After a full schedule of games this past weekend, the Cougars were in serious need of a little R & R. We took the day off practice and just hit the weight room on Monday. (You wouldn’t want to cross our paths after pumping iron the way we do. Our bulging biceps and toned thighs make people turn and run! =) Tuesday we had small group practices (kudos to the group who had to be there at 7:30 a.m.! You girls are real troopers!) and we hit the courts hard as a team on Wednesday.
Friday is our big “Dig Pink” match against Bethany Lutheran, which we host to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research. We will be raffling off shirts signed by us Cougar volleyball players, so straight from Coach’s mouth: "Bring your checkbooks!" I’m pretty sure there are a few more exciting things happening that night, but I can only listen to so many details before the painted lines on the gym floor or the dirt under my fingernails become extremely interesting and my listening ears turn off ;)
We continue the weekend with games on Saturday – Family Day! The stands should be filled with Cougar moms, dads, siblings, grandparents, etc. as we extend a special invite to our families. After the games, we will be doing what we do best…EATING! We’ll be conclude our Family Day with a potluck supper (I’m probably a little bit too excited for this part!).
I’m very excited for this week has in store! Go Cougs!!!
Justine
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Monday, September 28, 2009
Northwestern Match Archived-
Just wanted to let you know that our Northwestern match from Friday night is archived online for you viewing-- Just as a heads up- the audio didn't work at the start, so the match starts in the middle of the first set.
Thanks and Enjoy!
Thanks and Enjoy!
Words from Brita
When I first came to Morris, I definitely had the freshman jitters. I wondered if I would do well in school, if I would do well in volleyball, and if I would fit in with the other students. During the first week of preseason, I realized that I had nothing to worry about: We have become a very close family. Playing with them is so much fun! Which is why I was so disappointed that I sprained my ankle. Taking stats is not as fun as actually playing :) However, the girls have all been very supportive and uplifting, so I haven't been too depressed about not playing :) Hopefully I'll get the all clear to play this week!
Steph Schmiesing and I were inspirators of the week. We made posters for each of the girls that included their name and a border of inspirational words. Also, we bought a bag of candy (because who doesn't like candy?).
This Friday we took on Northwestern College. We played well and with a lot of energy, but unfortunately it wasn't enough. They beat us in three, but the games were all close. We'll get 'em next time! Saturday went well for varsity: we beat both Crown and Trinity Bible in three. All in all, we had a pretty good week, and we're looking forward to our upcoming matches!
Steph Schmiesing and I were inspirators of the week. We made posters for each of the girls that included their name and a border of inspirational words. Also, we bought a bag of candy (because who doesn't like candy?).
This Friday we took on Northwestern College. We played well and with a lot of energy, but unfortunately it wasn't enough. They beat us in three, but the games were all close. We'll get 'em next time! Saturday went well for varsity: we beat both Crown and Trinity Bible in three. All in all, we had a pretty good week, and we're looking forward to our upcoming matches!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Two More Wins...
Hello from Morris-
It's Sunday, and after a fun day spending time with my wife and sons, I figured it would be a good time to post a blog... So here goes.
Well, we evened up our UMAC record with a win over Crown College- and followed that with a win over Trinity Bible College. The wins bring our overall record to 7-10 at this point, which is very exciting, as we had nine wins at the end of last season. We also sent a JV team up to North Dakota State College of Science for a tournament there-- They came home a little banged up, with one victory and a full stomach, courtesy of the Banken family.
We are giving the team off of practice Monday (just doing a lift)-- giving them some time to rest a little, get caught up with some homework and some time away from the gym. Then on Tuesday we are going to have small group practices to work on some position specific skills before practicing as a team Wednesday and Thursday.
Next weekend, we will be having our annual Dig Pink match to increase awareness for breast cancer research and to raise funds. Our Friday night match with Bethany Lutheran will be our Dig Pink match and more information will follow soon---
This coming Saturday will be our Parents/Family Night Match- We will be having a potluck after the matches are all done Saturday. More information to follow on this as well...
Have a great week and check back soon! Go Cougars!
Coach B
It's Sunday, and after a fun day spending time with my wife and sons, I figured it would be a good time to post a blog... So here goes.
Well, we evened up our UMAC record with a win over Crown College- and followed that with a win over Trinity Bible College. The wins bring our overall record to 7-10 at this point, which is very exciting, as we had nine wins at the end of last season. We also sent a JV team up to North Dakota State College of Science for a tournament there-- They came home a little banged up, with one victory and a full stomach, courtesy of the Banken family.
