SMSU Grizzly Volleyball

WEST PLAINS, Mo. – The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzly volleyball team has yet another accolade to add to it’s list of honors this year.

The 11-member squad has been named one of the 2002-2003 Fall Academic Teams of the Year by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA).

“We’re very excited about this award,” Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. “This is the first time we’ve received this honor.”

The award is given to NJCAA fall sports teams for achieving academic excellence by maintaining a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4.0 scale. The compiled grade point average for the team was 3.05.

“The credit for this award really goes to our players, our advisement staff – Veronica Mays and Laurel Driscoll, and Dee Daniels and the Grizzly PAWS program,” Knight said.

The program, which is better known as the Promoting Academic Success With Student-Athletes program, consists of a group of students, faculty and staff who are dedicated to helping student-athletes develop the skills they need to excel in the classroom. It was implemented in the middle of the spring 2002 semester to provide additional assistance to student-athletes during study hall periods.

“Our players have always made pretty good grades, but this program has made a great deal of difference this year,” Knight said.

Dr. Herb Lunday, SMSU-WP Dean of Student Services, added his praise by commenting, “The credit for this accomplishment can be generously shared by lots of people at the university and in the community. The best part, though is that students are the ultimate beneficiaries as they succeed in the classroom and prepare for life’s opportunities and challenges. We are very proud.”

The Lady Grizzlies were among 44 NJCAA volleyball teams to receive the award.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - For the second time in her 10-year career as a two-year college coach, Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains' (SMSU-WP) Trish Kissiar-Knight has been named the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA)/Tachikara Two-Year Midwest Region Coach of the Year.

"This is really a great honor for me," Knight said today. "Your peers nominate you for this award, so it makes it very special."

In the news release announcing her selection, AVCA officials noted Knight led the Lady Grizzlies to their fourth consecutive Region 16 championship and that her team placed second in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's National Volleyball Championship tournament. Officials also pointed out that the Lady Grizzlies ranked in the top 10 of the NJCAA's poll throughout the season, reaching as high as third.

Knight will travel next week to New Orleans, La., to accept her award at the 2002 American Volleyball Coaches Association National Convention and banquet. She also will receive a special plaque for reaching her 400th career victory this season.

It seems only fitting that these awards should come Knight's way this season. Knight helped establish the Lady Grizzly volleyball program 10 years ago and, since that time, has become one of the most widely respected coaches in the Midwest. During her tenure at the helm of the Lady Grizzly program, she has received eight Region 16 Coach of the Year awards and four consecutive District H Coach of the Year awards.

The Region 16 award is especially nice, Knight said, because it, too, is awarded by her fellow Region 16 coaches. "This is a hard one to win sometimes. It's nice to know that your peers respect you so highly," she explained.

That doesn't come as a surprise to SMSU-WP Athletic Director Herb Lunday. "Coach Knight has earned the highest respect of coaches and athletics personnel in Missouri and throughout the nation. She has repeatedly demonstrated her ability to recruit talented athletes and mold them into a championship team. It is fitting, in this 10th anniversary year of the Grizzly Athletics program, that we honor her for outstanding leadership and a vast accumulation of impressive accomplishments. We are exceedingly glad that she is on 'our team.'"

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - It doesn't happen often, but it has happened to the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies volleyball team.

Two members of this year's team, sophomore Edna Chumo and freshman Rose Obunaga, have been named first-team All-Americans by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA). This is Chumo's second consecutive nod to the first-team All-American squad and the first time two Lady Grizzlies have been selected to the first team in the same year.

"I am really excited for them. They're very deserving of this honor," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said.

Chumo and Obunaga led the Lady Grizzlies through their best campaign ever in 2002, a campaign that included a second-place finish in the NJCAA Division I Women's National Volleyball Championship tournament.

Chumo finished the season first on the team in several statistical areas, including kills (699), attacking percentage (.485), kills per game (4.14), digs (528) and points earned (869.5). She was second in blocking (128.5) and third in aces (42).

"What a brilliant two-year career for Edna," Knight said. "I'm glad Edna is going to stay here and complete her degree. I've enjoyed having her as a player. She is really a neat person."

Obunaga led the team in blocks (165.5) and was second in kills (602), attacking percentage (.466), kills per game (3.58), aces (45), digs (496) and points earned (812.5).

"The neat thing about Rose is that she can improve so much," Knight said. "I'm really looking forward to having Rose next year. She is a great player and a great person."

Chumo and Obunaga join 10 former Lady Grizzlies who have received distinction as All-American selections.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - It wasn't the trophy they had hoped for, but the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies did receive a new memento for their trophy case Wednesday night, Nov. 27.

The Lady Grizzlies (48-10) picked up the second-place prize in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's Volleyball National Championship Tournament at the West Plains Civic Center after falling to the defending national champion, the Miami-Dade Community College Lady Sharks from Miami, Fla., 22-30, 19-30, 13-30 in the championship match. The second-place finish marks the best showing ever by the Lady Grizzlies' in their four trips to the national tournament.
"Second in the nation, what an accomplishment," Lady Grizzlies Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "I'm proud of my players. Years from now they will look back and realize what they have done."

In the Lady Grizzlies' previous appearances at the national tournament in 1999, 2000 and 2001, the squad placed eighth, seventh and fourth, respectively. Their second-place finish this year comes as the program celebrates its 10th anniversary. "This has been a great season. Finally, we've put some hardware in the trophy case that says second in the nation," the coach added.

While Knight is pleased with the second-place finish, she admitted she is somewhat disappointed with her team's performance in the championship match. "I wish we would have played as well as we had last night," she said, referring to her team's 26-30, 33-31, 31-29, 30-28 win over Lee College of Baytown, Texas, in the semifinals. "I though we played pretty well in the first game tonight, but we let down in the last two. I don't know what happened. We had such a great crowd. I wish we could have done more."
The Lady Grizzlies kept pace with the Lady Sharks throughout much of the first game, staying just a few points behind until Miami-Dade pulled away at the end. In the second game, the Lady Grizzlies led 7-5 and, after Miami regained the lead, tied the Lady Sharks at 10-10 before mistakes allowed Miami to take control of the remainder of the match.

Offensively, the Lady Grizzlies were led by freshman Rose Obunaga, who had 10 kills. She was followed by sophomore Edna Chumo with nine, and sophomore Petela Afungia and freshman Anna Dmowska each with six. Freshman setter Juliana Nogueira recorded 26 assists. On defense, Chumo led the way with 12 digs and 1.5 blocks. Obunaga recorded three blocks and seven digs, and freshman Loran Ichord had 11 digs.

Chumo, Obunaga and Dmowska were selected to the all-tournament team. Joining them were Fernanda Brino, Madelaynne Montano and Michelle Rosamiglia, all of Miami-Dade; Paula Caten of Barton County Community College, Great Bend, Kan.; Mindee Magill, Kelly Paiva and Andreza Santos of the College of Southern Idaho in Twin Falls; Jacqueline Makokha and Nasikanda Wandera of Lee College; and Joy Okpa of Seward County Community College in Liberal, Kan. Rosamiglia was named the tournament's most valuable player, and Miami-Dade's Ilida Medero was named Coach of the Tournament.

In other tournament action during the championship round, College of Southern Idaho defeated Lee College in the third-place match 30-20, 30-16, 30-20; Barton County Community College defeated Seward County Community College in the fifth-place match 30-26, 30-24, 19-30, 22-30, 15-13; Arizona Western College, Yuma, defeated Western Nebraska Community College, Scottsbluff, in the seventh-place match 30-25, 14-30, 30-20, 30-12; and Lake Land College, Mattoon, Ill., defeated Frank Phillips College, Borger, Texas, in the ninth-place match 31-29, 30-26, 30-24.

