This week in athletics -- Issue 2, Oct 10, 2017

This Week in Cougar Athletics

COUGAR BEAT

Oct. 10, 2017 Issue 2

Western Nebraska Community College

Soccer teams in final week of regular season

WNCC Athletes of the Week -- Female Athlete of the Week for week ending Oct. 8 -Sarena Bartley, a freshman from Ridgefield, Washington, had a pretty good three games in helping the Cougars to three wins.

Sarena finished with 12 kills in a win against Otero and had nine kills each in wins over Lamar and Trinidad. Sarena also hit over .200 for each of the three matches. Sarena had a .326 hitting efficiency in the Otero win.

Female Aug. 27........Brooke Kaawa, Vball Sept. 4...... Genesis Benitez, Vball Sept. 14... Jayme Commins, Vball Sept. 21.... Kadara Marshall, Vball Sept. 28......Syenna Masaki, Vball Oct. 1....... Joise Maldonado, Vball Oct. 8...........Sarena Bartley, Vball

-- Male Athlete of the Week for week ending Oct. 8 -Owen Parra, sophomore from Scottsbluff, is a mainstay on the defensive side of the ball for the Cougars.

While Owen doesn’t score a lot of goals, head coach Todd Rasnic said his work ethic on the field is unreal. Owen has started every match for the Cougars and helped the Cougars to a 3-2 overtime win over Western Wyoming Community College on Saturday.

Male Aug. 27....... Lawan Abary, Soccer Sept. 4....Thomas Franze, Soccer Sept. 14. Ramses Atahaulpa, Soccer Sept. 21...Andre Matzuda, Soccer Sept. 28.....Ade Oshikoya, Soccer Oct. 1........... Silvio Xavier, Soccer Oct. 8............Owen Parra, Soccer

Cougar Athletics Upcoming Events Tuesday, October 10

l Volleyball AWAY @ Casper College, 6 p.m. ** Video: Casper College Wednesday, October 11

l Women’s Soccer AWAY @ Northeastern Junior College, Sterling, Colo., noon

l Men’s Soccer AWAY @ Northeastern Junior College, Sterling, Colo., 2 p.m.

Thursday, October 12

l Volleyball AWAY @ Northeastern Junior College, Sterling, Colo., 7 p.m. ** Video: NJC Video from the Cube Friday, October 13

l Men’s Soccer HOME vs. Central-Columbus, 1 p.m.

Saturday, October 14

l Women’s Soccer HOME vs.Gillette College., 1 p.m.

l Men’s Soccer HOME vs.Gillette College., 3 p.m.

** Radio: Sunny 99.3FM or www.bluffsbroadcasting.com

l Men’s Basketball @ Ft. Collins Jamboree scrimmages

l Women’s Basketball @ Sheridan College Jamboree scrimmages Thursday, October 19

l Volleyball AWAY @ Otero Junior College, La Junta, Colo., 6 p.m.

Friday, October 20

l Volleyball AWAY @ Lamar Community College, Lamar, Colo., 6 p.m.

l Women’s and Men’s First Round of Soccer Regionals, at higher seeds Saturday, October 21

l Volleyball AWAY @ Trinidad State Junior College, Trinidad, Colo., 1 p.m.

l Men’s Basketball HOME vs. Chadron State scrimmage

l Women’s Basketball HOME vs. Metro State

l Women’s and Men’s First Round of Soccer Regionals, at higher seeds Wednesday, October 25

l Volleyball HOME vs. Northeastern Junior College, 7 p.m.

** Radio: Sunny 99.3FM or www.bluffsbroadcasting.com ** Video: WNCC Athletics The Cube Thursday, October 26

l Volleyball HOME vs. San Jacinto College, 7 p.m. ** Video: WNCC Athletics The Cube

** Radio: Sunny 99.3FM or www.bluffsbroadcasting.com Friday, October 27

l Volleyball HOME vs. Laredo C.C., 1 p.m. ** Video: WNCC Athletics The Cube

** Radio: Sunny 99.3FM or www.bluffsbroadcasting.com

l Volleyball HOME vs. Iowa Western C.C.., 7 p.m. ** Video: WNCC Athletics The Cube

** Radio: Sunny 99.3FM or www.bluffsbroadcasting.com Saturday, October 28

l Volleyball HOME vs. Barton C.C., 3 p.m. (Sophomore Recognition) ** Video: WNCC Athletics The Cube

** Radio: Sunny 99.3FM or www.bluffsbroadcasting.com Sunday, October 29

l Women’s Basketball @ Western State Scrimmage, Denver, Colo.

