Saturday’s third-place finish at the NJCAA national tournament was nothing new for the Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team.

The Cougars now have finished in the top three at the national tournament for four straight years, which currently is the longest streak by any team. Miami Dade College holds the record of finishing third or higher. The Sharks did it nine straight years from 1996-2005.

WNCC, which was making its 11th consecutive appearance in the national tournament, earned its third-place finish after topping Salt Lake Community College in four sets Saturday in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The Cougars looked to be in great shape to make the championship match after holding a lead against Missouri State-West Plains in Friday’s semifinals. However, West Plains put together a stunning rally to beat WNCC in five sets.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa – For the second straight year, the Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team earned a third-place finish in the NJCAA National Volleyball Tournament.

WNCC won Saturday’s third-place match over Salt Lake Community College by scores of 25-17, 27-25, 23-25, 25-17. Salt Lake was the tournament’s top seed.

The Cougars, who finished the season with a record of 42-4, didn’t show any lingering effects from their heartbreaking five-set loss in Friday’s semifinals.

Read story by Tony Boone in Omaha World-Herald

COUNCIL BLUFFS — The last team to qualify for the NJCAA Volleyball Championship eventually turned the national tournament at the Mid-America Center into CSI: Council Bluffs.

College of Southern Idaho, which had to win a playoff match to get into the field of 16, claimed its ninth national title Saturday with a surprisingly one-sided 25-18, 25-19, 25-18 victory over No. 8 Missouri State-West Plains.

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After leading their respective teams to Atlantic Sun-bests in wins while putting together great individual resumes, Florida Gulf Coast University baseball player Chris Sale and women’s basketball player Chelsea Lyles have been named the recipients of the athletic department’s 2009-10 Most Outstanding Male & Female Student-Athlete Awards.

Lyles, the program’s first-ever two-time first team Atlantic Sun All-Conference selection, is the third women’s basketball player in school history to win the award. Sale, a five-time All-American in 2010, is the fifth baseball player to win the male award, including the third in a row. The Outstanding Male & Female Student-Athlete Awards have been handed out since 2002-03.

Western Nebraska Community College Lindsey Gonzales was recently hired as the new assistant volleyball coach at Western Nebraska Community College.

Click to view story on WNCC web site

SCOTTSBLUFF - There will be a new coach roaming the sidelines for Western Nebraska Community College as Leyton High and Eastern Wyoming College graduate Lindsey (Winkelman) Gonzales will be serving as head coach Giovana Melo’s assistant this year.

Gonzales, who played against Melo for one year in college, is excited to be teaming up with her for the coming year.

PULLMAN, Wash. -- The Washington State University volleyball program welcomes four high school players and three college transfers who will join the team for the 2010 season, Head Coach Andrew Palileo announced Wednesday.

Transferring to Washington State are Madeline Dolny, a 5-8 junior setter from Moscow, Idaho and North Idaho College, Kaleinani Kabalis, a 5-7 junior outside hitter from Hilo, Hawaii, coming from West Nebraska Community College, and Vanessa Murray, a 6-0 senior outside hitter from Chatsworth, Calif., coming from Kansas State. They join incoming high school players Sarah Biondi, a 5-10 setter from Sacramento, Calif., Jordan Levenseller, a 5-9 outside hitter from Pullman, Wash., Annie Leendertsen, a 6-1 middle hitter from Palouse, Wash., and Scharae Steel, a 5-10 outside hitter from Reno, Nev.

"I am pleased with the mixture of youth and experience with the 2010 recruiting class," Palileo, the 2009 Pacific-10 Conference Coach of the Year said. "I give a lot of credit to our staff for their hard work and we are looking forward to building the chemistry and teamwork needed to compete in this conference. The three transfers will have the ability to contribute right away and I know their expectations are to help us get back to the NCAA tournament in 2010."

Click to read story on Western Nebraska Community College web site

The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team learned plenty about next year's team after competing in the Spring Fever Volleyball tournament at Cougar Palace Saturday.

The Cougars, along with four NCAA Division I schools, participated in a round-robin series of competition. While no winners were declared, the Cougars finished the competition with a 6-6 record in games played, and fared quite well against the NCAA national tournament qualifiers Colorado State University and the University of Northern Colorado.

Read story in Scottsbluff Star-Herald

Winning is nothing new for Gering’s Stacie Meisner, and she is certainly showing that at the University of Alaska Anchorage.

Meisner, who won a national championship for Western Nebraska Community College in 2007, has her Seawolves in the NCAA Division II national championships for the first time since 2001.

Read story in Scottsbluff Star Herald

STERLING, Colo. — Sabina Piegza missed the last two weeks of the Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team’s regular season with a knee injury, but she was determined to play in the Region IX South volleyball tournament.

Piegza and the rest of her Cougar teammates made their presence a memorable one as they swept to their 11th straight regional title in dominating fashion. The Cougars dropped Northeastern Junior College in straight sets 25-15, 25-13, 25-17 to earn a berth at the NJCAA national tournament in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Nov. 19-21.

STERLING, Colo. – The Western Nebraska Community College volleyball team is one win away from its 11th straight regional title after sweeping through two matches Friday at the Region IX South Tournament in Sterling, Colo.

The Cougars opened the tournament with a sweep over Otero Junior College 25-19, 25-14, 25-18 Friday morning before shutting down Northeastern Junior College 25-17, 25-16, 25-14 Friday evening.

The wins advance the Cougars into the championship today at 1 p.m. With a win today, WNCC will advance to the national tournament for the 11th straight year in Council Bluffs, Iowa, Nov. 19-21.