Several other individual tournament awards were presented by tournament sponsors. They included the Town Square Internet Service Aces Award, which went to Desiree Batista of Frank Phillips College for her 12 aces; the Ozarks Medical Center Outstanding Setter Award, which went to Luisa de Lima of Arizona Western Community College for her 180 assists; the State Farm Top Point-Maker Award, which went to Paula Caten of Barton County Community College for her 84 points; the Town Square Internet Top Gun Award, which went to Caten for her 71 kills; the Ozarks Medical Center Outstanding Blocker Award, which went to Amanda Santos of College of Southern Idaho and Rose Obunaga of SMSU-WP who each had 14 blocks; and the State Farm Outstanding Libero Award, which went to Loran Ichord of SMSU-WP for her 35 digs.

Complete tournament results can be found at the tournament web site, http://www.njcaad1volleyballchampionship.net.

As for the tournament, Knight was very pleased with the event and thanked the tournament committee for its hard work and dedication in its preparation. This is the second year SMSU-WP has hosted the tournament. The 2003 tournament will again be hosted in West Plains by SMSU-WP.
"This is an amazing community," Knight said. "Hosting this tournament would not have been possible without its support."

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - They've defeated the number three and two seeds, and now the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies are going after No. 1 in the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's National Volleyball tournament.
The Lady Grizzlies (48-9) will face defending national champion Miami-Dade Community College Lady Sharks (31-0) in the tournament's championship match at 6 p.m. today in the West Plains Civic Center. The Lady Grizzlies reached the championship after defeating the Lee College Lady Rebels of Baytown, Texas, 26-30, 33-31, 31-29, 30-28 Tuesday night in semifinal action. Miami-Dade, who've stayed No. 1 in the NJCAA national poll throughout the season, downed the College of Southern Idaho Lady Eagles of Twin Falls 30-18, 30-20, 30-21 in the other semifinal match.

When asked to describe her feelings after the win, Lady Grizzlies Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight replied, "way content. This is what you work for all year long. And, what a deal on our 10th anniversary season to do something like this. That makes it even more special."

The match was seesaw affair, as both teams tried to keep the upper hand. The Grizzlies finally sealed the match when freshman Rose Obunaga blocked an attack by a Lee hitter, and the ball fell onto the floor on Lee's side of the court. Knight credits her team's never-say-die attitude and the player's conditioning for making the difference.

"I was really proud of our girls. We've worked them hard this year, and I think we were in better shape. Our conditioning was great, and I attribute that to our athletic trainer, Zach Lee. He knows what he's doing, and he takes care of us. I give him as much credit as anyone," she said.

In Knight's opinion, the Lady Grizzlies' win Tuesday night was due to a total team effort. "Everybody played well, and that's what you need in championship matches. We were tight in the first game, but then we settled in," she said. "Plus, my assistant coach, Paula Wiedemann, is great to have on the bench. She sees different things and points them out to me during the match."

Tuesday night wasn't the first time these two teams faced each other in the semifinals. Last year, in another tightly contested match, the Lady Rebels prevailed and advanced to the championship. But Knight and her returning players learned a lot from that experience and put it to use in this year's meeting.

"We knew Nasikanda Wandera was going to hit the ball. We knew we'd give up some stuff on her, so we set our minds to getting a sideout as quickly as possible after those misses," Knight explained. "And, Jacqueline Makokha had a great match last year on us. We knew we had to contain her, so we put Seini Tonga on her to get a bigger block, and that made a big difference."

Tonga, a sophomore, had a total of 2.5 blocks for the match, including 1 solo. Obunaga led the team in blocks with 7.5, 6 of which were solos. She was followed by sophomore Edna Chumo with 3.5 blocks (2 solos). Obunaga also led the team in digs with 17, followed by Chumo with 15 and freshman Loran Ichord with 10.

Offensively, SMSU-WP was led by Chumo, who recorded 17 kills on 29 attempts for an attacking percentage of .552. She was followed by Obunaga, who had 15 kills on 30 attempts for an attacking percentage of .333, and freshman Anna Dmowska, who had 12 kills on 39 attempts for an attacking percentage of .154.

Knight knows her team will have another tough task tonight against the Lady Sharks. "They have one hitter like Lee that we won't be able to stop. We will just have to let her hit and play hard to get the sideout," the coach said.

Still, Knight likes her team's chances, pointing out the Lady Grizzlies match up well with Miami-Dade. "At the first of the year, I knew we had all of this talent, but we couldn't put it together. Now we have," she said.

Area residents can keep track of all of the tournament action at the tournament's web site, http://www.njcaad1volleyballchampionship.net.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - It took five games, but the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies prevailed in the second round of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's National Volleyball Championship tournament at the West Plains Civic Center.

The Lady Grizzlies (47-9) defeated the Western Nebraska Community College Lady Cougars of Scottsbluff 30-25, 30-26, 18-30, 27-30, 15-11 in a nail-biter that took two hours and 10 minutes to complete.

Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said it took a total team effort to win this contest between two evenly-matched squads. "There was a different player in every game who stepped up," she said. "In the first game it was Kacie Callison. In the last game it was Anna Dmowska. It was really nice to see that."
The tension of the match was palpable as momentum swung back and forth between the two teams in each game. With few exceptions, neither team was able to put together a long scoring run. The difference finally came in the fifth game when Dmowska found herself in "the zone" and scored several consecutive points off her attack.

"Anna was just awesome," Knight said. "She struggled at the beginning of the match, but she came back and had the guts to play it out to the finish. She was great." The freshman attacker had 15 kills on 31 attempts in the match for an attacking percentage of .387.

The Lady Grizzlies' defense also was key as sophomore Edna Chumo and freshman Loran Ichord made some key digs that kept the ball off the floor late in the match. "When the going gets tough, Edna gets going. She had some really key digs for us down late," Knight said. "Loran had a good defensive game, as well. She's averaged over 3 digs a game in both of our matches so far." Ichord had 15 digs total for the match, and Chumo had 12.

Chumo also led the team offensively, recording 19 kills on 30 attempts for an attacking percentage of .500. She was followed by freshman Rose Obunaga who had 17 kills on 32 attempts for an attacking percentage of .500.

The Lady Grizzlies found encouragement for their match from a huge hometown crowd, which filled the stands of the civic center arena. Among those attending were 450 students from Richards School who cheered throughout the contest. "Having Richards School here, that was neat. They helped us, no doubt about it," Knight said.

SMSU-WP's players will now try to rest and relax for their meeting with the Lee College Lady Rebels from Baytown, Texas, at 6 p.m. today in the semifinals of bracket play. The 35-3 Lady Rebels defeated Seward County Community College from Liberal, Kan., 30-27, 30-24, 30-24 this morning. Tonight's contest will be a grudge match for the Lady Grizzlies. They lost to Lee in last year's semifinal match.
"This will be the same kind of match as the Western Nebraska match. We will have to play hard the entire time," Knight said.

Area residents can keep track of all of the tournament action at the tournament's web site, http://www.njcaad1volleyballchampionship.net.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies survived a scare in their first-round match at the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's Volleyball National Championship tournament at the West Plains Civic Center.
The Lady Grizzlies (46-9) faced Tyler (TX) Junior College in one of the first two matches at 10 a.m. today that opened the three-day event and were able to hold off a tough Lady Apache squad 30-28, 32-30, 30-22.
"There was a lot of pressure on us, and I think the girls played tight," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said in assessing her team's performance. She explained both she and her players have had many distractions as they prepared to host the event, and it showed on the court this morning as they had to battle back from deficits in the first two games. But, she added, they were able to play well enough to pick up the victory in the double-elimination event.
Knight praised freshman Brandi Woodard for coming off the bench and helping the Lady Grizzlies turn the match around. "Brandi did some really great things for us. She became our go-to gal when others were struggling. Whenever you’re in a situation like this, you’ve got to use your bench, and she’s always been there for us," the coach said.
Sophomore Edna Chumo led SMSU-WP’s on offense with 16 kills out of 28 attempts for an attacking percentage of .393. Freshman Juliana Nogueira led the team in attacking percentage with .547 with 6 kills on 11 attempts.
Defensively, freshman Loran Ichord led the Lady Grizzlies in digs with 10, followed by freshmen Rose Obunaga, sophomore Seini Tonga and Nogueira each with five. Chumo led the team in blocks with 3 including 2 solos.
The Lady Grizzlies will face the Western Nebraska Community College Lady Cougars (57-6) at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 26, in second round action. Western Nebraska downed Frank Phillips College of Borger, Texas, 30-24, 30-23, 30-26 in the other 10 a.m. match today.
Area residents can keep track of all of the tournament action at the tournament’s web site, http://www.njcaad1volleyballchampionship.net.

