What’s Inside
Former Cougars play each other at D1 vball
Former WNCC volleyball players Erica Fava and Macey Boggs played together at WNCC for a season and then both went on to the Division I level. Their teams, Wyoming and UNO, played each other in August and Boggs’ Wyoming team came out on top.
Men’s, Women’s basketball open season Nov. 1
The men’s and women’s basketball teams are busy practicing and getting ready for the season under two new head coaches. The teams have showed good things in the scrimmages and both will open the season for real in classics on the road November 1
Curtis, Meoni built a special bond in 4 years together
Ogallala’s Jenna Curtis and Houston’s Ale Meoni never new each other when they started playing for the Cougars four years ago. After two years at WNCC, the two are together at South Dakota School of Mines and have become close friends, which is what college is all about.
Former women’s soccer player doing well at D1
Aileen Perez came to WNCC two years ago to play soccer and get better. After two years with the Cougars, she signed with to play Division I at Hampton University and has started 12 of 13 matches and is adjusting to the Division I level and succeeding. 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 ——
Tuesday, October 22
Volleyball: WNCC at Eastern Wyoming, Torrington, Wyo., 6 p.m.
Thursday, October 24
Baseball: WNCC at U. of Northern Colorado (Scrimmage)
Friday, October 25
Volleyball: WNCC at Lamar CC, Lamar, Colo. 6 p.m. Baseball: WNCC at Metro State (scrimmage)
Saturday, October 26
Men’s Soccer: Region IX Semifinals LCCC at WNCC, Landers Complex, 2 p.m.
Volleyball: WNCC at McCook CC, McCook, Neb., 1 p.m.
Wednesday, October 30
Volleyball: Northeastern JC at WNCC, 6 p.m. Sophomore Recognition, Breast Cancer Awareness, Alumni Night
Friday, November 1
Women’s Basketball: WNCC vs. Ft Hays Tech Northwest @ Riverton, Wyo. Men’s Basketball: WNCC vs. Salt Lake C.C., @ Salt Lake City, Utah
Saturday, November 2
Men’s Soccer: Finals of regionals at higher seed (could be at WNCC)
Women’s Basketball: WNCC vs. Central Wyoming, @ Riverton, Wyo. Men’s Basketball: WNCC vs. Snow College, @ Salt Lake City, Utah
Wednesday, November 6
Volleyball: Region IX Tournament at Cheyenne, Wyoming
Men’s Basketball: EWC at WNCC, Cougar Palace, 6 p.m.
Members of the men’s soccer team and some WNCC students get together after the last home regular season match.
Cougar Faces
Harold Baez, Baseball
Harold Baez, a Scottsbluff High graduate and a WNCC Cougar, signed to pl ay for the Frederick Keys of the MLB Draft League in July and finished the season going 3-2 with a 4.96 ERA with 20 strikeouts in 36.1 innings pitched. Baez, after attending WNCC, went on to pitch for Pittsburgh State and Bethune-Cookman. He played for the summer collegiate league teams of Casper Horseheads and DeLand Suns.
Do you know any former or current athletes or coaches
Aiyanna Grubac
Former women’s soccer player
Aiyanna Grubac ran the half marathon of the Royal Victoria Marathon and had a personal best time by knocking 20 minutes of her previous best. Her time was 1 hour, 35.55 minutes and she placed 304th out of 4,320 half marathon runners. She finished 10th in her age group (25-29).
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 Champs
Cougar men will host LCCC in Region IX semi-final contest on Oct. 26 at Landers
The Western Nebraska Community College men’s soccer team put together a strong run in Region IX conference play and came away as the top seed for the Region IX playoffs that started October 19 with first-round games.
The Cougars, however, were not a part of the first-round games because they was the top seed and the top two seeds (Casper was No. 2) received first-round byes.
The first-round games saw No. 5 Laramie County beat No. 4 Northwest in penalty kicks. The contest was tied after two overtimes and then LCCC won on penalty kicks 5-3. The other first-round match saw No. 3 Otero blank No. 6 Central Wyoming 3-0.
That sets up the semifinals and those will have No. 1 WNCC hosting LCCC at 2 p.m. at Landers Soccer Complex, while Casper hosts Otero in the other semifinal. The winners will meet in the finals on November 2 at the higher seed with the winner advancing to the national tournament in November in Wichita, Kansas.
WNCC sophomore Michael Escobar
said that the team had a goal back in August and they stayed focused to the goals.
“I think the team knew since we arrived what our goal was, to play our game,” he said. “We knew playing our game, that success would come.”
Escobar said with the week off, they have to keep practicing and heel up for the biggest games of the season. Plus, they won’t be on the road either.
“The team needs to keep the goal in mind, keep the positive things going and prepare the best we can,” he said.
The Cougar men’s soccer team has just one Region IX title to their name and that was in the first-year of the program back in 2003. The women’s soccer team has two Region IX titles in 2003 and then in 2008.
“The focus for the regional tourney is to finish what we started,” Escobar said. “We already got the first seed, now we just need to focus on wining the regional tourney.”
WNCC’s run to the conference title started with five straight conference Continued on next page
Guilherme Lindolfo goes after the ball during their game with Lamar in September. The Cougars will host a Region IX semifinal game on Oct. 26.
n Men’s soccer claim conference title ....
wins, four of which were at home.
The Cougars opened conference play with a dominating 4-1 win over Casper on September 13 and then followed that up with a close 4-3 win over Gillette after holding a 4-1 halftime lead.
The next weekend, the Cougars captured two more home wins as they defeated Northeastern Junior College 3-1 and then shutout Lamar Community College 6-0.
WNCC followed that with their second straight shutout when they blanked Trinidad State 3-0 on the road. They followed that with their first blemish in the conference when they tied Otero 1-1on September 28.
WNCC responded back with a 3-1 win over Laramie County on the road in a game that secured at least a top two finish.
Then, this past weekend, the Cougars fell to Northwest College 2-0 before coming back and scoring two goals while being two players down for a 3-2 win over Central Wyoming College.
The Central Wyoming contest was interesting as the Cougars had a battle with the Rustlers in the final regular season contest.
The two teams settled for a 1-1 tie at halftime. WNCC scored first as Isrrael Rodriquez fed Eduardo Oliveira with a pass and the Cougar’s leading goal scorer stuck it
into the back of the net in the 15th minute.
Five minutes later, Central Wyoming’s Tanner Johnson hit a penalty kick to knot things up.
Five minutes into the second half, Yediel Hernandez scored an unassisted goal to put the Cougars up 2-1. It didn’t last long as Central Wyoming tied it at 2-2 on a Samir Siqueira goal.
WNCC got the winning goal in the 76th minute when Oliveira picked up an assist after giving Lucas Ovalle a nice ball and the sophomore nailed the ball in the back of the net.
Both teams had nine shots in the contest.
WNCC’s Owen Henderson had four saves in net.
It was a huge win for the Cougars as they earned the outright conference title. It was a big win because the contest before with Northwest, the Cougars fell 2-0.
That Northwest contest was one where neither team had a lot of shots. Northwest finished with nine while WNCC had six shots.
The difference in the game was the Trappers made good on two of their shots, both in the first half. Both of Northwest’s goals came withing a three minute period, with the first goal coming with 32:45 to play and the second goal two minutes later.
That contest was different from the first meeting between Northwest and WNCC back in August when the two teams had to settle for a 3-3 tie in a non-conference contest.
That first encounter was one where WNCC seemed as if they would run away with the contest. It wasn’t to be.
WNCC scored just 24 seconds into the Continued on next page
WNCC’s Alvaro Abeal controls the ball in the LCCC match in Cheyenne, Wyoming, on October 5 while being guarded by a LCCC player. WNCC’s Lucas Ovalle is waiting for the ball from Abeal. (Photo by Ashley Villagomez).
n Men’s soccer claim conference title ....
contest on a Eduardo Oliveira goal and made it 2-0 on a Guilherme Lindolfo goal. Northwest came back to score two goals to settle for a 2-2 halftime lead.
WNCC scored just three minutes in the second half on a Isrrael Rodriguez goal. Northwest knotted things at 3-3 ona goal in the 56th minute.
Both teams had shots to go in front in the final 10 minutes but neither team could score.
While the Cougars are 0-1-1 against Northwest, it was the win over LCCC on October 5 that was huge. That win guaranteed the Cougars at least a first-round bye and it came against the 17th-ranked team in the nation.
That game saw the Cougars score first as Alvaro Abeal scored in the 15th minute for the 1-0 lead. WNCC went up 2-0 at halftime when Oliveira scored in the 39th minute.
LCCC cut the deficit in half with a goal in the 55th minute, but three minutes later Oliveira scored his second goal of the contest to put the Cougars up 3-1 and the win.
The winner of the regional tournament will qualify for the national tournament November 17-23 in Wichita, Kansas.
— Written by Mark Rein
Lucas Ovalle battles a Casper College player for the ball during a home match in September. WNCC captured the conference title and the No. 1 seed in the playoffs.
WNCC’s Alvaro Abeal battles for the ball against a Northwest player in Powell, Wyoming, on Friday, October 11. (photo by Ashley Villagomez).
WNCC’s Owen Henderson controls the ball from his goalkeeping position against LCCC on October 5. (photo by Ashley Villagomez).
Volleyball picking up wins
Cougars building through South sub-region for November regionals
The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team is under a new head coach this season in Fatima Balza, who won a national title in 2007 at WNCC, and the team is rolling along as the No. 20 team in the nation.
