August 28, 2013

Volleyball team has some big shoes to fill

By Neal A. Shipman
Farmer Editor

As Nancy Deutsch, Wolves head volleyball coach, looks out across the gymnasium floor during a practice last week, she can’t help but smile. She has never seen so many girls out for volleyball in all her years of coaching at Watford City High School.
But with 41 girls in grades 9-12 looking to make her varsity, junior varsity and C-squad teams, she knows she and her assistant coaches are going to have their work cut out for them in making the final decisions.
And with the Wolves opening their 2013 season on Tuesday, Sept. 3 at Divide County, last week was decision time for Deutsch.
“We are in the process of tryouts for the three teams,” stated Deutsch. “And with so many girls out this year, the process of selecting which girls will be on which team is tough.”
While Deutsch is encouraged by the number of girls out for the team, she also knows that she has to fill some mighty big shoes that were left because of graduation.
“We lost four great senior players in McKayla Haugeberg, Jessica Brown, Taylor Dwyer and Allison Monsen due to graduation,” states Deutsch.
So not only is Deutsch hoping to fill the spots of those four seniors, but she is also going to be missing the services of freshman starter Katie Mogen.
“Katie hurt her knee in basketball this summer and will be having surgery,” states Deutsch. “So we are going to be without her this season.”
Without those five players, Deutsch knows that the team is going to start the season relatively inexperienced.
But she knows that with returning starters in Amanda Mogen, Tori Hopkins and Kara Langerud, as well as a gym full of fresh and enthusiastic players, this season holds a year of promise.
“We ended up in second place in the region last year losing to Ray in the championship match,” states Deutsch. “Every year our goal is to play as well as we can and hopefully, make it to State. And that is going to be our goal again this year.”

WATFORD CITY WEATHER