Women's Volleyball | 8/21/2025 1:11:00 PM

The Cloud County Community College volleyball team is set to open the 2025 season at the Wrangler Ranger Round Up, co-hosted by Ranger College and Cisco College. The T-Birds will open play against Panola College and Ranger College on Friday, August 22, before facing Dallas College Mountain View and No. 20 Blinn College on Saturday, August 23.

The Panola College Fillies are led by head coach Nicole McCray, who is in her seventh season of her second stint as head coach at Panola and 12th overall with the program. The Fillies finished 13-19 last year, including losses to Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference (KJCCC) schools Barton, Colby, Dodge City and Hutchinson.

Friday's meeting with the Ranger College Lady Rangers will mark the second meeting between the two programs in the last two years. In 2024, Ranger inched past Cloud County in a highly-contested four-set battle at the Dallas College Eastfield Invitational in Mesquite, Texas. Ranger concluded the season 20-12 overall including 11-4 at home.

Saturday's matches at Cisco College begin with Dallas College Mountain View. The Lions, under head coach Jana Bonds, went 8-24 in 2024 with a trip to the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III South District quarterfinals.

The T-Birds will wrap up Saturday against No. 20 Blinn College. The Buccaneers enjoyed a successful 2024, which saw them post an impressive 38-4 record with a 14-0 mark in Region 14 play. Blinn won the Region 14 tournament championship to secure a fifth consecutive trip to the NJCAA Division I Volleyball Championship tournament. New head coach Gregg Whitis has taken the reins of the prestigious program, which features a revamped roster of 22 players including 16 new freshmen and sophomores.

Cloud County finished its 2024 season at 7-23 overall.

Sophomore outside hitter Grace Rowland ranked second on the team in total kills, kills per set and points per set (2.55) in 2024. In 100 sets, Rowland tallied 231 kills (2.31 kills per set), 111 digs (1.11 digs per set), and 41 blocks (0.41 blocks per set), while finishing with 254.5 points. The native of Andale, Kansas had eight double-digit kill performances, including three matches with 20 or more. She recorded a season-best 22 kills on a .380 attack percentage against Central Community College on October 23, 2024.

Sophomore pin hitter Carlie Carlgren ranked third on the team in total kills and fourth on the team in kills per set last year. Carlgren made 19 starts as a freshman, including 13 starts in KJCCC play, recording 141 kills (1.58 kills per set), 95 digs (1.07 digs per set) and 34 blocks (0.38 blocks per set). Carlgren turned in a season-best 13 kills on a .458 attack percentage in the team's three-set home win over Central Christian College JV on October 23, 2024. She also had a season-high 16 digs in the team's conference home match against Hutchinson on October 19, 2024.

Sophomore Tori Sanders will look to make an impact as a middle blocker and right side hitter after appearing in ten matches and 19 sets in 2024. The native of Kirbyville, Texas ranked third on the team in blocks per set (0.47).

Beatrice Giusti, Berkleigh Curtis and Reachert Chiquin all return in the back row for the T-Birds. Giusti, a sophomore from Rome, Italy, ranked second on the team in total digs and digs per set, and fourth on the team in assists and service aces. Giusti totaled a season-best 30 digs in the team's four-set match vs Pratt Community College on September 28, 2024. Curtis ranked third on the team in total digs and digs per set, and fifth on the team in assists and service aces. Curtis picked up double-digit digs in ten matches last year, including registering a season-best 21 digs against Garden City Community College on October 16, 2024. Chiquin played in 18 matches with one start before being sidelined by an injury last season. Chiquin finished the year with 104 digs (1.82 digs per set) and 17 assists. She recorded four double-digit dig performances, highlighted by a season-high 19 digs against Central Community College on August 28, 2024.

Addyson Ogle and Julieanne Sandoval are back after redshirting in 2024. Ogle had an accomplished high school career at Central Plains High School in Claflin, Kansas. She's expected to split time as a setter and defensive specialist. Sandoval, a native of Corpus Christi, Texas, will add depth at the middle blocker position.

Six of the 14 players on the 2025 roster are newcomers.

Sophomore outside hitter Iza Caroline da Silva is the lone transfer the T-Birds brought in for 2025. da Silva appeared in 25 matches and 76 sets at New Mexico Junior College, averaging 1.95 kills per set and 0.45 blocks per set in 2024. da Silva posted a career-high 13 kills against both Panola College and Navarro College. She totaled 148 kills her freshman season.

In addition to da Silva, five freshmen have joined the fold. Kenadie Casanova (5'9", Pin Hitter), Brooke Lougheed (5'6", Setter), Ylvie Schmid (5'7", Setter), Elizabeth Schuster (6'0", Middle Hitter) and Zoey Sudbeck (5'8", Middle Blocker) have joined the T-Birds this fall.

Fans can follow along through the entire 2025 Wrangler Ranger Round Up by following the Cloud County Athletic Department's X Account (@CCCCSports) for live updates throughout the tournament, as well on cloudtbirds.com.