WEST PLAINS, Mo. – A new era of Grizzly Volleyball begins this fall at Missouri State University-West Plains (MSU-WP), but the main goal for the team remains the same – to win a national championship.
“We want and we dream about the NJCAA Division I Women’s National Volleyball Championship title,” first-year head coach Paty Figueiredo said. “Every day we step on the court we have in our minds that everyone else is doing more and we cannot waste time. We want to create memories with this team, and we need to have big goals. We know it is not easy, and it motivates us to be better and to want more every day.”
Figueiredo knows that drive and desire for a national championship all too well. As a member of the 2009 MSU-WP team, the Grizzlies came up just short of that elusive goal in the national championship game. Instead, they brought home the second-place trophy.
To accomplish such an important goal, Figueiredo said this year’s squad of one returning sophomore, two sophomore transfers and nine freshmen will have to take the lessons permeating the rich tradition of Grizzly Volleyball and craft a culture of teamwork that is focused on the fundamentals of the game while honing the skills needed to achieve the ultimate prize.
“We have bonded well, and it is great to see that each of them is engaged in leaving a legacy for this program,” Figueiredo said. “As a team we are connecting the points, learning how to play next to each other and learning what our strengths and weaknesses are.
“We are a team with a lot of competition in every position,” she added. “We are a tall team with decision power in every position. We are working hard on our ball control because we know that will make a difference in our game. And, since it is a new team with a lot of new pieces, we are working on connecting them. We know it will take time.”
The Grizzlies, who are ranked third in the country in the NJCAA preseason poll, will face their first challenge this weekend when they open the season at the UFirst Intermountain Invitational Tournament hosted by Salt Lake Community College in Taylorsville, Utah. Today, Aug. 17, they will begin the tournament against Daytona State College at 6 p.m. CDT. Friday, Aug. 18, the Grizzlies will face Central Wyoming College at 1 p.m. CDT and the host team at 5 p.m. CDT. Saturday, the Grizzlies are scheduled to face College of Southern Idaho at 10 a.m. CDT and Snow College at 2 p.m. CDT.
“We will be facing the No. 5 team in the nation, Salt Lake, during the tournament, so we need to stay focused to compete and grow as we play and gain experience,” Figueiredo said.
The Grizzlies’ first home game will be Sept. 20 against Region 16 rival Jefferson College at 6:30 p.m. in Joe Paul Evans Arena at the West Plains Civic Center.
The team also will host a tournament, the Grizzly Invitational, Oct. 6 and 7 at the civic center. Their competitors at the two-day event include preseason No. 7 Trinity Valley Community College, Panola College and Tyler Junior College.
The Grizzlies will see several other tough opponents throughout the season, including perennial national powerhouse Iowa Western Community College (Aug. 25, Oct. 19), preseason No. 2 Miami Dade College (Aug. 25), and preseason No. 6 Western Nebraska Community College (Sept. 14).
“We will be traveling a lot to play top teams. We know that it is necessary to prepare ourselves for a run at the national championship,” Figueiredo said.
“We will see the 2022 national champion, Florida Southwestern State College, in Salt Lake. The week after, we will continue to face strong teams, including last year’s runner up, Miami Dade,” she added. “We need to train and face teams that will challenge us. We will have a chance to watch teams from different regions and play strong competitions to prepare for the postseason.”
The Grizzlies also can’t overlook their Region 16 rivals, either. The Grizzlies, Jefferson College and Mineral Area College will be competing hard to earn a trip to the national tournament. “Our first goal is to do well in our conference and get prepared for our regional tournament,” Figueiredo said.
To successfully navigate the gauntlet of teams on their schedule, Figueiredo said the Grizzlies will need to do the little things well and draw from the lessons of the past.
“We need to always remember the reason we decided to join this program and build on the history of the Grizzlies,” she said. “We represent our families, friends, school and community. Our players knew from the recruiting process that we wanted a culture of teamwork and family, and they’re extremely excited about starting this new journey together.
“We also need to improve our ball control, the connection between hitters and setters and our understanding of the game,” she added. “We will soon start learning how we study our opponents and prepare for them. It is not easy, but we know we have the capacity to dream big and work hard to achieve our goals.”
For more information about the Grizzly Volleyball team, visit its website at MSUWPGrizzlies.com.
THE 2023-2024 MISSOURI STATE UNIVERSITY-West Plains (MSU-WP) Grizzly Volleyball team begins its season today in the UFirst Intermountain Invitational Tournament in Utah. Team members include, front row from left, Kyra Mueller, Grain Valley, Mo,; Iolanda Tercariol, Sao Paulo, Brazil; Lauryn Farish, Springfield, Mo.; Rosa Brencic, Ljubljana, Slovenia. Middle row: Head Coach Paty Figueiredo; Eduarda Portes, Curitiba, Brazil; Raphaela Felisberto, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Ambria Rupp, Austin, Texas; Mickenzie Day, West Plains; Assistant Coach Robson Da Costa. Back row: Gibson Beckler, Conway, Mo.; Kaitlyn Aleshire, Chicago, Ill.; Caroline Glatkowski, Erfurt, Germany; Wiktoria Jakubik, Grajewo, Poland; and Maja Bochenek, Olkusz, Poland. (MSU-WP Photo)
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.
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