WNCC is off to a 23-7 start and is sitting in second place in the Region IX South with a 6-1 record. The Cougars only defeat in sub-region play came to No. 4 Northeastern Junior College on Oct. 9.
This year’s team is filled with plenty of sophomores that have took in Balza’s coaching style and have picked up big wins.
After that sub-region defeat, the Cougars quickly got back on the winning track as they swept Casper College on the road 25-15, 25-17, 25-13.
The Casper contest was the start of six straight road games before the Cougars wrap up the regular season on October 30 when they host Northeastern Junior College in sophomore recognition night. That night is also alumni night and breast cancer awareness night.
What happened in the Casper win was totally different from the NJC loss. The win against Casper saw strong serving with plenty of service runs while the NJC loss, there were very little three and four-point service runs.
The first set saw Casper holding a 6-5 lead before a Finja Schul kill and then three Lilly Zwart kills for a 9-6 lead. Casper knotted the score at 9-9 and it was 17-15 late. That was when WNCC got a block and Taylor Tyser served seven straight points for the 25-15 win that saw the Cougar libero get two ace serves.
The second set was just as close early as Casper led 2-1 and had the game tied three times early. WNCC went up 13-8 on three Nora Marginean points. Tyser pushed the Cougar lead to 19-11 after three points including a monster kill from Zwart. Marginean finished off the second with two service points and the 25-17 win.
The third set saw Casper lead by single points four occasions, the last time at 10-9.
That was when WNCC called a timeout and Tamika Eastman hammered a kill after the timeout to get the service back to the Cougars. Marginean then serviced three points for a 13-10 lead and Tyser had four points for a 19-12 lead.
After a sideout by Casper, Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia got a kill and then Zwart went to town behind the service line with five points, including the match-ending setter dump by Marginean for the win.
Tyser and Marginean each had double-doubles in the win. Marginean had 13 points with 30 set assists while Tyser had 14 points with 16 digs.
WNCC tallied 33 kills overall while hitting .256. Finja Schul had 10 kills on a .818 hitting with five blocks, and an ace serve.
Tovo-Sunia and Zwart followed with seven kills each. Zwart also had 11 points with five blocks, while Tovo-Sunia had eight digs.
Eastman finished with four points, five
kills, 13 digs, and two aces.
When the Cougars play like that, they are hard to beat. The NJC contest was definitely one where the Cougars didn’t have their best game.
WNCC finished the NJC match with just 22 kills and 44 digs. Tyser, who was named the NJCAA Defensive Player of the Week on October 11, finished with 11 digs and two service points. Eastman, who was the Region IX South Offensive Player of the Week for the same week as Tyser, had 10 digs with five kills.
WNCC was led on the offensive side by Schul and Zwart each with seven kills while Chloe Grady had two kills. Schul and Zwart each had four digs, while Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia had eight digs. Nora Marginean had 22 set assists with four digs.
Zwart led the way at the service line with six points with Tovo-Sunia and Eastman each getting two points.
Continued on next page
Nora Marginean and Chloe Grady go up for a block against Laramie County Community College earlier this season. WNCC will have one more home game when they host Northeastern Junior College on October 30.
n Volleyball team picking up wins ......
NJC was led on the offensive side by 6-foot6 Samantha Mosley with 10 kills.
For the Cougars to do well, they need to play like they have against the other Region IX teams or even some nationally-ranked teams that they have won against.
This season, the Cougars have found a way to win gut-wrenching, hair-pulling contests. WNCC started the season with a 5-set win over Butler Community College where the Cougars won the fifth 15-5.
They also took the host Iowa Western Community College team to five sets with some gutsy, come-from-behind play that saw the Cougars win the fourth 26-24 and then took the fifth 15-11.
Another five-set win came against Clarendon College where WNCC was in control and then lost the fourth 25-23 before winning the fifth 15-10.
Then, at the Sheila Worley Invite in Sterling, Colorado, the Cougars needed five sets to down Dodge City with a reverse sweep. WNCC lost the first two sets 25-18, 25-19 and then came back with a big 29-27 win in the third set and then rolled in the next two
25-14 and 15-10 to get the win.
WNCC then got a 5-set win at the Wyo-Braska Invite when they downed Central Wyoming College in Torrington, Wyoming, in dramatic fashion in a game that didn’t start until 8:15 and didn’t get finished until 11 p.m. at night.
That Central Wyoming contest saw WNCC drop the first and then won the next two 27-25, 25-21. Central Wyoming took the fourth 25-21 and that set up the fifth. The fifth was dramatic to say the least.
The fifth set against the Rustlers saw WNCC lead 3-1 after a Zwart kill and two Eastman points. WNCC led 8-5 on a Finja Schul ace. Central Wyoming came back and grabbed a 12-11 lead. Schul got a kill to tie the fifth and then Alex Gonzalez-Orozco had two points for a 14-12 lead. Schul finished off the match with a kill.
WNCC finished with 59 total kills, led by Zwart with 21 followed by Schul with 13 and Eastman with 11. Eastman had a triple-double in the win with 10 digs and 12 points with three aces. Nora Marginean also had a triple-double with 51 set assists with 12 digs and 12 points. She also had three kills and three aces.
Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia had two kills with six digs while Dessiah Christopher had five kills. Tyser finished with 16 digs with eight
points, while Gonzalez-Orozco had seven digs and nine points.
That win started a 7-match win streak that saw the Cougars win four sub-region contests along with sweeps over Gillette College and Casper College and then a big 4-set win over Laramie County Community College on October 1 25-16, 22-25, 25-23, 31-29
That LCCC game saw two Cougars get career highs at WNCC when Eastman pounded down 17 kills and Tyser had 33 digs.
The rest of the schedule for the season the team traveling to a hot Eastern Wyoming College team on Oct. 22 in Torrington, Wyoming. EWC has won 14 matches in a row and is undefeated in the North Sub-region at 8-0. Tuesday’s match is not a conference match.
WNCC will then hit the road for sub-region contests at Lamar and McCook before that big final regular season game with NJC on Halloween Eve.
The Region IX tournament will then start November 6 and run through the 9th in Cheyenne, Wyoming with the two Region IX winners advancing to the NJCAA national tournament November 20-23 at Clarksville, Tennessee, and Austin Peay State University.
— Written by Mark Rein
Tamika Eastman passes the ball in a recent home contest. Eastman was named the Region IX South Offensive Player of the Week in October.
WNCC’s Taylor Tyser gives Cougar Nadiyyah Northern a hug after the matchending kill against Otero in a sub-region contest.
Women’s end season
Cougar women’s soccer fall short of Region playoffs by a couple of points
It was an up and down season for the WNCC women’s soccer team, who finished the season at 3-11-1 and 3-6-1.
While the season was up and down, the Cougars just missed the Region IX playoffs.
The Cougars did have some big wins and plenty of near misses. Mid-way through the season, WNCC went on a 3-match winning streak and things seemed to have turned around.
The win streak started with a 1-0 win over Northeastern Junior College on September 20 and followed with a 2-1 win over Lamar Community College and then a 6-0 win over Trinidad State College.
In the NJC win, Millie Selfe had her first collegiate goal as she broke a defensive battle and scored with 25 minutes to play for the 1-0 lead. After that, the Cougar defense played tough and got the shut-out.
The next day, the Cougars were in a battle once again with Lamar. Lamar led at halftime 1-0, but it was the second half that the Cougar women woke up and scored twice on goals by freshmen.
The first goal came 13 minutes into the second half when freshman Amanda Durante fed Tanner Nelson the ball and she put the ball into the back of the net.
The second goal, which came with 15 minutes to play, saw freshman Danae Montalvo give Mariah Russel the ball and the Scottsbluff graduate put the Cougars ahead.
WNCC made it three straight wins in the win over Trinidad State as the Cougars scored four times in the first and twice in the second and really weren’t tested in the road win. Montalvo and Yasmin Urbina each had two goals for the Cougars while Stephanie Villagomez and Mariah Russel each had one.
That put the Cougars at 3-1-1 in conference play going into the final four matches.
That was where they struggled scoring despite playing tough defense and being in the matches for the longest period of time.
Continued on next page
Region IX Conference race
WNCC’s Alejandra Rodriguez goes after a ball in the match against Lamar Community College in September on sophomore recognition day.
n Cougar women soccer end season ......
WNCC last the final four matches of the season to Otero 3-0, LCCC 4-1, Northwest 4-0, and Central Wyoming 2-1. All four teams made the Region IX playoffs.
In fact, the Region IX playoffs are set Casper and Western Wyoming received the first-round byes as the first and second seeds and will host semi-final matches October 26.
First-round matches on October 19 saw Northwest eliminate Otero 2-0 while Laramie County blanked Gillette 4-0.
The semi-finals are set with LCCC traveling to Casper and Northwest heading to Western Wyoming. The finals are slated for November 2 at the higher seed still alive.
The winner qualifies for the national tournament in Wichita, Kansas, in November.
— Written by Mark Rein
Photos on this page include No. 13 Audrey Gosvener controlling the ball in their match with Northwest. Next picture has Valentina Mejia Cueva going in to defend a kick by a Northwest player. Then Ashley Villagomez plays defense on a Northwest player. Amanda Duarte takes a corner kick. <Photos taken by the soccer team.)
Wyoming vs. UNO Former Cougars Fava, Boggs play each other at Division I level; Cowboys top Mavs
Former WNCC volleyball players Erica Fava and Macey Boggs got to meet up once again on the volleyball court after being teammates on the WNCC volleyball team in 2021.
