Round 1 - These seniors have been the backbone to the Ashland-Greenwood program the last 3 years

2019 Ashland Greenwood. Photo contributed. TEAM: ASHLAND-GREENWOOD BLUEJAYS CLASS: C1 LOCATION: East Central Nebraska in Saunders County NSAA TEAM ENROLLMENT (female, grades 9-11): 110 CONFERENCE: Capitol Conference COACH: Megan Rossell Finishing up the Sun Regional of the 2020 Nebraska Prep Dig Team Series is a matchup between D1 Central Valley Cougars and C1 Ashland-Greenwood Bluejays in the first round. To hear more about your favorite team, hop over to our Twitter feed @nebhsvolleyball to vote them to the second round until 9:00 p.m. on Sunday, May 24! <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2020/05/Nebraska-Prep-Dig-Team-Series-Bracket-5.pdf">Nebraska Prep Dig Team Series Bracket</a> Early each season, the Ashland-Greenwood volleyball team is pushed to their limits by playing traditional volleyball powerhouses in Waverly and Wahoo Neumann along with conference foes Syracuse, DC West, and Wahoo (now Trailblazer Conference). These early games prepare the Bluejays for tough encounters for the rest of the season. Coach Megan Rossell on the Bluejay schedule, “We had a lot of returning starters and did some great things this year. We won the Malcolm tournament at the beginning of the season which was a great start. We beat some tough teams that made it far in districts and had great regular seasons but also lost some really tough 5 set matches. We made it to district finals which was a huge accomplishment to play a tough Lincoln Lutheran who in turn won state, but we did beat them earlier in the season which was a great win for us.” It seems that the Class of 2021 has been playing at A-G forever! Many of these players gained varsity experience as freshmen with a record of 15-14; then as sophomores, 11-18. In 2019, these players became the upperclassmen and posted an 18-12 record. In 2020, now as seniors, they will be a threat to opponents. Coach comments on the upcoming season for her Bluejays, “I am very much looking forward to the 2020 season. Many of these girls have started since they were freshman and with their senior year I really think this is their time to take total control and show what they are fully capable of. I have some great leaders in this group, but it is all going to come down to who can perform and be consistent leaders. I think we will win many games, but it is going to come down to finishing in some tough close games that will be a big difference from last season to this upcoming season.” With a plethora of seniors in 2020 the Bluejays still need to replace two graduated starters, but they have some players ready to step up to the challenge. This team should be on the radar of opponents now! [caption id="attachment_94214" align="aligncenter" width="1119"] 2019 Ashland Greenwood. Photo contributed.[/caption] Returning Letter Winners ⇒Jess Stander | 2021 | 5’ 8" Club: Nebraska Juniors and Sunset West Awards: All-Conference Honorable Mention (2018,2019) 2019 Stats: Kills/Set, Total, Hitting Percentage: 1.9, 154, .287 Blocks Total: 62 Coaches Comments: Jess is going to be a big threat for us this year and will be a great teammate to have on the court. Jess is the player you can count on that she is going to give 100% for her teammates. A favorite memory of Jess’, “My most memorable moment is probably when we had our first teaming bonding event last year. We all played sand vball together in town then had a nice dinner to socialize!” ⇒[player_tooltip player_id="82585" first="Alexa" last="Edmisten"] | 2021 | 5’ 5" Club: Sunset West Awards: All-Conference 2nd Team (2018) & Academic All-State 2018,2019) 2019 Stats: Digs/Set, Total: 4.3, 360 Receptions/Set, Total: 3.8, 318 Coaches Comments: Alexa will be a big part of our back row this year and will need to be that positive leader to help control our ball control. Alexa on her favorite memory with the coveted libero jersey, “I would maybe say my freshman year- I think it was the second game of the season- and a junior that year started as libero this game. I was sitting on the bench with my other teammates just watching the game. Then the next set rolled around and my coach told me to run to the locker room and switch jersey’s, so that is what I did. When I ran back out, my coach told me she put me on the line up to play libero. I was scared out of my mind, but I was also more excited than I had ever been. That was probably my most memorable moment.” ⇒Saige Craven | 2021 | 5’ 8" | UNCOMMITTED AND INTERESTED! Club: Sunset West Perspective Awards: All-Conference Honorable Mention (2018) All-Conference 1st Team (2019) 2019 Stats: Kills/Set, Total, Hitting Percentage: 1.7, 156, .216 Serving Percentage: 92.5 Digs/Set, Total: 2.8, 252 Assists/Set, Total: 5.8, 526 Receptions/Set, Total: Coaches Comments: Saige will be a big leader for us this season. She was a big asset for our setting and hitting so it will be interesting what her role is next year ball control-wise but she is a very strong player who needs to be that consistent leader. Saige on the value of her teammates, “The majority of our team has been playing together for a very long time and we all have played a lot of volleyball in the off-seasons as well as in season! It has been very cool growing up with all of them and watching them grow as people and players! I wouldn’t trade my team for anything, and there’s no one else I’d rather share the love of the game with! ⇒Layne Whaley | 2021 | 5’ 8" | UNCOMMITTED AND INTERESTED! Club: Nebraska Elite Awards: Academic All-State (2018,2019) 2019 Stats: Digs/Set, Total: 2.7, 240 Receptions/Set, Total: 2.6, 234 Coaches Comments: Layne is a great teammate and is a super strong back-row player but did some good things for us in the front row also. Looking forward to her showing her stuff. Layne on her volleyball career, “My high school volleyball experience has been a crazy ride. I started out on reserve freshman year, as a libero. After our first scrimmage I was moved to JV as a libero. Halfway through the season, I became a DS on varsity. I worked very hard to earn my spot on varsity. Sophomore summer, I had a dramatic growth spurt and was made an outside player. Ever since then, I have started as outside hitter on varsity. I grew greatly as a player throughout high school volleyball and learned a lot through this process.” ⇒[player_tooltip player_id="58812" first="Brynn" last="Glock"] | 2022 | 5’ 6" Club: Banzai 17 Max Select 2019 Stats: Serving Percentage: 90.7 Assists/Set, Total: 3.5, 319 Coaches Comments: Brynn was a great addition to our team last season. She is a spitfire and just an all-around great kid. Her energy is something that is very important to this team! Brynn on transferring from DC West to Ashland for her sophomore season, “I have learned so much since freshman year. Coming to Ashland with a strong setter already leading the team, I had to work extra hard to prove to not only the varsity team but to all the girls and coaches that I want it just as bad. I have only learned positive things from Ashland volleyball and I couldn’t be more proud to be a BLUEJAY.” ⇒Carly vonRentzell | 2021 | 5’ 8" | UNCOMMITTED for volleyball or basketball Club: VCN & Banzai Awards: All-Conference Honorable Mention (2019) 2019 Stats: Kills/Set, Total, Hitting Percentage: 2.2, 199, .149 Coaches Comments: Carly changed positions last season and will be doing some different stuff probably this season but she takes on any challenge and did some amazing things for us last season and looking forward to her growing even more her senior year. Carly on playing volleyball with her senior class since 3rd grade, “There were five of the 2021 seniors that played varsity as freshmen. It didn’t seem like a big deal at the moment but looking back it’s crazy to think 14-year-olds were playing 18-year-olds with 4 extra years of experience.” Want more information on the Ashland-Greenwood Bluejays? Vote for them on Twitter @nebhsvolleyball to push them to round 2!