FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (August 17, 2018) – For the first time in seven years, the Northern Arizona volleyball team will open serve coming off a losing season. But with an adversity-filled 2017 campaign behind them, the Lumberjacks are poised to get back to their winning ways.
A multitude of injuries and hurdles were dealt to the Lumberjacks last year, largely contributing to a 13-15 overall record – NAU's first sub-.500 record since 2010. However armed with a veteran-filled group for the first time since the Lumberjacks' Big Sky Championship season in 2015, energy throughout the program has been high this preseason.
The league has taken notice as well with the league coaches picking NAU second in the Big Sky Preseason Poll following the Lumberjacks' fifth-place showing in 2017. The Lumberjacks won six of nine to close last season, and posted a 9-7 conference mark.
Led by a senior class of
Kaylie Jorgenson,
Brittni Dorsey and
Jordan Anderson, along with an experienced junior class, NAU has veterans who are motivated to return the 'Jacks to their level of success that has been established within the program.
"(The upperclassmen) feel like it is on them to reestablish the identity of our program," said head coach
Ken Murphy. "As their coach, I just want them to play hard, be great leaders and create a legacy not only for themselves but for the program. But if you ask them individually, they are very motivated to reestablish the things we've had going here."
First serve of the 2018 season is exactly a week away when NAU takes on Nevada next Friday, Aug. 24 in its first match of the UC Davis Aggie Invitational.
WHAT DOESN'T KILL YOU MAKES YOU STRONGER
The 2017 season was NAU's most difficult campaign in some time. NAU lost two starters – junior
Sydney Lema and redshirt junior
Victoria Ewalefo – to injuries, causing the pair to miss significant action on the court.
Then there was NAU's first three-match Big Sky losing streak in six years, and an uncharacteristic 5-6 record at home. The six home defeats were more than the previous four years (four total) combined, and it was the Lumberjacks' first sub-.500 home mark since 2009.
However, Murphy – who is entering his sixth season in Flagstaff – knows his team is equipped to handle any challenges that come their way this fall because of what they went through last season.
"They feel stronger and tougher coming out of last year," Murphy said. "They went through a lot of adversity and survived it. They took so many lessons from every experience and they know they can handle adversity when it comes. This season, we're going to have challenging times, and this team is so much more equipped for that."
EXPERIENCE EVERYWHERE
A big reason for optimism this season stems from the Lumberjacks' deep, veteran-laden core of returners.
For the first time since Murphy's inaugural 2013 season, the Lumberjacks did not lose an All-Big Sky selection to graduation. In fact, NAU brings back all six of starters and its libero among a total of eight returning letterwinners.
"We're starting much further ahead than we have the last couple of years," Murphy said. "We return all of our offense and most of our defense, and that core group of players is so experienced and aware of how to create success for ourselves. Each one of them have improved their efficiencies in their hitting, their receiving and our serving is getting better."
Jorgenson and junior
Abby Akin return as NAU's two All-Big Sky First Team selections from a year ago. In her first season as a starter, Jorgenson ranked third in the Big Sky with a team-best 3.77 kills per set. She also showed her value as a six-rotation player, tying for fifth in the Big Sky with 18 double-doubles on the heels of 3.62 digs per set. Meanwhile, Akin followed her stellar freshman season by hitting a team-high .364 – fourth in the league – and averaging 2.01 kills per set. She also led NAU in blocks (1.07 per set) and aces (32).
Sophomore
Heaven Harris capped her first collegiate season with a spot on the All-Big Sky Second Team and was the second consecutive 'Jack – following Akin – to earn Big Sky Outstanding Freshman. Harris ranked second on the squad in multiple categories with 2.76 kills per set on .355 hitting and recording 73 total blocks.
Offensively, NAU is in good hands with the return of Jorgenson and Lema (2.46 kills per set) on the left side and Harris on the right side. Also with the return of Akin and Ewalefo, who continues to rehab from her season-ending surgery and is expected back this season, NAU brings back its top five kill leaders.
Even with Ewalefo missing the beginning of the season, the Lumberjacks are still well-stocked in the middle with the presence of Dorsey, a 2016 All-Big Sky Second Team pick. In Ewalefo's absence last season, Dorsey averaged 1.39 kills and 0.72 blocks per set while hitting a team-best .417 over the final five matches.
The offense ran with junior
Abby Stomp holding the keys last season, as the third-year setter returns after playing in all 104 sets – one of just three Lumberjacks to do so – and ranking seventh in the league with 9.07 assists per set.
Anderson will hold down the defensive back row, where NAU took the biggest hit over the offseason with the graduation of
Brooke Donnelly and
Dani Westfall. Anderson, who has been NAU's primary libero each of the last two years, averaged 3.60 digs per set while also totaling 28 aces – second-most on the team.