The meeting happened August 31 in Omaha when the University of Wyoming (where Boggs is a team member) and Nebraska Omaha (where Fava is a team member) competed in an early season encounter.
That night saw Wyoming take the sweep over the Mavs 25-23, 25-18, 31-29.
It was a special day for Boggs and Fava and was made special as their WNCC coach Binny Canales made the trip to watch his two former players play each other on the Division I level.
“It was such a blessing to see them playing at such a high level,” Canales said. “I marked this date on my calendar and made sure I was there. There are so many special moments that I remember with both young ladies. A truly special day.”
That day was special for the two former Cougar teammates. Fava, even though her team came up on the short end back in August, said it was a special day to see Macey and Binny once again.
“It was fun and weird at the same time because my freshman year we were playing together,” Fava said. “Seeing coach Binny is always nice. He helped me a lot during my two years at WNCC and knowing that he still supports us is something special.”
Fava said that when they first saw each other the morning of the game, there were many glowing smiles and hugs.
“I saw Macey in the morning after they got done with serve and pass and we just yelled and hugged each other and kinda caught up a little bit,” Fava said. “Of course I saw coach Binny at the game and I tossed our little ball during starting lineups to Binny’s daughter. Then, after the game, we got to talk a little bit and took pictures!”
For Boggs, she said it was a great reunion to see her former player and her
It was a reunion of sorts on August 31 when the University of Wyoming and NebraskaOmaha volleyball teams collided on the court as former Cougar players Macey
(left) and Erica Fava (right) played against each other and their coach Binny
made the trip to watch them. (Photo courtesy of Binny Canales)
JUCO coach.
“It was awesome seeing how much success Erica has had since WNCC and it was super fun to see coach Binny,” Boggs said. “He does a great job staying in contact with his old players and making us feel special.”
Boggs did the same thing when she saw her former player and coach.
“When seeing Erica and Coach Binny, I was immediately filled with smiles. Erica yelled ‘where is Macey’ and I gave her a huge hug,” Boggs said. “As soon as I saw Coach Binny I ran over to him and his family and gave them hugs.
For Boggs and her Wyoming team, the win was huge and they built off that win to many other great wins so far this season.
“The team did great!,” Boggs said. “We came away with a win and that was really fun.”
Continued on next page
Boggs
Canales
Former Cougars Macey Boggs and Erica Fava meet up on the court in Omaha. (photo courtesy of Binny Canales)
n Boggs, Fava play each other at D1 level ......
While Boggs didn’t see playing time in the contest, Fava finished with 11 digs and two aces in the contest against her former teammate.
“We didn’t play our best volleyball against Wyoming,” Fava said. “We are still working on fixing little things that will help us being the best version of ourselves.”
UNO is currently 6-10 on the season and they picked up a big win against North Dakota State when they swept the Bison 25-14, 25-18, 25-13. Fava had just two digs and two aces in that contest.
UNO will be in action in Denver when they face the University of Denver on October 17.
For Wyoming, Boggs got her first start of the season on Saturday, Oct. 12 when the Cowboys hosted Boise State and had a career day.
Boggs finished with a career high 12 digs for the Cowboys, who are 10-6 on the season Wyoming came back and defeated Boise State 25-21, 22-25, 11-25, 25-23, 15-12. Boggs had 12 digs as a defensive specialist.
Wyoming returns to action on Thursday when they travel to Las Vegas to face UNLV.
The two former Cougars, who have made the move to Division I played with
each other at WNCC in 21-22 when the team went 24-15. Boggs was in her second year at WNCC after playing that spring in helping the Cougars to a Region IX title. Fava was a freshman.
Boggs, a Gering High graduate, is a graduate student at Wyoming as she has had a very interesting high school and college career.
Because of COVID, Boggs played her senior year at Gering in Fall 2020. She then
graduated high school in December and enrolled at WNCC in January 2021 and played for the Cougars when all of the JUCO sports were moved to the spring.
Boggs said she carries many memories with her from that one semester she was with Erica.
“The greatest memories I have of Erica just include us laughing and always competing hard,” she said. “There was never a dull moment with her. Some of my favorite times were the pregame coffee runs.”
While Boggs is a December 2020 Gering High graduate, she has spent just four years in college and will graduate in December from Wyoming with her Master’s in Business Administration.
“Things are going well here at Wyoming,” Boggs said. “It’s my last season and I graduate with my masters in December. It wasn’t really fast and I’m thankful for the opportunity I’ve had.”
For Fava, her memories with Boggs setting her the many balls she did was one she will always remember.
“Definitely it was our setter and hitter connection,” Fava said. “Macey brought a lot of energy and playing with her was fun. Of course I’ll always remember infinite
Continued on next page
Erica Fava (in black) goes for a dig against Wyoming back in August. (photo courtesy of Binny Canales)
n Boggs, Fava play each other at D1 level ......
hours spent on the bus for away games. I clearly remember when we played Iowa Western and she got a solo block and I got super excited (a little too much) and I like pushed her so hard that she almost fell over!”
For Fava, she spent two years at WNCC where she had an outstanding career. She then signed with UNO and was moved from a hitter to a libero.
Fava said she does miss the JUCO days, but after this year, she is hoping her volleyball playing isn’t finished.
“They are going good!” she said. “I miss the JUCO days for sure, but Omaha is very nice and I’m glad I came here.”
As for after UNO, she has no regrets of her track from Italy to Scottsbluff to Omaha for her volleyball playing. She is unsure if she will go back to Italy or stay in the United States.
“My plan is not to be done after these 4 years,” she said. “But,. I can say that being my last year in college is bittersweet. I got to play at a D1 level and that’s what I wanted to achieve after my two years at WNCC, so I’m proud of myself for that.”
Fava said she misses everyone at WNCC.
“I just miss the Cougar family and community,” she said. “Go Cougs forever.”
While Fava isn’t sure what her plans are
after college, Boggs has somewhat a plan. The first thing, though, her goal all through high school was to play at a Division I level and her time at WNCC gave her the chance.
“Playing at the Division One level was always a dream of mine,” she said. “It’s been super awesome and I wouldn’t change it.”
As for her future, she plans to stay in Laramie and open her own business.
“After volleyball I’m gonna stay in Laramie for at least two years and help our company open a specialty coffee shop and Roastery,” she said. “And I will forever be grateful for Coach Binny and WNCC.”
— Written by Mark Rein
Former Cougar Macey Boggs goes back to serve in a match with Boise State on Saturday. (photo courtesy of Binny Canales)
Former Cougar Macey Boggs celebrates with her team against Boise State on Saturday. (photo courtesy of Binny Canales)
Men’s basketball team getting ready to open season November 1 under Coach Baez
The Roybell Baez era of Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball is off and running as the Cougar men opened official practices on Tuesday.
Baez, who takes over the men’s basketball head coaching position after being an assistant coach for the Cougars when they won the Region IX tournament in 2018, is excited for this season with a team that he believes has plenty of talent.
“Returning to WNCC has been a dream come true,” Baez said. “The community and faculty have been so good to me, and I couldn’t off asked for a better start to my head coaching career.”
Baez said the first official practices went well considering the team had an early morning practice.
“Our first official practice went well,” he said. “We practiced at 6 am and the guys got after it. We are just trying to get 1% better each day.”
The Cougars will get in some competition this weekend when they head to Oklahoma for a jamboree. Baez said that trip will bring the team together in many ways.
“Do I think we are ready for this weekend? No!,” he said. “But again, we won’t truly know if we’re ready until we lace them up and play. I think the guys are anxious to compete, but the jury is still out about how we will look as a team.”
But, Baez believes this weekend will be beneficial for the team in so many ways.
“This weekend is going to be great for our team,” he said. “We finally get to compete and we also get to spent a lot of time together. It’s a 12-hour trip to OKC, so it’s
going to be fun hanging out with the guys.”
This year’s team has plenty of talent and a lot of it is young talent. WNCC returns just three players from a year ago and just one that saw action. Elijah Burney, a 6-1
Continued on next page
WNCC’s Kellon Harris dribbles to get free from the defense of Noah Jones in a practice in early October. The Cougars open the season November 1 and 2 at a classic at Snow College in Utah.
n Men’s basketball opens season Nov. 1 ......
Freshman Kendrick Preston goes up for a dunk during a basketball practice in October. The Cougars have just one returning player from last year along with two redshirts as they open the season November 1 in Utah.
guard from Las Vegas, Nevada, is the only player that played a year ago.
Baez said Burney and Jones have stood out in the pre-season so far. “We have a variety of guys who have looked good this preseason,” he said. “Elijah Burney and Noah Jones have been tremendous helping the coaching staff lead the team.”
The other two returners both red-shirted a year ago. They include Scottsbluff’s Kellon Harris, a 6-2 guard, and Noah Jones, a 6-6 guard from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
The Cougars have three other sophomore transfers on the team. They include Elijah Hollins, a 6-3 guard from Hendersonville, Tennessee; Mathiang Maker, a 6-8 forward from Melbourne, Australia; and Kendall Hamilton, a 6-8 forward from Memphis, Tennessee.