Thursday-Saturday, November 2-4

l Volleyball HOME — Hosts Region IX South Volleyball Tournament

Soccer host last regular season home matches The regular season contests for the Western Nebraska Community College men’s and women’s soccer teams will close on Saturday, October 14 with a pair of home games Friday and Saturday.

The Cougar men will host Central Community College-Columbus at 1 p.m. The women’s and men’s teams will then wrap up the regular season by hosting Gillette College on Saturday with the women’s match starting at 1 p.m. followed by the men’s match.

With the regional playoffs beginning next week, it is hard to believe for the sophomore soccer players that their time playing at WNCC is about to come to an end.

For several Scottsbluff High graduates, they have played at Landers Soccer Complex for six years now in competition and this weekend will put an end to that streak.

“I think it will be pretty sad, especially for me because I grew up playing all my games at the Complex and Saturday will be my last time,” women’s soccer player Morgan Smith said. “As a whole, we will give it all we got and finish our regular season game with a lot of heart and intensity.

For the Cougar women, they have been bothered with injuries and depth, but still fight every match they play.

“I will not forget the amount of heart our team has had this year,” women’s soccer player Katelyn Pyle said. “Everyone has fought through adversity and played a couple games down a player. This takes a lot of courage and determination. I have loved watching the players develop whether they are sophomores or freshman.”

For Pyle, it will be a bittersweet time as she realizes that her playing days is about finished. Pyle is graduating at semester and then transfer to the University of Wyoming with an academic scholarship.

“I will not be continuing to play soccer, but I hope to coach very soon,” she said.

“I loved my experience as a soccer player, but I also believe it is time to peruse other hobbies and focus on my education. With an accumulated amount of injuries, I think it is beneficial to become a spectator of my sport and enjoy it from the sidelines where I am allowed the time and space to heal.

Pyle, a Sterling, Colorado, native, said the last home match will be filled with plenty of sadness.

“The last home game at Landers field is going to be an interesting day for the soph-

WNCC sophomores Juan Garfio, the goalkeeper, and Eseah Ingram in action against Western Wyoming Community College on Saturday. The two will be playing their final regular season home matches on Friday and Saturday of this week. omores. This is our second year playing on this field and for some of us, we played on it in high school either as a home field or for away games,” she said. “The field has many memories as well as the school and our last home game marks an end to these memories. Not only is it going to be a sad time for the sophomores, it is also going to be a day that marks change and a new chapter in our lives. Moving on, we wish the best of luck to the freshman and the program as a whole. We also wish the best for our fellow sophomores that are moving on.”

Smith said this women’s team has went through a lot and remains close. The 1-10 record isn’t an indication of the talent on the team. Smith said it would mean everything to come away with a win against Gillete.

“It would be an awesome feeling to get a W under our sleeves,” Smith said. “We have struggled with many injuries this season, so hopefully we can get everyone healthy by Saturday. As long as everyone comes ready to play at 110% and is willing to give it their all, we will hopefully be able to get that win.”

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WNCC sophomores (l-r) Bianca Gomez, Allison Parker, and Bailey Foiles put up a wall on a free kick. The sophomores will play their last home match on Saturday.

Soccer teams nearing end of regular season Story continued from previous page

Pyle and Smith said they will take plenty of memories with them over the past two years.

Smith said her best memories were playing water slide kickball during preseason, playing Cards Against Humanities with my team, and all the bus trips.

Pyle echoed the same. “here are many memories associated to my two years playing for WNCC,” she said.

“The best memories were actually in preseason. I loved the team building activities that Nancy [Rasnic] set up for us. Slip n’ slide kick ball was always a favorite. Another big memory was the road trip to Colorado Mesa my freshman year when we hit the deer and played in the heat.”

