can Puig
Gabriel Lesley................................. Harmony High
Christ Kadja-Ecole ....Secondaire Antoine de Saint-Exupery
Women’s Soccer
Irene Romero Molina .. Saint Joan D’Alacant, Span
JuliaMatte dos Santos ....Rio Grande, Brazil
Marit Schelstraete..... Oost-Souberg, Netherlands
Feline Groenwold ..................Augustinus College
Candela Martin-Gonzalez Colegio Luyfe RIvas
Allison Herbel Gering, Neb.
Softball
Emma Murdoch Swift Current, Saskatchewan
Jasmin Castro Discovery Canyon High
Baseball
Hudson Schwab Leander, Texasl
Jude Russell Carleton Place, Ontario
Diego Herrera Laramie, Wyoming
Men’s Basketball
Ocean Brobbey. New City College Hackney
Women’s Basketball
Erin Green ......... Box Hill Senior Secondary
Charisma Johnson............Portland, Oregon
Brynn Sybrant ........................ Casper, Wyo.
High School seniors, if you are coming to play sports at WNCC, please send Mark Rein information on high school, hometown, height, and which sport you are planning playing.
Where Cougar Sophomores Are Headed
Volleyball
Finja Schul Western Colorado (DII)
Men’s Soccer
Women’s Soccer
Women’s Basketball
Baseball
Softball
Current Sophomores, please contact Mark Rein via text at 308-6310459 or email when you decide to attend a specific college.
Former Cougars doing well playing professionally overseas
Several former WNCC basektball players are enjoying success playing professionally overseas in different leagues.
Five former women’s basketball players are still playing with many playing professionally in their home country. According to the Eurobasket report, here is what some players are doing most recently.
Tishara Morehouse, who played for WNCC in 2019 and 2020, plays professionally in Greece. In the latest game where her team fell 95-85 to second-ranked Athinaikos, Morehouse had 21 points with four rebounds and eight assists for her team Giannena. This is Morehouse’s second season in pro basketball where she is averaging 13.4 points, 6.1 rebounds, 7.7 assists and 2.3 steals.
Yulihana Valcheva, who played for WNCC in 2019 and 2020 and then went on to play at University of Texas-San Antonio, is in her first season with the Bulgaria called Montana. In a game against Rilski Sportist, Valcheva helped her team to a 63-58 win where she scored six points and pulled down six rebounds. So far this season, she is averaging 12.3 points, 8.3 rebounds, and 1.2 assists a game.
Other three players that are playing include Zeynep Canbaz, who plays for Besiktas in the Turkish KBSL league; Mia Sarkodee-Adoo plays for Barking Abbey Longon Lions in the British WSLB; Eva Langton plays for Whai in New Zealand; and Merle Wiehl plays for Muenster in the German Regionaliga league.
As for the men’s players, here are some of the top performances from last week for the former players.
Djordje Dimitrijevic plays professionally in Serbia for the Vrsac team. Vrsac lost 110-106 to OKK Beograd. Dimitrijevic was the top scorer in the game as he finished with 31 points along with nine assists. This is his first season with the team. He currently is averaging 14.5
points and 4,8 assists a game.
Francisco Cruz is also still playing and he is in Turkey playing for Mersin BBGSK and helped his team to an 85-77 win over Turkish BSL. He was the MVP of the game as he had 20 points and six assists. It is Cruz’s fist season with the team and he is averaging 15.8 points, 3.1 rebounds, and four assists a game.
Teddy Allen is playing professionally and while it isn’t overseas, Allen is playing in the NBA G-league and having an outstanding season with Rio Grande Valley Vipers. Allen helped the Vipers to a victory over the Cleveland Charge 124-114 on January 27 where he scored 27 points and grabbed five rebounds. Allen is in his third season in pro basketball and is averaging 13.3 points and 4.1 rebounds a game.
Another former Cougar still playing is Du’Vaughn Maxwell. Maxwell pays in Argentina for the Olimpico team. MaxContinued on next page
All in the Numbers
6
This is how many times a women’s basketball has fouled out this season in 21 games. Only two players have fouled out twice and two more just once.