The rest of the lineup is all freshmen. They include Scottsbluff’s Caleb Swisher, a 6-1 guard. The others are David Boschdemont-Esteban, a 6-6 forward from Spain; Reece Randolph, a 6-6 guard from Boston, Massachusetts; Isaiah St. Preux, a 6-1 guard from Miramar, Florida; Max Orchard, a 6-3 guard from Loma, Colorado; Kendrick Preston, a 6-8 forward from Miramar, Florida; Dorin Nguema, a 6-6 forward from
Spain; Witold Czerenkiewicz, a 6-6 forward from Poland; and Toms Linis, a 6-6 guard/forward from Latvia.
Baez said the talent on this team is excellent and the players have been working hard.
“The talent on this year’s team is good; we have guys who can play multiple positions and guard multiple positions,” he said. “But as versatile as we are, we still have to get a lot better if we want to compete at a high level.”
After this weekend, the Cougars will have the Colorado jamboree later this month and then another scrimmage in Colorado Springs, Colorado. WNCC opens the season for real November 1 and 2 when they head to Ephraim, Utah, where they will face Salt Lake Community College and Snow College. The Cougars first home contest will be November 6 when they host Eastern Wyoming College at 6 p.m.
“Our biggest focus this season is simply to get better every day,” Baez said. “If we can get better each practice and each game, I like our chances in March. Another one of our goals is to maintain a 3.5 team GPA and get our sophomores recruited and graduated.”
— Written by Mark Rein
Serving Scottsbluff and Gering as well as the Panhandle with medical facilities for over 50 years!
2024-25 Men’s Basketball Roster
The Top 20
Most successful Cougar sports teams
1) 2007 Volleyball Team — First National Championship Team
2) 2010 Volleyball Team -- Second National Championship Team
3) 2003 Women’s Basketball Team -- 1st team in championship game (runner-ups)
4) 1995 Men’s Basketball Team — Third-place at nationals
5) 2022 Women’s Basketball — Final Four at nationals
6) 2017 Women’s Basketball — Won regionals in dramatic fashion over EWC.
7) 2021 Men’s Baseball — Region IX champions for second time
8) 2008 Softball Team — First Region IX title in program history
9) 2008 Women’s Soccer Team — Second Region IX title
10) 2007 Baseball Team — First Region IX title 11) 2018 Men’s Basketball Team — Champions breaking a 15-year gap
12) 2015 Volleyball Team — Runner-ups at nationals (42-5) 13) 2006 Volleyball Team — Runner-ups at nationals (56-2)
14) 2012 Volleyball Team — Runner-ups at nationals (40-3) 15) 1979 Men’s Basketball Team — First Region IX Champions 16) 1993 Women’s Basketball Team — First Region IX Champions
17) 2005 Women’s/Men’s Basketball — Both No. 1 in nation same week 18) 1988 Volleyball Team — First volleyball regional title 19) 1974 Golf Team — First Region IX title
20) 1981 Tennis Team — Region IX Championship
WBB talented
Women’s basketball team sports 10 players, but team has plenty of heart and togetherness
Western Nebraska Community College women’s basketball opened the first day of official practice on October 1 and while the team might be low in numbers, they are high in energy and talent.
WNCC head coach Ryan Davis is excited for the season and the team. Davis was hired in late July and has plenty of head coaching experience in Region IX, having served as the head coach at Sheridan College before the program was dropped in 2020.
“The first practice was great,” Davis said. “I thought we had great energy and our players were really doing their best to pick up and apply new information. This group always brings energy and it was the same yesterday (Wednesday).
The Cougars have been working hard in September in conditioning and when the team hit the floor for the official practice on Tuesday, it was time for the team to get to work. The Cougars had their first jamboree games October 5 in Denver where they went 2-1.
Davis said in a way the team is excited for the first weekend of competition even though it is a jamboree as it will give them an idea of what this team needs to work on.
“I don’t think any team will truly be ‘ready’ to start playing, but we are ready to compete,” he said. “We spent much of the preseason building a good base of conditioning and general understanding of what we are trying to accomplish as a team. I am looking forward to how we battle when we get to Denver.”
A week later, the Cougars had a home scrimmage against Metro State and happened to win. What the team showed in that contest was plenty of fight, aggressiveness, an inside game and the potential of everyone hitting 3-pointers.
This year’s team has nine players on the roster with one that that will be ready in December or January.
WNCC returns four players from last year’s Cougar team, three of which saw
WNCC freshman Zozefine Sipolina goes high in the paint and dishes off a pass to an open player during their home scrimmage against Metro State on Friday, October 11. The Cougars open the season November 1 and 2 in Riverton, Wyoming.
action. Those three include Helena Kuck, a 5-foot-5 guard from Brazil, Laura Montiel-Baena, a 5-7 guard from Spain, and Adelina Urtane, a 6-0 forward from Latvia. Also returning from a year ago but had to redshirt because of a knee injury is Katie Vierra, a 5-3 guard from Berthoud, Colorado.
The Cougars also have three other sophomores on the team that transferred in. The first Nataly Dunka, a 6-1 forward from Brazil, who played at the University of Pacific
last year. Also transferring to WNCC is Arianna Myers, a 6-0 guard from Cairo, New York, who played at Clarion College last year.
The other sophomore is Carleigh Pszanka of Gering, who played for the Cougar volleyball team a year ago and came out to help the Cougar basketball team this year with numbers.
The true freshmen on the team are
Continued on next page
n Women’s basketball opens season Nov. 1 ......
GOOD LUCK
also talented and will provide plenty of depth. They include Lidia Hernandez, a 5-7 guard from Spain, Asia Mitchell, a 6-0 forward from Columbia, Maryland, and Zozefine SIpolina, a 5-8 guard from Latvia.
Davis is excited for this team as they each have their skills and have been forming a strong bond on and off the court.
“We have good talent with players that fill each specific position very well and complement each other well,” he said. “I think we will have a lot of players off this team that will perform at high levels in different areas this year and eventually move on to good schools to continue their careers.”
For Davis, it is hard to pin-point one player that is standing out because all nine contribute to the team in different ways.
“I think every player has contributed in their own way,” Davis said. “Every single individual will have to fill a role and so far, they are all doing that. Scoring, rebounding, taking care of the ball, defending, etc., are all equally important and we have different players that fill those roles well.”
WNCC will scrimmage this weekend and then have a home scrimmage next Friday before the last scrimmage in Lawrence, Kansas, on October 20. After that, the Cougars will get ready to open the season November 1 and 2 at the Rustler Classic in Riverton, Wyoming, where they will face Fort Hays Tech Northwest (formerly Northwest Kansas Technical College) on Friday and then Central Wyoming
on Saturday. The first home game is slated for November 9 against Casper College.
“The focus for this team is continued progression throughout the season,” Davis said. “If we can steadily get better and embrace the marathon that is the basketball season of focus strictly on the process we have talked about thus far, we will find success.”
With just nine players, this team has a special bond and one that Davis loves about each player. The players are embracing the opportunity with the goal of winning the South, hosting the regional tournament, and with the ultimate goal of winning a Region IX title and heading to the national tournament in Casper, Wyoming.
“I love the way this team prepares, their attitudes, their buy-in, and how they treat the staff and each other,” Davis said. “Those things this early are a major bright spot. I would have recruited every one of the kids on our roster, so that is a good feeling to have coming in for year one.”
— Written by Mark Rein
WNCC sophomore Laura Montiel starts to head to the paint during a scrimmage with Metro State in October. The Cougars led from start to finish in the scrimmage against Metro.
WNCC sophomore Nataly Dunka brings the ball up the court during a scrimmage with Metro State in October.