Like the women’s players, the sophomores on the men’s team also have plenty of memories. This year’s team is having an excellent team, battling for a a No. 1 seed in the playoffs. While it is the final regular season match, the players are treating it just like any other match.

“It’s going to be special to us sophomores I believe,” Eseah Ingram, a sophomore captain this year siad. “But then again, we are going to take it just like any other game, as each game, regardless of where it’s played at, is very important and we want to come away with a win.”

Ingram added that this is a tough week as the men’s team will play three matches in four days. WNCC travels to NJC on Wednesday and then hosts Central-Columbus and Gillette over the weekend.

“In order to win these last two home games, we’re going to have to dig deep as a team and fight through some adversity and pain! it’s going to be tough to play 3 games in 4 days, however, I believe if we play our game and don’t submit to the opponents game plan, we should be fine,” Ingram said.

“We’re going to have to fight for a full 90 minutes and try and take control early, as we know that they’ll be tough, but if we do this, our chances of coming away with a victory will be high.”

For the sophomores, though, playing one more regular season match at home will be special. The Cougars do have a chance to host a playoff game and then if they win regionals, they would also host the district playoffs.

“It means a lot for me to play my last regular season game at Landers Soccer

Katelyn Pyle waves to the many fans that have watched her play at WNCC.

Sophomore Lawan Abary pushes the ball to the net for an assist on the winning goal.

Complex, because here is the place that I spent my last three years creating lifetime relationships and making myself a better athlete,” Felipe Torres, of Brazil, said.

And for Ingram and Owen Parra, both played on the field during high school.

“It means a lot to the sophomores, especially to the guys who grew up playing here.,” Parra, a Scottsbluff High graduate, said. “I don’t think anyone was expecting our last home game to come so quickly.

“I have a lot of great memories with the team, like the pre-season team building activities. I don’t have any specific favorite memories. Pretty much every time the team was together we had a good time. It’s going to take a team effort to win these final games.

The Cougar men are 9-4 on the season and have a chance to break the school record for most wins in a season. The record was set in 2003 when the Cougar men went 11-6-1. The 2014 team went 10-4-3.

“When the team plays to its full potential, I believe we are the best team in our region,” Parra said. “So, it’s going to take the effort and focus from everyone on the team.”

Torres said they have to work as a team to achieve the goals they set forth at the beginning of the year.

“It will take a lot of effort from each player of the team so we can finish both matches with a W and get ourselves ready for the

playoffs,” Torres said.

The sophomore from both teams will always remember WNCC and its supporters.

“I would like to thank my family for always supporting me and being there for me. My parents try to make it to as many games as they can and I am very grateful for their dedication to me and the sport as a whole,” Pyle said. “I would also like to thank Morgan’s parents for always supporting us and feeding us. Additionally, I would like thank the Heimbouchs for being to almost all of our away games and providing us with snacks or cough drops. Coach Rasnic and coach Miller have always has my best interest in mind and I am appreciative of what they have taught me in my two years! I would like to thank Doug Jones for putting up with me coming into the training room all the time with a different injury. Thank you for being so patient with me and my injuries. Finally, I would like to thank WNCC as a whole for providing me with a great college and great opportunities.”

Smith, too, has plenty to be thankful for her two years at WNCC. “I want to thank Coach Rasnic for giving me the opportunity to play at WNCC and of course Nancy Rasnic for being the Cougars number one fan, win or lose,” she said.

“I want to thank all my family and friends

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Soccer teams nearing end of regular season Story continued from previous page

for all the support these last two years, it is greatly appreciated and can’t thank them all enough. Even though both seasons I have played in didn’t go as well as planned, I wouldn’t have traded it for the world. I am going to walk away with many friendships and many memories that I will cherish forever.”

Torres said, “I will never forget the first day of preseason which is when you meet your new family. Also, I’ll never forget the 2mile runs that we had to do over the season. I am also thankful for coach Rasnic for giving me the opportunity to be a part of this great program and for helping me to

grow as a player and an athlete. I’m also thankful for Nancy, Coach Seedy, Coach Gui, Doug Jones, and all my teammates.”