52
The number of blocks the men’s basketball team has this seaosn. Mathiang Maker has 21 by himself in the 20 games the team has played.
138
The number digs that Finja Schul, who signed with Western Colorado last month, had during her sophomore year as a Cougar volleyball member. She had a total of 271 kills
139
This is the number of wins the men’s soccer team has since they started back in 2003. The team won regionals this year with a 10-win season.
267
This is the most pitching strikeouts by a Cougar softball pitcher in one season and that belongs to Ashton Hughes who fanned 267 players in 2011. She topped Kelsey Garner’s record of 259 strikeouts from 2008. Garner holds the career record of 498 ks.
521
The number of total wins by the Cougar baseball team since the team started playing back in the 2002 season. That year, they were 34-25 in their first year.
Djordje Dimitrjevic (Serbia) photo @clubourense
n Former players playing professionally ......
well’s team fell to Corrientes in what could be called an upset 79-78. Maxwell scored 19 points. It was his first game for Ollimpico this season.
Vinnie Shahid is also playing as he plays professionally in Germany and he was a major force for his HAKRO Merlins Crailsheim team as thehy won 83-51 over German ProA. He scored 17 points with six rebounds and five assists. Shahid is averaging 16.5 points, two rebounds, and four assists a contest.
Kalen Williams, who for WNCC five years ago, is playing in Georgia for Batumi and helped them to an 88-84 win over Margveti in the Georgian Super league. He scored 20 points in his first game with the team.
Martin Roub is also still playing as he plays professionally in the Czech Republic. He helped his Pardubice team rrlll to a 94-55 win over Czech Republic 1(Liga). He scored 28 points in 26 minutes, which was his season high. He is averaging 19.4 points and 6.2 rebounds a game.
Scott Bamforth is still playing. Bamforth has been plaing professionally overseason for the last 12 years and he
is playing for Coviran Granada in Spain. In Coviran’s last game, they had a scare against one of the league’s weakest teams, barely winning 78-74. Bamforth had eight points. He is averaging 10.9 points and game. He is a naturalized Kosovan.
Andrew Ramirez is also in the middle of his professional season right now. Ramirez, who playd for WNCC around 2016 plays in Denmark. Ramirez helped Copenhagen with against Vaerlose 86-61 in the Danish BasketLigaen. Ramierz recroded 12 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and five steals in 30 minutes. For the season, he is averaging 12 points and 4.5 rebounds a contest.
Henry Tanksley, who played for WNCC around 2019 plays professionally in Austria and helped his Kapfenberg Bulls win their game against BC Vienna 78-74 in the Austrian BSL. Tanksley recorded 16 points and grabbed six rebounds. He is averaging 15.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game.
A list of other former players that are playing overseas includes Danilo Glisovic for Radnicki KG in the Serbian KLS; Phil Fayne playing for FC Porto in the Portu-
guese Liga Betclic; Miguel Gotti plays for Club Deportivo Panteras in the Panamanian LPB; Lwon Tomic plays for Zagreb in the Croatian Prva Liga; Terrance Motley played for Novi Pazar in the Serbian KLS; Jordan Smith plays for Kavkasia in the Gerogian Superleague; Dru Kuxhausen plays for Galati in the Romanian Liga Nationala; Sami Harun played for Fryshuset in the Swedish Superrettan; Marko Rajanovic played for Proleter in the Serbian 2MLS; Enzo Clouvel-Urie plays for Pomic in the French NMs; Daniel Bula plays for the Giants B in the Belgian Top Division I; Diamond Onwuka played for SBB Baskets Wolmirstedt in the German ProB; Ricards Pinne plays for Tukums in Latvian RNBL; Sebastian Suarez plays for CD Espanol Osmmo in the Chilean LNB; Raul Delgado played for El Calor in the Mexican LNBP; Julio Guity plays for Tijarah in Iraqi Superleague; Michael Sparks played for Apaches de Chihuahua in Mixican LBE; and Christopher Gunia played for Voelkenrode in German Obertiga.
— Information from the Eurobasketball Email report
Behind the scenes work at basketball games and these soccer guys have to take their turn to take tickets at the admission gate for basketball games. This was during the WNCC and Otero game on January 24.