WEST PLAINS, Mo.- Officials with the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) have announced the seedings and pairings for the NJCAA Division I Women's National Volleyball Championship Tournament, scheduled Nov. 25-27 at the West Plains Civic Center, and Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) appears to be in a good spot.

Officials seeded the Lady Grizzlies (45-9) No. 6 and scheduled them to face No. 11 seed Tyler Junior College of Tyler, Texas, at 10 a.m. Monday, Nov. 25, on Court 2 at the West Plains Civic Center.
"We're liking it," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said of her team's seed. "It's looking pretty good to us. If we win against Tyler, we're expecting to face Western Nebraska Community College (the No. 3 seed) at 10 a.m. Tuesday, and we split two matches with them this season."

But Knight isn't looking past Tyler at this point, explaining it's important to win the first-round match so SMSU-WP will advance to the championship bracket. "I will be making some contacts with some people I know in Texas to find out more about them," she said.

Top seed in the three-day event is defending national champion Miami-Dade Community College from Miami, Fla. The Lady Sharks are followed by No. 2 Lee College of Baytown, Texas; No. 3 Western Nebraska of Scottsbluff; No. 4 Barton County Community College of Great Bend, Kan.; No. 5 College of Southern Idaho from Twin Falls; No. 6 SMSU-WP; No. 7 Seward County Community College of Liberal, Kan.; No. 8 Arizona Western College of Yuma; No. 9 Lake Land College of Mattoon, Ill.; No. 10 University of Arkansas-Fort Smith; No. 11 Tyler Junior College; No. 12 Northeastern Junior College of Sterling, Colo.; No. 13 Wallace State Community College of Hanceville, Ala.; No. 14 Frank Phillips College of Borger, Texas; No. 15 Pasco Hernando Community College of New Port Richey, Fla.; and No. 16 Pitt Community College of Greenville, N.C.

Other first-round matches Monday pair Western Nebraska against Frank Phillips at 10 a.m. on Court 1; Seward County against University of Arkansas-Fort Smith at noon on Court 1; Lee College against Pasco Hernando at noon on Court 2; Miami-Dade against Pitt at 2 p.m. on Court 1; Arizona Western against Lake Land College at 2 p.m. on Court 2; College of Southern Idaho against Northeastern at 4 p.m. on Court 1; and Barton County against Wallace State at 4 p.m. on Court 2.

"Overall, the pairings look really good," Knight said. "We're in it and that's what's important. We're really happy about that."

To welcome the teams to the tournament, the local National Tournament Organizing Committee has selected several local families to serve as their hosts throughout the event. The following is a list of those families and their teams: Richard and Carol Silvey, Miami-Dade Community College; Phil and Susie Whitsell, Lee College; Harry and Betty Tarter, Western Nebraska Community College; Carr and Miriam Ward, Barton County Community College; Paul and Stacy Kimberling, College of Southern Idaho; Robbie and Lynn Crites, SMSU-WP; Dale and Carolyn Smith, Seward County Community College; Sam and Elizabeth Grisham, Lake Land College; Peggy Kissinger, Arizona Western College; Rod and Karen Friga, University of Arkansas-Fort Smith; Jim and Beth Peters, Tyler Junior College; Rob and Melody Martin, Northeastern Junior College; Rick and Sydney Holloway, Wallace State Community College; Jim and Cindy McFarland, Frank Phillips College; Chuck and Sue Kimberlin, Pasco Hernando Community College; and Bob and Donna Frey, Pitt Community College.

Tournament passes are still available, organizers said. Tournament passes providing admittance for all three days are available for $25 per person. A single-day pass is available for $10 for adults and $5 for students with proper ID and senior citizens age 65 and older. Children under age five will be admitted free. Passes may be purchased in advance by calling the SMSU-WP volleyball office at 417-255-7975, Sunie Pace at 417-256-9191 or the Drago College Store at 417-255-7227. Passes also may be purchased at the gate. Tournament programs also will be available for $5 each.

HILLSBORO, Mo. - Make it four in a row for the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies.

The Lady Grizzlies (45-9) picked up their fourth consecutive Region 16 Volleyball Championship trophy Saturday afternoon after defeating the Jefferson College Lady Vikings 30-22, 30-20, 30-22 in the title match at Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Mo. The victory sends the Lady Grizzlies to their fourth National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's National Volleyball Championship tournament, scheduled Nov. 25-27 at the West Plains Civic Center.

"We played so well," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said of her team's performance Friday and Saturday during the two-day regional championship tournament. "The kids were very relaxed on the court. They were all over it. They were under a lot of pressure to win the region, since we're hosting the national tournament, but they handled it well. They didn't seem phased by it at all."

The Lady Grizzlies went into the tournament focused and determined, and it showed on the court Friday night in the semifinal match against State Fair Community College, a match they won 30-17, 30-21, 30-19. "We didn't struggle against State Fair like we did Nov. 11. We communicated much better," Knight said. "We started out a little tight, but that's to be expected because of the pressure."

The Lady Grizzlies overcame that tightness thanks in large part to freshman setter Juliana Nogueira. "Juliana did such a great job setting the ball. She got to a lot of passes, passes I would have never expected anyone to get to," the coach said.

SMSU-WP continued to play very poised Saturday against Jefferson College in the 10th consecutive meeting between the two teams to determine the region champion. "We were in good control of the match. We were never in trouble," Knight said. "I knew the first game would be key. If we could win it and put the monkey on their back, they would panic, and they did. They got themselves into a bad situation early. Plus, we made good adjustments to the things they tried to do."

Again, Knight praised her entire team for playing well. "Edna (Chumo) played great defense in that match. No matter what they hit, she kept the ball off the floor and got it to the setters. And Rose (Obunaga), she had a phenomenal match and a phenomenal tournament. She was just awesome."

Obunaga, a freshman attacker, had her best outing of the season during the tournament. She led the team in kills Saturday with 18 and was second to Chumo Friday night with 14. She also had three blocks (1 solo) Saturday and 4.5 blocks (3 solos) Friday.

Chumo, a sophomore attacker, recorded 15 kills Friday and 8 Saturday, 3 blocks (2 solos) Friday and 4.5 blocks (3 solos) Saturday, and 16 digs Saturday. "Rose had a great offensive game Saturday because Edna had a good defensive game," Knight said.

"I also thought Seini (Tonga) had a good match Saturday. She had many key blocks for us and eliminated Jefferson's biggest threat." The sophomore attacker had 4 blocks against Jefferson.

Following the championship match, players were chosen for the All-Region 16 team. First team honorees from SMSU-WP included Chumo, Obunaga, Nogueira and freshman attacker Anna Dmowska. Second team selections included Tonga and sophomore attacker Petela Afungia.

