Jamestown, Marshall Split, MD Eastern Shore #1

#2 posting 8.23.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

COLLEGE RESULTS
Jamestown split the first two matches of the year at the Dickinson State tournament losing to Carroll College and beating MSU Western. Samantha Revering of Fergus Falls had 13 kills against MSU Western. From the Jamestown Sun.

SCRIMMAGE
Michigan State will hold their Green & White scrimmage today at 4 pm.

It was a 2-2 tie Marshall's second Green & White scrimmage. Andover's Megan Carlson played on both teams. She assisted on two blocks in the scrimmage with 5 kills and 13 digs.

SCHEDULES
Indiana will take part in Hoosier Hysteria again this year.

MEET THE FRESHMEN
The Wisconsin Badgers continue with their freshman feature. Today's subject is Janelle Gabrielson.

POLLS
Maryland Eastern Shore is #1 in the preseason MEAC poll. Holliday Eller of Benilde-St. Margaret's and Chanita Wesley of Breck play for MD ES.

Next up: later today with another out & about

All Star Game wrap, and Academics

#1 posting 7.31.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

ALL STAR WRAP UP
In case you haven't seen my report from last night here is the Marshall Independent's report on the event won by North Country Region.

ACADEMICS
MIAC teams Bethel, Carleton, Gustavus, Macalester, St. Mary's and St. Thomas received the American Volleyball Coaches Association Team Academic Award for the 2007-2008 season. UW Eau Claire was honored as well. From the Eau Claire Leader Telegram.

In the Big 10 Ohio State took AVCA honors.

SCHEDULE
The Buckeyes have released their 2008 schedule. They travel to Minnesota on Sunday, November 23.

YEARBOOK
The Wisconsin Badgers have released their 2008 volleyball yearbook.

Next up: tomorrow

Three (or Four) Coaching Hires

#1 posting 7.18.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

COACHING NEWS
Margaret Essler will return to coach New London-Spicer for the third time. She will be co-coach with Mimi Knutson, a former coach at Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa. They replace Kay Czarnetzki who resigned after last season. From the West Central Tribune.

Long time Minneota assistant Stephanie Hennen has been hired as head coach. From the Marshall Independent.

Kelli Kurth will return as Lincoln HI's head volleyball coach. Last couple lines in the Marshall Independent.

SCHEDULE
Marquette has released their 2008 volleyball schedule.

NATIONAL TEAM
Incoming 6-3 Illinois freshman Michelle Bartsch has made final 14 players on the way to 12 for the U.S. Women's Junior National Training Team.

EUROPEAN TRIP
Here are the photos from day 10 of Northern Lights European Trip. They journey from Athens to Paros Island.

Next up: tomorrow

Olympian Berg, Wisconsin #10, More Athens

#1 posting 7.17.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

OLYMPIAN BERG
Former Gopher Lindsey Berg has been selected to the American Olympic team. Berg also was on the 2004 team.

RECRUITING CLASS
Wisconsin has the tenth rated recruiting class in 2008 according to prepvolleyball.com.

TICKETS
The Gophers have season tickets available now, and will have single game tickets available starting Monday.

SCHEDULE
North Dakota State has released their 2008 volleyball schedule.

EUROPEAN TRIP
Northern Lights continue their journey across Europe with a blog entry from Natalie Walseth (awesome in Athens) and more Athens photos on day nine plus another blog entry, this time from Elly Braaten.

Next up: tomorrow

Cincinnati #15, Home Visit Dos & Don'ts

#1 posting 7.15.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

RECRUITING CLASS
The University of Cincinnati's 2008 volleyball recruiting class is ranked #15 in PrepVolleyball. Kelsey Brandl of Lakeville North is among those recruits.

HOME VISITS DOS AND DON'TS
I have come across College Volleyball Coach (anonymous) and the latest posting covers dos and don'ts on the home visit. The don't list includes things like take phone calls and going out with friends when the home visit is going on.
This is a good resource---look at the subject list on the right. The list includes advice to players, recruiting plans and other topics.

SCHEDULE
Iowa has released their 2008 schedule. The Hawkeyes are at Minnesota on Wednesday, October 15.

CONFERENCE NEWS
The Minnesota Community College Conference is now called the Minnesota College Athletic Conference. From the Rochester Post Bulletin.

