Aug. 10, 2015
RENO, Nev. - Lee Nelson, the first-year head coach of the Nevada volleyball program, is no stranger to winning.
Nelson's three-year run as an assistant coach of the women's volleyball squad at Miami saw the Hurricanes produce three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances and a stellar 66-27 overall record. His tenure as an associate head coach of the men's volleyball program at UC Santa Barbara, his alma mater, saw similar results after the Gauchos reached the finals of the 2011 NCAA Tournament.
On top of his decorated playing career at middle blocker with the Gauchos, which featured a run to the NCAA Finals in 1989, Nelson has the resume and the advantage of five returning starters this season to turn the Wolf Pack into a competitor in the Mountain West.
"Early on we're looking to establish technicalities our personality; who we are as a team and what do we do well," said Nelson, whose team opens up practice this week. "We're not focused on specifically winning a bunch of matches. We're really trying to do it our way and focus on our side of the net. If we can do that then I'm going to be happy with the results."
Nelson brings a winning pedigree to Nevada as the Pack adds talented newcomers along with key returners. Senior
Sam Willoughby, one of the top servers in the MW in 2014, will anchor down the middle alongside classmates
Sommer King on the outside and
Kara Kasser in the back row.
THE SCHEDULE The Pack opens the 2015 season at Cal for the Molten Classic before travelling to Portland for week two as the calendar turns to September. The next week, Nevada will host the Wolf Pack Classic as the Pack welcomes Montana State, Miami (OH) and Weber State to the Virginia Street Gym. A tough tournament awaits the Pack the following week at the Sacramento State Invitational where Nevada will face Santa Clara, a 2014 NCAA Tournament participant, on Sept. 19.
After opening Mountain West play on the road, Nevada will open its conference slate at the Virginia Street Gym against defending MW Champion Colorado State on Oct. 1 at 6:30 p.m. The Pack will welcome Wyoming two days after facing the Rams on Oct. 3 at 12 p.m.
Nevada will return home on Oct. 15 to open a four-match homestand, its longest of the season, starting with Boise State at 6:30 p.m. and wrapping up with Air Force on Oct. 24 at 11 a.m.
In-state foe UNLV comes to town for a 6:30 p.m. Governor's Series match on Nov. 5 before taking on Fresno State, who the Pack swept last season, on Nov. 7 at 1 p.m. Nevada's four seniors will be honored against San Jose State on Nov. 18 at 6:30 p.m. for its final home match at the Virginia Street Gym.
"This year's schedule is a great one," said Nelson. "We kick it off at Pac-12 power Cal before hosting a strong trio of teams at our own Wolf Pack Classic a couple of weeks later. The conference schedule looks tough and that's good, I think our squad is eager for the challenge that comes with being a part of the Mountain West."
THE STAFF When it came time for Nelson to assemble a staff, he first wanted to keep a familiar face on board. Second-year assistant Megan Burton serves as a key asset to Nelson's staff as she trains the middle blockers, assists with team defense and prepares scouting reports.
Nelson's first outside hire was fellow UCSB Gaucho Tyson Norton. Norton spent the last three seasons as the top assistant for the men's volleyball program at UCSB and will carry over a wealth of knowledge in teaching, scouting and player development.
Recently, Nelson rounded out his coaching staff with the hiring of graduate assistant Vish Djurdjevic and volunteer assistant
Jordan Reeder. Djurdjevic, a Zitiste, Serbia native, come to Reno from Boston College where she served as an assistant this past season while also earning a master's degree in administrative studies. After a decorated career as a student-athlete at Tulane and Florida State, Djurdjevic played professionally and coach in Slovenia and Austria. Reeder will a provide a pulse on the local club volleyball scene in Northern Nevada after working as a coach and instructor at Silver State Volleyball Club in Carson City from 2008-15. The Zephyr Cove, Nev., native also had success at the Division I level as a setter at Cornell where she sits seventh in program history with 354 assists.
"We have really put together a top notch staff," said Nelson. "I am enthusiastic about what they bring to the table and I am really looking forward to getting all of us in the gym with the team this week."
FRONT LINE The Pack boasts a deep front line and has senior anchors in the middle in Willoughby and on the outside in King. Those two positions will also see playing time from players who received significant playing time in 2014 and will look to step into leadership positions this season.
In Willoughby, Nevada returns one of its top offensive performers and the top server in the Mountain West. The Jamul, Calif., native led the team and the conference with .37 service aces per set and ranked 10th with a .317 attacking percentage in conference play last season. She was named Mountain West Player of the Week in week one of the 2014 campaign after being named to the All-Tournament team at the Pepperdine Asics Classic.
Along with junior
Kathryn Groenweghe, who set a career-high in kills last season, Willoughby will be backed up by
Gabby Szachara and
Peighton De Von, two six-footers who redshirted last season.
Sophomore
Madison Foley blossomed as a freshman last season where she played in every set and started in 25 of 28 matches. The Dayton, Nev., product ranked second on the team with 239 kills and 243 digs, providing talent and versatility to the outside along with King. Junior
Madison Morell, who finished in the top-four in kills and digs per set, will continue to see playing time at right side hitter with freshman
Jamila Minor.
SETTERS The strength of the Pack is arguably at setter where junior
Lyndsey Anderson and senior
Taylar Rothfuss will compete for the starting job. Rothfuss is coming off a 2014 campaign where she set career-highs in sets and matches played while compiling the second most assists on the squad with 161.
Anderson, who was tabbed to the Mountain West Volleyball All-Star team that toured Europe this summer, led Nevada and ranked ninth in the MW with 801 assists last season. In conference play, Anderson was just as good as she finished 10th in the league in assists while also registering a career-high 49 assists at Air Force on Oct. 25
LIBERO Senior
Kara Kasser has played in every match and every set for the Wolf Pack over the last three years as the starting libero. She's led the team in digs in 2014 and 2013 and her 311 digs last season set a new career-high.
Playing behind Kasser will be junior
Madison Thorpe, sophomore
Nicole Burdo, who's coming off a redshirt season, and UC Riverside transfer
Mo Maluotoga. Thorpe served as the primary backup to Kasser in 2014 where she played in 18 sets and averaged 1.19 digs per frame.
Season tickets for the 2015 volleyball season are available and are just $50 for adults and $35 for seniors. Youth season tickets are also available for only $55 which includes a Pup Club membership. A Pup Club membership includes a free t-shirt in addition to season tickets for Football, Volleyball, Baseball and Softball. Become a Wolf Pack ticketholder today by calling (775) 348-PACK or by purchasing online.
-- @NevadaWolfPack --