The Lady Grizzlies will take today off then begin preparations for the national tournament Tuesday. "I'll have the girls deliver tournament tickets to area businesses and individuals after they lift weights today, then tomorrow we'll begin concentrating on our serve-receive and defense in practice," Knight said.
Tournament seedings and pairings will be announced later this week.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies volleyball team stumbled a bit, but they didn't fall as they slipped past the State Fair Community College Lady Roadrunners 30-23, 34-32, 30-17 Monday night in the regular season finale at the West Plains Civic Center. The victory ups SMSU-WP's season record to 43-9.

"I don't know what the deal was with our girls last night. They were just going through the motions," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "They didn't communicate well and let too many balls hit the floor. It was like they were expecting someone else to step in and get the ball. They were backing off, and I don't know why."

Two who didn't back off were freshman Rose Obunaga and sophomore Edna Chumo. Obunaga led the Grizzlies in kills with 18, blocks with three, digs with 13 and had a .630 hitting percentage for the evening. "Rose had a great night. She played really well. She was closing well and doing what she was supposed to be doing," Knight said.

Chumo followed close behind Obunaga, recording 16 kills, 10 digs and a hitting percentage of .583. "Edna played pretty well, too. Both she and Rose hit the ball really well." Knight said.

Knight hopes her team quickly overcomes this brief stumble in their march to another Region 16 championship. The Region 16 post-season tournament begins Friday at Jefferson College in Hillsboro, Mo., and the Lady Grizzlies are seeded first. Their first match will be at 7 p.m. Friday against the winner of the State Fair/Three Rivers Community College contest, which is scheduled earlier in the day. Should SMSU-WP win, it will meet the winner of the Jefferson College/Mineral Area College match.

"If Jefferson wins, it will be our 10th consecutive meeting in the Region 16 Championship match," Knight said

PARK HILLS, Mo. - The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies volleyball team seems to be peaking at just the right time.

Thursday night, the seventh-ranked Lady Grizzlies faced Region 16 rival Mineral Area College (MAC) in Park Hills, Mo., and soundly defeated the Lady Cardinals 30-15, 30-16, 30-18. The victory ups SMSU-WP's season record to 42-9.

"We did really well. We played well and MAC just kind of collapsed," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "We took control early and took care of business."

The match gave Knight the opportunity to give some of her younger players much needed court time and experience. "We got to play a bunch of kids last night. I was happy we were able to give them some court time," she explained.

But Knight's seemed most pleased with the effort of freshman Loran Ichord of Houston, Mo., in the newly created libero position. "We've been working with Loran on the libero position, and she's starting to make good reads. She's really starting to figure it out," the coach said. The libero is strictly a defensive position in volleyball, and Knight admitted it takes players some time to adjust to the new mindset. "To concentrate totally on defense is tough to do, but Loran's really coming around," she said.

Freshman Rose Obunaga also had a good performance at the net. "She had three solo blocks and two assisted blocks for a total of four blocks for the night. She's really playing well at the net," Knight said.
The Lady Grizzlies will finish out their regular season Monday, Nov. 11, with a 7 p.m. match against State Fair Community College at the West Plains Civic Center. "We're playing well and heading in the right direction going into regions. I'm really happy about that," Knight said.

MIAMI, Okla. - "Taking care of business" has become the mantra of the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies volleyball team as the 2002 season draws to a close, and take care of business they did Tuesday night, Nov. 5, when they defeated the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M (NEO) Lady Norse 30-18, 30-21, 30-20 in Miami, Okla.

"We had a really good night overall," Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "We played very well. We did some really good things, and we were always in control of the match."

The Lady Grizzlies (41-9), who remained ranked No. 7 in this week's National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I poll, turned in one of their best hitting performances of the year, recording a .413 hitting percentage as a team. "That's really good, especially when you realize all of our hitters hit above .300 last night," Knight said.

Defensively, the coach praised freshman Loran Ichord. "She is really starting to figure the defense out. She's been reading the ball well and has been in position to make good passes as a result, and that has helped us with ball control. We've been needing her to do this," Knight said.

Several Lady Grizzlies led the team in different statistical categories. Sophomore Edna Chumo led the team in kills with 15 and attacking percentage with .700. She also led the team in passing percentage with 2.63, followed closely by sophomore Seini Tonga with 2.56. Freshman Rose Obunaga excelled on the defensive front with 6.5 blocks, five of which were solo blocks, and nine digs. And, from the service line, sophomore Petela Afungia and freshman Kacie Callison each recorded three aces.

The Lady Grizzlies will return to the road again Thursday, Nov. 7, to face Region 16 rival Mineral Area College in Park Hills, Mo. As with Tuesday's match, Knight said it will be important that the Lady Grizzlies "take care of business."

HILLSBORO, Mo. - The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies kept the spirit of Halloween alive Friday and Saturday by winning the Jefferson College Halloween Classic in Hillsboro, Mo.

The seventh-ranked Lady Grizzlies (40-9) scared up four straight victories to take the tournament title. On Friday, they defeated Mineral Area College 30-19, 30-19, 30-17 and host Jefferson College 30-19, 30-26, 30-28. Saturday, they survived a tense match with ninth-ranked Lake Land College 23-30, 30-21, 28-30, 30-23, 15-13 then beat Southwestern Illinois College (SWIC) 30-25, 30-19, 30-20.
"I'm really glad we got out of there with the wins. We did what we had to do," Lady Grizzlies Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said in summarizing her team's efforts over the weekend.

By far, the toughest match mentally for the Lady Grizzlies was against Lake Land. "That match is what sports is all about. It was tense. Both teams put it all on the line and left it all on the court," Knight said. "But it was the kind of match you want to be winning this time of the year."

The match took so much out of her starters that Knight fielded a different group of players against Southwestern Illinois later in the day Saturday. "We were shot. I knew we were going to be brain dead against SWIC, so I put in some subs to help us refocus," the coach explained.

Several Lady Grizzlies turned in good performances during the two-day event. "La (Petela Afungia) finally had that turn-around match. She dug some balls and kept herself in the match longer," Knight said. "Seini (Tonga) and Anna (Dmowska) also had some good matches. And, Loran (Ichord) and Kacie (Callison) are doing a better job defensively. It was really good to see Kacie doing well. She has such a tough serve. We want to see her digging balls on her service rotation to stay in the match because she can put the other team down in a hurry with her serves."

Knight and her team are anxious to see what this week's National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's volleyball national poll will say when it is released Tuesday, Nov. 5. "We won't go down in the poll, but it will be interesting to see if we go up and how far," she said.

The Lady Grizzlies will return to the road Tuesday, traveling to Miami, Okla., to face the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Lady Norse in a 7 p.m. match.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - After a tough weekend tournament, it would have been very easy for the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies to let down their guard Monday night against Three Rivers Community College. Instead, they rolled to a 30-11, 30-19, 30-15 victory over their Region 16 rival at the West Plains Civic Center to up their season record to 36-9.
"Normally, we let down after a tough event like the First National Bank Grizzly Invitational last weekend, but we didn't last night. The whole team played well, "Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "After winning this weekend, I think a weight has been lifted off the team and they're ready to have some fun."
Monday night's match, which was hosted by Sears and dubbed "Hometown Spike Night," gave Knight a chance to play some of her freshmen, and the players took advantage of the opportunity. "Brandi Woodard and Leslie Goggans got the opportunity to play a lot, and they did great," the coach said. "They're both very talented players, but because we're so strong, it's hard for them to find time on the court."
The starters also played well, turning in some of their highest hitting percentages of the season. Freshman Rose Obunaga led the way in hitting percentage with .667, followed by sophomore Edna Chumo with .652, freshman Anna Dmowska with .500, freshman Juliana Nogueira with .400, sophomore Seini Tonga with .300 and sophomore Petela Afungia with .294.
Knight also praised her team's defensive efforts. "We didn't let a bunch of balls hit the court, and that was good to see."
The Lady Grizzlies, who rose to seventh in this week's National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I women's volleyball poll, will make preparations for the Jefferson College Halloween Classic Friday and Saturday in Hillsboro, Mo. They will face two other nationally ranked teams in the round-robin event - No. 9 Lake Land College of Mattoon, Ill., which will be looking to avenge its loss to the Lady Grizzlies in last weekend's tournament, and No. 18 Jefferson College.
"We want to play well and smooth some things out this weekend," Knight said. "I want to see our team pass better and play better defense."

