Women’s volleyball to go up against Barry Sept. 16

NSU women’s volleyball has officially kicked off the fall season. This Saturday, Sept. 16, the team will face Barry University at 4 p.m. in the Rick Case Arena.

The team’s season opener on Sept. 1 saw NSU beating Seton Hill 93-85. The next day, the team beat Dominican University 75-49 and Bentley University 98-90.

Assistant Coach Matt Geer is pleased to see his players get off to such a successful start.

“Things are looking really good,” Geer said. “Getting into the flow of things has been pretty smooth.”

Team Captain Kate Mihacevich, junior property management and real estate major, said that this smooth start is due in part to the lineup of eight newcomers and 11 returning players.

“We have half of the team as returners this year, so we have a lot of people that have already been in the program and know our rules, expectations and techniques,” Mihacevich said. “That’s really helped this year start off strong right away. Everyone got on the same page quickly, and I think that’s helped a lot of our new people integrate with the team.”

Team Captain Nadia Lindner, first year graduate student in paralegal studies who transferred from Lynn University this year, said that training is made easier by the sense of team camaraderie.

“Practices have been going very well,” Lindner said. “I feel like we’re all just one big family.”

The team’s initial three wins were followed by two defeats, one against Maryville University on Sept. 8 and one against Rockhurst University on Sept. 9. The Sharks finished Sept. 9 with a win against Wheeling University in a competitive game that ran five sets.

Mihacevich said she is especially confident this season because the roster is a lot larger than it was last season, when many players were out due to injury.

“This year, there’s so much depth in every position. So that’s really refreshing and relaxing to have so many people that can go in and play just as well as the person in front of them. And it just makes everyone more competitive,” Mihacevich said. “You’re constantly pushing to be better, not only than the people across the net, but the people on your team, too.”

Geer agreed that the team was thin on numbers last year, but said they did a great job regardless. Last season, NSU won 19 out of 31 games.

The last game of that spring season has been against Barry University, who the team lost to 105-106.

Barry won the last regional tournament and is in the elite eight in the nation. In the conference, out of 11 teams, Barry came in second while NSU landed in fourth.

In just a few days, NSU will be going against Barry again, and the team is excited for this rematch. Team Captain Jordan Chessar, junior biology major, is especially looking forward to seeing how the new lineup performs.

“In conference, when Barry came to our home court, I knew that game wasn’t particularly our best, and I feel like getting the chance to play them again with our new team this year and fresh blood is going to be such a fun game to be a part of,” Chessar said.

Mihacevich is especially excited for this game because Barry is home to the 2022 national player of the year, Diana Akopova.

“If you want to be the best you have to beat the best,” Mihacevich said. “If you’re a real competitor, you love those moments, and you love those types of games where you get to play against the best people at your level.”

Team Captain Madison Cook, fifth year nursing major, is also excited to bring on the competition, not just against Barry, but throughout the entire season.

“I think that we were competitive last year, but I want us to be even more competitive than we’ve ever been,” Cook said. “Bringing that competitiveness will bring us really far in conference, so I want us to really bring that fire to every single game.”

The team hopes for a big turnout of NSU students this Saturday.

Lindner said her one message to onlookers is: “Be loud.”