(Greenfield) After racing to a regional final in 2019 the Nodaway Valley volleyball team is ripe with talent heading into the upcoming year.
Three seniors are entering their fourth year as starters. Lexi Shike, Corinne Bond, and Natalie Yonker will lead the team. Shike posted 499 assists, 146 digs, and 83 kills last season. Bond had 246 kills, 173 digs, and 65 blocks last year. Yonker had 402 digs. Coach Allison Kiburz says, “Lexi Shike is our setter so she kind of is our quarterback out there so she is very good about directing our offense. She’s also good about talking to her teammates about different things that she sees on the court. Corinne Bond she’s a big impact both on defense and offense. She’s hard to hit around for the other team and gets lots of blocks. She’s also been progressively hitting harder. Natalie in the back row can dig up almost anything. It’s crazy how many times she gets to a ball that I just wouldn’t expect her to.”
Maddax DeVault and Whitney Lamb are also returning starters. DeVault posted 188 kills, 231 digs, and 51 ace serves as a sophomore. Additional players ready hoping to step into bigger roles include Emma Cooney, Erin Rhoads, and some other seniors that haven’t seen a lot of action in the past.
Advancing as far as the regional finals last year helped elevate the program. “It gained confidence and excitement about our program. The community, I kind of felt a different shift with people more excited and supportive of our program. It’s a totally different atmosphere so having that experience and that pressure under their belt is something that if it happens again this year they can say they’ve been there before and know what to expect.”
Coach Kiburz says the team’s slogan for the year is “Unfinished Business” which tells you what they are setting out to do after coming up one win shy of the state tourney last season. The team went 20-7 in 2019.
