First-year Waukon head volleyball coach Madison Wagner inherits six letterwinners for 2016 season

With six returning letterwinners and a total of nine seniors on this year’s squad of 45 high school girls, the 2016 Waukon volleyball team enters the season with an abundance of familiarity. However, a new face will emerge at the top of that Indian volleyball totem pole, as first-year head coach Madison Wagner has taken the reins of the varsity volleyball head coaching position.

Wagner is in her first year of teaching at Waukon Middle School and is a native of Lancaster, WI. She earned her teaching degree from Ashford University in Clinton, where she played college basketball after a multi-sport high school athletic career.

As a first year coach, Wagner feels fortunate to inherit the large collection of varsity veterans and upperclassmen that she has this season, looking to them for “leadership on and off the court,” she says. Those letterwinners include the return of senior Regan Wasson for her fourth year of varsity volleyball, along with fellow seniors Brooklyn Larson and Claire Beyer, each first-year letterwinners last volleyball season. Juniors Rylee Einck and Lauren Elliott also return after earning their first volleyball letter last season, as does sophomore Brigid Berns.

In addition to that returning experience from varsity competition, an additional six seniors will add their upperclassmen leadership, with two other juniors and one more sophomore rounding out the Tribe’s varsity roster so far this season. “We also have a lot of seniors who can lead through practice as well as on and off the court,” Coach Wagner said. “We have a lot of good communicators, and we have a lot of girls with varsity experience.”

Although admitting being a new head coach takes some getting used to, both for herself and her players, Coach Wagner already sees where her team’s strengths lie and what will need some polishing throughout the season. “As a new coach, it is all new and a surprise to me; everything has been a pleasant surprise,” she said. “We have good height, so we will be strong at the net. Serving is also going to be strong for us this year.”

Wasson’s fourth year of volleyball at the varsity level will make her the anchor of the Tribe’s front line attack, as she brings back nearly twice as many kills from last season as any other Indian, as well as similar team leadership with 51 blocks, including 32 solo halts. Bringing back their own leadership numbers just behind Wasson will be Elliott with 71 kills and Berns with 60 kills and 20 blocks. At 5’10”, Berns will be joined by 6’0” sophomore McKenzie Cooper in bolstering that Indian front line height Coach Wagner referred to.

Einck returns as half of last season’s leading setter duo, bringing 128 assists back with her which were second only to graduated senior Leslie Sivesind’s 206 assists. Beyer and Larson return to provide the experience foundation for the Indians’ back row with 109 and 106 digs, respectively, behind the team leadership of graduated seniors Kaela Wood and Madison Snitker with 163 and 144 digs, respectively. Sivesind and Snitker also took with them two of the top three ace serve totals, 40 and 25, respectively, with Wasson wedged in between those two with 29 service winners.

Despite the experience and abundance of upperclassmen on her squad, Coach Wagner still sees room for improvement in some aspects in this season’s early going. “Consistency in fundamentals,” she pointed out as her squad’s greatest need for improvement. “A new defense is also taking us longer to get used to than expected.”

No matter what strengths there may be to build on, or what weaknesses there may be to overcome, Coach Wagner looks at several overall aspects of this season that will be key to its success. “Staying confident, sticking together, communicating and defense,” she explained.

It will be those keys to the season that will fuel the Indian netters toward their goals for the 2016 campaign. “Win our own tournament and get better and learn from every game,” Coach Wagner listed as her squad’s focal points. “We also want more wins than losses and to beat all teams in our class or below.”

Standing in the way of some of those goals will be a formidable Northeast Iowa Conference schedule that will feature a pair of top 10-rated Class 4A teams in perennial volleyball powers Charles City and Waverly-Shell Rock. “It looks like there are a lot of tough teams in our conference, but we hope to win as many conference games as we can,” Coach Wagner said. “It is all new to me, so I cannot say much on where we will sit in our conference.”

The Indians were scheduled to begin their pursuit of all those goals with back-to-back non-conference road matches, Monday, August 29 at MFL/MarMac and Tuesday, August 30 at Postville. The volleyball Tribe will then play in the Mabel-Canton Tournament in Minnesota Saturday, September 3 before opening Northeast Iowa Conference play at Crestwood Thursday, September 8.

“I’m looking forward to a great year,” Coach Wagner summarized. “We have a great volleyball staff, and I’m excited to be here in Waukon!”

For more complete coverage, pick up this week's print edition or subscribe to our e-edition by clicking here.