Women's Volleyball | 8/20/2026 3:14:00 PM

The Cloud County Community College volleyball team will open its 2026 season with four matches in North Platte, Nebraska against NJCAA teams at the North Platte Community College Tournament, which is set for Friday, August 21 and Saturday, August 22.

The T-Birds were picked to finish in eighth place in the Kansas Jayhawk Community College Conference (KJCCC) Division I Preseason Coaches' Poll, the conference announced on Wednesday, August 19.

Cloud County earned 22 points in the poll. Barton Community College, who is ranked No. 13 nationally in the NJCAA Division I Volleyball Preseason Poll, was picked to finish first in the conference with 70 votes and seven first place votes.

The T-Birds begin the 2026 season under first-year head coach Maria Aikins. A former All-KJCCC/NJCAA Region 6 volleyball player, Aikins was a middle hitter at Cloud County from 2010-2011. Aikins arrives at Cloud County following an exceptional tenure at Allen Community College, where she compiled a 64-32 overall record in three seasons as head coach and twice led the Red Devils to the Plains District A championship game.

The T-Birds return four members of the 2025 team. Sophomore right side Kenadie Casanova is Cloud County's returning kills leader. Casanova, a native of Derby, Kansas, tallied 126 kills while also contributing 80 digs and 45 total blocks last year. Sophomore middle hitter Julieanne Sandoval, a native of Corpus Christi, Texas, recorded 43 kills and 32 total blocks while starting 12 matches in 2025. Sophomore libero Brooke Lougheed accumulated 128 assists (1.42 assists per set) to finish third on the team to go with 238 digs (2.64 digs per set) and 29 service aces. Lougheed, a native of Spruce View, Alberta, Canada, posted a season-high 20 digs against Neosho County Community College, and reached double-figure digs 11 times. Sophomore defensive specialist Addyson Ogle, a native of Claflin, Kansas, was second on the team with 348 assists (4.09 assists per set) and reached double-digit digs five times, ending the year with 148 digs (1.74 digs per set).

The T-Birds take a youthful approach to the season with ten freshman, including Concordia, Kansas natives Baylen Arnold and Kynlee Hamel, who in 2024 helped lead the Concordia High School volleyball team to its first state tournament appearance in eight years. Cloud County also welcomes defensive specialist Addison Allen of Arvada, Colorado, middle hitter Bella Ikard of El Campo, Texas, and defensive specialist Kelli Rodriguez of Ellsworth, Kansas.

Cloud County will also have a new look to the squad, as it added a more international flavor to the depth charts. The T-Birds will now host six players from six different countries. Joining Lougheed on the roster this fall are setter Giulia Todesco (Ivrea, Turin, Italy) and outside hitters Samira Bousri (Emden, Lower Saxony, Germany), Dora Kuburovic (Belgrade, Serbia), Karina Castellar (Cartagena, Colombia) and Yasmim Ramos (Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia).

On Friday, Cloud County will play McCook Community College at 4 pm and North Platte Community College at 6:30 pm.

The T-Birds and McCook met in 2025 at the McCook Community College Labor Day Weekend Volleyball Tournament, with the Indians winning the match in straight sets, 19-25, 21-25, 21-25. McCook has won four of its last five meetings with Cloud County dating back to 2017. The Indians are coming off a 12-16 season a year ago, the first losing season in coach Hayley Kobza's 11-year tenure at McCook.

North Platte Community College has won four straight match-ups over Cloud County, dating back to 2016. The Knights won the most recent meeting, 3-2, on August 20, 2021 at the RKP Invitational in Beatrice, Nebraska. North Platte finished 16-16 in 2025 and will officially open this season against Colorado Northwestern Community College on Thursday, August 20.

On Saturday, the T-Birds will wrap up tournament play at 12:30 pm against Laramie County Community College and 3 pm against Gillette Community College.

For all the latest information on Cloud County volleyball, please visit coudtbirds.com. For up-to-the-minute updates, follow Cloud County Athletics on Facebook and Instagram and CCCCSports on X.