Volleyball | 8.30.16

ST. PAUL, Minn. – The top-ranked Concordia-St. Paul volleyball team is set to kick off the 2016 season this weekend on their home court in the Holiday Inn Volleyball Clash at the Gangelhoff Center.
 
Concordia enters 2016 after another strong season that saw them claim their 12^th NSIC regular title in 13 years as well as their fourth NSIC Tournament title before reaching the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, also for the 12^th time in 13 years. They return the majority of a lineup that went 18-2 in league play and 29-5 overall and will look to fight to return to the top after being knocked out in the Central Regional each of the past two seasons.
 
The Golden Bears open up play Thursday night against #5 Western Washington before facing Truman and Western Washington again on Friday as well as #17 Northern State on Saturday. CSP continues the tough early season slate the following weekend as they travel to Denver for the Colorado Premier Challenge before returning home to open NSIC play. CSP will take on Upper Iowa on the road on Sept. 15 before facing #21 Winona State in the NSIC home opener on Sept. 17.
 
Difficult matchups are nothing new for Concordia as both early season tournaments as well as action in the NSIC have perennially featured some of the top teams in the country.
 
"Between our preseason tournaments and playing in our conference, playing a tough schedule is something we've become accustomed to over the years. We never think about what teams are ranked, we just think that we've got another good team to play tonight and we know we have to be ready to play. We can't take any days off," said head coach Brady Starkey.
 
With the start of the season just a few days away, the Golden Bears still see plenty of areas where the team can grow and improve heading into this season.
 
Two areas that the Golden Bears have been focusing on since the end of last season have been ball control and serving. "I think that let us down a little bit last year and we have been working pretty hard on those aspects of the game since the spring," Starkey said of his team. "The girls have gotten in the gym and done some good things this summer but it's still something that we have to get back to this fall and get to another level and have some success this year."
 
A way that the Golden Bears will be looking to take that next step and bring things to another level on the defensive end is through their intensity and energy on the court. "Intensity, especially on the defensive end, is something that will help us get where we want to be this season," pointed out Starkey. He added, "We've shown signs of it this preseason and we're hoping that we can consistently see that level of intensity."
 
One thing that will be helpful for this season's squad taking a step forward is experience. CSP lost just two players off an already veteran team last season and enters play in 2016 with 10 upperclassmen, including six seniors. Concordia brings back all but two of their starting lineup while all of last season's reserve unit returns with another year of experience. Starkey said about the team's experience, "We haven't had the typical preseason where we need to get the freshmen up to speed, which has allowed us to hit the ground running and pick up where we left off in the spring."
 
POSITION PREVIEWS
Setter
The Golden Bears will feature some familiar faces setting up the offense as 2015 All-America honorable mention selection Kasey Williams and sophomore Elizabeth Mohr both return this season.
 
Williams is back for her fifth year with the Golden Bears and her third year as a regular starter. With 3,229 assists in her CSP career, the senior setter ranks fourth all-time in program history while her career mark of 12.27 assists per set also ranks fourth. Last season she ranked third in the country with 12.20 assists per set as she trailed only fellow NSIC setters Drew Smith and Ashley Hinsch in that category. "Kasey's all-around game is really solid. She plays at the net well, she plays strong defense, and has a good concept of how to run our offense," Starkey said of Williams.
 
Mohr got her first taste of collegiate volleyball last year as a freshman as she made 22 appearances playing either as setter or defensive specialist. On the year she picked up 50 assists, 40 digs and 21 service aces and will look to take another step forward in year two. Starkey said of his sophomore setter, "Elmo has really great hands and gives us a different tempo and different dynamic from the setter position."
 
Outside Hitter
Concordia's group of outside hitters marks another spot on the court where the team returns an experienced unit with depth as Emma Lange, Anna Schlaak, Anna Pioske, Mariya Sampson, Hope Schiller and Brooklyn Lewis are all back from last year's team.
 
Lange, a two-time All-American on the right side, is coming off perhaps her best season as a Golden Bear as she set new career highs in hitting percentage (.354), kills per set (2.90) and solo blocks (20) while falling just short of her career-best mark in blocks per set (0.91). Her .354 hitting percentage in 2015 put her at 25th in NCAA Division II and seventh in the NSIC while her 0.91 blocks per set ranked 11th in the league. "Emma is a really strong blocker that defends the net well for us and is a hitter that is tough to stop when we're in system," Starkey said about his senior right side.
 
Schlaak registered her second consecutive All-NSIC First Team selection last season after tying for the team lead with 3.17 kills per set, 13^th in the NSIC, and ranking second on the squad with 2.95 digs per set. The versatile senior enters her final year with 838 kills and 694 digs in her career to go along with a .953 receive percentage as she looks to close out her career with another strong campaign. "She does a really good job of playing the entire game well, whether it's front row or back row she solidifies what we are doing as a team," Starkey said of Schlaak.
 
