BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings volleyball team has an opportunity to take a big step forward in 2018. Casey Williams enters her third season as head coach after leading a team composed primarily of freshmen last fall. This year the expectations will be raised. Nine of the Yellowjackets' 12 players return with at least one year of varsity experience and Williams sees their potential to be contenders in the challenging Great Northwest Athletic Conference.   
 
"We've seen really good things so far this fall from everyone," Williams commented on the team. "That includes our incoming freshmen but I've really been impressed with our sophomore class. Getting that year of experience was huge and now with a spring season under our belt, I think the ceiling of potential is pretty high. We definitely have a good shot of a strong finish in the GNAC this fall."
 
One of those sophomore standouts is libero/defensive specialist Izela Alvarez. Alvarez made an impressive debut in her first season. She earned all-GNAC honorable mention on her way to breaking the MSUB single-season dig record with 622 digs. The Dumas, Texas, native led the conference in digs for a majority of the season and her 5.76 digs per set ranked her 20th among Division II volleyball players in the nation. She has been selected as pre-season all-GNAC in a poll released on Aug. 15.
 
"I do think Zel coming back is a big deal for us," said Williams. "She is the best libero in the conference and one of the strongest liberos in all of Division II. She is a one of a kind defender and is accented well by her teammates Taylor Sherman and Maddi Vigil."
 

"Our team goal is to finish with a better record than last year and get into the GNAC tournament," said Alvarez on her team and personal goals. "Personally, I just want to do whatever it takes to help get the team to that point and do whatever is going to help make the team successful."
 
Taylor Sherman is one of three seniors on the team and split time between outside hitter and defensive specialist last year. She was tabbed as a team captain last season as well, along with fellow senior Miranda McConnell, and finished third on the squad in digs with 226. She totaled 14 aces and added 76 kills.
 
Sophomore Maddi Vigil led the 'Jackets in kills with 330, becoming the first freshman since 2011 to record more than 300 kills in a season. Her 3.20 kills per set was third best in the GNAC. 
 
The 2018 team hopes to build on the pace of play they established in Williams' second season. Five of the top six players who saw the most time on the floor last year are back, so the task of pushing the pace will be up to them. Alvarez led the team in sets played with 108 while McConnell, Bayli Monck, and Vigil were right behind them with 106, 104, and 103 sets played respectively.
 
"This fall we are just trying to clean everything up," said Williams. "We are fine tuning things with most of the returners coming back. We have been able to work on cohesiveness as a group as well. Working together as a team is going to continue to be a main focus. We still have some work to do with front row defense but there are some good things happening so I am optimistic."
 
"I think it is coming together well as a team," Alvarez said. "We have good team chemistry between the front row and the back row. We also get along really well, including the new girls so I think that will show on the court."
 
2018 MSUB Volleyball Roster

Number	Name	Year	Hometown
1	Izela Alvarez	SO	Dumas, TX
4	Keira Larsen	SO	West Jordan, UT
5	Kylee Clarke	SO	Bismarck, ND
6	Maddi Vigil	SO	Ogden, UT
7	Alexa Smythe	SO	Phoenix, AZ
8	Bayli Monck	SO	Colorado Springs, CO
9	Skylar Reed	FR	Buckeye, AZ
10	Taylor Sherman	SR	Parker, CO
11	Eavan Taylor	FR	Richardson, TX
12	Katie Campbell	SR	Dumas, TX
13	Miranda McConnell	SR	Sandy, UT
14	Riley Moore	FR	Loomis, CA

 
One notable exception to the narrative of returning players carrying the bulk of the workload is freshman Eavan Taylor. Taylor joined the team after attending L.V. Berkner High School in Richardson, Texas, where she led her team in kills all four years and was named team captain and team MVP as a senior. She is very likely to fill a vacant spot at middle blocker for MSUB.

"Eavan is a freshman that is going to get a lot of playing time right away," Williams said. "She will play in the middle and we will be trying to get her up to speed as quickly as we can. She is an experienced attacker and blocker that has the ability to swing on both the pins and in the middle. She is also a dynamic player that brings a great personality to the court."
 