2024-25 Women’s Basketball Roster
Coach: Ryan Davis — Assistant Coach: Shayane Poirot
2024-25 Cougar Athletes (Aphabetically)
— A —
Alvaro Abeal, Men’s Soccer Spain
Kyler Adams, Baseball Erie, Colorado
Will Ager, Baseball Joliette, Quebec, Canada
Alyssa Albaugh, Softball Torrington, Wyoming
Dakota Alber, Baseball Commerce City, Colorado
Vivi-Anne Amparan, Softball .............................. Newark, Texas
— B —
Mazmal Babiker, Men’s Soccer Erie, Pennsylvania
Lizbeth Barrera, Women’s Soccer Aurora, Colorado
Tom Beeckmans, Baseball Belgium
Will Berge, Baseball ..............................Westminster, Colorado
Joao Bisneto, Men’s Soccer . Jaboatao dos Guararapes, Brazil
Kay’Leigh Blair, Softball Moreno, Arizona
Jens Boermans, Baseball Belgium
David Boschdemont-Esteban, Men’s Basketball Catalonia, Spain
Clayden Brandon, Baseball West Herriman, Utah
Jade Brothwell, Women’s Soccer Torrington, Wyoming
Trevor Buetner, Baseball ............... Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Ty Buetner, Baseball...................... Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Cooper Burgess, Baseball Spring Ranch, Texas
Elijah Burney, Men’s Basketball Las Vegas, Nevada
Garrison Burns, Baseball Kearney, Nebraska
— C —
Calab Caciari, Baseball .................................. Evans, Colorado
Alex Carrillo, Men’s Soccer Quito, Ecuador
Fabian Cancio, Men’s Soccer San Juan, Puerto Rico
Karen Casas, Women’s Soccer Evans, Colorado
Dessiah Christopher, Volleyball Naples, Florida
Austin Cooper, Baseball Bozeman, Montana
Kayli Cooper, Softball ............. North Battleford, Saskatchewan
Dani Cruz, Volleyball ................................ Guadalajara, Mexico
Witold, Czerenkiewics, Men’s Basketball Bytom, Poland
— D —
Tucker Deal, Baseball Arvada, Colorado
Paul Denz, Men’s Soccer ....................... Laufenburg, Germany
Adi Duke, Softball Santaquin, Utah
Nataly Dunka, Women’s Basketball Santa Catarina, Brazil
Amanda Durarte, Women’s Soccer Tangara da Serra, Brazil
— E —
Tamika Eastman, Volleyball ........................ Harrison, Nebraska
Mederique Eboucle, Men’s Soccer ............ Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Simon Echeverry, Men’s Soccer Bogota, Colombia
Michael Escobar, Men’s Soccer Miami, Florida
— f —
Kaden Ferguson, Baseball .......................... Alliance, Nebraska
Stevie Firkins, Softball ............................... Montrose, Colorado
Ben Firminhac, Baseball Torrington, Wyoming
David Fleischer, Baseball Parker, Colorado
Marshall Forsyth, Baseball Houston, Texas
Jenika Fuentes, Softball Sweetwater, Texas
— G —
Kyana Gabriel, Volleyball........................................ Hilo, Hawaii
Julian Garza, Baseball Aurora, Colorado
Catcher Gladysh, Baseball Brighton, Colorado
Alex Gonzalez-Orozco, Volleyball Gering, Nebraska
Audrey Gosvener, Women’s Soccer Cassville, Missouri
Tomas Guzman, Men’s Soccer Buenos Aires, Brazil
Chloe Grady, Volleyball .................................. Kaneohe, Hawaii
Ian Grafmank, Baseball Lad Vegas, Nevada
— H —
Kendall Hamilton, Men’s Basketball Memphis, Tennessee
Will Harbison, Baseball Parker, Colorado
Hunter Harmon, Baseball ....................... West Valley City, Utah
Rocco Harmon, Baseball .......................... Ft. Collins, Colorado
Kellon Harris, Men’s Basketball Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Matthew Hazzard, Baseball Cedar City, Utah
Allard Helms, Baseball Utrecht, The Netherlands
Continued on next page
2024-25 Cougar Athletes (Aphabetically)
Owen Henderson, Men’s Soccer .................. Greeley, Colorado
Zane Hendricks, Baseball Antwerp, Belgium
Allison Hernandez, Women’s Soccer Aurora, Colorado
Yediel Hernandez, Men’s Soccer Moca, Puerto Rico
Lidia Hernandez, Women’s Basketball Madrid, Spain
Sierra Hilgner, Softball Divide, Colorado
Elijah Hollins, Men’s Basketball ...... Hendersonville, Tennessee
Tina Horton, Softball ........ Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
JoLee Huffaker, Softball Wellington, Colorado
— J —
Steven Jackson, Baseball ............................. Aurora, Colorado
Dory Jenson, Women’s Soccer
Ogden, Utah
Noah Jones, Men’s Basketball Baton Rouge, Louisiana
— K —
Bonheur Kitongo, Men’s Soccer Erie, Pennsylvania
Mykah Klumpp, Softball .......................... Valley Center, Kansas
Jin Kobayakawa, Baseball...........Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan
Helena Kuck, Women’s Basketball Blumenau, Brazil —
L —
Jeff Laguerre, Men’s Soccer Haines City, Florida
Faythe Lafirenza, Softball Kingman, Arizona
Anthony Lemus, Men’s Soccer ......................... Houston, Texas
Mia Lentz, Softball Mead, Colorado
Matt Levesque, Baseball Gatineau, Quebec
Guilherme Lindolfo, Men’s Soccer Taubate, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Toms Linis, Men’s Basketball Cesis, Latvia
Landon Lockwood, Baseball Great Falls, Montana
— M —
Alonso Macollunco, Men’s Soccer Lima, Peru
Mathiang Maker, Men’s Basketball Melbourne, Australia
Nora Marginean, Volleyball Napoca, Romania
Jack McCrea, Baseball Berthoud, Colorado
Valentina Mejia-Cueva, Women’s Soccer Lima, Peru
Juju Melendez, Volleyball .......................... Ellenwood, Georgia
Jahrell Mendez, Baseball ........................ Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Joao Menezes, Men’s Soccer Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Cameron Meyer, Baseball Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Danae Montalvo, Women’s Soccer Quito, Ecuador
Asia Mitchell, Women’s Basketball Columbia, Maryland
Randi Mitchell, Softball ................................. Greeley, Colorado
Laura Montiel-Baena, Women’s Basketball ...... Granada, Spain
Arianna Myers, Women’s Basketball Cairo, New York
— N —
Jaylen Nachtigall, Volleyball Hot Springs, South Dakota
Asahi Nakano, Baseball Kawagoe, Japan
Austin Neeley, Baseball ........................... Severance, Colorado
Tanner Nelson, Women’s Soccer ............... Loveland, Colorado
Dorin Nguerma, Men’s Basketball Tolosa Spain
Maxime Niyibaho, Men’s Soccer Brussels, Belgium
Nadiyyah Northern, Volleyball Avondale, Arizona
— O —
Kensei Oikawa, Baseball ..................................... Miyagi, Japan
Eduardo Oliveira, Men’s Soccer Cuiaba, Brazil
Max Orchard, Men’s Basketball Loma, Colorado
Jafeth Ortega, Men’s Soccer Houston, Texas
Lucas Ovalle, Men’s Soccer Las Condes, Chile
Continued on next page
2024-25 Cougar Athletes (Aphabetically)
Moises Panduro, Baseball Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Kendrick Preston, Men’s Basketball Miramar, Florida
Carleigh Pszanka, Women’s Basketball Gering, Nebraska
— Q —
— R —
Reece Randolph, Men’s Basketball
Boston, Massachusetts
Carter Reisig, Baseball Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Rachel Riordan, Women’s Soccer Acworth, Georgia
Roberto Rivero, Men’s Basketball
Miami, Florida
Jack Robinson, Baseball ............................. Gypsum, Colorado
Alejandria Rodriguez, Women’s Soccer ............ Quito, Ecuador
Isrrael Rodriquez, Men’s Soccer
Miami, Florida
Mariah Russel, Women’s Soccer Scottsbluff, Nebraska
— S —
Viktoria Sarkanyova, Softball
Bratislava, Slovakia
Jase Satterfield, Baseball ................. Grand Junction, Colorado
Finja Schul, Volleyball................. Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
Millie Selfe, Women’s Soccer London, England
Brady Smallwood, Men’s Soccer Greeley, Colorado
Ellie Soper, Softball Sterling, Colorado
Ren Soto, Baseball Soccer Japan
Cameryn Spence, Baseball Douglas, Wyoming
Isaiah St. Preux, Men’s Basketball .................. Miramar, Florida
Kallie Stocking, Softball West Valley City, Utah
Caleb Swisher, Men’s Basketball Scottsbluff, Nebraska
— T —
Lydia Tibbals, Softball Springville, Utah
Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia, Volleyball Laie Hawaii
Tori Travers, Softball Sammanish, Washington
Taylor Tyser, Volleyball Laramie, Wyoming
— U —
Yasmin Urbina, Women’s Soccer .................... Brush, Colorado
Adelina Urtane, Women’s Basketball Aizkraukle, Latvia — V —
Adan Vargas, Baseball Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Ariel Veliz, Women’s Soccer .....................Wellington, Colorado
Katie Vierra, Women’s Basketball .............. Berthoud, Colorado
Ashley Villagomez, Women’s Soccer Campeche, Mexico
Emily Villagomez, Women’s Soccer Aurora, Colorado
Stephanie (Maria) Villagomez, Women’s Soccer Campeche, Mexico
— W —
Brandon Waltermatch, Baseball .................. Brighton, Colorado
Reagan Werth, Softball ..................... Farmington, New Mexico
Cooper Wilson, Baseball Riverton, Utah
Vaughn Wilson, Baseball Riverton, Utah
Cameron Wright, Baseball Surrey, British Columbia, Canada
Jeronimo Zelaya-Diaz, Men’s Soccer Buenos Aries, Argentina
Lilly Zwart, Volleyball Nelson, New Zealand
4 years of friendship
Former volleyball players Meoni, Curtis became close friends in their four years playing with each other at WNCC to SD Mines
College athletics brings together players from all over and for two former WNCC volleyball players, their time at WNCC has led to a life-long friendship.
Jenna Curtis, of Ogallala, and Ale Meoni, of Houston, Texas, never knew each other in high school. It was at WNCC where their friendship blossomed. The two played for the Cougars from 2021-23 and the two stayed together and are wrapping up their senior seasons at South Dakota School of Mines in Rapid City, South Dakota.
The two had outstanding careers at WNCC and they are continuing that at South Dakota Mines. More importantly, the two have treasured their friendships.
Curtis said having Meoni with her for four years has been a treasure.
“Having Ale by my side for the last four years of my collegiate career has been everything I can ask for,” she said. “Having a best friend on the court makes everything a little bit easier knowing she’s always by my side no matter what. I don’t think we are ready to experience our lives without each other yet but knowing we created a relation-
ship that will last a lifetime makes it a little bit easier.”
Same with Meoni about coming up to Nebraska and meeting Curtis, who is now one of her best friends.
“It was amazing. We became very close right away and as year passed it just got stronger and stronger,” she said. “I’m so glad I met her and I get to experience a true friendship like this. She’s been a huge part of my life and I can’t imagine not seeing her every day after we graduate. It’s going to be super hard but we’re definitely gonna FaceTime each other all the time so it’s going to feel like we’re still together all the time.”
players. Chadron State won in five sets that night.
