WSC Volleyball Thankful To Compete Against Talented Teams

WSC Volleyball Thankful To Compete Against Talented Teams
Courtesy of Wayne State Athletics.

WAYNE – Another fall sport which competed in a handful of matches this past spring will be looking forward to their upcoming 2021 fall season.

Although the Wayne State College beach volleyball team competed in 10 matches, their fall team took part in five exhibition and scrimmages including three matches against high caliber Big 12 opponents.

After having their inaugural season cut short due to COVID-19 last spring, the Wayne State College beach volleyball team went 5-5. WSC finished runner-up in the silver division, eighth overall during the AVCA Small College Beach Championships.

Head coach Scott Kneifl has guided the Wildcat volleyball program for the past 16 years. Coach Kneifl said they were thankful to find a way for their players to find some real competition and not just against each other.

“Wayne State is not a beach only team, we’re an indoor team that plays beach volleyball,” said Kneifl. “So, there’s a big difference in the rules and in how the games is played. But I was really proud of our kids effort and how they competed. It was just nice to see them get out there and play.”

The Wildcat beach season began with a trip to Arizona where WSC went 3-1 before a 2-4 finish in Florida.

With volleyball not getting an organized season from the NSIC, coach Kneifl added he felt liked WSC did the best job to find a way to compete on the court.

“We went to Iowa State and played twice, we went to Kansas State who was nationally ranked at the time in Division I,” Kneifl added. “Those were great opportunities for our kids to compete in those types of arenas, those types of settings, against those types of athletes.”

WSC also had scrimmage wins over Benedictine University at Mesa in Arizona and a home sweep over Mount Marty all in the month of March.

WSC will lose five talented seniors that will move onto med school and graduate school.

“So, we went from a primarily older team to a very, very young team,” Kneifl mentioned. “Next year we will have zero seniors on the roaster and only one junior on the roster, so the rest will all be freshmen and sophomores. That’s a young team in this league but we’re really excited. We think that we’re young, but we also know that we’re talented.”

Another five players are committed for the 2021 fall season and 2022 spring beach season at Wayne State College. Along with the incoming class, WSC had two true freshmen and another two redshirt/COVID freshman that will still be considered as freshmen next season.

Wayne State College volleyball is looking forward to competing at Rice Auditorium in front of their home crowd this fall.

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