Kimber Kemp, coming off a redshirt freshman year, joins Anderson as returns in the back row.
NEW 'JACKS
For as much as NAU returns, Murphy is excited about his crop of seven newcomers, who will be just as important to the team's success this season.
"This group is special; they're not your typical newcomers," Murphy said. "They're very experienced volleyball players who have been playing at a high level. They're the type of players who can come in on the first day and make a difference for us. That's another reason why we are so optimistic because they've added great depth."
Two of NAU's seven newcomers – sophomores
Danielle Hinz and
Maddy Kays – entered fall camp further along than the others after competing with the team in the spring. Hinz, a middle blocker, and Kays, an outside hitter, earned spots for the fall with their spring showings.
NAU also brought in a sophomore transfer,
Olivia Turner, from Seattle Pacific to add depth at the left pin. Turner averaged 2.68 kills per set at Seattle Pacific as a true freshman and made 14 starts.
The Lumberjacks' newcomers are rounded out by four incoming freshmen.
Ryann Davis and
Morgan Gappmayer are hitters, with Davis having the potential to play on both the left and right side, while
Aubrea Bandfield gives NAU two talented setters on this year's roster.
Brianna Lopez is the fourth freshman and will compete for time in the back row.
REESTABLISHING IDENTITY
Since their 2017 season reached an end, the Lumberjacks have spent much of their attention on rediscovering who they want to be on the court. The answer: defense.
From 2013-16 covering Murphy's first four seasons, opponents hit a combined .163 against NAU. The Lumberjacks led the Big Sky in opponent hitting percentage in the three seasons prior to last, and was second in 2013. However last season, opponents hit .220 dropping the 'Jacks all the way to sixth in the league.
Another staple of NAU has been its service pressure. Although the Lumberjacks sat at the top of the conference for the third straight year in serving, their numbers dropped significantly from their nation-leading 226 aces in 2016 to just 158 last year. Their ace average went from 1.92 per set to 1.52, but like their defense, Murphy has seen significant improvement in both areas.
"Coming out of last year, we wanted to be more consistent," Murphy said. "We're reestablishing with this group how important it is to score when we have serve. Our defense and blocking have improved tremendously through the first week of two-a-days and our serving is on a long-term progression of improvement. We want to be the kind of team who puts a lot of pressure on our opponent in that phase of the game and you can see us growing in those areas."
"I'm not going to discount our offense though," Murphy added. "Our setting is really good and we feel like we can kill it at all three positions. I don't feel we're going to be one-dimensional, but we've recreated our identity of being a defense-first type of program."
EARLY SEASON CHALLENGES
The first four weeks of the season will test NAU immediately with four postseason teams and six teams in the NCAA RPI top 150 on this year's non-conference schedule. Of NAU's 13 non-conference opponents over the first month of the season, nine of them finished in the top five of their respective conferences.
"As much as I know we're so much more experienced, I do know we're going to grow a lot over the first few weeks of the season," Murphy said. "Part of it is us pushing ourselves, and the other part is that we have a really challenging schedule. Every night is going to present a challenge, and we want to go into conference knowing we have the ability to get through difficult situations."
The Lumberjacks' biggest challenge will come from Florida, whom NAU will host in the nightcap of the Lumberjack Classic's opening day on Sept. 7. The Gators, last season's national runner-up, opens the fall as the nation's No. 7 team in the AVCA Coaches Preseason Poll.
Florida is far from the only challenge though, as NAU is also scheduled to face three NIVC Tournament teams (SIUE, IUPUI, Texas State) among others before beginning conference play. Also included on NAU's non-conference schedule is a rematch with Arizona State on Sept. 14 in Tempe.
A LOOK AT THE SKY
Even with the departure of North Dakota, winner of the last two Big Sky tournament championship, to the Summit League, the Big Sky Conference remains on the upswing as a whole setting up an exciting race for the league's auto bid at the 2018 Big Sky Championship to be hosted by Northern Colorado over Thanksgiving weekend.
Although NAU returns all six of its starters plus libero, it is not the only school with an experienced team back in the fold. Idaho, the preseason league favorite, returns four starters and three all-conference players. Sacramento State, last season's regular season champion, brings back four starters and two all-conference players. Even Weber State, slotted fifth in the preseason poll, brings back five starters.
The list does not include Portland State, winners of 21 matches last season, and perennial contenders Northern Colorado and Idaho State.
"Different teams have periodically moved towards the top (of the conference) and that is going to continue to happen," Murphy said. "Our conference is full of good athletes and coaches and teams will continue to emerge. The conference is getting better and compared to a few years back, there are less of those nights where you feel it's going to be faster. We know every challenge is serious in our conference."
The 'Jacks have qualified for six consecutive conference tournaments and played in two of the last three Big Sky Championship matches having won it all in 2015.