Owen and Ingram are also appreciative of their two years at WNCC. “I really want to thank Coach Rasnic because over the years he has been like a father to me,” he said. “Not only did he teach me how to become a better soccer player, he taught me some lessons on how to be a better person, and I could never thank him enough for that.”

Ingram is blessed to have played and grown as a person while at WNCC. “First and foremost, I would like to thank Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior, for

gracing me with the opportunity to play the sport that I love everyday! If it wasn’t for him, none of this would be possible,” he said. “Also, I’d like to thank my mom and dad for always supporting and loving me through it all, as well as my aunt who’s like another mom, who’s been there since day one. Also, I’d like to thank my little sister, she’s my best friend and biggest fan and without her I don’t know if I’d be here today.! Finally, I’d like to thank coach Rasnic, his wife Nancy, coach Seedy, and coach Gue for allowing me to have this opportunity and supporting me along the way. For that, I’m very grateful, blessed, and appreciative!”

Men’s and Women’s Soccer Team Photos

Men’s basketball goes 4-1 at Dallas scrimmages The Western Nebraska Community College men’s basketball team got a glimpse of what this year’s team will look like after competing in the Dallas Jamboree Friday and Saturday.

The Cougars went 4-1 in the scrimmage games against some stiff competition.

WNCC head coach Cory Fehringer was pleased what he saw. “i thought our boys were competitive.

I thought we were connected most of the time,” he said. “At the end of the day you just wanted to go down and evaluate where you stand at this instance. I thought our guys showed they were able to perform against very good teams from across the country.”

In the running-time scrimmages, the Cougars only lost to Indian Hills Community College. WNCC trailed Indian Hills by five at halftime.

The wins were against some good teams.

The Cougars beat Kilgore College, Odessa College, and Barton Community College.

Fehringer said those victories were substantial wins.

The win came against Seminole State Community College.

The purpose of the scrimmages are twofold, to get the younger players playing time and see what elements of the game need worked on.

“We have a long ways to go and we have a lot of work to put in,” Fehringer said. “We have a lot of areas we have to clean up. But, to drive 16 hours to play five games in 20 hours, i thought the guys were very impressive in their resiliency and to continue to compete even if things weren’t going our way. I thought we hung in there together as a team.”

While it was hard to pick out any outstanding play, he said he saw positives from each player in different fashion.

“During the scrimmages, you are trying to play more guys and get guys experience..” he said. “I thought each and every player had glimpses that will help us to be successful in one way or another, whether it is defensive, offensive, or rebounding, or just being a a great teammate on the bench.

I just thought everybody provided us with something to help us be successful.

The second-year coach was impressed with the leadership of the sophomores.

“These scrimmages is a lot of opportunity for experience for a group that has 11 freshman,” Fehringer said. “I think our five

The members of the WNCC men’s basketball team pose by a monument representing Texas during their trip to Dallas for a five-game jamboree. sophomores did a great group of leading and I think they continue to do a great job of paving the way for the freshman as far as the right way to go about our business as a team.”

WNCC will compete in another jamboree on Saturday in Ft. Collins, Colorado.

The Cougars will take on New Mexico Military at 10 a.m., Utah State-Eastern at noon, and New Mexico Junior College at 2 p.m.

WNCC women to play at Sheridan Tourney The WNCC women’s basketball team will play in the Sheridan, Wyoming Jamboree on Saturday.

Head coach Chad Gibney said the team will play four games, competing against Miles Community College and Dawson Community College.

After the Sheridan scrimmages, the Cougars host Metro State on Saturday, Oct. 21 in a scrimmage before hitting the road for another scrimmage at Western State in Denver on Oct. 29.

WNCC opens the season fNov. 3-4 at the Williston State tournament, where they play Little Big Horn and Southern Idaho.

