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GRIZZLY OUTSIDE ATTACKER Pulotu Manoa, second from left, was one of 13 individual competitors at the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament named to the All-Tournament Team Saturday in Casper, Wyo. Other All-Tournament Team honorees include, from left, Cherie Adorno DeJesus and Erica Zembyla of Hillsborough Community College, Tampa, Fla.; Larissa Focossi, Iowa Western Community College, Council Bluffs; Fabiana Andrade and Jady Gerotto of Western Nebraska Community College, Scottsbluff; Teodora Tepavac, Northwest College, Powell, Wyo.; Alexandra Espinosa and Regan Harr, College of Southern Idaho, Twin Falls; and Yue Wu, Polk State College, Winter Haven, Fla. Other All-Tournament Team honorees included Jordyn Keamo, Blinn College, Brenham, Texas; Aubrey Wilson, Hutchinson Community College, Hutchinson, Kan.; and MVP Tawnee Luafalemana, College of Southern Idaho. (Photo provided)
GRIZZLY OUTSIDE ATTACKER Pulotu Manoa, second from left, was one of 13 individual competitors at the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament named to the All-Tournament Team Saturday in Casper, Wyo. Other All-Tournament Team honorees include, from left, Cherie Adorno DeJesus and Erica Zembyla of Hillsborough Community College, Tampa, Fla.; Larissa Focossi, Iowa Western Community College, Council Bluffs; Fabiana Andrade and Jady Gerotto of Western Nebraska Community College, Scottsbluff; Teodora Tepavac, Northwest College, Powell, Wyo.; Alexandra Espinosa and Regan Harr, College of Southern Idaho, Twin Falls; and Yue Wu, Polk State College, Winter Haven, Fla. Other All-Tournament Team honorees included Jordyn Keamo, Blinn College, Brenham, Texas; Aubrey Wilson, Hutchinson Community College, Hutchinson, Kan.; and MVP Tawnee Luafalemana, College of Southern Idaho. (Photo provided)

Grizzly Volleyball team receives Sportsmanship Award at national tourney

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REFLECTING THEIR DESIRE to be good sports in all situations, the Grizzlies received the Sportsmanship Award at the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament Saturday in Casper, Wyo. With their trophy above are, front row from left Guro Froburg, Lara Temel, Stephanie Phillips, Gabby Edmondson (partially hidden)Alyssa Young and Abigail Bergman; back row: Head Coach Paula Wiedemann, Ashley Bishton, Pulotu Manoa, Susannah Kelley, Zori Curry, Breanna Taylor, Autumn Reese, Maja Petronijevic, Blanca Izquierdo and Assistant Coach Briana Walsh. (Photo Provided)
REFLECTING THEIR DESIRE to be good sports in all situations, the Grizzlies received the Sportsmanship Award at the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament Saturday in Casper, Wyo. With their trophy above are, front row from left Guro Froburg, Lara Temel, Stephanie Phillips, Gabby Edmondson (partially hidden)Alyssa Young and Abigail Bergman; back row: Head Coach Paula Wiedemann, Ashley Bishton, Pulotu Manoa, Susannah Kelley, Zori Curry, Breanna Taylor, Autumn Reese, Maja Petronijevic, Blanca Izquierdo and Assistant Coach Briana Walsh. (Photo Provided)

CASPER, Wyo. – They may not have won a national title, but the Missouri State University-West Plains Grizzly Volleyball team brought home a trophy that is representative of the foundation on which the program is built – the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament’s Sportsmanship Award.

“We were surprised and thrilled to receive this honor,” Grizzly Volleyball Head Coach Paula Wiedemann said. “This award has a lot to do with the culture of our team and what we believe – showing sportsmanship through wins, losses and being respectful in all situations. As a program, we take a lot of pride in this.”

The Grizzlies finished the season 26-12 after placing eighth this past weekend at the three-day event in Casper, Wyoming. They opened the tournament with a 16-25, 25-22, 25-22, 27-29, 15-13 win over 10th seeded North Idaho College, Coeur D’Alene, then lost to second seeded Western Nebraska Community College, Scottsbluff, 19-25, 25-22, 20-25, 21-25 in the quarterfinals on Thursday, Nov. 19. On Friday, Nov. 20, they lost a five-set thriller to No. 6 seeded Polk State College, Winter Haven, Florida, 25-15, 18-25, 25-23, 17-25, 14-16, and dropped their last match of the tournament Saturday, Nov. 21, to ninth seeded Blinn College, Brenham, Texas, 20-25, 25-14, 17-25, 23-25.

Although they are happy with the recognition they received as a team, Wiedemann admitted she was disappointed with the outcome of the tournament for her players, who had worked so hard throughout the season. “Team chemistry is so important. It helps you build confidence, and that confidence helps you become consistent in your play. We really found our rhythm during the last five or six weeks of the season. Everything we did in practice and in games furthered that process. Everyone stepped up in their role and embraced what they were doing for each other. We became fighters. We were becoming the team we needed to be to make a run at the national tournament.

