Wildcat volleyball team eyes repeat NCC title

Humboldt head volleyball coach Ashlyn McKenna likes her team’s chances of winning another North Central Conference championship.

The former Ashlyn Clark begins her second year as head coach with optimism as they return five girls who lettered last year in leading Humboldt to a 5-2 mark in the NCC, 14-18 overall.

The Wildcats were co-champions with Algona, who also finished 5-2. Webster City, Clarion-Goldfield-Dows and Clear Lake were all next at 4-3 in what was a wide open conference race last year.

“Algona and Webster City will be tough. They are up there every single year. Clear Lake lost a very good player in Ada Johnson, so I don’t know who they will have to replace here,” McKenna said. “You know who teams are losing but you don’t know what they are gaining during the off-season.”

“The conference was pretty competitive last year from top to bottom. We went four or five sets with just about everybody in the conference. Until we start playing and seeing the competition and pushing through it, it’s up to the girls to see how they are going to play each night out on the floor,” McKenna said.

“Last year we had a lot of tight matches and comeback wins. I’m excited to see how we compete this season in the NCC and going and playing in some good tournaments around the state,” McKenna said.

Gracey Johnson, Mia Schluter, Larsen Bonnstetter, Alivia Goodell, Kendall Works and Claire Dieleman lettered last year and return extensive experience.

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