NMMI Sports Press
After three-straight weeks of road games, the No. 9 Bronco Volleyball team was hoping for some good home cooking inside Cahoon Armory, but instead played uninspired against New Mexico Junior College, falling in straight sets Wednesday night in the first Western Junior College Athletic Conference match of the season.
As a team, NMMI had 37 kills on 114 attempts with 21 errors for a hitting percentage of .140. Sophomore outside hitter Baby Moleni scored on 11-of-21 chances with just one error and sophomore hitter Allyah Tokelau was 7-of-18 with zero errors, the only pair of bright spots offensively for the Broncos.
“We never could get any kind of rhythm,” said Bronco head coach Shelby Forchtner. “We set Baby four balls in a row and that was the only time we could keep the ball on our side for more than three or four points.”
The Thunderbirds, ranked 19th in NJCAA Division I, played aggressive and took big swings, which usually plays into the hands of the defensively-stout Broncos.
“One person literally beat us, their outside hitter, and everyone else just banged balls of our hands because we wouldn’t set a block,” Forchtner said. “We had them out of system the entire game and they left massive holes for us to score. We just needed to dig a few hard-driven balls, which we are usually really good at, touch some balls off the block and score fast and quick. Every time we attempted that, we banged it out of bounds.”
The Broncos had 54 digs as a team, led by All-American libero Mio Yamamoto with 18.
NMMI has lost five of its last six matches, mostly against nationally ranked squads, and Forchtner feels that her team needs more mental toughness and someone to step up and be the aggressive heart and soul of the Broncos.
“We have been talking about that every day since opening weekend; we don’t have that animal, someone that gets mad, fires everyone up and keeps them focused,” said Forchtner. “We’ve tried everything with this group. I think the (College of Southern Idaho) game was probably the closest thing we’ve had to being fully locked in. The energy from the bench to the floor and back was contagious.”
Forchtner said her team didn’t play particularly well offensively against CSI, but used their defense to frustrate and wear down their opponent.
“I think we hit .190 that game, which isn’t good, but we blocked and dug and did what we do well,” she said. “We were uber-scrappy, blocking balls and we beat them easily. They were never in control of any set. We told them to channel that energy going forward, but that didn’t happen tonight.”
Tuesday marked the first game back in the lineup for outside hitter and middle Barbara Guedes who hadn’t played since August 26. The sophomore saw limited action as she eases her way back to 100 percent.
The conference slate doesn’t get any easier as No. 8 Odessa College comes calling at 2 p.m. Saturday.
“We knew NMJC was good, Odessa is good, Midland is better, Clarendon is better,” Forchtner said. “Until this team decides to play unselfishly, they will struggle, especially against the teams in our conference.”
Forchtner had a clear message for her team after the loss.
“Turn fear into faith; faith in each other, faith in yourself and faith in what we’re trying to do.”