Behind the scenes of the Western Conference High School basketball tournament that WNCC held January 30 through February 1 and these women’s soccer players had to help in the concession stand. During this tourney, members of men’s and women’s soccer and volleyball had to take turns helping in the stand.
Serving Scottsbluff and Gering as well as the Panhandle with medical facilities for over 50 years!
Question
Jaylen Nachtigall Volleyball Austin Neeley Baseba;; Athlete
Reece Randolph Men’s Basketball
Cougar Frenzy
Cougar athletes have less than five minutes to respond to some interesting topics
Blake Shelton
WNCC athletes take part in night of bowling at Classic Lanes
ALUMNI ATHLETIC NEWS
Scottsbluff Junior College l Nebraska Western College l Western Nebraska Community College
Looking back article From 2006: Marsico breaks two softball records
The Western Nebraska Community College softball team might have dropped a doubleheader to Otero Junior College on Saturday 2-0 and 17-6, but it wasn’t without a record-setting performance from sophomore Kari Marsico.
The sophomore from Rapid City, S.D., had two more home runs on Saturday to push her season total to nine. More impressively, she broke both the season and career marks with the long bombs.
After going 1-for-4 in game one, Marsico flexed her muscles in game two breaking the season record in the first inning when she blasted the first pitch over the fence to give WNCC a 2-0 lead.
She then broke the career record in the fourth inning, which was eight set by Donita Morava during the 2001-02 seasons. With the bases juiced, Marsico took the 1-1 count over the left field fence for a grand slam. Marsico said it was her second grand slam of her career – the first coming when she was only 12-years-old, and the shot was by accident.
“My first career homerun was a grand slam when I was 12 so it has been a few years,” she said. ”When I was up to bat coach [Maria Winn] gave me the signal for a squeeze and I missed it. I am glad I hit a grand slam because if I wouldn’t have, I might have been in some trouble.”
Marisco, in fact, can’t believe what she is doing.
“I am really surprised at how I have started the season,” she said. “My hitting has improved so much since this fall. I am excited to be hitting so well and I only hope to continue to keep hitting in order to help our team this season.”
One of the reasons for Marsico’s increased hitting is because of a new hitting approach the team has been working on since the fall.
“We work on our offensive game everyday for an hour and a half or more. This year we started to use a new style of hitting,” she said. “We have been doing a lot of drills using tees
and weighted balls. It has increased my bat speed and helped me with my strength. Last year I wasn’t really a power hitter, so I think this new style is working well for me.”
Marsico’s record setting day was just part of an offensive explosion that saw the Cougars hammer out 14 hits against the defending Region IX champs.
“We came out really strong in the first game. That was the closest we have ever played with Otero without beating them. Holli {Pratt] shut down their hitters and they were able to only score two runs,” she said. “It was unfortunate that we were unable to produce runs because she pitched such a great game. In the second game we started to hit better but they did too. It is always tough losing to Otero because they are such a big rival.”
Holli pitched six innings in game one allowing just four hits, while striking out seven
and walking two. Otero scored the only two runs of the game in the third inning. WNCC had a couple of chances to scratch across runs. The best chance was in the fourth when they left the bases loaded.
In game two, Marsico was just one of many hitting stars. Also collecting two hits were Sydney Reyes with two singles and two runs scored, and Blair McEndaffer with two singles.
WNCC, 3-10-1, will be in action this weekend when they host Lamar Community College on Saturday and travel to McCook on Sunday.
“Our record doesn’t reflect our potential. We are off to a slow start but we have already began to improve since our season started,” Marsico said. “Our hitting as a whole has improved tremendously. We have a lot of power throughout the lineup and I think we will be able to produce a lot of runs this season.”
From 2006, Kari Marsico, who was a home run hitter and the attached story shows her breaking the season home run record. Marsico finished her sophomore year with 15 home runs. Today, the record for season home runs is 25 set by Jessica Ball in 2014.
Where was Cougar softball games in 2002?
Back in 2002, the Cougar softball team was practicing and playing at Lacy Park n Scottsbluff. Here are a few photos of the team practicing. TOP: Sara Lycett throws the ball on the infield and notice the dugout that they used. LEFT: Brittany Duff watches the pitch in batting practice. The names of the players are their maiden names and I don’t know what their married names are so if anyone can help, please contact mrein2963@gmail.com for that information.