$100 Club Monthly Winners September Winners

$150 — Kimberly Belford,

Ft. Collins, Colorado $100 — Jeff Peck, Gering, Nebraska $50 — Shawn Hergenreder, Scotsbluff, Nebraska

October Winners

$150 — Sabrina Kadic, West Valley City, Utah $100 — Roxie Shaul Gering, Nebraska $50 — Scott & Amy Winters

Scottsbluff, Nebraska

Each month the winners will be announced here as well on the WNCC athletic website at wnccathletics.com

A look at the Region IX Conference races Region IX Men’s Soccer Standings

Team

Conference Overall Record Win % Home Away GB GF GA Record Win % Home Away GF North Northwest 4-2-0 .667 2-2-0 2-0-0 - 9 6 5-3-0 .625 3-3-0 2-0-0 15 Western Wyoming 4-2-1 .643 3-0-0 1-2-1 - 12 9 6-8-1 .433 4-2-0 2-6-1 24 Sheridan 3-2-1 .583 2-0-0 1-2-1 0.5 12 10 3-2-1 .583 2-0-0 1-2-1 12 Laramie County 2-3-1 .417 1-1-1 1-2-0 1.5 8 7 2-10-1 .192 1-3-1 1-7-0 15 Gillette 1-5-1 .214 0-3-1 1-2-0 3 9 18 2-8-1 .227 0-6-1 2-2-0 16 South Trinidad State 5-2-0 .714 2-1-0 3-1-0 - 18 13 9-6-0 .600 3-3-0 6-3-0 41 Western Nebraska 4-2-0 .667 2-1-0 2-1-0 0.5 19 13 9-4-0 .692 4-2-0 5-2-0 43 Otero 3-4-0 .429 2-2-0 1-2-0 2 14 18 6-5-2 .538 3-2-2 3-3-0 24 Central-Columbus 2-4-0 .333 2-2-0 0-2-0 2.5 6 10 4-5-3 .458 3-3-0 1-2-3 13 Northeastern 2-4-0 .333 0-2-0 2-2-0 2.5 9 12 8-6-0 .571 4-3-0 4-3-0 35

GA Last 10 Streak 14 5-3-0 Won 1 40 5-5-0 Lost 3 10 3-2-1 Won 1 38 2-7-1 Lost 1 35 2-7-1 Lost 1 29 6-4-0 Won 2 29 7-3-0 Won 1 25 4-4-2 Won 1 15 2-5-3 Lost 2 27 5-5-0 Won 3

Region IX Women’s Soccer Standings

Team

Conference Overall Record Win % Home Away GB GF GA Record Win % Home Away GF South Division Otero 5-0-0 1.000 3-0-0 2-0-0 - 18 5 8-4-0 .667 3-2-0 5-2-0 36 Trinidad Stat 3-1-0 .750 1-0-0 2-1-0 1.5 6 3 5-4-0 .556 1-0-0 4-4-0 27 Northeastern 1-3-0 .250 0-2-0 1-1-0 3.5 4 11 2-9-0 .182 1-6-0 1-3-0 17 Western Nebraska. 0-5-0 .000 0-3-0 0-2-0 5 2 11 1-11-0 .083 0-6-0 1-5-0 6 North Division Laramie County 6-0-0 1.000 3-0-0 3-0-0 - 37 2 10-0-0 1.000 5-0-0 5-0-0 62 Sheridan 6-1-0 .857 4-0-0 2-1-0 0.5 28 4 7-2-0 .778 4-0-0 3-2-0 38 Western Wyoming 3-4-0 .429 1-1-0 2-3-0 3.5 11 21 9-7-0 .563 4-2-0 5-5-0 31 Gillette 1-5-0 .167 1-3-0 0-2-0 5 8 23 4-6-0 .400 3-3-0 1-3-0 32 Northwest 0-6-0 .000 0-3-0 0-3-0 6 3 37 0-7-0 .000 0-4-0 0-3-0 4

GA Last 10 Streak 23 7-3-0 Lost 1 17 5-4-0 Won 1 45 2-8-0 Lost 4 34 0-10-0 Lost 10 3 10-0-0 Won 10 11 7-2-0 Won 3 39 7-3-0 Won 2 25 4-6-0 Lost 5 40 0-7-0 Lost 7