Taylor and the rest of the team played a pair of non-conference scrimmages on Aug. 17 against Sheridan College and Northwest College and Williams worked through a variety of lineups leading into a busy tournament schedule.

"It was a good test for us to see Sheridan and Northwest College before we head over to Moorhead (Minnesota)," Williams said. "They are two of the stronger two-year college teams so it was very beneficial for us."
 
Montana State University Billings was selected to finish ninth in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference 2018 preseason coaches poll, released by the league office Friday. The Yellowjackets – who finished ninth in the conference in 2017 with a 5-15 record – are picked to finish ninth again, ahead of Western Oregon and behind Concordia (Oregon). Western Washington was the unanimous choice to win the conference while Central Washington, Simon Fraser, Alaska Anchorage, and Northwest Nazarene rounded out the top five.
 
2018 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Preseason Volleyball Coaches' Poll

Team (1st-place votes)	2017 Records	Pts.
1. Western Washington (11)	27-4, 19-1 (1st)	121
2. Central Washington	19-10, 14-6 (t-3rd)	106
3. Simon Fraser	15-13, 12-8 (5th)	91
4. Alaska Anchorage	19-11, 14-6 (t-3rd)	82
Northwest Nazarene	25-5, 16-4 (2nd)	82
6. Seattle Pacific	15-13, 10-10 (6th)	72
7. Alaska Fairbanks	12-17, 5-15 (t-8th)	49
8. Concordia-Portland	13-14, 8-12 (7th)	47
9. Montana State Billings	9-21, 5-15 (t-8th)	29
10. Western Oregon	7-20, 3-17 (11th)	24
11. Saint Martin's	9-19, 4-16 (10th)	23

 
"Western Washington is ranked No. 5 in the nation right now so obviously they are the favorite again to win the GNAC," said Williams. "Central Washington also has a lot of returners so I expect them to be a strong team again. Aside from those two, the GNAC was very senior heavy last year so this year we aren't quite sure what to expect from some of the other teams in the upper half. I think that works to our advantage. We have everyone we need coming back this fall so I think we'll be able to make some waves for sure."
 
The 'Jackets travel to play in the Minnesota State University Moorhead Classic on Aug. 24-25. There, they will see non- conference action against South Dakota School of Mines & Technology, University of Mary, Minot State University, and Western State Colorado University.
 
The team will then fly west to play in the GNAC/PacWest Crossover Tournament on Aug. 31-Sept. 1 in San Francisco. Matches against Academy of Art, San Francisco State, California State Dominguez Hills, and University of Hawaii at Hilo are all on the schedule.
 
Coach Williams mentioned the tournament as a weekend she and the team are most looking forward to playing in.
 
"The GNAC/PacWest weekend is probably going to be our most competitive series. I think we are towards the top end as far as our level of play so we should be successful. We've gotten better and better the last few years playing in the West Region Crossover so I am hoping that trend will continue." 
 
The GNAC calendar opens on Sept. 6, when the 'Jackets face Western Oregon on the road. The two teams split their season series last year 1-1. Then it will be a matchup with Concordia University on Sept. 8 before returning for the home opener on Sept. 14 against Alaska Anchorage.
 
"I think that being more dynamic in the GNAC is going to be critical since we don't have the element of surprise anymore with a new team," Williams said. "Last year everyone knew what we were doing but we have to mix things up with shot selection and free ball plays this year. That should help us be more versatile against conference teams."
 
A match at home against Western Oregon on Nov. 10 will end the regular season for MSUB. With experienced players, the idea of playing for each other and looking inward is a theme echoed by the players on this year's squad.
 
"Controlling what we do on our side of the net; focusing on our team rather than what the other team is doing is really important," said Alvarez. "We want to work together on everything from mental attitude to fundamentals. If we do that, I think the rest will come together well."
 
"It's really awesome to be back with this group of girls from last year and also the three newcomers," said Sherman. "Practice has been great. I think the team chemistry is there and we are ready to have a great year."
 
Live video and statistics will be available for all MSUB home matches and all GNAC road contests throughout the 2018 season, through MSUB's Stretch Internet portal.