We are giving the team off of practice Monday (just doing a lift)-- giving them some time to rest a little, get caught up with some homework and some time away from the gym. Then on Tuesday we are going to have small group practices to work on some position specific skills before practicing as a team Wednesday and Thursday.
Next weekend, we will be having our annual Dig Pink match to increase awareness for breast cancer research and to raise funds. Our Friday night match with Bethany Lutheran will be our Dig Pink match and more information will follow soon---
This coming Saturday will be our Parents/Family Night Match- We will be having a potluck after the matches are all done Saturday. More information to follow on this as well...
Have a great week and check back soon! Go Cougars!
Coach B
Saturday, September 26, 2009
Cougar Volleyball
Hi everyone,
This is Jillian Neave writing from the bleachers at the P.E. Center. The team is warming up to play Trinity Bible College. Last night we played a tough match against Northwestern, we lost in three but the team worked really hard and played well. They had some very talented players. This morning we had a conference victory against Crown College, that puts us 1-1 in conference play, which is right where we want to be! The team is playing very well, but we still have things to work on in practice this week to get ready for the upcoming matches.
Hope all is well,
Jillian Neave
This is Jillian Neave writing from the bleachers at the P.E. Center. The team is warming up to play Trinity Bible College. Last night we played a tough match against Northwestern, we lost in three but the team worked really hard and played well. They had some very talented players. This morning we had a conference victory against Crown College, that puts us 1-1 in conference play, which is right where we want to be! The team is playing very well, but we still have things to work on in practice this week to get ready for the upcoming matches.
Hope all is well,
Jillian Neave
Friday, September 25, 2009
Close Loss To Northwestern---
Hello all-
Tough one tonight- We opened up the UMAC with the defending conference champions-- and lost in 3 close sets, 22-25, 23-25, 22-25. We are sooooo close in these matches- It will come!! Starting tomorrow! I was very impressed with how hard we played and how we fought back after being down 15-7 in the third set! Our problems are all very fixable and we did a lot of nice things- served aggressive, hit well, passed alright and executed the gameplan pretty well...
Go Cougars!
Coach B
Tough one tonight- We opened up the UMAC with the defending conference champions-- and lost in 3 close sets, 22-25, 23-25, 22-25. We are sooooo close in these matches- It will come!! Starting tomorrow! I was very impressed with how hard we played and how we fought back after being down 15-7 in the third set! Our problems are all very fixable and we did a lot of nice things- served aggressive, hit well, passed alright and executed the gameplan pretty well...
Go Cougars!
Coach B
Words from Stephanie
Hi, everyone! I'm a freshman this year and I was very nervous about starting college and volleyball at the same time. I was scared to leave home and leave my family. I never thought I would find a group of people who could somehow take their place, but I definitely have.
My team is remarkable and they don't just care about how I play on the court. They support me everywhere--on and off the court. I am absolutely thrilled to be part of this team.
On Tuesday night we headed to the Cities to play Waldorf and North Central University. We started against Waldorf and lost in four games. We were down after that, but we shook it off, did some cheers to get pumped up, ate some fruit and came back on the court to beat North Central in three games!
It was nice to end the evening on a good note. After that we had some delicious food at Davani's. I had the chicken alfredo pasta--just in case anybody wanted to know.
In practice this week we've been working very hard getting ready for our home match against Northwestern on Friday night. We hope to see a lot of fans there. I can't wait!!! It's going to be a great game.
Stephanie
My team is remarkable and they don't just care about how I play on the court. They support me everywhere--on and off the court. I am absolutely thrilled to be part of this team.
On Tuesday night we headed to the Cities to play Waldorf and North Central University. We started against Waldorf and lost in four games. We were down after that, but we shook it off, did some cheers to get pumped up, ate some fruit and came back on the court to beat North Central in three games!
It was nice to end the evening on a good note. After that we had some delicious food at Davani's. I had the chicken alfredo pasta--just in case anybody wanted to know.
In practice this week we've been working very hard getting ready for our home match against Northwestern on Friday night. We hope to see a lot of fans there. I can't wait!!! It's going to be a great game.
Stephanie
Thursday, September 24, 2009
WEBCAST
Hello-
Lots of information here- I'll try to cram it all in--
First, our match tomorrow will be Webcast on the Cougar Sports Network-- It should be love approximately 6:45 pm.
Second, there will not be a JV match tomorrow night vs. Northwestern, but we will have a JV team headed to North Dakota State College of Science for a tourney Saturday morning.
Last, we hope to have the live stats working on the Cougar Sports Network for Saturday's games... feel free to check it out (it would be stats from our program only- no audio or video).