Next up: tomorrow

US Youth National in Semis

#1 posting 7.9.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

US YOUTH NATIONAL TEAM
The US Youth National Team beat beat the Virgin Islands in a sweep. It was deja vu in each game 25-7 (three times). Ashley Wittman (Shakopee) is the team captain and had 9 points (4 kills, 1 block, 4 aces). Tori Dixon (Burnsville) also had 4 kills. Molly Kreklow (Blaine or Delano?) had 2 aces. They now move to the NORCECA Girls' Youth Continental Championship semis.
Previously the US team beat Trinidad & Tobago, and the Dominican Republic in sweeps.

GRAND PRIX
The Americans lost to Brazil in the first three in the first match of the final round of the Grand Prix. Former Gopher Lindsey Berg had 12 assists.

BROADCAST
Wisconsin will broadcast their entire 2008 volleyball season on Clear Channel Radio Madison and also Yahoo.

SCHEDULE
Northwestern has released their 2008 volleyball schedule. They open the Big 10 season at Minnesota on Friday, September 26.

Next up: tomorrow

Olympic Dreams, Summer on the Beach

#1 posting 6.25.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

COLLEGE DECISIONS
Jes Rients of Waterville-Elysian-Morristown is headed to Luther to play volleyball. From the Waseca County News.
Rients is the 66th player overall from the 2008 class to make a college decision. She is the 13th known to go to D3.

BIG 10 NEWS
The national champion Penn State volleyball teams visited the White House yesterday.

The Wisconsin Badgers spend the summer on the beach.

The Indiana Hoosiers have 8 newcomers to their squad this fall and they have a Q&A with each.

Illinois has released their 2008 schedule. They travel to Minnesota on Saturday, November 8.

OLYMPICS
There are two former Gophers on the preliminary Olympic roster--setter Lindsey Berg, and right side Cassie Busse. Scroll down to the end.
Berg is making the trip to Poland in the second week of the Grand Prix. Here is the Press release.

Next up: tomorrow

Northern Lights Shine in AAU Nationals

#1 posting 6.17.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

AAU NATIONALS
The Northern Lights program has eleven of their teams involved in the AAU Nationals in Florida. The 16-1, 17-1, 17-2 all went 3-0 yesterday.

COLLEGE SCHEDULE
High Point has released their fall schedule. MH Stephanie Wallin of Armstrong is on the High Point roster.

next up: tomorrow

Gopher Schedule, More Braegelman

#1 posting 6.13.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

FALL SCHEDULE
The Gophers have released their fall schedule. Minnesota will host two tournaments this year with the Diet Coke Classic on September 12-14. The next weekend they will host the Gopher Invitational. Their first home Big 10 game is against Northwestern on September 26.

AWARDS
Here is the Duluth News Tribune article on Vicky Braegelman and her upcoming NCAA D2 Female Athlete of the year award. Here is the UMD Press Release.

ARENA UPDATE
Iowa's Hawkeye Carver Arena will undergo renovations.

COLLEGE DECISIONS
Brittany Schreader of JWP will play volleyball for Bethany Lutheran College.

POLICE BLOTTER
Jane Passa, the NDSCS Athletic Director and volleyball coach, has been sentenced for drunken driving. From the Grand Forks Herald.

BOOK SALE
If you haven't noticed, you can order the Breakdown's volleyball book now. See the link (with photo) on the right.

next up: tomorrow.

South Dakota Hires

#1 posting 6.12.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

SOUTH DAKOTA HIRES
Matt Houk has been named the new volleyball coach at South Dakota. Houk has been an assistant at UW Green Bay and UW Milwaukee.

MORE COACHING NEWS
Lisa Bicknese has been hired at Kingsland. From the Spring Valley Tribune.

Rob Wolter has been hired as interim volleyball coach at UW Parkside. He had been an assistant there and also at South Dakota State, MSU Mankato, and Winona State.

AWARDS
Vicky Braegelman will receive the NCAA D2 female athlete of the year award on June 23 in New York. Braegleman played her high school ball at Albany and her college ball at UM Duluth. From the St. Cloud Times.

TOURNAMENTS
Minnesota North is off to the nationals JO tournaments in Dallas. The 18s and 14s qualified. From the Pine Journal.

SCHEDULE
Denver has released their schedule. Kresson Vreeman of Central Christian is on the Denver roster.

Next up: tomorrow

St. Benedict's Additions

#1 posting 6.11.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

ST. BENEDICT'S INCOMING
The St. Cloud Times looks at the new additions to the St. Benedict volleyball program--
Alex Lenzen, St. Cloud Cathedral, Libero
Hallie Noah, South Anchorage, RH
Chelsie Sobieck, Forest Lake, OH

This makes 59 known 2008 Minnesota players continuing to play volleyball post high school and the 8th and 9th headed to a D3 program.