WEST PLAINS, Mo. The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies got back on the winning track this weekend by sweeping the First National Bank Grizzly Invitational volleyball tournament at the West Plains Civic Center.

The tenth-ranked Lady Grizzlies (35-9) avenged their Nov. 19 loss to Seward County Community College by defeating the eighth-ranked team Saturday 30-26, 25-30, 27-30, 31-29, 16-14 in the tournament ' s championship match.

" The good thing about this win is that we've dropped too many matches by two points at the end. Now we' re turning that around, " Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "We' re finding a way to win the close ones, and that's what you want your team to do."

The Lady Grizzlies were down to Seward 12-14 in the final game when they came back to win the next three points and the match.

This was the team's second tough match of the day. In the semifinals, SMSU-WP had to overcome a mid-match slump against fourth-ranked Lake Land College to reach the championship. After winning the first two games 30-26 and 30-25, Lake Land evened the match by winning the next two games 30-22 and 30-26. The Lady Grizzlies finally got the edge in the fifth and deciding game by winning 15-13.

"Our girls got in there and competed. They didn't quit and played hard, and that was the key to our two wins on Saturday, "Knight said. "Our hard work last week paid off in the tournament. But there's no doubt that we'll have to keep working hard. Our players know that they need to put their time in on the court to win."

The Lady Grizzlies defeated two other nationally ranked teams during Friday's action. After downing Three Rivers Community College 30-18, 30-8 in the first match of the tournament, SMSU-WP handed ninth-ranked University of Arkansas-Fort Smith a 30-25, 30-23 defeat and 17th-ranked Northeastern Oklahoma A&M a 30-14, 30-21 pummelling.

Knight was pleased with the efforts of her players, especially sophomore Edna Chumo and freshmen Rose Obunaga and Juliana Nogueira. "All three had great tournaments and played consistently throughout," the coach said. "Edna had several great matches. Against Seward she had 31 kills and only three errors. Juliana also did a good job dumping the ball. We needed her to do that."Chumo was named the tournament's MVP, and Obunaga was selected to the all-tournament team with Seward's Joy Okpa and Kaera Baltrip and Lake Land's Erika Fonseca and Lira Xavier.

The Lady Grizzlies will take the court again tonight when they host Three Rivers Community College at 7 p.m. at the West Plains Civic Center. Knight said she plans to play several of her freshmen during
this match to give them some court time.

LIBERAL, Kan. - Trish Kissiar-Knight knew it was just a matter of time before her Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies would pay for the inconsistencies that have plagued their team this season. That bill came due this past weekend, and the third-ranked Lady Grizzlies (30-9) failed to pay up, dropping three of their four matches at the Seward County Community College Invitational in Liberal, Kan.

On Friday, SMSU-WP lost to seventh-ranked Western Nebraska Community College 30-32, 28-30, 29-31 and to eighth-ranked Barton County Community College 27-30, 30-18, 27-30, 21-30. On Saturday, they were defeated by 10th-ranked Seward County 30-32, 24-30, 21-30 before beating Midland College 30-13, 30-16, 30-24.

"As a coaching staff, we knew there were several things our team needed to improve on, and now the players know it, too," Knight said. "We didn't do what we needed to do on the court this past weekend."
For several weeks, Knight has been stressing the importance of keeping the ball off the floor to her players, but once again, the Lady Grizzlies let too many shots drop to the ground. "It's ridiculous the number of balls we're letting hit the floor," she said.

To counteract the problem, the Lady Grizzlies have been relying on their serve receive and serving skills to lift them to victory, but these eluded the players while they were in Liberal. "Our serve receive and serving killed us this weekend. We couldn't pass the ball, and then we missed serves at crucial points in the match," the coach explained.

Knight said these are skills the players have been working on in practice, but they haven't been putting them into practice on the court. "We needed to have a fire built under us. Hopefully this weekend was the spark," she said. Knight explained it is hard to teach desire and intensity to players because these are qualities that come from inside. Now, she added, it will be up to the players to respond with sufficient heart and motivation to get the job done.

If there was a bright spot to the weekend, it came against Midland College. "We played people out of their normal positions. As a result, Kacie Callison, who normally plays on the back row, took the opportunity to smash a kill down the line. It was a great shot," Knight said.

The Lady Grizzlies will have four days this week to regroup and prepare for the First National Bank Grizzly Invitational Friday and Saturday at the West Plains Civic Center. They will play at 12:30 p.m. Friday against Three Rivers Community College, at 3:30 p.m. Friday against University of Arkansas-Fort Smith, and at 6:30 p.m. Friday against Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. Also competing in the event are Seward County Community College, Lake Land College, Mineral Area College and State Fair Community College.

HILLSBORO, Mo. - Despite losing to the top two teams in the nation, Trish Kissiar-Knight feels her Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies performed fairly well Friday and Saturday at the Jefferson College Invitational at Hillsboro, Mo.

"We had a pretty good weekend," Knight said. "Where we're ranked makes us a target, and we know that. Teams are playing us tough, and we expect that. But we're hanging in there. Our defense is getting much better."

The third-ranked Lady Grizzlies went 4-2 in the two-day event to up their overall season record to 29-6. Their only losses came against the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the nation, Miami-Dade Community College of Florida and Utah Valley State College, respectively.

The loss to Utah Valley on Friday seem to hurt the worst. After taking the match's first game 33-31, the Lady Grizzlies let a 28-26 lead in the second game get away from them. "We probably shouldn't have lost to Utah Valley, but we did. We shanked a couple of passes and missed two serves in that second game. That will kill you in a hurry," the coach explained. Utah Valley won the second game 32-30 and went on to win the match with a 15-11 win in the third and deciding game. "That's how it goes. We put ourselves in a position to win, but we didn't get it done," the coach said. "We played hard the whole time. Just a couple of breaks would have made the difference."

Against Miami-Dade Saturday, the Lady Grizzlies couldn't find the right rhythm. "We were out of sync the whole time against Miami-Dade. We were trying hard, but we couldn't get into any kind of rhythm," Knight explained. Miami-Dade won the match 30-21, 30-22.

In other tournament action Friday, SMSU-WP defeated Schoolcraft College of Michigan 30-28, 30-26 and Yavapai College of Arizona 30-13, 30-16. Saturday, the Lady Grizzlies downed Iowa Western Community College 30-20, 30-22 and Panola College of Texas 30-27, 30-23.

Sophomore hitter Edna Chumo and freshman hitter Rose Obunaga were named to the all-tournament team, and while Knight praised their efforts during the weekend, she also noted the play of freshman setter Juliana Nogueira and freshman attacker Anna Dmowska. "Juliana is really coming on strong, and we're getting some serious play from Anna. She's beginning to do the things I knew she could do because she's such a great athlete," the coach said.

The Lady Grizzlies will return to the road this weekend when they travel to Liberal, Kan., to compete in the Seward County Community College Invitational, and once again Knight expects her team to be targeted. "This will be a tough one. All of the teams competing are behind us in the poll, so we don't have any room to mess up. We will have to stay strong mentally," she said.

In addition to the Lady Grizzlies and the host team, the event will feature Western Nebraska Community College, Barton County Community College of Kansas and Midland College of Texas. SMSU-WP will face Western Nebraska at 3 p.m. Friday and Barton County at 9 p.m. that same day. Their opponents Saturday will be Seward County and Midland.

HILLSBORO, Mo. - A nearly flawless attack lifted the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies past Region 16 arch rival Jefferson College 30-20, 30-26, 30-23 Thursday night in Hillsboro, Mo.

"Overall, we played well, but the thing that was most impressive for us is that we only had six hitting errors throughout the whole match. That's really good," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said.
As a team, the third-ranked Lady Grizzlies (23-4) connected on .460 percent of their attempted hits. "Hitting percentage is like a batting average, and .460 percent is excellent," Knight said. "One reason out hitting percentage was good is because our outside hitters are bringing up their averages, and that helps the overall team."

Two attackers who have shown great improvement since the season started are sophomores Petela Afungia and Seini Tonga. "La hit for .471 and had 10 kills. She's playing smarter and doing a good job for us," the coach said. "Seini led us in hitting percentage with .714. She was hitting a negative percentage at the beginning of the year, so to see that much improvement is very exciting."

The Lady Grizzlies also passed the ball well, which forced the Lady Vikings to try to counter with their serves. Unfortunately, their attempts to place serves in locations that would force bad passes fell through. "They were trying to force us to pass the ball badly, which is what you would do against a good passing team, but instead they made several service mistakes against us, and I think that took their momentum away," Knight said.

"I'm really proud of our kids," the coach continued. "They worked hard all week, and I never felt we weren't in control of the match at any time last night."

Some other Lady Grizzlies who had exceptional performances included freshman Loran Ichord, who recorded 12 digs and a passing percentage of 2.5, and freshmen Anna Dmoska and Juliana Nogueira, who each had two aces. And, sophomore Edna Chumo led the team in kills with 15.

The Lady Grizzlies return to their home court Saturday to face Southwestern Illinois College in a 2 p.m. match at the West Plains Civic Center. "The one thing I want our kids to do is play good defense. Too many balls are still hitting the floor," Knight said of Saturday's match.

BELLEVILLE, Ill. - It wasn't pretty, but the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies will take their win Thursday night over Southwestern Illinois College (SIC) in Belleville, Ill.

The third-ranked Lady Grizzlies (22-4) defeated SIC 30-26, 30-25, 30-13 in an effort Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight called less than their best.

"We didn't play well at all. It was a match in which we had very little enthusiasm. I was really disappointed in that," she said. "They say ugly wins are always better than pretty losses, but I don't know how much this match benefitted us."

One Lady Grizzly who did show some enthusiasm was freshman attacker Leslie Goggans. "I brought Leslie in during the third game, and she did a good job showing enthusiasm on the court. I was glad to see that," Knight said. Goggans sparked the Lady Grizzlies in the third game by recording four kills on five attempts for a .800 hitting percentage.

Also turning in good performances were sophomore attacker Edna Chumo, freshman attacker Rose Obunaga and freshman setter Juliana Nogueira. "Rose and Edna were the ones who really carried us, and I thought Juliana played well, too," the coach said. Chumo recorded 17 kills, and Rose followed with 15.
The next match for the Lady Grizzlies will be Oct. 3 in Hillsboro, Mo., against Region 16 arch rival Jefferson College. "We cannot play the same way we played SIC next week against Jefferson and expect to win the match," Knight warned. "We will be working hard until then trying to develop the enthusiasm we will need for this match."

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies made the most of their trip to Jacksonville, Fla.

With the power of a third-place national ranking under their belts, the Lady Grizzlies (21-4) swept the two-day Florida Community College Invitational, winning Saturday's championship game against the host team 30-23, 30-23, 25-30, 30-17.

"We played well throughout the tournament," Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "We didn't lose a game in pool play and only dropped one game during the whole tournament."

That one-game loss came in Saturday's championship against an improved Florida Community College team. "They played a lot better than they did here in the Physical Therapy Specialists Clinic Tournament of Champions. We needed to be pushed, and Florida did that. It was really good for us," the coach said.
Until the championship match, the Lady Grizzlies had cruised through the event. In pool play Friday, they defeated Broward Community College (FL) 30-11, 30-10; Hillsborough Community College (FL) 30-24, 30-11; and Pasco-Hernando Community College (FL) 30-24, 30-12. In the semifinals Saturday, the Lady Grizzlies downed Pensacola Junior College (FL) 30-14, 30-21, 30-18.

As a result, Knight had the chance to put her younger players on the court. "We saw last year just how important it is for younger players to get some experience early when our team leader, Mia Langi, went down in the national tournament," she explained. "The fact that we were able to play our younger members could help us later in the season."

In fact, Knight was forced to put this theory into practice before the end of Florida tournament when one of the Lady Grizzly starters suffered an injury. "We put Brandi Woodard in, and she played really well. She did a great job. She didn't back off, and I was happy to see that," the coach said.

Knight also praised the efforts of sophomore Seini Tonga. "Seini had her best outing of the season," Knight said. Tonga had extra incentive to excel; her family from Charlotte, N.C., traveled to Jacksonville to watch her play. "Nearly everyone in her family came. That was neat," the coach added.

Others who turned in good performances included freshmen Juliana Nogueira, Anna Dmowska, Rose Obunaga and Loran Ichord, and sophomore Edna Chumo. "Juliana did some great things at the setter position, and Anna has made some good improvements in her play. Loran passed the ball well for us, and Rose and Edna turned in their usual steady performances," Knight said.

After a day off today, the Lady Grizzlies will hit the court to prepare for Thursday's 7 p.m. road match with Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.- After falling to the nation's No. 1 team over the weekend, the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies slipped to No. 3 in the National Junior College Athletic Association' (NJCAA) first poll of the regular season for Division I women's volleyball. The poll was released late Thursday by the NJCAA's headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo.
The Lady Grizzlies (16-4) lost to defending national champion Miami-Dade Community College of Florida Saturday in the championship of the Physical Therapy Specialists Clinic Tournament of Champions at the West Plains Civic Center.

Miami-Dade (7-0) remained at the top of this week's list, followed by Utah Valley State College (9-2) of Orem, Utah. The Lady Grizzlies' Region 16 arch rival, Jefferson College of Hillsboro, Mo., came in at No. 10.

The complete listing can be found at the NJCAA's website, http://www.njcaa.org.

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - Tuesday night turned out to be an extra special evening for the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies.

Not only did the squad pick up its 16th win of the season with its 30-15, 30-11, 30-32, 30-20 victory over the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Lady Norse from Miami, Okla., at the West Plains Civic Center, they also earned Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight her 400th career coaching victory.

"It was pretty neat," said Knight of the evening. "You always hope you can do something like this on your home court, and it was nice that we could."

Following the match, Knight was presented with balloons and a cake from Physical Therapy Specialists Clinics of West Plains. "That was really cool," she said. Knight, in turn, shared the balloons with several young Lady Grizzly fans who enjoyed the milestone with her.

Going into the match, Knight had hoped her players would stay focused on the game and not think about her coaching milestone, and during the first two games of the match the Lady Grizzlies did just that. "They played phenomenally well," the coach praised.

But after a 10-minute intermission, which included recognition of Air Evac EMS of West Plains for sponsoring the match, dubbed "Air Evac Take Flight Night," and several not-for-profit and charitable organizations that had been invited to attend the contest, the Lady Grizzlies lost their momentum and dropped the third game.

"NEO came out roaring, and we were a little laid back," Knight said. "Our girls looked physically tired, and that's understandable. They played hard in last weekend's tournament and they had a hard workout Monday and Tuesday. They were a little fatigued."

But the Lady Grizzlies showed why they are one of the best teams in the nation by coming back in the fourth game to take the match. "They won that game pretty handily," the coach said.

The entire team played well, Knight said, but she gave special recognition to freshmen Brandi Woodard and Leslie Goggans who were brought in during the first two games. "They both did a good job, especially Brandi who seemed to really rise to the occasion," the coach praised.

The Lady Grizzlies (16-4) will now travel to Jacksonville, Fla., to compete in the Florida Community College Invitational Friday and Saturday. "We don't have the opportunity to play many Florida teams, so this will be great," Knight said, pointing out SMSU-WP will be the only out-of-state team competing in the event. "The tournament sponsors also have arranged for us to stay on the beach. The girls are really excited about it."

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - Despite one of their best efforts of the season, the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies fell to the Miami-Dade Community College Lady Sharks 21-30, 21-30, 28-30 Saturday in the championship match of the Physical Therapy Specialists Clinic Tournament of Champions at the West Plains Civic Center.

The match capped a two-day event that touted some of the best junior college teams in the nation, including the tournament's champion, ranked No. 1 in the nation by the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), and the Lady Grizzlies (15-4), ranked No. 2.

"The tournament was great," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Knight said. "Our thanks to Mary Sheid and the staff at Physical Therapy Specialists Clinics. Without their sponsorship, these teams wouldn't be able to come here and compete in a tournament."

Without a doubt, the marque match of the tournament was Saturday's championship contest between SMSU-WP and Miami-Dade. "I thought we played really well against Miami. Our assistant coach, Paula Wiedemann, pointed out last night that everyone else who played Miami this weekend faltered in their second game against this team. But we didn't. We actually got better as the match went on," Knight said.
Still, the Lady Grizzly team members weren't satisfied with the outcome. "My players really didn't like losing. They were upset with themselves for letting the third game get away from them. They really believed they could beat them, and that was good to see," Knight said.

The Lady Grizzlies, however, were pleased with their 30-28, 30-27 win Friday night over Region 16 arch rival Jefferson College of Hillsboro, Mo. "We were pretty tight against Jefferson, but you expect that against a Region 16 opponent, especially when it's Jefferson. There's a lot at stake in these matches, seedings for the region championship tournament for one. Now we're going to have to beat them twice at their place, and that won't be an easy task," Knight said.

In SMSU-WP's other tournament matches Friday, the Lady Grizzlies defeated Blinn College of Texas 30-22, 30-27 and Southwestern Illinois College 30-15, 30-25. On Saturday, they downed Illinois Central College 30-14, 30-25 and Florida Community College 30-19, 30-24.

Knight said all of the Lady Grizzlies performed well during the tournament, but she was especially pleased to see the improvement made by freshmen Rose Obunaga and Juliana Nogueira. "Rose is really coming on, and Juliana is one of the best freshman setters I've ever had. Plus, both hate to lose, and that's going to make a lot of difference in our team as the season progresses," the coach explained.

Obunaga was one of two Lady Grizzlies named to the all-tournament team. The other was sophomore Edna Chumo. Joining them on the team were Jefferson's Giedre Tamauskaite and Miami-Dade's Fernando Brino and Norma Cortez. Madelaynne Montano of Miami-Dade was named tournament MVP.

The Lady Grizzlies will return to the court at 7 p.m. Tuesday when they host the Northeastern Oklahoma A&M Lady Norse at the West Plains Civic Center. The match could turn out to be a milestone for Knight. If the Lady Grizzlies win, they will have earned Knight her 400th career win as a coach.

"They know about the possibility, but I really don't want them to focus on it too much," Knight said. "I just want them to relax and play a good match."

The contest is being sponsored by Air Evac EMS of West Plains and has been named "Air Evac Take Flight Night."

WEST PLAINS, Mo. - The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies shook off a case of nerves Tuesday night to open their 2002 home season with a 30-24, 30-17, 30-19 victory over Region 16 rival Mineral Area College (MAC) at the West Plains Civic Center.

"Your first home game you're always jittery, and that's what we were last night," Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said. "It was one of those situations where the kids wanted to play well and they got nervous. We also had a lot going on with the Grizzly Booster Club barbecue, which took us out of our normal pre-match routine. But we really appreciate the support the booster club and the rest of the fans gave us last night. It was great to have all of those fans there."

The match had been dubbed "Garnett Wood Attack MAC Night" in honor of the game's sponsor, Garnett Wood of Brandsville, and once again owner Jess Garnett and his family turned out to be good luck charms for the Lady Grizzlies. "Jess Garnett served as our honorary coach last night. He gets a win for us every time," Knight said.

Despite their nervousness during the first game of the match, the Lady Grizzlies settled down to take care of business in the remaining games. Leading the attack were sophomore Edna Chumo and freshman Anna Dmowska, who each recorded 16 kills for the night. Freshman Rose Obunaga added another 10.

"We also had a great serve receive effort from Edna, Rose and Loran Ichord. All three had a passing rating at 2.8 or above, which is great," the coach said. Chumo led this statistic with a 3.0 rating. She was followed by Ichord with 2.9 and Obunaga with 2.8. Chumo also led in points earned for the match with 20.5. Dmowska followed with 17.5.

Obunaga led the team in digs with 29, followed by sophomore Seini Tonga with 27 and Ichord with 25. Freshman setter Juliana Nogueira recorded 41 assists, and sophomore Petela Afungia served up four aces during the match.

The Lady Grizzlies will take the court again Friday and Saturday when they host the Physical Therapy Specialists Clinic Tournament of Champions at the West Plains Civic Center. Joining the Lady Grizzlies in the event will be defending national champion Miami-Dade Community College from Florida, Southwestern Illinois College, Illinois Central College, Jefferson College from Hillsboro, Blinn College from Texas and Florida Community College.

SMSU-WP's matches Friday will be at 1:30 p.m. against Blinn College, 4:30 p.m. against Southwestern Illinois College and 6 p.m. against Jefferson College. On Saturday, SMSU-WP will face Illinois Central College at 11:30 a.m., Florida Community College at 2:30 p.m. and Miami-Dade Community College at 5:30 p.m.

"It's always good to good win your home opener. Hopefully, we can now relax going into the Physical Therapy Specialists Clinic Tournament of Champions," Knight said. "Our biggest contests will be against Jefferson College Friday night and Miami-Dade Saturday afternoon, but we can't discount anyone in between."

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.- Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) volleyball standout Edna Chumo has been named to the first team of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) preseason All-American list for Division I Women's volleyball.

The list, which includes six players listed to first team and six to second team, was released late last week by officials at the NJCAA headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo. To see the complete list, visit the NJCAA website at www.njcaa.org.

Lady Grizzly Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight was pleased Chumo was included on the list. "She's well deserving of this honor. She was a first-team selection at the end of last season, and she's only gotten better since then. She's definitely a top candidate for this honor," Knight said.

Chumo, a 5-11 sophomore middle attacker from Nairobi, Kenya, rewrote the Lady Grizzly record book during her freshman year. She set new single season records in attacking attempts (1,278), kills (756), kills per game (4.82), attacking percentage (.478), digs (605) and digs per game (3.85), and established new single game individual records for solo blocks (6), double blocks (8), digs (26), points earned (38) and attacking kills (34).

She helped guide SMSU-WP to its best season ever in 2001, including its third consecutive Region 16 title and a fourth-place finish in the NJCAA Division I Women's National Championships. She also earned all-tournament team honors at the national championship.

"As a coach it's always special to have someone on your team that is as recognized as Edna, and I know her fellow teammates are happy for her," Knight said.

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo.You can't get much better than this.
The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies are listed as the No. 2 junior college team in the nation, according to the National Junior College Athletic Association' (NJCAA) preseason poll for Division I women's volleyball. The poll was released late Thursday by the NJCAA's headquarters in Colorado Springs, Colo.

"Our reaction was 'Holy Cow!,'" Lady Grizzly Assistant Coach Paula Wiedemann said of the team's response to the news. "We were kind of surprised, but then again we weren't. We've played some really tough teams so far this season, many of whom are also listed, and we've played well against them. We're very pleased and extremely happy about this honor."

The Lady Grizzlies (9-3) have already defeated three of the teams listed in the top six - Utah Valley State College (No. 3), College of Southern Idaho (No. 4) and Lee College (No. 6), and many of the others included in the poll will be opponents of SMSU-WP later this season, including Region 16 rival Jefferson College (No. 5).

Topping the list is perennial national junior college volleyball powerhouse Miami-Dade Community College of Florida, the winner of last year's national championship tournament.

"We have a tough schedule this year, so the competition is just going to get better," Wiedemann said.

The Lady Grizzlies will open their home season Tuesday, Sept. 10, against Region 16 rival Mineral Area College (MAC) from Park Hills. The 7 p.m. match has been dubbed "Garnett Wood Attack MAC Night."

Lady Grizzlies up record to 9-3 (Sept. 3, 2002)

OREM, Utah- The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies' season record now stands at 9-3 after the squad posted a 7-1 record at the Utah Valley State College Invitational this past weekend in Orem, Utah.

The Lady Grizzlies' only loss during the three-day event came Saturday in the championship match when they fell to the host, Utah Valley State College, 30-20, 28-30, 29-31, 23-30.

Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight was very pleased with her team's efforts at the tournament. "We had a tremendous run. We played against some great teams," she said. "We knew going in it was going to be tough because six of the teams competing played in last year's National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division I Women's Volleyball National Championship Tournament, but we put ourselves in a good position on Saturday by winning all of our pool play matches. As a result, we only had to play twice on Saturday instead of three times."

In pool play Thursday, the Lady Grizzlies defeated Phoenix (Ariz.) College 30-17, 30-16, and Snow College (Utah) 30-26, 30-21. In Friday's action, SMSU-WP downed Arizona Western College 30-23, 30-27; defeated Illinois Central College 30-5, 30-17; beat Utah Valley 22-30, 30-23, 16-14; and downed College of Southern Idaho 30-28, 30-26. On Saturday, the Lady Grizzlies beat Western Nebraska Community College 30-16, 30-12, 30-27 in semifinal action before falling to Utah Valley in the finals.
The loss against Utah Valley State might have been a win had sophomore outside hitter Petela Afungia not sprained her ankle in the third game of that match. "That made a big difference in our play," Knight said. "We had to adjust at the last minute and move some girls around. It's hard to play well in a new lineup if you haven't practiced that new lineup before."

The Lady Grizzlies did make one adjustment before Saturday that paid dividends during the event. "On a hunch, I had Loran Ichord play the new libero position and moved Kacie Callison to the right back position. That was a good move because Casey served 11 aces from that spot and Loran helped us with our serve reception," Knight explained. "The switch really made our chemistry better, and it made a big difference in our passing consistency."

Other players who turned in good performances during the tournament included sophomore Edna Chumo, who led the team in kills and attacking percentage with 80 and .496, respectively; freshman Rose Obunaga, who led the team in blocking and digs with 23 and 64, respectively; and freshman Juliana Nogueira, who had 209 assists from the setter position and posted a .429 attacking percentage.

"I also though Petela and Anna Dmowska played well at the outside hitter position," Knight added. "They were a big part of our attack."

The Lady Grizzlies will use this week to prepare for their Sept. 10 match against Region 16 rival Mineral Area College (MAC) from Park Hills. The 7 p.m. match has been dubbed "Garnett Wood Attack MAC Night," and Knight expects a competitive contest from the Lady Cardinals.

"Mineral Area has a new coach this year. Cindy Martin built a very solid program at Park Hills High School, so I know she'll have her new team working hard. I'm looking forward to matching wits with her," Knight said.

PEORIA, Ill..- The Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzlies are counting their lucky stars this morning.

They came out of their first tournament of the season, the Illinois Central Invitational in Peoria, with a 2-2 record. It could have easily been an 0-4 record, Head Coach Trish Kissiar-Knight said.

On Friday, the Grizzlies lost to Salt Lake (Utah) Community College 22-30, 21-30, 27-30 then defeated host Illinois Central College 30-23, 30-18, 30-25. On Saturday, they fell to Lake Land College of Mattoon, Ill., 26-30, 27-30, 30-26, 22-30, but defeated Lee College of Baytown, Texas, 30-23, 30-17, 28-30, 30-28.

"This was a much tougher tournament than in the past," she said. "The competition was strong enough we could have come back winless."

Because of the competition, Knight said the Illinois Central Invitational was a great way to start the 2002 season. "It showed us what we still need to work on," the coach explained. "We have been stressing fundamentals in practice, and now the girls know why. We didn't serve the ball well. We put a lot of serves in the net and out of bounds. That all goes back to fundamentals. It really helped that Loran Ichord (of Houston, Mo.), was mobile enough to serve-receive well. You have to be able to serve-receive well in rally scoring to be competitive."

By far, the Lady Grizzlies' best performance of the weekend came against Lee College, who defeated SMSU-WP last November in the third place match of the 2001 National Junior College Athletic Association Division I Women's National Championship Tournament. "It was a good match. Lee gave our girls something to shoot for, and I thought we played very well against them. We blocked better against Lee, which again goes back to fundamentals," the coach said.

The Lady Grizzlies' international players led the charge for the team this weekend, recording a total of 157 kills for the tournament. "Sophomore Edna Chumo and freshman Rose Obunaga played great in the middle. Edna had 51 kills, and Rose had 52. And then, Anna Dmowska, who's originally from Poland but lives in Philadelphia now, led the team with 54," Knight said. "To have three kids in big double digits was great. Everyone is getting international players now. I'm so glad we've got ours."

The Lady Grizzlies will now travel to Orem, Utah, to compete Thursday through Saturday in the Utah Valley State Invitational. "There will be a lot of competition out there," Knight said, pointing out six of the 11 teams scheduled to participate reached last year's national championships. Those six include the Lady Grizzlies, the host Utah Valley State College, Illinois Central College, College of Southern Idaho, Arizona Western College and Western Nebraska Community College. The teams will compete in pool play Thursday and Friday. The top four finishers in pool play will compete in the championship bracket on Saturday.

Following the Utah Valley State Invitational, the Lady Grizzlies will return home to prepare for their Sept. 10 home opener against Region 16 rival Mineral Area College in the Garnett Wood Attack MAC Night match.

Ad sales beginning for NJCAA National Volleyball Tourney program, web site

WEST PLAINS, Mo.- Members of the Ad Committee of the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Volleyball Tourament Organizing Committee in West Plains have begun selling ads in the official tournament program and on the official tournament web site.

According to Ad Committee Chairman Carr Ward, members of the Ad Committee will be canvassing the West Plains and surrounding areas in the next few weeks, contacting businesses to see if they would like to place an ad in this year's tournament program or on the web site.

Prices for print ads in the program range from $50 to have your name listed in the program as a tournament investor to $5,000 or more for tournament sponsorship, which includes an endowed scholarship in the donating business' name, recognition on the program cover as a tournament supporter and a full-page ad in the program, among other unique benefits, Ward said.

In addition, committee members are selling sponsorships on the tournament web site pages ranging from $75 to $500, Ward said. "The web site, which is being furnished by WebSight Master in West Plains, will have several different pages," he said. "Those who purchase ads will have their business' logo placed on the specific page they choose, as well as a link that will take visitors to the business' web site." Ward said only one sponsorship will be sold for each web page. He also pointed out there were 5,500 hits on the web site last year.

For more information about the tournament or placing an ad in the program or on the web site, contact Trish Kissiar-Knight, head coach of the Southwest Missouri State University-West Plains (SMSU-WP) Lady Grizzly volleyball team, at 417-255-7950. Names will be forwarded to the Ad Committee and a committe member will follow up with the request, Ward said.