Have a great week and I hope to see you all at the gym this weekend!
Coach B
Lots of information here- I'll try to cram it all in--
First, our match tomorrow will be Webcast on the Cougar Sports Network-- It should be love approximately 6:45 pm.
Second, there will not be a JV match tomorrow night vs. Northwestern, but we will have a JV team headed to North Dakota State College of Science for a tourney Saturday morning.
Last, we hope to have the live stats working on the Cougar Sports Network for Saturday's games... feel free to check it out (it would be stats from our program only- no audio or video).
Have a great week and I hope to see you all at the gym this weekend!
Coach B
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
A Split in the Twin Cities...
On our way back with a computer battery that's almost dead-- but we came away with a split, dropping a close match to Waldorf College (IA) in four sets before beating North Central in straight sets. We did some nice things tonight- worked on hitting some different sets, tried some different things defensively, overall a nice tuneup before the start of our conference season on Friday, at home against the reigning UMAC Champions!
Have a great week and see you all Friday!
Coach B
Have a great week and see you all Friday!
Coach B
Monday, September 21, 2009
No JV match tomorrow...
Hello all-
Just an update- our JV match vs. Northwestern scheduled for 9-22 has been canceled- they do not have enough players to play...
See you all at North Central for our tri-match!
Coach B
Just an update- our JV match vs. Northwestern scheduled for 9-22 has been canceled- they do not have enough players to play...
See you all at North Central for our tri-match!
Coach B
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Words from Nichelle
Coming in as a freshmen I was really nervous about being way up here in Morris. I didn’t know anyone on the team and I wasn’t sure what to expect. However, over the weeks the team has really bonded and now instead of being strangers we’ve all become good friends.
This weekend varsity went to the St. Ben’s tournament and jv went to
Our excitement and enthusiasm helped us out a lot during the match. Every kill, ace and block we made had us screaming in excitement. We soon found out that Fergus didn’t really seem to like how excited and loud we got. It just brought them down, but that just encouraged us to get louder and push ourselves. At the start of the fifth game we knew we wanted the win more. It was close the whole way, and for a time we led by two or three points, but they caught up. From then on it was point for point. If we got behind by one we would get a point back to tie it up. No matter what, we weren’t going to give up and just accept losing. We kept the intensity high and never quit swinging and playing aggressive. The final score of the fifth game was 21-19.
At Fergus you could see how much we had improved since our first game in
I’m looking forward to this week's games. We just need to come out and start the game with the same intensity we played with in the fourth and fifth games. It should be a good week of volleyball ahead for both varsity and junior varsity.
Nichelle Grage
Words from Shannon
Hey all! I'm a sophomore this year for the Cougars. This year has been a lot of fun. Overall we've been a successful team. There's so much talent here and sooner or later we'll be putting that talent together and we'll peak to the highest level of play the Cougars have ever seen! :)
On Friday night when the varsity left for St. Ben's, the junior varsity headed to Fergus Falls Community College with Coach McGuire. We lost our first game, won the second, lost the third, and won the fourth! We won the deciding set 21-19! This was some fun volleyball! We definitely wanted the win more than our opponent. We had so much energy and fought to the end!
After the match, we headed to Arby's for a bite to eat and made it back to Morris at about 11:30 p.m. A few of us went straight to bed to get up at 7:30 a.m. to join the varsity squad in St. Joseph for the tournament.
All in all the year is going great! The girls are all so fun both on and off the court. We look forward another week of practice and games! :)
Shannon
On Friday night when the varsity left for St. Ben's, the junior varsity headed to Fergus Falls Community College with Coach McGuire. We lost our first game, won the second, lost the third, and won the fourth! We won the deciding set 21-19! This was some fun volleyball! We definitely wanted the win more than our opponent. We had so much energy and fought to the end!
After the match, we headed to Arby's for a bite to eat and made it back to Morris at about 11:30 p.m. A few of us went straight to bed to get up at 7:30 a.m. to join the varsity squad in St. Joseph for the tournament.
All in all the year is going great! The girls are all so fun both on and off the court. We look forward another week of practice and games! :)
Shannon
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Long Time No Blog
Ok, I'm back by popular demand, I guess. Apparently I have a fan base that is following this blog and Coach B says they are missing my insight!!
As he mentioned in his last post, I have started fall softball practices, but I am still giving the vb program it's due time. It's hard not to when I enjoy being around them so much- they are such a great group of people!