SCHEDULE
North Carolina has released their 2008 schedule. One of their trips will be to Minnesota. Brianna Eskola of Columbia Heights is a libero for the Tar Heels.

AWARD
Audra Jeffers of Wisconsin received the Big Ten’s Outstanding Sportsmanship Award.

next up: tomorrow.

USD Interviews, Mankato West Hires,

#1 posting 6.6.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

COACHING NEWS
The University of South Dakota is interviewing two candidates for the head women's volleyball coaching job: Mary Schroeder-Miller, Briar Cliff head coach, and Matt Houk, former assistant at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay and UW-Milwaukee. From the Yankton Press & Dakotan.

Mary Nelson has been hired as girls volleyball coach at Mankato West. She was an assistant at West. From the Mankato Free Press.

TRANSFER
Laurel Heggernes has transferred from St. Benedict to St. Cloud State after two years. She played her high school ball at Mora. From the St. Cloud Times.

SCHEDULE
Bemidji State has released their 2008 volleyball schedule.

AWARDS
The Northern Lights held their banquet this week and Ashley Suapaia received the 2008 Maurice Batie Award of Excellence. The award was presented by Naomi Johnson, last year's winner. Suapaia will attend Minnesota this fall. Johnson plays for Northwestern. Both went to high school at Bloomington Kennedy.

BRANAGH AND THE BEACH
Former Gopher Nicole Branagh was named Olympic Athlete of the Week by USA Today. Branagh was named Most Outstanding Player of the FIVB Beach Volleyball Tournament in Barcelona, Spain last weekend.

Next up: tomorrow

Schumacher Signs, Worthington Hires

#1 posting 5.31.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

SIGNING
Allison Schumacher is headed to Jamestown College in North Dakota to play volleyball. She will also play basketball there. From the Jamestown Sun.

COACHING NEWS
Alumnae Melissa Schutz has been named the new volleyball coach at Worthington. Assisting her will be Jessica Hogan who had been the head coach at Fulda. From the Worthington Daily Globe.

BEACH VOLLEYBALL
Former Gopher Nicole Branagh and Elaine Youngs, the current #2 American team, are in the finals of the Barcelona Open. From NBC.

USA ADULT OPEN
Ellen Herman of Ohio University was named MVP of USA Adult Open Volleyball Championship. Herman played for the National A2 Red Team.

SCHEDULE
Iowa State has released their 2008 schedule.

Next up: tomorrow

Verbal, Tourney Results, SDSU Coaching Search, Pay to Play

#1 posting 5.13.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

VERBAL
Lindsey Sathre, a 5-11 MH from Osseo class of 2009, has verbally committed to Michigan Tech. She had 167 kills last year.

ROCHESTER TOURNAMENT
Mizuno Northern Lights 16-3 team won 3rd Place at the Rochester Cup this weekend. Northern Lights 16-2 won the event. Here is a photo of the NL 16-3 team along with the roster.

COACHING NEWS
South Dakota State has three candidates for the volleyball coaching job. All are D1 collegiate assistants.

SCHEDULES
The Minnesota State High School League has made adjustments to the volleyball schedules. The maximum amount of games in a tournament was raised from 12 to 15. From the StarTribune.

PURDUE'S SPRING TRIP
Purdue is off on their European trip. Day 1 was spent in the Czech Republic with Mandy Nichols describing the airports along the way. Sam Ainsworth has Day 2 with how to beat jet lag.

ATHLETIC FEES
Also in the StarTribune this morning they take a wide ranging look at the cost of high school athletics from the rural Minnesota to the Metro area. Activity fees of $320, elimination of programs, and other money saving or cost cutting are discussed. Robbinsdale needs to raise $13,000 to save middle school volleyball for example. It is important to read the comments after from the readers.
What is going to happen is the lower end kid is going to be pushed out of athletics. All players will pay $320, but not everyone is going to play equal time. Depth will suffer. The elite athlete will still have a place to play. However the youth programs, where a student may get their first taste and develop into a player, is where the problem will be. The players with money will make it. The best athletes may not be playing the sport.

SERVICE AWARD
the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) has awarded Patricia Hicks of Anoka-Ramsey CC with the 2008 Service Award for her significant contribution to college athletics. Hicks started the volleyball program at AR back in the 1970s. From the Coon Rapids Newspaper.

Next up: tomorrow

Two Signings, Purdue to Europe

#1 posting 4.30.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

SIGNINGS
Jamie Bauer of Durand is headed to UM Crookston to play volleyball. The 5-8 setter played one year at UW Stout. From the Eau Claire Leader-Telegram.