Cougar Athletes of the Week
Female Athletes of the Week
August 28
Lilly Zwart, Volleyball
September 18 ........................ Amanda Duarte, Soccer
October 4 .............................. Danae Montalvo, Soccer
October 10 Taylor Tyser, Volleyball
October 17 ........................... Emily Villagomez, Soccer
October 31 .............................. Chloe Grady, Volleyball
November 18 Nataly Dunka, Woman’s Bball
November 24 ........... Lidia Hernandez, Women’s Bball
December 11 ..............Adelina Urtane, Women’s Bball
January 26 Laura Montiel, Women’s Bball
February 2 .............. Zozefine Sipolina, Women’s Bball
February 9 ...................................................................
Male Athletes of the Week
August 28
Eduarda Oliveira, Soccer
September 18 ................................ Paul Denz, Soccer
October 4 Anthony Lemus, Soccer
October 10 Eduardo Oliveira, Soccer
October 17 ................................. Lucas Ovalle, Soccer
October 31 Simon Echeverry, Soccer
November 18 Kellon Harris, Men’s Bball
November 24 ...................... Elijah Hollins, Men’s Bball
December 11 Isaiah St. Preux, Men’s Bball
January 26 Mathiang Maker, Men’s Bball
February 2 ........................................ Reece Randolph
Febuary 9
Scottsbluff Junior College l Nebraska Western College l Western Nebraska Community College
Who is the greatest athlete to come out of the college
Ihave watched many great athletes that have come through the college and I have researched athletes that played here before I became a part of the college many moons ago and the one thing that I always pondered is who are the top athletes to put on a Cougar uniform?
That is a loaded question and it would be fun to make a Top 10 or 20 or 30 of top athletes from all the sports that the college has offered from it’s beginning. It would also great to make a first and second team of the greats from each sport. And, with the college getting ready to celebrate their 100th anniversary in the fall of 2026, that is something that sounds fun. But, is it something that you honestly could do.
This is something that has me really thinking. On one of the previous pages in this newsletter, there is the Cougar Top 20 and this issue it is the leading point scorers in men’s and women’s basketball and the person that sits atop is a women’s basketball player Merle Wiehl, who played here from 2017-2019 and scored over 1,313 points. Right after her are Bernard Garner (1,304), Jervay Green (1,278), and many others. There are 17 basketball players between the two teams that have scored over 1,000 points in their career and of those 17, four
are from the women’s team
I know what you are thinking, how can Wiehl lead in that category and is she really that good over the guys?
It doesn’t matter, she was a scoring machine. But, when she set the record, she broke it from Penny Mallet who played
for the Cougars from 1981-83 and before the 3-point arc was put into the game. So, if that 3-point arc would have been there when Mallet played, half her 2-pointers would have been threes and she would be on top.
There are players from the 1970s that are on the career scoring list that I have no idea how good they were, all I can go buy is their point totals.
Looking at each sport, there have been so many great players that have come through the Cougar doors. Of course there are the two WNCC Cougar Hall of Fame members Bobby Jackson and Bernard Garner, but you can’t leave out so many other players such as Eric Gore, who in one year scored over 1,000 points and if he would have had 2-years of eligibility, he would be by far in front of everyone. There is also Billy Stewart, who I read was one of the best players back in the 1960s. Then there was Darryl Williams, who was a human highlight reel with slam dunks.
Can you actually pick the best Cougar men’s basketball players or how hard would it be?
There are so many to think about and they all have their own characteristics of the game.
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Merle Wiehl at the 2022 national tournament in Lubbock, Texas.
n Who are the top athletes to wear a Cougar uniform ......
Now, when you look at the women’s game that, too, is a crazy feat to pick like the best 10 or 20 women’s basketball players. Where do you start since the team started to get in the late 1980s, but Mallett played in the early 1980s. There were players that went on to play professionally (another story on the current basketball players from WNCC that are professionally is included in a story earlier as well.