We are sitting here at St Ben's, mentally preparing to take on the Ole's of St Olaf. We had a couple of hard fought matches last night with Hamline and St Kate's. We came up short in both matches, but saw some more nice things from our young team. Coach B nearly got his first card of the season and we sent one player to the emergency room. All in all it was a very eventful evening.
Coach B's family took care of us last night. We had a great meal at Ma and Pa Braegelmann's and then the team spent the night at Ma Zierden's (Coach's Mother In -Law's) and awoke to a tremendous breakfast. The meals were awesome and everyone had a bed......you couldn't ask for more.
Well, I should start pulling my weight in warm ups now.....you will hear from me sooner next time!
GO COUGS!
Coach P
As he mentioned in his last post, I have started fall softball practices, but I am still giving the vb program it's due time. It's hard not to when I enjoy being around them so much- they are such a great group of people!
We are sitting here at St Ben's, mentally preparing to take on the Ole's of St Olaf. We had a couple of hard fought matches last night with Hamline and St Kate's. We came up short in both matches, but saw some more nice things from our young team. Coach B nearly got his first card of the season and we sent one player to the emergency room. All in all it was a very eventful evening.
Coach B's family took care of us last night. We had a great meal at Ma and Pa Braegelmann's and then the team spent the night at Ma Zierden's (Coach's Mother In -Law's) and awoke to a tremendous breakfast. The meals were awesome and everyone had a bed......you couldn't ask for more.
Well, I should start pulling my weight in warm ups now.....you will hear from me sooner next time!
GO COUGS!
Coach P
Friday, September 18, 2009
On the Road...
Sorry we haven't posted much this week-- crazy week here on campus. It's Coach Pennie's fault there haven't been any posts, she started Softball practice this week and has been busy with that... Tuesday we had small group practices, the coaches spent about 4 hours in a gym- the players were in a the gym for about an hour each. We spent a lot of time working on individual skills and got the Tivo out to watch themselves and what they were doing wrong (and right!).
We are almost to St. Ben's- have to run!
Coach B
We are almost to St. Ben's- have to run!
Coach B
Monday, September 14, 2009
Olerud makes WLC All-Tourney Team
Congratulations Jordan for making the All-Tournament Team at the Wisconsin Lutheran Tournament!! Nice Job!
Coach B
Coach B
Thoughts from Coach Neave
Hey everybody,
I'm Jillian Neave, the volunteer assistant for this season. My experiences thus far in the season have been awesome. The three other coaches are fantastic and I am learning so much from them. The team is showing so much improvement and it is really exciting to be a part of a team. This is my first time coaching at the college level and I am looking forward to helping these players improve.
Sincerely,
Coach Neave
I'm Jillian Neave, the volunteer assistant for this season. My experiences thus far in the season have been awesome. The three other coaches are fantastic and I am learning so much from them. The team is showing so much improvement and it is really exciting to be a part of a team. This is my first time coaching at the college level and I am looking forward to helping these players improve.
Sincerely,
Coach Neave
Archived matches online...
Hello Cougar Volleyball Fans-
Hopefully this week will give us a little chance to breathe now-- it's been pretty crazy around here with matches, practices, film and lifting.
I just wanted to let you all know that the Macalester match should be working in the archived section of the Cougar Sports Network...
Have a great week!
Coach B
Hopefully this week will give us a little chance to breathe now-- it's been pretty crazy around here with matches, practices, film and lifting.
I just wanted to let you all know that the Macalester match should be working in the archived section of the Cougar Sports Network...
Have a great week!
Coach B
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Words from Marthaler
On Saturday, the junior varsity had a tournament at Ridgewater Community College in Willmar, where we played three matches.
Our first match was against Ridgewater (Jordan Olerud's former team), who are the NJCAA National Runners-up from the year ago. We stayed with them early, but lost in two sets, 16-25, 21-25.
Between matches we had a nice break and grabbed a bite to eat at Perkins. Then we returned for our next match against Hibbing Community College (Lindsay Jacobson's former team).
We didn't play our best and lost that match in two sets as well. Afterward, we all felt we should have won, but our team play is still developing.
Right after the Hibbing match we played Bismarck and came out with more determination. Each game was very close and we struggled in places, but in the end we pulled out our first win for the JV in three sets.
It was so nice to end a long day on a win. We were ready to go home and get some much needed rest, but we will definitely be ready for our next match!
Tanya
Our first match was against Ridgewater (Jordan Olerud's former team), who are the NJCAA National Runners-up from the year ago. We stayed with them early, but lost in two sets, 16-25, 21-25.
Between matches we had a nice break and grabbed a bite to eat at Perkins. Then we returned for our next match against Hibbing Community College (Lindsay Jacobson's former team).
