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NWC Hosts MSU-Billings Saturday
It’s kickoff weekend for Northwest College, and in celebration, the volleyball team will host a scrimmage against MSU-Billings on Saturday evening. Start time is scheduled for 7 p.m.
It will be a bit of a rebuilding year for the Lady Trappers, as the team returns six sophomores and welcomes 10 freshmen.
NWC head volleyball coach Shaun Pohlman said that though there are six returning players, it “doesn’t necessarily mean we have experience coming back.”
Of those six players, Holly Pittman from Valencia, California, is the only returner with significant playing time and was eighth in the lineup last season.
The other five returning players are Julianna Hughes of Lakewood, Colorado, Kiandra Franklin of Auburn, Washington, Samantha Waite of Shelley, Idaho, Aleksandra Saric of Niksic, Montenegro, and Breanna Donarski from Powell.
Pohlman said that Donarski has really grown into being a college libero — a roaming defensive player in the back row.
“She has worked for her opportunity to be the libero on this team,” said Pohlman.
Pohlman, now in his seventh year of coaching at NWC, said this year might be the toughest yet in terms of experience and the schedule ahead. In the first two weeks, NWC will face off against seven teams who played in the national tournament last season.
“That’s a hefty schedule,” Pohlman said. The Lady Trappers will officially kick off the season with a home game against Rocky Mountain JV on Tuesday at 7 p.m.
Then on Friday and Saturday, Sept. 1 and 2, the Lady Trappers will travel to the Salt Lake City Tournament to play against Otero Junior College and Salt Lake Community College on Friday and Miami-Dade College and College of Southern Idaho on Saturday.
On Sept. 8 and 9, the NWC volleyball team will head to College of Southern Idaho for the Starr Invitational. On Sept. 8th, NWC will play College of Central Florida and Monroe Community College. They will face off against Arizona Western and Hutchinson the following day.
“We could really be hurting in the first two weeks,” said Pohlman. Pohlman said the first priority for the team is “getting some people through those learning curves as fast as possible.”
The NJCAA Region IX North Tournament will take place in Sheridan on Nov. 1-4. The NJCAA Division I National Tournament is Nov. 16- 18 in Hutchinson, Kansas.