In the win over Colorado School of Mines, Meoni had 22 kills on October 18 and then on October 19, Curtis led teh way with nine kills in a loss to No. 2 Metro State.
Both players said it was nice to see Binny at the match when they played Chadron.
It is those friendships that college teams develop that become a cherished event. The two former Cougars will have at least seven more months together before they graduate from South Dakota School of Mines. In the meantime, the two want to finish out their collegiate career with plenty of success for the Orediggers.
South Dakota Mines is 10-7on the season through October 20 and nine matches left before the RMAC tournament November 19-22. South Dakota Mines will be at Chadron State on November 9. They also played Chadron State back on October 1 and former Cougar coach Binny Canales made a trip to Chadron to watch his former
“It felt amazing having Coach Binny come and watch us play at Chadron,” Curtis said. “He played a huge role in my life and my volleyball career and to still have that support from him means the world to me! I know I wouldn’t be where I am without him so it really meant a lot to me and Ale! We were so happy to see him and his family! “ Meoni added she was surprised to see him in the stands.
“I was on the verge of tears. I missed him so much and I was so happy to see him and his family,” she said. “Unfortunately, he didn’t get to see one of our best games, but I hope to see him again very soon. Seeing Continued on next page
WNCC sophomore Laura Montiel starts to head to the paint during a scrimmage with Metro State in October. The Cougars led from start to finish in the scrimmage against Metro.
Jenna Curtis hits in a match against Chadron State. (photo by Binny Canales)
n Curtis, Meoni built friendship through volleyball ......
him brought me back to the years at WNCC and all the memories I have, winning the region title, going to nationals, meeting my best friends, simply the best years of my life.”
While they lost to Chadron State on that special night with former coach Canales there, both said they are having a great season.
“We are doing really well in conference play this year! I think we have a good chance of making it far into our conference tournament and having a run for the national tournament this year,” Curtis said.
Meoni added everything is going well this season.
“We work hard every day and it shows during games because we’re killing it in our conference,” she said. “My favorite memory was last year when we won against CSU Pueblo at the quarterfinals. I will never forget it because the entire gym was filled with people cheering for us. It was a long game and we won in five. I got to be the one to make the last point, and as soon as we got it, the entire student section came down from the bleachers and came on the court to cheer with us!
It would be nothing more special if these four could make the national tournament their Mines team, just like they did
their sophomore year (2022) at WNCC. To do that, though, they have to have energy.
“The keys to do well is to keep a positive attitude and always be energetic,” Melo said. “Never give up. It’s very important to believe in yourself and trust that your team always has your back.”
For Curtis, she came from a volleyball-rich program at Ogallala and just to get the chance to play four years of college volleyball has been a dream of hers since she was young.
“Ogallala was known for volleyball for many years and I am so glad I grew up in a place like that,” Curtis said. “Looking back, I know that going to a JUCO like WNCC was the best decision I made. It allowed me to grow as a person and as a player I don’t think that I would be the player I am now if I hadn’t played there for the first two years. It was one of the greatest experiences of my college career.
“Transitioning from WNCC to Mines was pretty difficult as it’s a whole different level of school and volleyball but I think having that experience of playing for my first two years really made a difference for me and I will always be grateful for that.”
The best part of college volleyball, according to Curtis, is the friendships that you make.
“College volleyball has been my dream for as long as I can remember,” she said. “Having played for four years in college has
been tough and challenging but it has all been worth it. I have lots of amazing relationships with old and new teammates that will continue on forever. I love this sport and it will be hard to let it go but I am grateful for the impact it has had on my life and my relationships.”
For Curtis, she said it will be hard not playing volleyball after this year. Her plans after this year is hopes of going to pharmacy school as she is majoring in pre-professionial health sciences.
“I will miss playing college volleyball and volleyball in general as I have been consistently playing this sport for as long as I can remember,” Curtis said. “I’m still not sure what I am going to do with all my free time.”
For Meoni, she too said college volleyball molded her into the player and person she is today.
“It personally makes me feel like I was able to achieve something great so early in my life,” Meoni said. “These college years made me who I am today. I learned to trust the people around me, and even if they give you a hard time, they have the best interest in you. I learned to make the best out of every situation and that bad moments shouldn’t out compete the good ones.”
Meoni added that it will be hard to give up volleyball after playing competitive the last four years.
“I am going to miss the experiences I got to have with my teammates, the bus drives, the feeling of being some sort of inspiration for young girls playing volleyball, and just the feeling I get every time I play.,” she said. “I’m going to miss being able to disconnect from the world for a few hours and playing the sport I love.”
Meoni, who is majoring in biomedical engineering, and plans have her going back to her hometown of Houston, Texas.
“I’m planning on going back to Houston and find a job there,” she said. “I am studying biomedical engineering so I hope to be able to work in a hospital. In a long run, I would love to travel and get to live in different countries, experience the cultures, and learn different languages.
She added that she will be looking for volleyball leagues back in Houston for
Continued on next page
Ale Meoni digs the ball during a match in October against Chadron State in Chadron. (photo by Binny Canales)
Jenna Curtis serves in a match against Chadron State. (photo by Binny Canales)
n Curtis, Meoni built friendship through volleyball ......
adults so she can continue playing after college.
When the two look back at their time at WNCC, it is nothing but good times.
“I have so many memories as WNCC,” she said. “It was truly the best college experience for Ale and I both. I just think winning the regional tournament, making it to nationals, and placing so well my last year there will be something I’ll remember for the rest of my life.”
Meoni’s favorite memory while at
WNCC was winning regionals for sure.
“My favorite memory was definitely the feeling after winning the Region IX title.,” she said. “I’ve never felt so happy and accomplished in my life and I’m so glad I got to share it with my favorite people. Another great memory was at the beginning of our sophomore year, we were ranked 18th in the nation, after our first weekend of tournaments we won against really good teams and it was a great feeling.”
— Written by Mark Rein
A couple photos from Jenna Curtis and Ale Meoni’s playing days at WNCC. (top) the team with their Region IX championship trophy back in the fall of 2022. (left) Ale and Jenna hug each other in May 2023 during signing day where the two signed to play together at South Dakota Mines.
Ale Meoni hits in a match against Chadron State. (photo by Binny Canales)
Question
Toms Linis Men’s Basketball Athlete
Lisbeth Barrera Women’s Soccer
Joao Menesez Men’s Soccer
Sierra Hilgner Softball
Cougar Frenzy
Favorite Halloween Costume
Pumpkin Spice -Yes or No
Cougar athletes have less than five minutes to respond to some interesting topics Superhero
or Dunkin’ Favorite Pre-game Song What is pandiculation
Rocky “Gonna Fly Now” A drink
Red Opps by 21 Savage Using a pen on paper
I don’t listen to music before games Taking out the appendix Inflatable
Dreams and Nightmares by Meek Mill Pendulum effect
Zozefine Sipolina Women’s Basketball Cat
Dani Cruz Volleyball
Flex-Up by Future Candy
Baseball holds alumni game in September
Action at the WNCC baseball alumni game was intense. (top photo) The alumni players that showed up to play. All the action pictures show the alumni players (in yellow or white) playing against the current team, who are in blue uniforms. The alumni players in the bottom two pictures include Blake Slaymaker pitching and Dylan Harris throwing from second base to first base. The alumni player batting is Ty McAninch.
And baseball held an alumni golf tourney as well
From the alumni baseball golf tourney. (top picture) Mike Jones takes a cut while several players watch. (above left) The winners of the golf tourney were Anthony Apodaca and Tyler Pollock. (middle) Sergio Tarango chips while (far right) Brayden Lofink tees off.
Softball team gearing up for spring with fall scrimmages
Cougars take on D1 UNC at Ft. Collins in September
The Cougar softball players in action from top left clockwise. Randi Mitchell is catching, while Sierra Hilgner is getting ready to catch the ball. Kallie Stocking (24) is getting ready to hit the ball while Jenika Fuentes is pitching. Bottom pics has Reagan Werth batting and Tina Horton getting ready to make a play at second.
Helping at Monument Marathon Expo
Cougar softball players Adi Duke, Kallie Stocking, and Tori Travers pose for a picture at the Monument Marathon Expo. The softball girls helped out at the expo and then the baseball
Former Cougar Pablo Dominguez doing well at LSU-Alexandria
Former Cougar Pablo Dominguez had a big game for LSU-Alexandria on October 10 when he scored two goals to help the Generals register a tie with their rivals LSU-Shreveport.
Dominquez has scored four goals so far this season and has taken 15 shots.
Against LSU-Shreveport, Dominguez scored goals at 24:06 and then at 32:59 to help Alexandria to a 2-0 halftime lead. That lead didn’t last as Shreveport scored two second-half goals for the tie.
LSU-Alexandria then faced Texas A&M-Texarkana on October 12 and won 1-0 to move to 7-3-2 on the season.
LSU-Alexandria wil bext be in action October 17 and 19 when they host University of Houston-Victoria and Huston Tillotson.
Pair of former Cougars excelling at Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods
Former Cougars Alex Hernandez and Alexis Keoho are in their senior seasons for the volleyball program at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College in Indiana and both are key members of the 25-3 Palmoroy volleyball team.
Keoho had 270 set assists this season with 105 digs and 12 digs. Her best game this year was on September 24 when she had 23 set assists in a win over Oakland City.
Hernandez has 135 kills this season including a season-best 13 kills against Paul Quinn on September 7.