Some women players that stand out to me include Penny Mallet, Shana Coleman, Yuki Morimoto, Merle Wiehl, Tishara Morehouse, Amy Deterding, Ale’jah Douglas, and there are more. There is the Bridgeport graduate Ashley Stevens, who is
in the top 10 of the women’s career scorers. Stevens is No. 10 in career scoring with 810 points and right behind her is Deterding at 800. And then there is another local athlete that played here in 1982-84, Julie Cook, who scored 797 career points.
Now, look at the volleyball players. Who are the best to put on a Cougar uniform?
Of course you have to look at the players on the two national championship teams of 2007 and 2010 and current coach Fatima Balza stands out along with Giovana Melo. But there are some still play professionally and Debora Araujo is one that was talented , but Patty Azevedo and Agata Rezende and Continued on next page
Dick “Night Train” Lane was the NFL Hall of Famer that played at the college.
n Who are the top athletes to wear a Cougar uniform ......
The 2021-22 women’s basketball team take their picture with former Cougar from Scottsbluff Junior College Ed Mooney. Mooney lives in Lubbock, Texas, where the national tournament was held. Mooney came and watched them practice and play
Silvia Oliveira have a tone of kills.
Then there are are the two first Brazilians on the team that are fourth and fifth in season kills in Diana Marquez and Marina Bazana.
But you can’t forget the liberos and and we had some dandies that have put on a Cougar uniform such as Naka Benitez, Bianca Duran, Rachael McCracken and even Deanna Gross, who played one year at WNCC in 1990.
Everyone wants to pick the current players or the ones that have been through the program in the last 10 years, but there were some outstanding players back in the 80s and 90s. One is one of the first NJCAA all-Americans and Division I volleyball player in Nicole Quinnett. Another could be Chelsea Lyles, who played both volleyball and basketball at WNCC helping the team to a national title in 2007. She is now the head women’s basketball coach at Florida Gulf Coast.
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n Who are the top athletes to wear a Cougar uniform ......
Then there is softball and that one is like impossible. Who was the best pitcher to come through WNCC? Was it Bianca Duran or Kelsey Garner or maybe Ashton Hughes? Then there was best catchers or shortstops and outfielders. Oh, I can go on forever.
When you look at the baseball team, there were so many top players that played here and some were drafted including Phillip Orta and Francisco Leandro. Or Alex Ainsworth who was drafted by the Colorado Rockies. Then there is Shintaro Inoue, who graduated last year and was a stud at shortstop and he is now at Kansas State. What about David Tano, who still holds the season batting average when he played here in 2002.
Other top baseball players included Andrew Shannon, Pete Rogers, Brian Trivette, and even Paul Panduro.
Then there is soccer. Oh, the women’s soccer team has had so many good players to come through, especially on the first two teams and one is Kylee Hanavan, who was the program’s first All-American and one of the top scorers on the field. Or the goal-scoring leader of Bre Perkes or Krystal Williams.
The men’s program has studs on the list from the first years to this year. Eduardo Oliveira, who was on this year’s team, has to be on the team, but so does Seedy Sarr, Lewan Abary, Rodrigo Cercal, Silvio Henrique, Ivan Sakou, and the many goalkeepers that we had that were
outstanding including Joey Rasnic, Bryant Velasquez, and Miguel Enriguez.
But you also have to look at the sports that we don’t have anymore like football, golf, tennis, cross country, and track and field. And do you throw cheerleading in there.
If you look at those sports, the top candidate has to be Dick “Night Train” Lane, who went on to have a standout NFL career and was inducted into the WNCC Athletic Hall of Fame along with the NFL Hall of Fame.
Night Train spent just one semester at then Scottsbluff Junior College before enlisting in the army. I actually had the op-
portunity to talk to him and learned so much about his time in Scottsbluff.
I also need to tell everyone the story behind trying to talk to Night Train. It was one afternoon and I was just messing around wondering if I could find him and talk to him. I called the Detroit Lions to see if they new where he was and the person I talked to back in the mid 90s knew exactly and gave me his phone number. He was with the Detroit Police Athletic League and now was the big question, do I have enough courage to call and talk to him.
