JUCO volleyball: Warriors serve up new season

Aug. 16—OTTUMWA — There's all sorts of ways to prepare for a new volleyball season.

Kiley Heller, for one, has been dipping her toes in the sand in order to get ready for her sophomore campaign with the Indian Hills Warriors.

"I played a lot of sand volleyball tournaments during the summer," Heller said. "It's just nice to get some reps in and stay in that game scenario.

"I am glad to be back on a court. Being in the sand is a lot different."

Heller is one of eight sophomores returning to the court for Indian Hills this season. The Warriors are coming off a historic season that saw IHCC reached the NJCAA National Tournament semifinals for the second time in program history, posting the second-most wins in a single season with a 42-4 record setting a number of team and individual records throughout the year while collecting multiple All-American honors.

Those accolades from 2022 have made the Warriors one of the top teams in the country heading into 2023. Indian Hills debuted No. 4 in the preseason National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I national volleyball poll that was announced Monday afternoon, the best preseason ranking in program history.

"Having that group of sophomores coming back knowing that feeling of what it takes and what it looks like to get the things accomplished that we want puts us a step ahead of where we were going into last season," Indian Hills head volleyball coach Lyndsey Michel said. "We know there are big holes to fill, but we have girls that understand the importance of scoring points and keeping the ball in play."

Indian Hills returns four of six players that played in at least 41 of IHCC's 46 matches last season including three of four players that played in over 150 sets with returning sophomores Sasha Vidal (163) and Kinga Michalska (160) leading the Warriors in time spent on the court. Vidal led the nation in last season in total serve receptions with 1,006 and ranked second nationally with 933 digs, the second-most in a single season in school history, while Michalska led the Warriors with 429 kills.

"Kinga was a major point scorer for us last year. We kind of referred to her as our silent killer," Michel said. "Sasha is just a monster defensively. We also have Maggie (Paiva), who is someone that will be a big defensive presence and someone that can be very aggressive with her serving."

Serving proved to be a valuable weapon in IHCC's run to the NJCAA national semifinals. The Warriors served up 372 total aces on the year, breaking another single-season program record almost doubling the total number of aces allowed (195) by their 46 opponents.

"We scored a lot of points off our serving and scored a lot of points to go on runs that brought us back in sets," Michel said. "We've got plenty of work to do with our serving this year, but I think we have what we need especially from those sophomores that understand what aggressive takes to get where we want to be."

Larissa Barreiros Scatamburlo, IHCC's third-most productive hitter with 381 total kills and a 2.49 average in kills per set, talked about the experience of going on last season's deep postseason run. One of five players from Brazil, Scatamburlo reached double figures in kills against seven nationally-ranked teams last season including 11 kills in a five-set national tournament quarterfinal win over Trinity Valley.

"It was a very strong experience going to nationals when it comes to being responsible with your body and with your studies," Scatamburlo said. "I feel like I matured a lot on and off the court. The plan this year is to go for that ring. We don't set any ceiling on our goals. We've talked about unity and having one goal to come back and win the national championship."

While IHCC has several talented returning players, making the Warriors a national championship contender heading into the season, there are top players that have moved on. Hennesys Lalane, the 2022 NJCAA Region XI Player of the Year, set a single season school record with 109 service aces and finished as the program's all-time leader with 186 service aces and a program-record career .406 hitting percentage while Jarolin de los Santos leaves Indian Hills as the program's most establish blocker, setting a school record with 201 kills last season and 436 blocks, the most in a career for any Warrior spiker.

To replace some of the top hitters and blockers in program history, Michel has brought in a trio of outside hitters among the freshman class. Jorja Hoffmann, Fernanda Izar and Sara Van Gisteren not only add to the depth of IHCC's talent at the net but the international talent of the Warriors with three freshman hitters coming in from three different countries.

"It's really interesting playing with girls from all over the world," Hoffman said. "It's interesting to see the different styles of volleyball that everyone plays and how it all blinds together."

Indian Hills has some familiar names just ahead of them in the NJCAA Division I volleyball preseason poll. Defending national champion Florida SouthWestern State College is ranked No. 1 ahead of national runner-up 2 Miami Dade College and Missouri State University-West Plains, the team that has handed IHCC three consecutive season-ending losses.

"Every year when that poll comes out, it's kind of based on how everyone finished the year before," Michel said. "We were actually able to win a couple recruiting battles with (West Plains). Hopefully, we'll be able to win a few more battles against them on the court."

Much like 2022, the 2023 schedule for Indian Hills features plenty of tough competition. Currently, nine opponents that are ranked along with the Warriors inside the top 20 of the national poll including three opponents in the top 10 will dot the schedule for Indian Hills with 13 total matches against top-20 rivals including two matches each against No. 6 Western Nebraska, No. 8 New Mexico Junior College, No. 17 Butler and No. 19 Hutchinson Community College.

"I feel like we're more prepared going into this season," Scatamburlo said. "We've got a solid base with sophomores helping freshmen on the court with strategies and how to play the game. I feel like this base is going the help us understand how to get to and win the national championship match."

Indian Hills will get another crack at Missouri State-West Plains this season as well as No. 12 Northeastern Junior College, No. 14 Monroe College, No. 16 Snow College and No. 20 Navarro College. The Warriors are set to open the season this weekend at the Reiver Classic in Council Bluffs facing Jefferson College and Dodge City on Friday before squaring off with Western Nebraska and Butler on Saturday.

The Warriors face DMACC in IHCC's home opener on Tuesday. After a historic season in 2022, Indian Hills looks begin what could be a season with a chance to make even more history in 2023.

"The sophomores from last year really gave us a great example of keeping up a positive attitude win or lose," Heller said. "You just need to stay positive with every point."

— Scott Jackson can be reached at sjackson@ottumwacourier.com. Follow him on Twitter@CourierScott.