We didn't play our best and lost that match in two sets as well. Afterward, we all felt we should have won, but our team play is still developing.
Right after the Hibbing match we played Bismarck and came out with more determination. Each game was very close and we struggled in places, but in the end we pulled out our first win for the JV in three sets.
It was so nice to end a long day on a win. We were ready to go home and get some much needed rest, but we will definitely be ready for our next match!
Tanya
Friday, September 11, 2009
NAIA Week Ends with Two W's
Hello all-
We had two wins at the PE Center tonight- We defeated Mt. Marty College (SD) in 3 closely contested sets before taking care of York College (NE) in three sets, winning all games by four or more points. We got quite a few players in the matches tonight- we were able to do some nice things offensively and we passed and served pretty well--- It's getting late and I need some sleep before tomorrow when half the team will be workign the Stacy Polzin McIntyre Memorial Tournament (for high school teams) and the other half will be heading down to Ridgewater to play in a tourney down there.
Thanks and have a great night!
Coach B
We had two wins at the PE Center tonight- We defeated Mt. Marty College (SD) in 3 closely contested sets before taking care of York College (NE) in three sets, winning all games by four or more points. We got quite a few players in the matches tonight- we were able to do some nice things offensively and we passed and served pretty well--- It's getting late and I need some sleep before tomorrow when half the team will be workign the Stacy Polzin McIntyre Memorial Tournament (for high school teams) and the other half will be heading down to Ridgewater to play in a tourney down there.
Thanks and have a great night!
Coach B
Words from Katie Dalton
I'm a freshman this year, and I was really nervous coming into the season,
but I found that I really had nothing to worry about. I think the team has
really bonded and we have some great leaders on our team. I'm really looking
forward to the rest of the season!
This week has been full of volleyball! After a long Labor Day weekend, we
jumped right into practice Monday night, where we focused mainly on defense,
serving, and serve receive. Our defense is looking a lot better after this
week, and hopefully that will give us the edge we need to do well in our
upcoming games.
On Tuesday night, both JV and varsity had a chance to compete against some
excellent competition in North Dakota. JV had a game against Jamestown,
and although we played hard until the end, we ended up losing in three games.
However, I don't think this properly shows how hard we worked, and how
energetic and positive we remained through all three games. Our blocking
was particularly impressive! Varsity also had a close match against Valley
City, but also lost in three.
I'm really looking forward to varsity's two games tomorrow against Mount
Marty and York. They should be really intense and it'll be exciting to see
how well they will perform against some difficult teams. Then on Saturday,
JV is heading to Willmar to play in a tournament. I'm really excited to
see how we do after working hard on defense this week.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
NAIA Schools- Round 1
Hello all-
On the bus on the way home... hopefully some of you were able to watch and/or listen to our match tonight-- Pretty good play in sets 1 and 3 but we struggled a bit in the 2nd set. The varsity team played a Valley City squad that had a very, very impressive hitter- she ended the match with 21 kills, almost half of her team's total. We had a lead most of the first set before it slipped away, then fought back from down 5 or 6 in the third set to get to within one point before losing it...
The JV opened their season tonight, playing in Jamestown, ND. From what I hear they played very well, but lost in three sets. It was an excellent chance for them to get some valuable playing time.
Have a great week and we hope to see you at home Friday as our NAIA week continues, and our JV squad will head down to Willmar, MN on Saturday to play in a tournament!
Coach B
On the bus on the way home... hopefully some of you were able to watch and/or listen to our match tonight-- Pretty good play in sets 1 and 3 but we struggled a bit in the 2nd set. The varsity team played a Valley City squad that had a very, very impressive hitter- she ended the match with 21 kills, almost half of her team's total. We had a lead most of the first set before it slipped away, then fought back from down 5 or 6 in the third set to get to within one point before losing it...
The JV opened their season tonight, playing in Jamestown, ND. From what I hear they played very well, but lost in three sets. It was an excellent chance for them to get some valuable playing time.
Have a great week and we hope to see you at home Friday as our NAIA week continues, and our JV squad will head down to Willmar, MN on Saturday to play in a tournament!
Coach B
VCSU Match Should Include VIdeo...
Just found out that the B2 link should include video as well (the first link below)- but there is a charge to watch... Enjoy!
Coach B
Coach B
Monday, September 7, 2009
Listen to Tuesday's Game!
Hello Everyone-
Just sitting on my deck on an absolutely beautiful Labor Day- enjoying some time with the family and prepping for the busy week ahead! We are heading to Valley City, ND for a varsity match tomorrow night at 7:00 pm, while the JV will head to Jamestown for a match at 6:30 pm. I am very excited to find out how they fare and to get them a chance to show off their skills as well!
