Team: Howells-Dodge
Mascot: Jaguars
Colors: Green, Black, and Silver
Class: D-1
Head Coach: Neil VanLengen (347-203 career record)
2017 record: 15-16
Returning Starters: N/A
Overview:
The Howells-Dodge Volleyball Team looks to be better than they were last year given all the experience that is back for the Jaguars this season.
The Jaguars lost just one senior in Macey Kulhanek.
Howells-Dodge welcomes back seniors Erin Prusa (6'0, OPP), Jessi Brester (5'9, OH), Grace Dvorak (5'8, MB) and Tonya Brester (5'7 OPP/OH), as well as juniors Madyson Cech (5'9 OPP/MB) and Grace Kreikemeier (5'7, OH). Alyssa Coufal (5'5, JR S) is expected to be the team's starting setter while Taya VanLengen (5'9, JR OH) is likely to start at Libero.
Head Coach Neil VanLengen says the Jaguars went to a summer camp in Columbus, a camp in Wayne, and the Top 10 camp in Kearney with varsity only.
He adds passing and serving has to be better in order for the Jaguars to have a chance to make state this year.
Howells-Dodge went through a lot of ups and downs last year, but lost to quality competition.
I'm looking for last year's tough losses to turn into close, tough wins this season.
I think you will see the Jaguars start to get back to the form they had in 2016.
I don't know if Howells-Dodge will be as dominate as that team, but with the drop to D-1 I expect the Jaguars to be very successful and hold their own.
Prusa, both Bresters I mentioned above, Cech, Dvorak, and Coufal should all be dominate for the Jaguars this year I would think.
Kulhanek is a big loss, but there's so much returning experience on this team that I think Howells-Dodge has what it takes to be the real deal.
I don't know if the Jaguars will be the most dominant team in the East Husker Conference or anything like that, but they should be in the upper echelon of teams I would think.
I think Howells-Dodge will win quite a few matches this season and put themselves in a position to make state.
The Jaguars should have a better shot of making it to Lincoln with the new sub-state format I would think as opposed to under the old format.
Howells-Dodge just has to work hard everyday in practice, and continue to make strides day in and day out.
Setting goals and achieving them is going to be very important for this squad, in my opinion.
Season Outlook:
The Howells-Dodge Volleyball Team looks to kick off the season the right way on Thursday when they take on Oakland-Craig on the road in the season opener.
VanLengen says the Knights should be a little different team than last year with a few players returning from injury.
One of those players back is Dacey Nelson, and she could be a big time factor in Thursday's match, in my opinion.
VanLengen says the East Husker Conference figures to be tough once again. "Obviously North Bend graduated a few pretty good seniors. But other than that out of the top teams have a lot of their top players coming back."
VanLengen says the team finished 8th in last year's conference tournament, and he hopes his team can move up maybe 3 or 4 spots this year.
The Jaguars are in Sub-District D1-5 with Humphrey/Lindsay Holy Family, High Plains, Fullerton, and Nebraska Christian.
VanLengen says sub-districts are almost irrelevant with the new sub-state format. "Even before it came out I said every game is important. It doesn't matter really anymore what your sub-district is, if we can get in the top 10 or 12 in the power points we're going to have a chance to make into the sub-state. We did get in a sub-district with Humphrey/Lindsay Holy Family, whose got one of the best players in the state in Taya Beller. And Nebraska Christian, who finished 31-0 in the regular season last year."
There appears to be a pretty even mix of tough and not as tough games on the schedule for Howells-Dodge this season.
I would say the Jaguars' toughest games on the schedule outside of weekend tournaments would be against Clarkson/Leigh, Logan View/Scribner-Snyder, Lutheran High Northeast, Stanton, North Bend Central, and West Point-Beemer.
There are quite a few matches the Jaguars should be able to take care of business in without much trouble.
Howells-Dodge has to simply step up their level of play against the tough teams on their schedule and avoid playing down to their competition.
The Jaguars have to play at a high level at all times, and be focused each and every time out, while executing in all facets of the game.
2018 Howells-Dodge Jaguars Volleyball Schedule:
08/23/18 @ Oakland-Craig
08/25 (To Be Determined) Randolph Quad (4-Team Round Robin) Randolph
08/28/18 @ Clarkson/Leigh
09/04/18 Pender Triangular (host: Emerson-Hubbard)
09/04/18 Emerson-Hubbard Triangular (host: Emerson-Hubbard)
09/08 (To Be Determined) Howells-Dodge Tourn. (4-Team Round Robin) Dodge
09/11/18 Wakefield
09/13/18 @ Logan View/Scribner-Snyder (LVSS)
09/18/18 Lutheran High Northeast
09/25/18 BRLD Double Triangular (host: Wisner-Pilger)
09/25/18 Madison Double Triangular (host: Wisner-Pilger)
09/29-09/29 Clarkson-Leigh (1-Day Tournament, >4 Teams) Clarkson
10/02/18 Stanton
10/06 (To Be Determined) Humphrey-Lindsay Holy Family Quad (4-Team Round Robin) Humphrey
10/11-10/13 (To Be Determined) East Husker Conference Tournament (2/3-Day Tournament) TBA
10/16/18 @ North Bend Central
10/18/18 @ Tekamah-Herman
10/23/18 Pender Triangular (host: Howells-Dodge)
10/23/18 West Point-Beemer Triangular (host: Howells-Dodge)
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