WEST PLAINS, Mo. – The Missouri State University-West Plains (MSU-WP) Grizzly Volleyball team will enter the NJCAA Region 16 Championship Tournament March 26-27 as the No. 1 seed.
The 16th-ranked Grizzlies (13-4) secured the placing by winning a five-set thriller over Mineral Area College (MAC) Tuesday evening in Park Hills. The scores were 21-25, 25-18, 25-13, 19-25, 20-18.
The win gives the Grizzlies a region best 3-1 record. MAC will be seeded second in the tournament with a 2-2 record, and Jefferson College will be seeded third with a 1-3 record.
MAC and Jefferson will play at 6:30 p.m. March 26 on the Vikings’ home court in Hillsboro. The winner will face the Grizzlies at noon March 27 also at Jefferson College in Hillsboro.
“There was a lot on the line,” Grizzly Volleyball Head Coach Paula Wiedemann said of Tuesday’s game. “Region games are always big, and this was the biggest game to date since it determined who was going to be first seed in the region tournament and receive an automatic berth in the district tournament. I’m really proud of the fight we showed to make that happen.”
After dropping the first set, the Grizzlies bounced back to take the next two. But the Cardinals showed they still had some fight left when they took the fourth set.
The game then turned into a battle royale, with each team swapping scores through the first 12 points of the fifth set. That’s when the Cardinals took a brief edge scoring the next two points to earn their first set point.
“After the third set, we relaxed a little too much and MAC came out swinging,” Wiedemann said. “We didn’t answer quick enough and couldn’t finish the game out in the fourth set.
“Any time a game goes to the fifth set, it’s anybody’s game,” she explained. “The team that keeps going after it and doesn’t back off will put themselves in a good position to win. And, if both teams come out swinging, it’s just good volleyball.
“As a coach, we want our players to love this kind of game, where every point matters, a lot is on the line and you see them flat-out fight for it,” Wiedemann said. “If we would have put our foot on the gas and really went after it, we wouldn’t have gone down 14-12. We were playing not to lose, and we weren’t taking control.”
The Grizzlies finally did take control and scored the next two points, erasing MAC’s advantage and tying the set at 14-14.
“When we won that 13th point, they took a time out, but we came back out swinging,” Wiedemann said.
The teams then went back swapping point for point until the Grizzlies went up 18-17 to earn their first game point.
“We had to fight off five game points, and we did with everything – serving, defense, offense, transition. It was great to see,” Wiedemann said. “They were up 17-16, we tied it 17-17, then we went up 18-17, which was our first opportunity to close out the game that entire set. They scored the next point, then we scored the next two.
“We need all these experiences of having to battle through tough games and finding a way to win. We needed a test like this to figure it out,” she explained.
“It was so good to see how they just believed in each other,” Wiedemann continued. “Their growth, their belief, their trust – they know how good they can play together and that they can’t do it by themselves. From a coaching perspective, these are the things you talk about, but it’s so good to see when they do it.”
Wiedemann gave credit to the Cardinals for making the Grizzlies work for the win. “Hats off to MAC, they played great. They left it all on the floor,” she said. “Either one of us could have won that game last night. This is what volleyball is all about and what I love about this game.”
But a total team effort from the Grizzlies proved to be the winning combination. “Everyone played well. Everyone contributed and played hard. Everyone made a difference at different times,” Wiedemann said. “We talk about how we need everyone to do something, and they’re making themselves available and making things happen. We’re staying patient and not forcing things, and that’s when good things happen.”
Freshman middle blocker Manuela Bibinbe led the Grizzlies’ offensive charge with 17 kills, including the final two points of the game. She also had a team leading 18.5 points earned. She was followed closely by freshman outside hitter Imani Nicholson with 16 kills and 16.5 points earned.
Freshman outside hitter Kennadi Harris was the most efficient at the net, recording a .364 attacking percentage. “We’ve been working hard to get Kennadi to trust her swing, and last night she took good swings and didn’t try to force anything. She made good decisions and had some key kills in key moments. That’s what I love to see happen,” Wiedemann said.
Sophomore setter Julieta Campana had a team-leading 35 assists, and Nicholson led the team in passing rating with 2.56.
Defensively, sophomore middle blocker Nayla Watkins took charge at the net with four blocks, while freshman libero Lauren Weber smashed home three service aces and recorded 33 digs.
Sophomore outside attacker Maju Loureiro also made her presence known with 11 kills and 29 digs. “Maju had a couple of big swings and some key digs at the end of the fifth set that kept us in it,” Wiedemann said. “It’s great to see her play so fearless. She is hard to stop when she plays like that.”
Before the Grizzlies enter postseason play, they will face the No. 5 Iowa Wester Community College Reivers at 1 p.m. Thursday, March 18, in Council Bluffs, Iowa. The contest will be the Grizzlies last game of the regular season.
For more information about the Grizzly Volleyball program, visit www.msuwpgrizzlies.com.
Missouri State University-West Plains empowers students to achieve personal success and to enrich their local and global communities by providing accessible, affordable and quality educational opportunities. Missouri State-West Plains offers associate degrees and credit and non-credit courses and serves as a delivery site for bachelor’s and master’s degrees offered by Missouri State University in Springfield.