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 27
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 27
2024-25 WNCC Cougar Basketball Schedule
DATE ............................... TIME ................. OPPONENT ..........................................
F-S., Oct. 4-5 .....................TBA .................... Jamboree in Oklahoma .......... Oklahoma City, Okla.
Sa.-Su., Oct. 19-20 ............TBA .................... Colorado Jamboree .......................... Windsor, Colo.
Sat., Oct. 26 ......................TBA .................... Colorado Springs Scrimmage . Colorado Springs, CO
Fri., Nov. 1......................... TBA .................... Salt Lake C.C. ..................................... Ephraim, Utah
Sat., Nov. 2 ........................1:15 pm ............. Snow College .................................... Ephraim, Utah
Wed., Nov. 6 ................... 6 pm ................. Eastern Wyoming ........................... Cougar Palace
Wed., Nov. 13 ................. 6:30 pm ............ Laramie County .............................. Cougar Palace
Mon., Nov. 18 ................. 6:30 pm ............ Gillette ........................................... Cougar Palace
Tues., Nov. 19 ...................TBA .................... Western Wyoming .................... Rock Springs, Wyo.
Fri., Nov. 22.......................TBA .................... Southern Idaho ............................. Twin Falls, Idaho Sat., Nov. 23 ......................3 pm .................. Colorado Northwestern ................ Twin Falls, Idaho
Thurs., Dec. 5 ....................4:15 pm ............. North Dakota State-Science ............... Gillette, Wyo.
Fri., Dec. 6.........................TBA .................... Impact Academy ................................ Gillette, Wyo.
Sat., Dec. 7 ........................10:45 am ........... Miles .................................................. Gillette, Wyo. Tue., Dec. 10 ................... 6:30 pm ............ Casper ............................................ Cougar Palace
Thurs., Jan. 9 .................. 6:30 pm ............ Western Wyoming .......................... Cougar Palace
Fri., Jan. 10 .......................7:30 pm ............. Casper ................................................. Casper, Wyo. Sat., Jan. 11 ......................11 am................. Gillette ............................................... Gillette, Wyo.
Fri., Jan. 24 ..................... 7:30 pm ............ Otero .............................................. Cougar Palace
Sat., Jan. 25 .................... 3 pm ................. Trinidad State ................................. Cougar Palace
Tues., Jan. 28 ....................6:30 pm ............. McCook ............................................. McCook, Neb. Fri., Jan. 31 .......................6 pm .................. North Platte ................................North Platte, Neb.
Fri., Feb. 7 ...................... 7:30 pm ............ Northeastern .................................. Cougar Palace
Sat., Feb. 8 ........................
Feb.
................................... Trinidad, Colo. Sat., Feb. 15 ......................3
..................
LaJunta, Colo. Tue., Feb. 18 ................... 6:30 pm ............ North Platte .................................... Cougar Palace Fri., Feb. 21..................... 7:30 pm ............ McCook .......................................... Cougar Palace Fri., Feb. 28..................... 7:30 pm ............ Lamar ............................................. Cougar Palace Sat., March 1 ....................3 pm .................. Northeastern .................................... Sterling, Colo. F-Sa., March 7-8 ...............TBA
2024-25 Lady Cougar Basketball Schedule
...............................
Sat.., Oct. 5 .......................TBA .................... JUCO Jamboree .................................. Denver, Colo. Fri., Oct. 11 ..................... 2 pm ................. Metro State (scrimmage) ................ Cougar Palace
Sun., Oct. 20 .....................TBA .................... Dave Neely Showcase (scrimmage) Lawrence, Kan.
Fri., Nov. 1......................... 5:30 pm ............. Fort Hays Tech Northwest ............... Riverton, Wyo.
Sat., Nov. 2 ........................4 pm .................. Central Wyoming ............................. Riverton, Wyo.
Sat., Nov. 9 ..................... 1 pm ................. Casper ............................................ Cougar Palace
Tues., Nov. 12 ...................5:30 pm ............. Eastern Wyoming .......................... Torrington, Wyo. Fri.-Sat., Nov. 15-16 .................................. Cougar Classic ................................. Cougar Palace
Friday ............................. 5:30 pm ............ EWC vs. Dodge City
Friday ............................. 7:30 pm ............ WNCC vs. Laramie County
Saturday ......................... 1 pm ................. LCCC vs. Dodge City
Saturday ......................... 3 pm ................. WNCC vs. EWC
Fri., Nov. 22.......................1 pm .................. Utah State Eastern ........................ Twin Falls, Idaho
Sat., Nov. 23 ......................5 pm .................. Southern Idaho ............................. Twin Falls, Idaho
Tues., Nov. 26 ................. 5:30 pm ............ Central Wyoming ............................ Cougar Palace
Fri., Nov. 29.......................1 pm .................. Utah State Eastern .................... Salt Lake City, Utah
Sat., Nov. 30 ......................3 pm .................. Salt Lake .................................... Salt Lake City, Utah
Sun., Dec. 1 .......................11 am................. Dawson ..................................... Salt Lake City, Utah
Thurs., Dec. 5 ....................2:30 pm ............. North Dakota State-Science ............... Gillette, Wyo.
Fri., Dec. 6.........................2:30 pm ............. Miles .................................................. Gillette, Wyo.
Sat., Dec. 7 ........................4 pm .................. Gillette ............................................... Gillette, Wyo. Thurs., Jan. 9.....................4 pm .................. Gillette ................................................ Casper, Wyo.
Fri., Jan. 10 .......................1:30 pm ............. Western Wyoming .............................. Casper, Wyo.
Sat., Jan. 11 ......................6 pm .................. Casper ................................................. Casper, Wyo. Fri., Jan. 24 ..................... 5:30 pm ............ Otero .............................................. Cougar Palace
Sat., Jan. 25 .................... 1 pm ................. Trinidad State ................................. Cougar Palace
Tues., Jan. 28 ....................4:30 pm ............. McCook ............................................. McCook, Neb. Fri., Feb. 7 ...................... 5:30 pm ............ Northeastern .................................. Cougar Palace
Sat., Feb. 8 ........................5 pm .................. Lamar ................................................... Lamar, Colo.
Fri., Feb. 14 .......................5 pm .................. Trinidad State ................................... Trinidad, Colo.
Sat., Feb. 15 ......................1 pm .................. Otero................................................. LaJunta, Colo. Fri., Feb. 21..................... 5:30 pm ............ McCook .......................................... Cougar Palace
Fri., Feb. 28..................... 5:30 pm ............ Lamar ............................................. Cougar Palace Sat., March 1 ....................1 pm .................. Northeastern .................................... Sterling, Colo. F-Sa., March 7-8 ...............TBA .................... First Round Playoffs ........................ at higher seeds Th.-Sa., March 13-15 ........TBA .................... Region IX Playoffs.......................... at South Winner March 25-April 1 ...............TBA .................... NJCAA Nationals ................................. Casper, Wyo.
Aileen Perez doing well at D1
Former Cougar at Hampton University
Former Cougar women’s soccer player always wanted to play at the Division I level and she is living that dream and helping the Hampton University soccer team to a strong season.
Perez said the fact she is playing college soccer at this level is amazing.
“If someone had asked me five years ago whether I could see myself where I am today, I would have said no,” she said. “I never believed I was good enough to play college soccer. However, over the past five years, I worked hard and discovered my true potential, making me the player I am now. I am very proud of myself for not giving up and earning this opportunity through my own hard work.”
Perez played in the 2022 and 2023 season for WNCC, graduating in May 2024 with her associated degree. She also signed at Hampton University, a small Division I school in Virginia.
In her two years at WNCC, Perez produced seven goals and seven assists and was the captain of the team.
Before WNCC, she played at Pinnacle Charter high in Thornton, Colorado.
In her junior year at Hampton, she has two assists from her mid-fielder position and has started 12 of 13 matches.
The hardest part for Perez is being away from family since she moved from Colorado to Virginia.
“Being away from my family obviously sucks but we usually talk every day,” she said. “Even though we’re miles away i still feel like they’re with me no matter where i go.”
The other thing that she has accespted and worked on is her mental well being. Perez said mental health is something that is important for athletes and
she is learning that.
“I would say the hardest part of being at Division 1 is the mental health aspect. But it’s not that it only occurs in Division 1, but it can happen anywhere,” she said. “Here, I learned that during a four-year journey, we need to pay more attention to mental health because it can affect anyone. It’s important to stay connected with teammates, as anyone could be going through a tough time. I want to emphasize how important mental health is and that it’s okay to not always feel okay.”
For Perez, though, her heart for the game is always there and she plays with plenty of heart. That is what she did at WNCC, at a school that helped her get to the next level.
“My time at WNCC has really prepared me to compete at the Division 1 level,” she said. “Having three practices a day during preseason made a big differ-
ence in my skills and fitness. This tough training helped me become stronger and more mentally tough.”
What WNCC offered her was a great environment to grow as a person.
“WNCC offered a great environment where I could focus on improving, learning from my coaches, and working with hardworking teammates,” she said. “I gained valuable experience from the tough situations that helped me grow into the player I am today. Overall, I feel confident and ready to keep improving as a player because of the strong foundation I built at WNCC.”
So far, she is showing that she can play at the Division I level. She started the first 11 games and didn’t start but played on September 29, but was back in the starting lineup on October 3. She has attempted three shots this season from
Continued on next page
n Perez excelling at Division I soccer at Hampton ......
her midfield position.