The varsity match Tuesday can be heard streaming on the web starting at 6:35 pm. (If that doesn't work, try this link). Good luck and enjoy your day!
Sincerely,
Coach B
Just sitting on my deck on an absolutely beautiful Labor Day- enjoying some time with the family and prepping for the busy week ahead! We are heading to Valley City, ND for a varsity match tomorrow night at 7:00 pm, while the JV will head to Jamestown for a match at 6:30 pm. I am very excited to find out how they fare and to get them a chance to show off their skills as well!
The varsity match Tuesday can be heard streaming on the web starting at 6:35 pm. (If that doesn't work, try this link). Good luck and enjoy your day!
Sincerely,
Coach B
Saturday, September 5, 2009
On Our Way Home
Well, Today was better then yesterday.....much better. We won our first match against Wisconsin Lutheran College and started off great against Lawrence but then hit the wall in the 3rd set and lost 3-2.
After we got out of the gym we had time to cool off and come back to center with a nice stroll along Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful day....for an hour, then we had to get back on the bus....only 6 more hours to go!
All and all it was a great learning experience for our young team. A lot of the ladies discovered things that they didn't know they could do, or skills they could improve on....they learned that they can come back after being down by 4-5 points....they also learned that a 4-5 point lead isn't enough sometimes.
We are looking forward to getting back in the gym and working on a few things before we head to North Dakota early next week and then being home again in front of our own fans on Friday night.
Our JV will get their first competitions this upcoming week as well as we go to Jamestown, ND on Tuesday and then a tournament at Ridgewater College in Willmar of Saturday.
I know coach B calls me the eternal optimist, but I really think we are going to see some great things from this team this season....we have all the pieces and we are still figuring out how to put them all together. Like I told coach B..."we don't want to be peaking now".
Until next time...
Coach P
After we got out of the gym we had time to cool off and come back to center with a nice stroll along Lake Michigan. It was a beautiful day....for an hour, then we had to get back on the bus....only 6 more hours to go!
All and all it was a great learning experience for our young team. A lot of the ladies discovered things that they didn't know they could do, or skills they could improve on....they learned that they can come back after being down by 4-5 points....they also learned that a 4-5 point lead isn't enough sometimes.
We are looking forward to getting back in the gym and working on a few things before we head to North Dakota early next week and then being home again in front of our own fans on Friday night.
Our JV will get their first competitions this upcoming week as well as we go to Jamestown, ND on Tuesday and then a tournament at Ridgewater College in Willmar of Saturday.
I know coach B calls me the eternal optimist, but I really think we are going to see some great things from this team this season....we have all the pieces and we are still figuring out how to put them all together. Like I told coach B..."we don't want to be peaking now".
Until next time...
Coach P
Friday, September 4, 2009
Rough Day in Wisconsin...
Hello Cougar Volleyball fans...
The trip to Milwaukee was great- the play tonight was... not so good. We lost to a very talented North Central (Ill.) team 3-0 in the first match, and then played Carroll (Wis.). Our play was a little better but we also lost to them 3-0. We tried a couple of different lineups, but couldn't find any success. Overall we did some nice things, we served pretty well on the day, and passed consistently, averaging just over a 2.0 between the two matches. We need to work a little more on our floor defense and running through balls as well as communication.
Have a great night- we are off to grab some food after being in the gym since 3:00--
Coach B
The trip to Milwaukee was great- the play tonight was... not so good. We lost to a very talented North Central (Ill.) team 3-0 in the first match, and then played Carroll (Wis.). Our play was a little better but we also lost to them 3-0. We tried a couple of different lineups, but couldn't find any success. Overall we did some nice things, we served pretty well on the day, and passed consistently, averaging just over a 2.0 between the two matches. We need to work a little more on our floor defense and running through balls as well as communication.
Have a great night- we are off to grab some food after being in the gym since 3:00--
Coach B
Words from Allie Humphrey
As a freshman, I was apprehensive not only about starting college, but also about playing volleyball. Playing in the Bethel League this summer really helped by enabling me to play with some of the other UMM volleyball players. Knowing some of my future teammates eased some of my anxiety. Once I met all the players, my worries disappeared. Everyone is very friendly and encouraging, and I instantly felt like part of the team.
Each week, two players from our team are deemed “inspirators of the week.” This means that these two people think of some surprise/treat for the team to inspire us to work hard, play together, etc. Mindy and I were inspirators this week. We gave everyone a volleyball ribbon with three links on one end and a nail on the other. The links represent team unity and how we are all connected through the volleyball team. The nail represents how we must all work together to build a strong team and be successful on the court.
