Volleyball Looks to Surpass #8 GPAC Preseason Ranking
(Hastings, NE) – Fresh off a semifinal appearance in the GPAC tournament, the Hastings Volleyball team was predicted to place eighth in the conference with 62 votes, slightly behind sixth-place College of Saint Mary (64) and seventh-place Dordt (63). Concordia (117 votes, 7 first-place votes) edged out Northwestern (115 votes, 5 first-place votes) to claim first place.
(Hastings, NE) – Fresh off a semifinal appearance in the GPAC tournament, the Hastings Volleyball team was predicted to place eighth in the conference with 62 points, slightly behind sixth-place College of Saint Mary (64) and seventh-place Dordt (63). Concordia (117 points, 7 first-place votes) edged out Northwestern (115 points, 5 first-place votes) to claim first place.
The Broncos enter the 2025-26 season with a couple of new coaches, with John Schmidt being hired as the head coach and Casey Krolikowski being named an assistant coach. On the court, Hastings will return senior setter Alexis Pontine, who was GPAC All-Conference Second Team and had four GPAC Setter of the Week awards last season. Pontine led the team in assists last year with 9.74 per set and was third on the team at digs per set with 2.72.
Sophomore outside hitter Mikah O'Neill also returns after a freshman campaign that earned her GPAC All-Conference Second Team honors. O'Neill had the second most kills on the team last year with 260 and had the second best attack percentage among the team qualifiers (over 300 attacks) at .258.
Other notable returners include sophomore middle blocker Makenna Sutter, who was GPAC All-Conference Honorable Mention and her 2.86 kills per set was second most on the team. Juniors Ilse Benne and Amiyah Barnes, as well as sophomore Londyn Carnes return to their front row positions. Sophomores Lainey Benson and Hailey Whitmarsh, along with senior Kinzi Havranek look to build off of last year in the back row.
The Broncos finished last season with a 15-12 record overall and 8-8 in conference. They won five of their first six games, including all four in their home non-conference invitational. After a 2-1 start in the GPAC, they lost four straight matches before catching fire by winning five of their next six.
Hastings got the #5 seed in the GPAC Tournament after falling in three of their last four matches of the regular season. They flipped the script quickly with a 3-1 victory at fourth-seeded Morningside, but later lost to #1 seed Northwestern in the semifinals, 3-0, to end their season.
The Broncos will look to fill the void following the graduation of libero Miriam Miller, who set multiple school records in digs and was named the GPAC Co-Defender of the Year, as well as First Team All-Conference. They will also look to replace outside hitter Majesta Valasek, who concluded her collegiate career with First Team All-Conference honors, leading the team in kills.
The 2025-26 season will begin for the Broncos on Friday, August 15 in a two-day tournament at Bethel College, beginning with Oklahoma Panhandle State at 3pm. They will make their home debut shortly after in the two-day Bronco Invite, taking on Ottawa at 7pm on Friday, August 22.
|
2025 GPAC Volleyball Preseason Poll |
|||
|
Place |
Team |
Total |
1st Place Votes |
|
1 |
Concordia |
117 |
7 |
|
2 |
Northwestern |
115 |
5 |
|
3 |
Midland |
95 |
0 |
|
4 |
Morningside |
92 |
0 |
|
5 |
Dakota Wesleyan |
77 |
0 |
|
6 |
College of Saint Mary |
64 |
0 |
|
7 |
Dordt |
63 |
0 |
|
8 |
Hastings |
62 |
0 |
|
9 |
Mount Marty |
38 |
0 |
|
10 |
Doane |
29 |
0 |
|
11 |
Waldorf |
25 |
0 |
|
12 |
Briar Cliff |
15 |
0 |
