Lady Tigers gear up for another national title run

Entering the program's 47^th season, the Cowley College volleyball program has high expectations as they enter the 2023 season. The team is coming off a successful 2022 season that resulted in a NJCAA National Tournament appearance, a sixth-place finish, a Plains District Championship, and a 40-5 overall record with an 8-1 conference record.

Last year's team tied a Cowley record by defeating 38 opponents in straight sets. However, the program said goodbye to some of the best players in Cowley history following the 2022 season. The legacy they continued and enhanced, which included a NJCAA national runner-up, a sixth-place finish at the national tournament, two Plains District championships, a KJCCC conference championship, and multiple All-American honors, won't soon be forgotten.

Now, Cowley head coach Steven Gream will enter his eighth season, leading his Lady Tigers as they work to continue the success of the program.

"We had an amazing season in 2022, with us playing at such a high level to get us back to the NJCAA national tournament for another chance at a championship," Gream stated. "We came up just short in some tight five-set matches. The season was filled with great moments, records being broken, championships, and more. Now we are preparing for a new season with some excellent returning and incoming players. The tough schedule we have against nationally ranked opponents and our always tough KJCCC conference will prepare us and make us better each day. We look for this to continue to be the case as we enter a new season."

Looking over the 2022 roster, fans will notice that there are quite a few new names that will be counted on to produce for the Lady Tigers in the new season. The Lady Tigers lost 13 players from the 2022 season and are returning three players. The returning players will be looked upon to guide the new players as they transition into the Cowley volleyball program. The new players will be expected to help carry on the success and progress that the program has enjoyed throughout its history.

"We did lose some key contributors from last year," Gream said.  "But I really feel that we have the pieces in place for a successful season and great depth in place to have a lot of talent at every position." Gream also added, "Cowley volleyball has had a rich tradition of excellence throughout its history. That will be carried over regardless of who's here because that is something that is very important to all of us. We expect this team, like the Cowley teams in the past, to practice hard, train hard, compete at a high level, and work to improve every day. We believe we have brought in a very talented freshmen class that is not only proficient in their volleyball skills but has much experience. Players who were on championship teams and players who were on national teams. We feel that this freshmen class will help us to build on our success, continue to play at a high level, and compete well in both the KJCCC and NJCAA."

The sophomore class includes three players. Setter, Rossana Papa, returns to Cowley for her second season after sitting out the 2022 season due to an injury. Papa received the NJCAA DII First Team All-American, AVCA Second Team All-American, and VolleyballMag.com All-American honors, was named First Team All-District, KJCCC First Team All-Conference, KJCCC Setter of the Year, KJCCC Freshman of the Year, KJCCC Setter of the Week (five times), and NJCAA All-Academic First Team.

She played in 130 sets, recorded 56 kills, 1,539 assists at 11.84 assists per set, 95 aces, 268 digs, and 41 blocks, plus she recorded 11 double-doubles.

"Rossana is coming back better and stronger than ever following her injury," Gream said. "She is an exceptional and athletic setter that has solid setting technique, court awareness, and discipline to go with her great leaping ability, quickness, consistency, and aggressiveness. She knows our offensive system well and runs it with great tempo, and is able to place the ball to her hitters in and out of the system at any time."

Defensive specialist/libero, Sadie Kabisch, returns for her second season. Kabisch played in 139 sets, recorded 180 digs at 1.29 digs per set, and 15 assists. She brings to the program a strong defensive player who is fearless against any attack and has the ball control to shine on serve receive. She has a strong volleyball IQ that, combined with her quickness, ball control, and ability to read the attack, make her a valuable defensive player.

Outside hitter/opposite hitter, Anna Kiss, returns for her second season. Kiss received All-District Honorable Mention, KJCCC Second Team All-Conference, and was named KJCCC Offensive Player of the Week. She played in 135 sets, recorded 448 kills at 3.32 kills per set, a .289 hitting percentage, 69 aces, 326 digs, and 24 blocks. She brings to the program much experience and talent with her explosive attack and all-around game.

Kiss recorded a season-high 21 kills against Iowa Central on October 14. She recorded a season high .773 hitting percentage against Freed Hardeman University JV (12 kills, 15 attempts) on August 23. Kiss had a season-high 7 aces twice against Central Nebraska on October 8.

Her 448 kills in 2022 ranks her 12th in Cowley history in kills in a season, and her 3.32 kills per set rank her ninth in Cowley history. Her 69 aces in 2022, ranks her 15th in Cowley history in aces in a season. 