We just won our first match! We played Macalester on Wednesday and beat them in three games. It was so much fun to see all our hard work pay off. We played together as a team, and everyone did a great job of communicating on the court. We also got really excited and yelled after every point we earned, which helped pump us up and get us ready for the next point. Our fans also did a great job of cheering us on and supporting us. Thank you so much for coming to the match, especially those that had a very long drive to get here!
Our team is now taking a long drive of its own. After practice today we loaded onto the bus and are now heading to Milwaukee for our first tournament. We will stop at Colleen Hermes’ parents' house for dinner, and then make our way to Eau Claire and stay in a hotel for the night. After breakfast in the morning we will continue on to our destination and arrive ready to play!
Based on our hard work and our ability to work well as a team, not to mention how great our first game went, I have no doubt that our team will do well. Go Cougars!
Each week, two players from our team are deemed “inspirators of the week.” This means that these two people think of some surprise/treat for the team to inspire us to work hard, play together, etc. Mindy and I were inspirators this week. We gave everyone a volleyball ribbon with three links on one end and a nail on the other. The links represent team unity and how we are all connected through the volleyball team. The nail represents how we must all work together to build a strong team and be successful on the court.
We just won our first match! We played Macalester on Wednesday and beat them in three games. It was so much fun to see all our hard work pay off. We played together as a team, and everyone did a great job of communicating on the court. We also got really excited and yelled after every point we earned, which helped pump us up and get us ready for the next point. Our fans also did a great job of cheering us on and supporting us. Thank you so much for coming to the match, especially those that had a very long drive to get here!
Our team is now taking a long drive of its own. After practice today we loaded onto the bus and are now heading to Milwaukee for our first tournament. We will stop at Colleen Hermes’ parents' house for dinner, and then make our way to Eau Claire and stay in a hotel for the night. After breakfast in the morning we will continue on to our destination and arrive ready to play!
Based on our hard work and our ability to work well as a team, not to mention how great our first game went, I have no doubt that our team will do well. Go Cougars!
Thursday, September 3, 2009
Dinner at the Hermes'
I am SOOOO full! We just had an awesome meal hosted by the Hermes'. Baked Ziti, Ceasar salad, pasta salad, grapes and root beer floats to go!
Need I say more?
Coach P
Need I say more?
Coach P
Thoughts from Coach McGuire...
On the road again...
Our bags are packed and our coolers are filled with delicious sandwich meats...along with a wide variety of expired vitamin water...yum... We left Morris not forgetting anyone and remembering how much fun we will have on our first road trip together Immediately on the road, the girls wanted to eat and watch movies. If I were blind I would have thought we had a bunch of guys traveling to a football game, because of how much they eat (it would be a good idea not to tell the girls what I said)...
Chad put his foot down and said we had to "study" for at least the first hour of the bus ride before we could watch a movie. While some of the girls studied, others had a great conversation with me about our favorite fast food restaurants. Subway seemed to be the most favorite. Soon after, I was yelled at for spending too much time talking with the girls and had to meet with the other coaches...
This weekend will not only be a good time for the girls to interact with each other but to also get a chance to get out of Morris. Although Morris is the greatest town to grow up and spend time with new friends, it's always great to get out. On top of the traveling we are not only eating at fast food and sit down restaurants but tonight we are eating dinner at Colleen's parents house. It'll be nice to eat a home cooked meal...
As if a switch tuned on, Natalie was up in our faces with a movie in her hand, "It's been an hour coach!?" She is always one to be on top of her game. The lights had been turned off and the voices started to soften as the movie started...here was my time to catch up on some sleep...but wait!... Chad told me I had the opportunity to write a blog, so here it is...
Well it's getting dark, the movie is almost over and we are about to arrive at Colleen's so I'm going to jet...
Mitch
Our bags are packed and our coolers are filled with delicious sandwich meats...along with a wide variety of expired vitamin water...yum... We left Morris not forgetting anyone and remembering how much fun we will have on our first road trip together Immediately on the road, the girls wanted to eat and watch movies. If I were blind I would have thought we had a bunch of guys traveling to a football game, because of how much they eat (it would be a good idea not to tell the girls what I said)...
Chad put his foot down and said we had to "study" for at least the first hour of the bus ride before we could watch a movie. While some of the girls studied, others had a great conversation with me about our favorite fast food restaurants. Subway seemed to be the most favorite. Soon after, I was yelled at for spending too much time talking with the girls and had to meet with the other coaches...