Region IX Volleyball Standings

Conference Overall Team Record Win % Home Away GB PF PA Record Win % Home Away PF Region IX JUCO South Division Western Nebraska 5-0 1.000 4-0 1-0 - 15 1 23-2 .920 11-0 12-2 71 Northeastern 2-1 .667 2-1 0-0 2 8 3 14-6 .700 7-3 7-3 48 Lamar 1-2 .333 0-0 1-2 3 3 8 13-7 .650 4-2 9-5 43 Otero 1-2 .333 0-0 1-2 3 3 8 9-11 .450 0-2 9-9 36 McCook 2-3 .400 2-2 0-1 3 9 9 14-14 .500 4-8 10-6 52 Trinidad State 0-3 .000 0-0 0-3 4 0 9 11-16 .407 3-1 8-15 44 Region IX JUCO North Region Northwest 6-1 .857 2-1 4-0 - 20 7 9-9 .500 2-1 7-8 31 Laramie County 6-1 .857 4-1 2-0 - 20 7 21-6 .778 7-1 14-5 66 Casper 5-2 .714 2-1 3-1 1 19 11 8-17 .320 2-2 6-15 37 Sheridan 4-3 .571 1-1 3-2 2 13 11 8-13 .381 2-2 6-11 30 Western Wyoming 4-3 .571 2-2 2-1 2 16 15 8-13 .381 2-3 6-10 36 Eastern Wyoming 2-5 .286 2-2 0-3 4 9 16 4-21 .160 4-6 0-15 23 Central Wyoming 1-6 .143 1-4 0-2 5 8 18 4-13 .235 1-4 3-9 18 Miles 0-7 .000 0-2 0-5 6 1 21 2-20 .091 2-4 0-16 9 Region IX JUCO Division II Central-Columbus 3-0 1.000 1-0 2-0 - 9 2 24-7 .774 10-3 14-4 80 North Platte 1-1 .500 0-1 1-0 1.5 4 4 13-18 .419 2-3 11-15 50 Southeast 0-3 .000 0-2 0-1 3 2 9 7-17 .292 2-6 5-11 29

PA Last 10 Streak 12 10-0 Won 17 25 8-2 Won 2 32 6-4 Lost 2 41 3-7 Lost 1 48 4-6 Won 1 55 3-7 Lost 5 33 9-1 Won 3 32 8-2 Won 1 57 6-4 Lost 1 45 6-4 Won 2 48 5-5 Won 1 66 2-8 Lost 1 39 2-8 Lost 5 62 0-10 Lost 19 37 5-5 Lost 1 64 3-7 Lost 1 58 2-8 Lost 1

No. 2 volleyball team captures three more wins The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team keeps rolling along after sweeping thre Region IX South opponents over the weekend.

In picking up the three wins, the Cougars pushed their match winning streak to 17 matches and their overall record to 23-2. More importantly, WNCC is 5-0 in conference play.

WNCC opened the home stand by sweeping Otero Junior College 25-13, 25-23, 29-27 on Thursday. It was head coach Binny Canales’ 600th career coaching victory over the NAIA, NCAA and NJCAA levels.

WNCC continued the domination as they swept past a Lamar Community College squad 28-26, 25-17, 25-13 a day after Lamar topped Northeastern Junior College.

The Cougars finished off the 3-day home stand by picking up another sweep over Trinidad State Junior College 25-15, 25-17, 25-18.

Against Otero, WNCC had three players finish with double-figure kills. Sarena Bartley led with 12 kills followed by 10 each from Brooke Kaawa and Syenna Masaki. Masaki also tallied nine digs, seven points, three aces, and four set assists. Kaawa had five digs, four points, and a solo block.

WNCC also received five kills and a solo block from Kaile Tuisamatatele;

five digs, 10 points, and 33 set assists from Jayme Commins; 16 digs and seven points from Genesis Benitez; five digs and five points from Kirstee Trees; and two points from Lauren Shaul.

Against Lamar, WNCC had two players collect double-doubles. Masaki finished with 10 kills and 10 digs, while Commins had 29 set assists and 13 points. Masaki also had five points, five set assists, and an ace, while Commins had two kills, five digs, and an ace.

Maldonado led the offensive attack with 12 kills. Bartley added seven kills followed by Tuisamatatele with six, and Aneta Faksova with three. Faksova also had three assist block. Marshall finished with five points, an ace, and a kill Also for the Cougars, Benitez had 12 digs, four points and two set assists, while Trees and Shaul each had five digs and five points. Shaul also had an ace serve.