Lauren Carisch of Benilde-St. Margaret's will be playing volleyball at the University of St. Thomas next fall. She is a 5-10 MB who plays for M1 in the off season. She is on the 18-2 team this year. This makes 50 known 2008 players headed off to college to play volleyball. Carisch is the 7th known player headed to D3.

BANQUETS & AWARDS
Marquette held their end of the year volleyball banquet and passed out awards.

SPRING TOUR
Purdue is headed to Europe and will play volleyball in four countries: The Czech Republic, Austria, Slovenia and Italy.

FALL SCHEDULES
Ohio has released their 2008 volleyball schedule. Amanda Andersen of Centennial plays for Ohio.

next up: tomorrow

Lursen Verbal, Kuklock Hired, 2 Schedules

#1 posting 4.26.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

VERBAL
Karlee Lursen, Eastview has verballed Southeast Missouri State. Lursen is a 5-7 RH who had 132 kills in the 2006 season for the Lightning. She plays with Northern Lights 17 1s in the JO season.

COACHING NEWS
Apple Valley has hire Dan Kuklock as their new volleyball coach. Kuklock is currently Head Coach for Crossfire 18-2 and Assistant Coach at Burnsville High School. He previously worked for Midwest Volleyball Warehouse/Mizuno Northern Lights. He will be replacing Dan Seppala who resigned after one season to spend more time with his family.
As a sad aside, Dan Seppala and his wife came home from a Spring Break trip to find that their Richfield home had burned down. It is a complete loss and their baby is due in about 4 months. Hopefully they will be in temporary housing by the time their little girl arrives.

SPRING SCHEDULE
Marquette is hosting their final spring event today. UM Duluth, UW Green Bay and Marquette Alumnae are taking part. The event starts at 9 am.

FALL SCHEDULE
Ohio State has released their fall schedule. They are in the Wichita State and Kent State tournaments. They travel out to California for a pair of games. They face the Gophers at home on Oct. 24 and travel to Minneapolis on Nov. 22.

Next up: tomorrow

Badger Schedules

#1 posting 4.24.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

SCHEDULE
The Wisconsin Badgers have released their fall 2008 schedule. They travel to Kentucky, UNLV, and Marquette for tournaments, besides hosting their own. They are at Minnesota on September 27 and host the Gophers on November 14.

Today the Badgers face their alumni at 6:30. From the Badger Herald.

next up: tomorrow

Gopher Schedule 2008

#1 posting 1.22.2008
your daily dose of girls volleyball news & information

GOPHER SCHEDULE
Mark your calendars--here is a preliminary look at the Minnesota Gopher schedule. Always a big game, the Wisconsin Badgers are in town on September, 27. Penn State, the national champs, are at the Pavilion on October, 11.
The two tournaments for the Gophers are on back to back weekends in mid September.

Date(s), Event, Location
Aug 23 Alumni Match, MN Sports Pavilion
TOURNAMENT SEASON
Aug 29-31 Creighton Invite (Creighton, MN, TAMU, LSU) Omaha, NE
Sep 4-6 Hawaii Invite (HI, MN, WY, Cinncinnati) Honolulu, HI
Sep 12-14 Diet Coke Classic (MN, California, Notre Dame, Cal Poly) MN Sports Pavilion
Sep 19,20 Gopher Invite (MN, UNC, Winthrop, TCU) MN Sports Pavilion
BIG 10 SEASON
Sep 26 Northwestern MN Sports Pavilion
Sep 27 Wisconsin MN Sports Pavilion
Oct 3 @ Illinois Champaign, IL
Oct 4 @ Purdue W.Lafayette, IN
Oct 10 Indiana MN Sports Pavilion
Oct 11 Penn State MN Sports Pavilion
Oct 15 Iowa MN Sports Pavilion
Oct 17 Mich State MN Sports Pavilion
Oct 24 @ Ohio State Columbus, OH
Oct 25 @ Michigan Ann Arbor, MI
Oct 31 @ Penn State State College, PA
Nov 1 @ Indiana Bloomington, IN
Nov 7 Purdue MN Sports Pavilion
Nov 8 Illinois MN Sports Pavilion
Nov 14 @ Wisconsin Madison, WI
Nov 15 @ Northwestern Evanston, IL
Nov 21 Michigan MN Sports Pavilion
Nov 22 Ohio State MN Sports Pavilion
Nov 26 @ Iowa Iowa City, IA
Nov 29 @ Mich State E.Lansing, MI

next up: tomorrow morning