This weekend will not only be a good time for the girls to interact with each other but to also get a chance to get out of Morris. Although Morris is the greatest town to grow up and spend time with new friends, it's always great to get out. On top of the traveling we are not only eating at fast food and sit down restaurants but tonight we are eating dinner at Colleen's parents house. It'll be nice to eat a home cooked meal...
As if a switch tuned on, Natalie was up in our faces with a movie in her hand, "It's been an hour coach!?" She is always one to be on top of her game. The lights had been turned off and the voices started to soften as the movie started...here was my time to catch up on some sleep...but wait!... Chad told me I had the opportunity to write a blog, so here it is...
Well it's getting dark, the movie is almost over and we are about to arrive at Colleen's so I'm going to jet...
Mitch
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
COUGARS WIN!
Hello all--
Just finished up with our home opener! Couldn't have gone much better! We won in 3 sets over Macalester. The first set went very well, as we got off to a quick start and never looked back... The second set saw us fall behind, by as many as five points, only to claw our way back in- a very gutsy effort by the Cougars to keep fighting and work to eliminate our unforced errors. I was impressed with Macalester and how they didn't give away any points- they would just dig the ball, hit it in and wait for us to make a mistake. The last set saw us down by a couple of points early, but after we were close to each other around 14-14, we pulled away for the win!
We've got practice tomorrow and then it's a long bus ride to the Cities, dinner at the Hermes', then on to Eau Claire for the night before heading to Milwaukee for the tourney Friday/Saturday!
Thanks for all the support and I hope you enjoyed the Webcast!
Go Cougars!
Coach B
Just finished up with our home opener! Couldn't have gone much better! We won in 3 sets over Macalester. The first set went very well, as we got off to a quick start and never looked back... The second set saw us fall behind, by as many as five points, only to claw our way back in- a very gutsy effort by the Cougars to keep fighting and work to eliminate our unforced errors. I was impressed with Macalester and how they didn't give away any points- they would just dig the ball, hit it in and wait for us to make a mistake. The last set saw us down by a couple of points early, but after we were close to each other around 14-14, we pulled away for the win!
We've got practice tomorrow and then it's a long bus ride to the Cities, dinner at the Hermes', then on to Eau Claire for the night before heading to Milwaukee for the tourney Friday/Saturday!
Thanks for all the support and I hope you enjoyed the Webcast!
Go Cougars!
Coach B
Words from Prisinger
I am a senior this year and this is my 4th year playing volleyball at UMM! I am really excited for this season because we have a lot of talent on the team.
Our home opener is today and we have been working hard during preseason. We are definitely ready to play an outside opponent. We are also very excited for the tournament this weekend! In practice, we have been doing a lot of serve and receive drills, drills where we have to get two points in a row in order to get a big point, and a lot of forcing the set to a specific hitter so that we have more options on offense. There is a lot of talent on the team so it makes for very competitive practices.
We had individual meetings with Coach B the last few days. During the meetings Coach asked us what role we play on the team and where we see ourselves fit in. I also told him that I felt sorry for him because he had to choose a lineup and travel squad. With all the good talent on the team there are a lot of players that can play a lot of positions and bring different strengths to the floor.
We are using positive peer pressure to help push teammates in practice by giving each other feed back and helping anyone with questions. We have been working on communication and that has been a big help with everyone -- hopefully it will transfer over to games. We are constantly pushing each other to better our team.
I am really looking forward to the rest of the season and I think we will go out with a bang! It's going to be a great way to spend my senior year!
Malinda Prisinger
Our home opener is today and we have been working hard during preseason. We are definitely ready to play an outside opponent. We are also very excited for the tournament this weekend! In practice, we have been doing a lot of serve and receive drills, drills where we have to get two points in a row in order to get a big point, and a lot of forcing the set to a specific hitter so that we have more options on offense. There is a lot of talent on the team so it makes for very competitive practices.
We had individual meetings with Coach B the last few days. During the meetings Coach asked us what role we play on the team and where we see ourselves fit in. I also told him that I felt sorry for him because he had to choose a lineup and travel squad. With all the good talent on the team there are a lot of players that can play a lot of positions and bring different strengths to the floor.
We are using positive peer pressure to help push teammates in practice by giving each other feed back and helping anyone with questions. We have been working on communication and that has been a big help with everyone -- hopefully it will transfer over to games. We are constantly pushing each other to better our team.
I am really looking forward to the rest of the season and I think we will go out with a bang! It's going to be a great way to spend my senior year!
Malinda Prisinger
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