The Trinidad match saw everyone play and contribute. Commins and Trees each had a double-double in the match. Commins, the Ogallala graduate, finished with 30 set assists, 10 digs, two kills, five points, and an ace. Trees tallied 12 points, 12 digs, and two aces.

The Cougars offense had three players that netted near double-figure kills.

Bartley had nine kills, while Masaki and Marshal each had eight. Josie Maldonado

finished with seven. Masaki also had 11 points, six digs, and five set assists, while Marshall had seven points.

While the offense was clicking, so was the defense. The Cougars finished with 57 digs. Benitez led the way with 16 digs.

WNCC also had six ace serves, two each from Trees and Marshall.

WNCC will be on the road for five straight road matches over the next two weeks.

This week, the Cougars travel to Casper College on Tuesday before taking on Northeastern Junior College on Thursday in Sterling, Colorado, for a Region IX South contest.

After that, the Cougars will hit the road for a 3-day southern Colorado road trip Oct. 19-21 to face Otero, Lamar, and Trinidad.

WNCC will return home for the final week of October for four days of matches, beginning with a home match with NJC on Oct. 25.

The Cougars will then host the WNCC Classic, beginning with a Thursday evening match against San Jacinto College on Oct. 26. On Friday, Oct. 27, the Cougars will face Laredo Community College at 1 p.m. and Iowa Western Community College at 7 p.m. before wrapping up the Classic on Saturday when they face Barton Community College at 3 p.m. in sophomore recognition day.

Former Cougars doing well at the next level Plenty of former Cougars are having good seasons at the next level.

Former WNCC softball player Kelsey Bernhardt is now playing soccer at Doane College in Nebraska. After graduating from WNCC, Kelsey played two years of softball at Doane and is taking a third year at the four-year school and playing soccer.

So far this season, Bernhardt has scored three goals and one assist. She has started 11 of the 12 matches this season.

Her last goal came in a 4-2 loss to Sterlng College in Kansas 4-2. She scored in the 89th minute of the match.

Kaylee Spreier and Alwaise Villa are enjoying plenty of successful season. In a win over Waldorf College on Saturday, Spreier led the team with eight kills and hit a match-high .467. Villa recorded three service aces in the win.

Spreier has played in all 23 matches for the Warriors. The former Gering High graduate has 138 kills, 28 digs, 10 solo blocks, 65 assist blocks, and three aces.

Spreier’s season high kill performance came Sept. 22 when she pounded down 15 kills against Mayville State. She also had a 10kill performance against Presentation College.

Villa has seen action in 17 matches and had 96 digs with nine aces.

Dakota State will next be in action Oct. 11 when they travel to Valley City State University in North Dakota, before hosting Grace University and Bellevue University on Friday and Saturday. Saturday is parents day.

Another volleyball player is doing well at the Division I level. Lara Picht is playing at Oral Roberts University and she had a season best 10 kills and a .588 hitting percentage in a win over Fort Wayne University.

So far this season, Picht has 51 kills in 36 sets played. She has 17 digs with six block assists.

Oral Roberts is 8-10 on the season will host Nebraska Omaha on Sunday, Oct. 15. They will also play Denver University on Nov. 3 in Denver and play Nebraska-Omaha in Omaha on Nov. 10.

Danika Daum, who played for the Cougars last year, is having a decent year at Henderson State. Daum, who is from Kimball, has 180 set assists this season with 15 kills and 15 digs. e Daum’s best performance this season was a 23-set performance in a four-set loss to the University of Arkansas-Ft. Smith.