Pioske joined the Golden Bears last season after spending her first two seasons of her career as a starter at Division I University of North Dakota. The Waconia native stepped in right away to make 20 appearances while putting up a solid 2.64 kills and 1.91 digs per set. Pioske came on strong later in the year as she registered four double-doubles in November and will look to carry that over into this season. Starkey said of his senior outside hitter, "She is pretty dynamic and can play well above the block and she also provides a very solid serve-receive which really helps us a lot."
 
Sampson battled some injuries during her sophomore campaign but provided some solid offensive production while on the court. In her 12 appearances, she collected 2.70 kills per set as she picked up 81 kills on 208 swings. Healthy this year, she will once again be counted on to provide an attacking presence for the team. "Mariya is a really explosive hitter that gets up and takes a great rip every time and you know that you are going to get instant offense whenever she steps on the court," said Starkey of the junior.
 
Lewis enters her third season at CSP looking to break into the lineup as a regular for the first time. The Kasson-Mantorville grad has made just seven appearances in her career but has registered 11 kills in her limited action. Starkey said, "Brooklyn is another dynamic player that is a huge jumper with a really live arm that can provide instant offense. Coming off a great spring, we hope to see the consistency grow as she gains more experience."
 
Schiller carved out a role in the back row last season as a freshman for the Golden Bears as she appeared in 33 matches, collecting 2.12 digs per set to go along with a team-leading 41 service aces. The sophomore will be once again be in contention for a role both as an outside hitter as well as in the back row. "She is a lot like Anna Schlaak in that she is a solid six-rotation player that is great in serve-receive and a crafty hitter at the net to go along with probably the toughest serve on the team," said Starkey of the Anoka native.
 
Middle Blocker
Despite losing mainstay Heather Schiller from the group, CSP still heads into 2016 with a formidable trio in the middle as All-American Riley Hanson is joined by junior Shelby Seurer and freshman Sara Macek.
 
Hanson, the NSIC Preseason Player of the Year and two-time All-America First Team selection, will look to build off of a tremendous junior year that saw her break the single-season school record for hitting percentage (.414) while tying for the team lead with 3.17 kills per set. The senior heads into her final season as the all-time leader in career hitting percentage at CSP at .392 while also ranking eighth in blocks with 333 and 12^th in kills with 1,126. "Riley is probably one of the most dynamic hitters we've had here and she can terminate from pretty much anywhere on the court which opens things up for the rest of our players. She has also improved immensely as a blocker as she has tried to make her blocking as dominant as her hitting," said Starkey.
 
Seurer stepped into a reserve role for Concordia last season after transferring in from Division I Northern Illinois was very productive with an impressive 13 kills on 24 attempts for a .458 hitting percentage. With the graduation of Schiller, Seurer will have an opportunity to step into an even bigger role this season as she fights for a starting spot. "Shelby is a crafty hitter with a live arm that is deceptive offensively. She is a solid team blocker that fits well into our team system defensively as well," Starkey said of Seurer.
 
Macek, the team's lone freshman, steps onto campus with a real shot at playing time right off the bat. The Monticello High School grad gained some experience this spring as she was able to practice with the team as an early enrollee in advance of this season. "She is a really explosive player that plays probably higher than anyone on our team right now and her arm is getting better each day. Blocking is an area where she can make some strides but we've already seen some great improvements early in the year," said Starkey of his new addition.
 
Libero
Perhaps the biggest change in the Concordia lineup comes at the libero position as the Golden Bears look to replace four-year starter Taylor Dordan. CSP enters the season with three candidates vying for the spot as senior Emily McDonough will be joined by junior transfer Taylor Schile and sophomore Taylor Soine in the competition.
 
McDonough enters in with a lot of experience in a number of different roles for the Golden Bears. After spending the early part of her career as an All-American outside hitter, the Stillwater native shifted to a more defensive role last year after returning from an injury the year before. In her 29 matches, McDonough contributed 254 digs (2.67 per set), fourth best on the team, to bring her career total to 720. This year, she will be asked to play another new role as she shifts over to the libero spot for her final year on campus. "She has been a big part of our ball control in whatever role she's been in and we hope that she will bring that to the table along with some great defense in the back row," Starked stated about his sixth-year senior.
 
Schile joins Concordia after two seasons at Division I University of Montana where she saw extensive playing time as a freshman. After missing much of last season, she will look to bounce back and fight for playing time in year one at CSP. Starkey said of the Apple Valley native, "She brings some solid serve-receive and has a really tough serve while also playing good positional defense."
 
Soine saw limited action last season with four appearances and will look to work her way into more action this year after the graduation of Dordan. "She is another strong serve-receiver that can play good defense. She is still catching up to the speed of the game but has shown flashes of being a really strong libero," said Starkey of the sophomore.
 
Concordia's opening match is set to begin at 7 p.m. on Thursday before back-to-back matches at 12:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. on Friday before concluding play in the tournament at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.