Perez’ advice to all the younger players is to believe in your capabilities.
“I would advise every player to treat each game like it’s their last because that’s when hard work pays off,” she said.
Another thing that Perez advices is for the younger players to look at several colleges and never keep your college choice to just a few because you never know what offers will pop up. Waiting to make a decision is also key.
“Make sure to put together a good highlight video that shows what you’re capable of,” she said. “It’s also important to believe in yourself and have the confidence to go after your goals. When you send emails to colleges, don’t be afraid to reach out to many because you never know who might reply.”
When she looks back at her time at WNCC, she remembers many great moments and it is those that stand out that she cherishes her time at WNCC.
“A great memory I have from WNCC is my freshman year when we beat Northwest 7-6 after being down 0-3 in the first half,” she said. “It was such an intense and emotional game, and I couldn’t believe there were 13 goals scored! I will never forget that amazing moment.”
And, she still stays in contact with her former teammates, many of which are playing 4-year soccer. She also stays in contact with players on the soccer team this year as well. So, it is those friendships made through college athletics that will always standout.
“I haven’t played against any for-
mer teammates, but it would be great to see them and compete against them instead of just playing with them like we used to,” she said.
“I would say that WNCC has done a great job helping players improve and preparing them for success at the next level.
For example, Pablo Dominguez is having an excellent season with LSUA,
scoring 4 goals so far, and they are currently in second place for their tournament.”
— Written by Mark Rein
Chadron State College’s Strength and Conditioning degree program
One of nine undergraduate programs accredited by the Council on Accreditation in Strength and Conditioning Education (CASCE)
Aileen Perez said her most memorable game was the 7-6 win over Northwest in her freshman year at WNCC. Here, Perez takes a shot in that game..
Walking youngsters to school:
Cougar softball helps at Westmoor Elementary
website: www.mackenziewestphalphotography.com
photos by Ashley Villagomez
Relive last year memories with a 2023-24 athletic yearbook
023-24 was a great year for memories with plenty of exciting wins and records broken.
What fans of Cougars can do know is take a look at the teams in a athletic yearbook. There are some that are copied and printed out and the college can always make more. The publication is also available online for fans to view and download them-
selves.
What the yearbook has is individual pictures of all the athletes in alphabetical order by sport as well as team photos, schedule and scores of games, where players are going, honors received, and plenty of photos. What the publication has that makes it fun is ads from all the businesses that have bought a Frontline Sponsorship.
The Frontline Sponsorships are up again and the Cougar coaches are out gathering sponsorships for the coming year.
it out and email it to the athletic secretary Peggy Hessler at hessle87@wncc.edu and she will get you taken care of.
Back to the athletic yearbook, this coming year, the yearbook is going to try to have a couple editions. The first, if everything goes right with individual and team photos, one will be out in the first semester as a preview to the basketball seasons.
But there will also be a end-of-the-year yearbook that will be out late June or July so that we can get all the honors in. I also can put one out in May and just update the pages and load it into the online page.
Kendell Henderson Agency, Inc.
Scottsblu , NE 69361
(308) 632-8701 kendellhenderson.com
If you are a business and want to get an ad in the yearbook as well as all the athletic newsletters that are put out, then here is your chance.
The Frontline Sponsorship page is on the previous page and you can fill
If you want to read the 2023-24 Yearbook, you can view it at the following web address: https://issuu.com/markrein/ docs/23-24_--_cougar_athletic_yearbook_--_60_pages or you can point your smartphone to the QR Code.
Sophomore recognition for soccer
ALUMNI ATHLETIC NEWS
Scottsbluff Junior College l Nebraska Western College l Western Nebraska Community College
From 2010: WNCC women fall in soccer finals
The Laramie County Community College women’s soccer team captured their second straight Region IX title with a 5-0 win over Western Nebraska Community College on a drizzly Saturday afternoon at the Landers Soccer Complex in the Region IX playoffs.
LCCC, with the win, will now host the district tournament Nov. 5-6. WNCC also earned a berth in the district tournament via their runner-up finish.
WNCC coach Todd Rasnic said they knew they faced an uphill battle against a the No. 10 ranked Golden Eagles.
“We knew it was going to be a tough match coming in. They have a very strong team; probably the best team I have ever seen them have,” Rasnic said. “We came in, tried a few different things, and had a bit of possession early on about 15 to 20 minutes in. But they certainly overpowered us with their possession in the midfield and their strong attacking play. We struggled on getting our offense organized, and once we got it organized and then started penetrating and getting a few shots, it was a bit too late in the match.”
LCCC wasted little time in scoring the first goal of the title match as Melissa Ledesma took a pass from Shino Kunisawa just four minutes in. WNCC came back with a couple of scoring opportunities of their own, just missing on a shot eight minutes in the game and later 15 minutes into the contest.
The Golden Eagles held onto the 1-0 lead until late in the first half when Amanda Halter outran the defense, going one-onone with the goalkeeper and putting the ball into the net for the 2-0 halftime lead.
LCCC continued its strong offensive possession, netting its third goal of the contest just seven minutes into the second half. Monica Lubin scored from an assist from Halter. Both teams played tough from there, before the Golden Eagles scored another goal in the 64th minute as Emi Yamamoto took a rebound and tapped the ball into net.
The Golden Eagles final goal came in the 80th minute as Halter scored her second goal of the game off an assist from Yamamoto.
WNCC had three corner kicks to the Golden Eagles’ four corner kicks.
The positive that Rasnic saw from the match was his squad gained some more experience against a talented squad like LCCC.
“We knew it was going to be a tough game and we feel like the girls got some more experience playing at a good level,” he said. “We are pleased that the girls have advanced and will be involved in district playoffs. The other teams that we play, I feel we have a very good shot at hanging with and beating, so we are looking forward to that time.”
WNCC will play the winner of the Kansas Region, which could be either Hutchinson or Johnson County. By virtual of winning the regional tournament, LCCC will face North Idaho College. The district play-
offs begin Nov. 5.
Rasnic thinks they should be ready, especially if they can get Daisy Rosales back, who missed the last three games with an injury.
“Hopefully we will get Daisy back because she adds a lot of speed and physical presence to the midfield,” he said. “We are looking forward to the districts and hopefully things will improve as we continue to train here over the next couple of weeks. We will put a different team on the field when we play in the district playoffs.”
—from 2010 WNCC Cougar Athletics blog
In a picture from 2010, the women’s soccer team played in the Region IX finals and lost, but qualified for the district playoffs because LCCC won regionals.
WNCC Cougar Frontline Sponsors
Platinum Sponsors (1,500)
u Absolute Painting
u B&C Steel
u Bellevue University
u FBG
u Ideal Linen/Bluff’s Sanitary
u Kendell Henderson/American
u Family Insurance
u LOGOz
u Peerless Tire
u Pepsi
u Platte Valley Bank
u Regional West Medical Center
u Runza
u Scottsbluff Screenprinting
u Steel Grill
uTEAM Chevrolet/Toyota
u US Bank
Gold Sponsors (1,000)
u Allo Communications **
u Ameri-Co Carriers
uBluff’s Chiropractic **
u Dominos **
u Douglas, Kelly, Ostdiek, Ossian, Vogl, and Snyder, P.C.
u Inland Truck
u Reganis Auto
Blue Sponsors (600)
u Back-a-racks
u Bid-It-Bob
u Bluffs Vision
u Chadron State College
u Elite Physical Therapy
u Floyd’s Truck Service
u Hampton Inn & Suites
u Holyoke, Snyder, Longoria, Reichert, Rice Law
u Intralinks
u JBC, Inc.
u Mackenzie Westphal Photography
u Monument Smiles
u Panhandle COOP
u Quick Care
u R & C Welding
u Riverstone Bank
u Roosevelt Public Power
u Sandberg Implement
u Sherman-Williams
u Simmons-Olsen Law Firm
u Scottsbluff Star-Herald
u WESTCO
White Sponsors (400)
u Advantage Chiropractic
u Alarm Security Technicians **
u Border States Electric
u Carr-Trumbull Lumber
u Johnson Cashway
u Rusch’s General Contracting
Cougar Trivia
1) What former athlete ran a marathon in Canada?
2) Who did LCCC beat in the quarterfinals in order to face us Oct. 26 in the regional semifinals and the score in penalty kicks?
3) What WNCC volleyball player was the NJCAA National Defensive Player of the Week?
4) Which former WNCC volleyball player played high school and college volleyball in the same academic year?
5) How many returners are there on the men’s basketball team from last year?
6) What year did the Cougar golf team win its first Region IX title?
7) Who was the first Cougar team to play for a national title and what year did it happen?
8) How many states are represented on the women’s basketball roster?
9) Who won the WNCC baseball golf tournament in September?
10) What elementary school did the softball team walk kids to school in October?
Bonus: Who did the 2010 women’s soccer team play in the district finals in Cheyenne, Wyoming?
The answers are somewhere in this issue of the Cougar Illustrated newsletter. You just need to read the stories or look at the pictures to find the correct answers.
Become a WNCC Cougar Frontline Sponsor
Do you want to have your business name or your name on the gameday programs as well an ad in the WNCC Cougar Athletic Newsletter?
There are options to get that and Cougar gear just by becoming a Cougar Frontline Sponsor.
If interested, contact any of the coaches at WNCC or email WNCC athletics at: burgnerr@wncc.edu rasnict@wncc.edu hessle87@wncc.edu
