NMMI’s McKayla Landreth gets an attack past the double block by IWCC – one of the few kills the Broncos managed during their opening round match.
Katie Campbell with the dig.
CASPER, Wyo. – It was a tough opening match for the Bronco volleyball team at the NJCAA National Championships, losing in three straight sets to the team ranked No. 2 in the nation, Iowa Western Community College, 25-13, 25-7, 25-15.
“We had five kills in Game 1 and five kills in Game 2. You can’t beat a nationally ranked team with five kills,” said head coach Shelby Forchtner.
“I think with the first five points, we just got really scared. That was one thing I was hoping we wouldn’t do, because we have played all of these teams during the course of the regular season – everyone we’ve played has been nationally ranked. I was hoping that that would really prepare us for the national tournament and it didn’t – we just completely shut down.”
Madison Harris outside attack.
With the loss, NMMI drops down into a consolation bracket, where the best they can finish is ninth place. But that doesn’t mean Forchtner and her Lady Broncos are ready to pack up and go home. They play the tournament’s No. 10 seed, Tyler Junior College at 10 a.m. Friday morning, and both Forchtner and assistant coach Alonso Ibarra are getting their players ready for the match.
“A few years ago, we lost in the first round to a top-ranked team like Iowa Western, and then came back and got all the way to the match for ninth and tenth place,” explained Forchtner.
Set by Cherish Sosi.
That year, 2013, was NMMI’s first foray into the championship tourney, and after the initial loss, the Broncos bounced back with a pair of wins, both against higher-ranked opponents.
“That’s what we’re focused on right now,” continued Forchtner. “We just met with our kids and went over the game plan and what we wanted to do – we’ve seen Tyler before. We know exactly what to expect.
According to Forchtner, Tyler is very different from the Reivers
Jump serve by Hannah Davis.
“We knew that Iowa Western was very outside hitter dominant. I don’t think we could have shut down Iowa Western’s outside game today, but I definitely think we could have stopped them a bit better and gotten a lot more touches.”
Tyler, by contrast, has a very effective middle, and Forchtner thinks her Broncos match up better against the Apaches.
“It’s a different story tomorrow. We have the lineup to really compete with this team. It should be a pretty good match if we’ll come out there and play well.”
Maluhia Taula backrow pass.
With a win, NMMI will continue on to the semis of the consolation bracket, with the next match scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Friday. A second win means another day’s stay here in snowy Casper, with a chance to win out on Saturday and finish as one of top ten junior college volleyball teams in the nation.
