The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball opened practice over the weekend with a new coach and 14 players that are anxious to make some noise in the region.
                Fatima Balza, who won three national titles in her playing days including one at WNCC in 2007 and then two at Penn State, welcomed nine sophomores and five freshmen to the team when they reported for practice on Friday.
                Jaylen Nachtigall, a 5-foot-9 hitter from Hot Springs, South Dakota, who red-shirted a year ago, is excited for the coming season.
                “We are so excited to be back in the gym and being together again,” Nachtigall said. “Our focus is to be better than we were last year and reach our highest goals this year.”
                A year ago, the Cougars finished 16-18 and went 0-2 at the regional tournament. This year, that outlook is totally different.
                “The early practices have been great and everyone has been putting their best foot forward into creating a well-rounded team with a bright season ahead of us,” Nachtigall said.
                The team has undergone individual work sessions in the morning under first-year head coach Balza and then had a team practice in the afternoon. On top of practices, Balza has the team doing several community events together, including working the Scotts Bluff County Fair on Saturday and the team will be at the National Night Out Tuesday night in downtown Scottsbluff.
                What makes this team something to watch out for is the talent on the squad.
                “The talent on the team this year is well spread out,” Nachtigall said. “We have strong positions all around.”
                The Cougars have seven sophomores that saw action a year ago that will be playing this season. WNCC sophomore Kyana Gabriel will redshirt this season along with Nachtigall.
                The other seven all saw action including hitters 5-9 Dani Cruz of Guadalajara, Mexico; 5-11 Lilly Zwart of Nelson, New Zealand; 5-11 Chloe Grady of Kaneohe, Hawaii; 6-1 Finja Schul of Bergisch Gladbach, Germany; 5-6 Dessiah Christopher of Naples, Florida, and 5-10 Tamika Eastman of Harrison, Nebraska.
                Starting libero 5-4 Taylor Tyser of Laramie, Wyoming also returns.
                The five freshmen are led by Gering’s Alex Gonzalez-Orozco, a 5-6 libero. Also new to the program are setters 5-9 Nora Marginean of Napoca, Romania, and 4-11 Juju Melendez of Ellenwood, Georgia, along with hitters 5-7 Ahleejah Tovo-Sunia of Laie, Hawaii, and 5-11 Nadiyyah Northern from Avondale, Arizona.
                WNCC will go through two-a-days for the next two weeks. The Cougars will have a Region IX scrimmage tournament on Saturday, August 17 in Sterling, Colorado, before opening the season August 23-24 at the Reiver Classic in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The first home match is slated for Tuesday, August 27 against Eastern Wyoming College.
                Nachtigall said there is new outlook for the coming year.
                “All smiles and excitement heading into pre-season which will be carried into the upcoming season,” she said. “Our coach/team dynamic is going great and should be a successful season to come.”
 
WNCC soccer teams open practices with talent
 
                The Western Nebraska Community College soccer teams opened practice over the weekend with plenty of talent on the men’s and women’s programs.
                The Cougar men return 13 players from a year ago and welcome another 14 freshmen to the roster. The Cougar men went 8-5-3 a year ago and fell in the Region IX semifinals to Otero College.
                “The team is actually talented, but talent is nothing without work,” sophomore Paul Denz of Laufenburg, Germany, said. “We, as a team, have to lock in for the next months and win every game.”
                Both the men and women have only had a few practices so far as they get ready for their first competition of the season on Saturday, August 10, when they have their annual alumni game/scrimmage with the women’s game at 1 p.m. and the men’s game at 3 p.m.
                “Practices have been going good so far,” Denz said. “We got to help the new players to perform well in the new environment. If everyone brings in every single session his best, we as a team are going to be successful.”
                The women’s team also have a lot of returners as nine ladies return from a year ago along with a freshmen class that has 10 players coming into the fold.
                Valentina Cueva, a freshman center midfielder from Lima, Peru, said they have had two friendly games over the weekend and will hit the ground running in practices this week.
                “Practices have been going well,” she said. “We had two friendly games and that way we could know more about each other.”
                The Cougar women went 4-7-2 a year ago and lost in the first-round of the Region IX playoffs to Laramie County Community College a year ago.
                The goal this year, according to Cueva, is to bring the Region IX title back to WNCC. The last time the women won regionals was 2008.
                “We are a really talented team,” Cueva said. “Our goal is to be regional champions, create a family, and be a united team.”
                The women return seven players that saw a lot of action a year ago with the Villagomez cousins/sisters leading the way. Emily is a goalkeeper from Aurora, Colorado, while her cousins are sisters from Compeche, Mexico in Ashley and Maria Villagomez. The women also have Lizbeth Barrera of Aurora, Colorado, Ariel Veliz of Wellington, Colorado, Alejandra Rodriquez of Quitor, Ecuador, along with Cueva.
                Yasmin Urbina played a few matches a year ago before injuring her knee and was sidelined. Jade Brothwell is ready to go after redshirting a year ago. Brothwell is from Torrington, Wyoming.
                The women also have a 10 freshmen including Scottsbluff’s Mariah Russel.
                The men have plenty of returners including Joao Bisneto, Roberto Rivero, Jeronimo Diaz, Maxime Niybaho, Lucas Ovalle, Eduardo Oliveira, Guilherme Lindolfo, Isrrael Rodriguez, Simon Echeverry, Alex Carrillo, Michael Escobar, and Joah Menezes.
                After the alumni game on Saturday, the Cougars will open the season for real on Thursday August 22 when they host Utah State Eastern with the women going at 10 a.m. and the men facing Utah State Eastern at 12 noon.