Henderson State is 10-10 so far this season and their next matches are this weekend at

Cougars at the 4-year level 2014-15 Softball/Soccer Kelsey Bernhardt................................... Doane 2015-16 Softball Whitney Fields............................. Adams State Brittany Bigge........................... Ft. Lewis State Haille Weber.................................. Metro State Courtney Medina................. Lubbock Christian Kenzie Sawyer............................... Dixie State Christian Bobian.......... New Mexico Highlands Volleyball Fabiana Andrade................... CSU-Bakersfield Keala Kaio Perez................ Alaska-Anchorage Katy Ernest.........................Nebraska-Kearney Women’s Basketball Kalli Feddersen.........................Chadron State Hannah Sparks.......................... Montana Tech Brooke Zimmerman........................McPherson Men’s Basketball Phil Fayne.................................... Illinois State Soccer Jorge Ortega.........................Hastings College Omar Guzman................ Louisiana-Alexandria MIguel Enriquez............. Louisiana-Alexandria Blake Wills.............................Hastings College Rhiannon Castle....................Hastings College Corrie McDonald..........................York College Hannah Wilke...............................York College Isabel Hunter.................. Point Park University Baseball Bradley Brown....................Nebraska-Kearney Beau Lofink................................. Adams State Jack Pauley........................ Northern Colorado

home against Southeastern Oklahoma State and East Central University.

Fabiana Andrade, is having a good season at the Division I level as a senior for Cal State-Bakersfield. Andrade has played in 73 sets and had 486 set assists with nine kills and 159 digs.

Andrade’s career highs this season included 43 set assists against Northern Arizona.

Cal State Bakersfield, 12-8 on the season, are on a 6-match winning streak having topped Grand Canyon College on Friday.

Another volleyball player that is having a good season is Keala Kaio-Perez at the University of Alaska Anchorage. The senior defensive specialist has played in 17 matches this season, helping the Seawolves to a 10-7 record.

Kaio-Perez has 62 set assists and 339 digs this season. The weekly press release of Oct. 3 had this to say about Kaio-Perez.

“Keala Kaio-Perez -- known to her teammates as ‘Ala’ – has grown more comfortable each match in her new role as UAA’s pri-

2016-17 Volleyball Kaylee Spreier............................. Dakota State Alwaise Villa................................ Dakota State Lara Picht.................................... Oral Roberts Danika Daum.........................Henderson State Softball Jasmine Wessel............................ Metro State Lauren Oxford.................... West Virginia Tech Celyn Whitt.................................... Metro State Analace Apodaca...................Regis University Emily Selby............................... Ft. Lewis State Cassie Jones....................... Friends University Women’s Basketball Bree Paulson.......................... St. Bonaventure Zeynep Canbaz................... Middle Tennessee Sladjana Rakovic...............................Wyoming Deniz Dahligran................................ Tusculum Men’s Basketball Michael Connor.............. Point Park University Austin Payne...........................Dickinson State Baseball Brandon Bachar........................ Emporia State Alex Achermann...................Nebraka-Kearney Ryan Grasser............................ Ft. Hays State Stuart Eurich....................................... Bellevue Isaac Taylor...................... McPherson College Nate Giefer..............Colorado School of Mines Ian Fisher............................ University of Mary Lincoln Trujillo.................................Jamestown Soccer Matheus Campos................ Lady of the Lakes Matheus Ricardo... U. of Louisiana-Shreveport JP Santos.............. U. of Louisiana-Shreveport Billy Hoffman....................... Nebraska-Omaha Sierra Benavidez............... Benidictine College Janie McAmis.........................Black Hills State

mary libero and was rewarded with the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week honor for Sept.

20-26 ... Kaio-Perez led UAA with 54 total digs (7.71 dps) in the home wins over Saint Martin’s and SPU, earning her most in a 3-setter with 25 against the Saints, and now ranks 7th in the GNAC with 4.70 digs per set ... returning from and ACL injury suffered a year ago, the Waimanalo, Hawaii (Kailua HS) native and Western Nebraska CC transfer has posted at least 15 digs in all but two matches this season, including a career-best 32 in the 3-1 victory at Rocky Mountain ... Kaio-Perez is also tied with teammate Leah Swiss for the GNAC and ranks 30th nationally with 0.50 aces per set, recording multiple aces in nine of 15 matches.”

While Kaio-Perez is excelling at the Division II level in Alaska, WNCC and Leyton High graduate Katy Ernest is part of a University of Nebraska Kearney team that is 18-2 on the season and are ranked 8th in the AVCA poll that was released on Monday.

Parting Shot

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team are popular in the community. After the Trinidad State match, the Cougars had their picture taken with several different community people, including here a volleyball team from the area.

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