"Anna was a force on the court for our program in 2022. She was a "five tool" player who could contribute in a match in so many ways with her powerful attack, aggressive serve, solid block, and her excellent defensive skills and ball control. Her hard work in the off-season has allowed her to enhance those skills to take them to another level. That hard work will cause major issues for our opponents now that she has enhanced her skills and has a year of experience under her belt."

The freshmen class includes 11 players. All are outstanding players who come from outstanding championship programs and national team programs. They will only improve as they get accustomed to the college game and Cowley's style of play. 

Outside Hitter, Laura Bonomi brings to the program a "five-tool player" who has an aggressive and consistent attack, 'libero-like' defensive and passing skills, an aggressive serve, and a solid block.

Middle Hitter, Lucrezia Ceroni, brings to the program athleticism, court awareness, court vision, and timing to our front-row offense and defense. She is an aggressive middle who can attack opponents with a variety of sets and angles, plus she puts up a strong block that will cause problems for the opposition.

Outside hitter/opposite hitter Jerrica Keener, brings to the program athleticism, a powerful and quick arm swing, excellent ball control, and leaping ability that allows her to play at a high level. Her ability to play multiple positions is invaluable to our program to provide great depth on offense and defense. Jerrica prepped at Dayton High School, where she played four seasons of volleyball. In her career, she was twice named Most Valuable Player, First Team All-District, and team captain.

Setter/Defensive Specialist, Sadie Lewis, brings to the program a setter who not only has great hands but also has excellent setting technique, athleticism, and court awareness. Sadie also brings strong defensive skills to our program with her ability to play strong defense, not only as a setter but as a defensive specialist.

Middle hitter/outside hitter Valarie Luna brings to the program an exceptional athlete with amazing athleticism and timing to allow her to play strong at the net with her attacking and blocking abilities. Her incredible vertical and explosive attack will cause great problems for opponents in Cowley's style of offense.

Defensive specialist/outside hitter Kara Martin brings to the program a solid athlete who plays with a lot of passion for the game, has solid ball control, and possesses a ton of energy and aggressiveness on the court. She is an intelligent player who knows the game and strives to improve each day, which allowed her to play multiple positions for her high school and club programs. Middle hitter, Noemi Nyers, brings to the program an outstanding player who will add a dominant presence to our offense and defense with her athleticism, volleyball IQ, and court awareness. Outside hitter/opposite hitter, Sara Puskas brings to the program an exciting and athletic player who will add a dominant presence to our offense and defense with her powerful attack and all-around abilities. She is such an impact player who can elevate a match with those abilities and confident play.

Defensive specialist/libero Adalee Rosado brings to the program much experience at the libero and defensive specialist positions. She plays in such a way that you will immediately notice her once she plays on the court.

Outside hitter/opposite hitter Mika Schultz brings to the program an athletic hitter who has the ability to read defenses and hit a variety of sets with her experience hitting from various positions.

Defensive specialist/libero/outside Hitter Kailea Trinque brings to the program a very talented athlete who has the ability to do a variety of things for our team and do them well. She has exceptional ball control on defense and serve receive, plus has the ability to be an offensive threat on the front and back row.

Under Coach Steven Gream's tenure at Cowley, fans have become accustomed to the fast, aggressive, and powerful style of offense that the Lady Tigers play. An offense that has been ranked one of the top offenses in the nation in each of his seven seasons. That, combined with a strong defense and serve receive, has allowed the program to succeed each year. 2023 looks to be no different with the experienced returners and the very talented freshmen players. That said, the success of Cowley volleyball goes beyond the numbers. Cowley volleyball has been a program built upon a family atmosphere that uses mental training sessions to establish their standards/core values, guideline words and phrases, and motto to define who they are. The motto for 2023 is "With Each Other, For Each Other," or WEOFEO for short. The team's standards/core values are Grit, Team First, Perfect Effort, Attitude, and Accountable. The Cowley community also is a huge part of the family atmosphere, as well, with huge support in the community and in W.S. Scott Auditorium.

The Lady Tigers will play a total of 36 regular season matches. They open their season on August 17 at the W.S. Scott Auditorium against Pratt Community College. They then play again on August 18 in W.S. Scott Auditorium against Kansas Wesleyan University JV. The following week the team will begin conference play with various matches, tournaments, and tri-matches with non-conference programs throughout the season.

Regarding the schedule, Gream had this to say: "With our season schedule, we always want to put together a schedule that has a nice balance of challenging teams to prepare us for KJCCC play but also allow us to prepare for a run at the NJCAA national tournament by playing nationally ranked opponents."

With the right balance of experienced returners and talented newcomers, the Lady Tigers look to pick up where they left off in 2022 and compete in the competitive Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference.