MILTON-FREEWATER -- Four battle-tested seniors, led by three-time All-Northwest Conference player Jill Huber, will guide the fall fortunes of the Whitman College volleyball team as it looks to improve upon an 11-13 season from a year ago.
The Missionaries finished strongly last fall, winning three of its last five matches (losing the other two by 3-2 scores) to post a 6-10 mark in the Northwest Conference, good for seventh place and just two games out of fifth place.
Dean Snider, now in his eighth year as Whitman's head coach, will take his Missionaries east later this week to open their season in a nine-team tournament hosted by Pennsylvania's Haverford College. The two-day tournament begins Saturday with Whitman playing a pair of Pool B matches against Marymount University (Arlington, Va.) and Augustana College (Rock Island, Ill.). The Missionaries will play two more matches on Sunday, against opponents to be determined by Saturday's results.
For its home opener, Whitman greets Lewis-Clark State in a 6 p.m. match on Thursday, Sept. 4, in Sherwood Center. The NWC season begins Sept. 19 and 20 at George Fox and Linfield.
"Our conference is always very strong, although the top five players in the NWC from last season all graduated," Snider says. "The fall 2003 season is up for grabs. This may be the most evenly matched the conference has been in awhile. It's great for competition. Every game will be hard fought."
"Overall, we'll be a little on the young side with seven first-year players joining the team," Snider says. "At the same time, I'm excited about our senior leadership. We had our most productive spring workouts in recent memory, and that was due primarily to the senior leadership and commitment."
At the heart of Whitman's senior quartet is Jill Huber, a 5-foot-11 middle blocker from Enumclaw, Wash., who earned All-NWC Second-Team honors in each of her first three seasons. Given her statistics last fall, it's a wonder she didn't earn first-team honors. Huber finished among the top four in four key statistical areas. She was No. 2 in blocks, averaging 1.11 per game, and No. 3 in kills, averaging 3.88 per game. She was No. 4 in both hitting percentage (.269) and service aces, averaging .56 per game.
"Jill's impact on our program has been outstanding," Snider says. "She has led our offense in each of her first three seasons, and she will the same this fall. Jill is our leader, on and off the floor. She is a great role model for our younger players."
Snider also expects strong contributions from his other three seniors -- Denise Kirstein, a 5-foot-6 outside hitter from Spokane, Wash.; Liz Nelson, a 5-foot-7 defensive specialist and outside hitter from Seattle; and 5-foot-3 Elly Smith, a defensive specialist and setter from Spokane.
Kirstein was sixth in the NWC in kills last fall, averaging 3.40 per game. She also led Whitman in digs in each of the past two seasons. As a sophomore, she averaged 4.34 digs per game, the third-best mark in the conference that season.
"Denise is our most consistent passer and is a powerful attacker," Snider says. "She has led us defensively the past two seasons, and I look forward to that leadership again this season. I also expect Denise will be one of our top kill getters this fall."
Nelson was No. 2 on the squad in digs last fall, averaging 3.22. Smith averaged 2.42 digs per game. "Liz and Elly provide our one-two defensive punch," Snider says. "They are both very talented defensive players, solid passers and strong servers. Liz brings a calm influence to the floor while Elly brings very high and positive energy."
Also back from last year's squad are two juniors, Laura Williams, a 5-foot-11 middle blocker from Eugene, Ore., and Lyndsay Buckingham, a 5-foot-8 outside hitter from Issaquah, Wash., as well as sophomore Karna Williams, a 5-foot-9 outside hitter from Petersburg, Alaska.
Laura Williams played in 77 games last fall as a sophomore, contributing a total of 98 kills, 93 blocks and 42 digs. She was No. 5 in the NWC in service aces, averaging .52 per game.
"Laura got her first real opportunity to contribute last season and she did a remarkable job," Snider says. "Laura was one of our top servers and blockers. She was among the NWC leaders in both categories. Her attack also is getting steadily stronger. I expect her to make a significant impact again this fall."
Buckingham played in 50 games a year ago, slamming 75 kills while collecting 65 digs and 25 service aces.
"Lyndsay is an athletic outside hitter, a solid passer and strong defender," Snider says. "She will likely settle into the outside hitter role this season and become a stronger attack threat. Lyndsay is a highly energetic and enthusiastic player, attributes that make our club stronger."
Karna Williams played in just one match last fall in her first season at Whitman, but Snider says she has made steady improvement since then.
Snider expects to field a stronger team this fall, in part because of a strong freshman recruiting class that features five players, including two setters.
The setter's position is one hole that needs to be filled, since community college transfer Erin Wade decided against returning to Whitman after averaging 11.16 assists, which ranked her No. 3 in the NWC last year.
One of Snider's new setters is 5-foot-8 Kate Borsato, who was a team captain and four-time MVP at Semiahmoo Secondary School in White Rock, British Columbia. She also played for Team British Columbia in two seasons, one of which ended with a second-place finish in the Canadian National Championships.
Borsato also played on three Canadian club volleyball teams. She played four seasons for the Peach Arch Club, serving as captain and earning MVP honors for the Fraser Valley Division. She also was the captain on the B.C. Provincial Champions.
An all-around athlete, Borsato was a four-time Female Athlete of the Year at Semiahmoo. She was a provincial gold medalist in swimming in the breaststroke, earned MVP honors on the basketball team, played shortstop in softball, and helped her soccer team place second in the provincial championships. Despite her athletic commitments, she made the Honor Roll each year at Semiahmoo.
Also competing for time at the setter position is 5-foot-7 Annie Kuvinka, a two-time all-conference and all-state player at Wyoming's Jackson Hole High School. Her team placed second in the region and fourth at state last year. She served as team captain and has earned MVP honors as well.
Whitman's newcomers also include a pair of 5-foot-10 middle blockers, Erin Pounds of Spokane, Wash., and Emily Seider of Eugene, Ore. A fall scholar athlete at Ferris High School, Pounds was team captain who earned first-team all-league honors. A three-time scholar athlete at South Eugene High School, Seider earned third-team all-league recognition.
Natalie Kramer, a 5-foot-8 outside hitter from Vallecito, Calif., rounds out the first-year class. Kramer earned all-league honors last year at Bret Harte High School, where she also was voted her team's best all-around player.