“But there are always things that can affect team chemistry, confidence and consistency, especially when you start dealing with injuries to key players. But I was proud of how our team handled the situation and came together and did some great things in a short amount of time,” Wiedemann said.

At times throughout the tournament, the Grizzlies showed brilliance, and at other times they struggled, which seemed indicative of the adjustments they were forced to make in the final weeks of the season due to injuries to sophomore outside attacker Gabby Edmondson and sophomore setter Susannah Kelley.

“The worst place for a good team to be is on a roller coaster, and that’s where we were at the tournament, and that’s when the injuries affected our confidence,” Wiedemann said. “Our offensive consistency wasn’t at the same level as the defensive effort that was being put forth. If it had been, we would have finished in a different place, I believe.”

Although Edmondson was able to return to the team in time to play in the tournament, she still wasn’t 100 percent, and Kelley wasn’t unable to compete at all. “Susannah was the glue for this team, especially the sophomores, because of what they experienced last year. She has been the quarterback for this team for a year and a half, and it was so hard to see her not get a chance to finish what this group started,” Wiedemann said.

“But (freshman setter) Blanca (Izquierdo) came in and did such a phenomenal job running the offense for us. I’m really proud of her and the job she did,” the coach added. “I felt like our freshmen really came into their own throughout the tournament and are already looking to build on what we have experienced this past weekend. Autumn (Reese) absolutely killed it defensively and passing for us, and her presence on the floor has only grown over the past month. And Stephanie (Phillips) led our attackers in hitting percentage and put together a very good tournament offensively for us. This group of freshmen understand the dynamics that have to be in place to play at this level.”

GRIZZLY OUTSIDE ATTACKER Pulotu Manoa, second from left, was one of 13 individual competitors at the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament named to the All-Tournament Team Saturday in Casper, Wyo. Other All-Tournament Team honorees include, from left, Cherie Adorno DeJesus and Erica Zembyla of Hillsborough Community College, Tampa, Fla.; Larissa Focossi, Iowa Western Community College, Council Bluffs; Fabiana Andrade and Jady Gerotto of Western Nebraska Community College, Scottsbluff; Teodora Tepavac, Northwest College, Powell, Wyo.; Alexandra Espinosa and Regan Harr, College of Southern Idaho, Twin Falls; and Yue Wu, Polk State College, Winter Haven, Fla. Other All-Tournament Team honorees included Jordyn Keamo, Blinn College, Brenham, Texas; Aubrey Wilson, Hutchinson Community College, Hutchinson, Kan.; and MVP Tawnee Luafalemana, College of Southern Idaho. (Photo provided)
GRIZZLY OUTSIDE ATTACKER Pulotu Manoa, second from left, was one of 13 individual competitors at the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship Tournament named to the All-Tournament Team Saturday in Casper, Wyo. Other All-Tournament Team honorees include, from left, Cherie Adorno DeJesus and Erica Zembyla of Hillsborough Community College, Tampa, Fla.; Larissa Focossi, Iowa Western Community College, Council Bluffs; Fabiana Andrade and Jady Gerotto of Western Nebraska Community College, Scottsbluff; Teodora Tepavac, Northwest College, Powell, Wyo.; Alexandra Espinosa and Regan Harr, College of Southern Idaho, Twin Falls; and Yue Wu, Polk State College, Winter Haven, Fla. Other All-Tournament Team honorees included Jordyn Keamo, Blinn College, Brenham, Texas; Aubrey Wilson, Hutchinson Community College, Hutchinson, Kan.; and MVP Tawnee Luafalemana, College of Southern Idaho. (Photo provided)

The tournament’s Sportsmanship Award wasn’t the only hardware the Grizzlies brought home. Sophomore outside hitter Pulotu Manoa was named to the All-Tournament Team. “I’m really happy for Lotu being named to the All-Tournament Team,” Wiedemann said. “I love watching her play, how she can dominated on the court. She has become such a solid six rotation player. She led the team in kills (4.61 per set) and was second in digs (3.56 per set) during the tournament. It also was great that her family was there to celebrate with us. I know they are so proud of her.”

Wiedemann also praised a group of Missouri State-West Plains students who made the trip to Casper with Dean of Student Services Dr. Angela Totty, as well as the team’s tournament host family, Kevin and Ruth Christopherson, and the Manoas and Kelleys for attending the tournament to cheer on the Grizzlies. “Their support in the arena was so wonderful,” the coach said. She also thanked everyone who tuned into the matches as they were streamed online to support the team. “We are forever grateful for the following our team receives. It means the world to us!

“Looking back at the tournament, I don’t think this team deserved the finish they got, based on the work they put in throughout the season. But as hard as this is right now, we have a lot to be thankful for. We can reflect on just how good this season was and how hard these kids worked to make it great,” Wiedemann said.

For more information about the Grizzly Volleyball team, visit the team’s website at http://wp.missouristate.edu/grizzly/vb/.  For more information about the national tournament, visit http://njcaacasper.net/.