Well after about an hour, I called and guess what, he answered and we talked and he mailed me an autographed picture and some other things.
I even talked to another top athlete from the 60s in Ed Mooney, who was a top shot putter for the Cougars. I talked to him on the phone for a story and then when I went with the women’s basketball team to nationals in Lubbock, Texas,
Jay Ehler when he played basketball for the Cougars back in the 1980s.
nWho are the top athletes to wear a Cougar uniform ......
Mooney came and watched the Cougars since that was where he was living after he attended Texas Tech. I will put in here the photo of Mooney with the women’s basketball team as well. Mooney is a cool guy.
I have talked to Bobby Jackson several times and I also talked to the college’s first NBA player Sedric Toney. Toney is one that people don’t know but he played at WNCC and played professionally for Phoenix and the 76ers as well.
All of those players need to go on the top athletes to wear a Cougar uniform.
Then there are the golfers and the two that stand out are Jeff and Mike Klein, who both played on the PGA tour.
And, you can’t forget the men’s and
women’s tennis teams. All I know from looking up names are a brother and sister tandem that were good tennis players in Mike and Ingrid Shoemaker.
And there is cross country, and while researching I found out that Joe Perez was an outstanding cross country runner. I have been trying to find him, but no luck.
While that is an interesting subject of the all-time top athletes overall and sport, you also have to look at the top coaches.
That would be hard, too. Leading the back are the basketball coaches of Soupy Campbell, Dave Harnish, and Ron Brillhart. You also have to put in Chad Gibney in there, but he wasn’t at WNCC as long as Campbell, Harnish, and Brillhart.
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Those three are legends of the college and need to be recognized.
Other coaches to include are volleyball coaches including Cathy Schiller, who led the team to their first Region IX title in 1988. Chris Green and Giovana Melo definitely have to be up there as they won national titles.
Other coaches that stand out might be Maria Winn-Ratliff in softball, Mike Jones in baseball, and Todd Rasnic in soccer.
Still other coaches could be Gordon Harrach for golf and tennis and maybe Wayne Shoemaker, who was the first women’s basketball coach. There is also Shelby Edwards who did a lot as athletic Continued on next page
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n Who are the top athletes to wear a Cougar uniform ......
director and basketball coach in the 60s.
Another cool list is a Family award where a family is recognized of having several generations of Cougar players. I can only think of a couple off hand so far and one is the Ehlers from Scottsbluff with Rod Ehler the dad with his son Jay (who played basketball and golf here) and Brooks Ehler, who played volleyball here. There is also the Harris family where Anthony Harris played on the 1995 team and then his son, Trent, played on the 2018 regional championship team and his other son, Kellan, is on this year’s team.
There is also the Schwarzkopf family where Brenda played volleyball here while her brother, Scott, was the student manager for volleyball and men’s basketball, and now Brenda’s daughter,
Carleigh, is on the women’s basketball team.
Trying to figure out other families
that had generations come through the college. I know the Shoemakers had a coach (Wayne) and his son and daughter that played year.
Other families that stand out include where sisters and brothers came here and even cousins. We also had tons of twins that have gone through Cougar sports in volleyball, men’s basketball, and softball.
You know that list can go on forever.
So, what is your choices for top athletes overall and then by sport. Also, who are your top coaches that have coached a WNCC sport?
This is your chance to help out. Send your thoughts or your actual picks to mrein2963@gmail.com and I will research and try to get a list out later this year.
— Written by Mark Rein
The old NWC sign out front with a couple athletes standing by it.
Fun photos
The Cougar softball team is getting ready to open the season February 7 and they had a practice session in Lubbock, Texas, on the Lubbock Christian softball field. Head coach Courtney Medina played softball for Lubbock Christian.
WNCC men’s basketball head coach Roybell Baez tries to explain his point of view to the refs during the Trinidad State home game. WNCC men did defeat the Trojans and they are sitting atop the Region IX Standings.
WNCC baseball guys wait on the sidelines to take their position on the field in an intrasquad scrimmage on January 31. The Cougar baseball team opens the season on February 7 in New Mexico.
This was a very cool pix before the start of the national anthem of the WNCC and Trinidad State women’s game. It could be up for photo of the year.
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