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ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia University volleyball team is set to begin their pursuit of a seventh consecutive NCAA Division II National Championship. CU enters the season with high expectations as the preseason No. 1 team in AVCA Preseason Poll. The Golden Bears will have some continuity with two returning First Team All-Americans in seniors
Amanda Konetchy (Victoria, Minn. ) and
Kayla Koenecke (Delano, Minn. ) but will have some new faces in the lineup this year.
"We are trying to get back into a rhythm with four new kids starting and we're trying to get things figured out there. We know that we have some talented kids to fill these spots," head coach
Brady Starkey said about the roster turnover from last year. "Communication is big for us with four new starters in the lineup. We want to see the team continue to gel as a unit on the court over the next few weeks and if that happens we could be a very tough team late in the year."
Things won't be easy early in the season for the Golden Bears as they face five ranked opponents in their first seven games with the other two teams receiving votes. "It's going to be interesting in the early going. We schedule tough every year knowing that we could be taking some hits early and our record could really be anything after the first two weeks of the season," Starkey said.
The NSIC shapes up to be a strong league again this year with four teams in the top 25 and two more teams receiving votes. The region is even stronger. Starkey, talking about the depth of competition in the area, said "our conference is ridiculous and our region has six of the top eight teams in the country in it. The conference has half a dozen more teams that are right there as well which will make the competition even tighter in the league."
Two spots in the lineup that are expected to be strengths again this year are on the right side and at setter.
At right side Concordia returns
Kayla Koenecke, a three-time All-American. "Kayla is one of the top players in the country and is an extremely efficient player. Hitting nearly .400 from the right side is a difficult thing to do. She will be relied on even more this year and hopefully she is able to maintain her efficiency. Defenses will continue to key on her as they have in the past," said Starkey of the senior hitter.
At setter the Golden Bears return another three time All-American in
Amanda Konetchy, who will once again be counted on to orchestrate the offense. When asked about the strengths of Konetchy as a player, Starkey stated, "Amanda brings tremendous accuracy as a setter. We call her 'the robot' because it's like having a robot out there with her consistency. She is able to relieve a lot of pressure on the serve receive with her ability to go get balls and still put the set where she wants. Having that asset solves a lot of problems."
Sophomore
Kasey Williams (Cross Plains, Wis.) will also be in the mix for the setter position, if needed.
The Golden Bears look to have a lot of depth at the libero position, returning three players who all got playing time in that role last season. Starkey will look for
Taylor Dordan (Blaine, Minn.) to build off of her solid freshman campaign last year. Starkey said, "Dordan emerged as the starter last year and was a dynamic player defensively for us. She receives the ball well and she made some big plays for us throughout the year."
Also fighting for the libero spot are senior
Cassie Weaver (Lakeville, Minn. ) and Junior
Lisa Atkinson (Northfield, Minn. ).
Weaver is a solid receiver who has been around the program for a few years and will provide experience and knowledge of the game to the team.
Atkinson is an athletic player who can provide big plays defensively. Starkey pointed out, "all three players are so comparable. The two that aren't playing will also be used in the back row in the rotation to fill in defensively and on the serve receive."
Competition for playing time at outside hitter and middle blocker looks to be strong with many players fighting for playing time in each spot.
On the outside there are four players in the mix.
Senior
Kara Pioske (Waconia, Minn. ) will be counted on for a likely increased role this year. Starkey said of Pioske, "Kara is a senior returning for a fifth year and she played in the back row for us quite a bit last year and was solid in the serve receive. She has shown great ability to terminate the ball when healthy and she will be counted on defensively in the back while also contributing more offense on the outside."
Sophomore
Emily McDonough (Stillwater, Minn. ) will also be looked to for a bigger role this year. McDonough is one of our best defensive players who can also terminate balls in the front row."
Senior
Erienne Lauersdorf (Watertown, Wis. ) has filled the role of serving specialist the past few seasons and has thrived there, but could also be looked to more on the outside this season. She is a crafty, undersized player who can get kills in a variety of ways.
Anna Schlaak (New Richland, Minn.) is another player in the mix. Schlaak is a sophomore who plays a very controlled consistent game. She is a player who rarely hits the ball out of bounds or makes mistakes.
In the middle there are three talented young players who will be competing for spots.
Sophomore
Heather Schiller (Coon Rapids, Minn.) could see a bump in playing time this year. Starkey said of Schiller's improvement over the last year, "Heather had an outstanding spring last year in practice and has carried it over to the fall. She is a hoppy player who can terminate the ball and provides a good block. She didn't get to play much last year but she will be a pleasant surprise to people this year."
Freshmen
Riley Hanson (Nevis, Minn.) and
Emma Lange (Caledonia, Minn.) both come in as highly touted recruits who will have an opportunity to play right away.
Starkey said of Hanson, "Riley is a very athletic player with one of the fastest arms I've seen in a while. She is a smaller player than Lange and Schiller but is a very fast player who can move around and cause problems for the other team. Like many young players she is learning and improving as a blocker and is making strides on the defensive end."
Starkey said of Lange, "Lange is a raw athlete who is a big, imposing presence in the middle. She is adjusting to the speed of the college game but once she gets it she will be very tough to stop. She has the potential to be a monster blocker for us."
The six-time National Champions kick off their season this Friday, September 6th, with matches against Colorado School of Mines at 1 p.m. and Hillsdale College at 7:30 p.m. the Concordia University Tournament in St. Paul. On Saturday, the Golden Bears face #20 Wayne State at 11 a.m. and #9 Indianapolis at 7:30 p.m. They finish off the tournament on Sunday at 1 p.m. with a match against #21 Wingate.
The tournament field looks strong, featuring five ranked teams with the other receiving votes. Tournament play is set to begin at 9 a.m. The schedule, live stats and live video can all be found in the links above.
