VB SEASON PREVIEW: Defiance College volleyball opens new chapter on Friday
DEFIANCE, Ohio – The Defiance College volleyball team will be the first program to compete since the Yellow Jackets joined the NAIA and a new athletic conference for the 2024-25 academic year. Already facing unfamiliar programs and an earlier start to the season, the team is being led by a new coaching staff that has infused the roster with talent from around Northwest Ohio.
In with the new
The 2024 season ushers in a new era for DC volleyball with a 33-game campaign against all NAIA programs. The team's schedule will have at least nine first-time opponents but will have some familiarity with teams in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference by having faced nine of the conference's 12 teams in the past.
Coach Thornburg has characterized the preseason as a very big adjustment period for everyone. In addition to a new look and feel to the schedule, the roster includes 12 newcomers with a pair of new coaches. Thornburg has spent the last three seasons on the club volleyball circuit following a six-year tenure at Division III Loras College. Along with Thornburg, assistant coach Bre Walp joined the coaching staff for her first season coaching college volleyball after a five-year playing career at the Division I level.
Season Outlook
The Yellow Jackets finished 4-22 last season and were 0-9 during the program's final campaign in the HCAC. It was the fourth season in a row the team finished with four wins. While improving upon the team's record from prior seasons is a primary objective, Coach Thornburg is also focused on the team coming together and rebuilding the culture. Checking those boxes and qualifying for the conference tournament will be a successful campaign in the eyes of the program's new head coach. "We are going to be the best at getting better this season. That is our mantra this year. We want to play faster, serve tough, and play some defense," says Thornburg.
Conference Outlook
The WHAC looks to be very competitive and that was reflected in the conference's preseason volleyball poll. Aquinas took the top spot in the coaches poll by just two points over the defending conference champs from Indiana Tech. Indiana Tech went 31-5 overall last season and lost just two matches in conference play. Both programs won 31 matches in 2023. Indiana Tech brings back the reigning WHAC Player of the Year in Noelle VanOort while the conference Newcomer of the Year, Lydia Harper, returns to Aquinas for her second season with the Saints. Defiance finished 12th in the preseason coaches poll. "The WHAC is a tough conference," says Coach Thornburg, "and we need to raise our expectations for ourselves and look a little better each day."
About the Team
Despite losing four regulars from a year ago, the Yellow Jackets will have good experience returning to the court this fall. Shelby Clements returns as the team's lone All-Conference performer and the top attacker with 163 kills last season. In fact, three of the top four attackers from last year's squad are all back in Clements, Jaelyn Tomoletz, and Jamia Murray. Tomoletz was the top blocker with 39 total blocks and earned Second Team All-HCAC in 2022 as a freshman. Additionally, Emma Chafins returns in purple and gold after leading the program on the defensive end with 339 digs. Adding senior Kendra Kline's experience at setter, Coach Thornburg has five reliable players in important spots. That returning experience will be paired with a couple D-II transfers in Gabby Rodriguez (Malone) and Chaney Brodbeck Wheeling), who are each local athletes playing closer to home and capable of playing all six rotations. Stepping up among the freshman class are setter Kylie Anderson and defensive specialist Kaylie Dickinson.
Infusing so many new players has cultivated plenty of early-season competition as the team prepares for their first matches. With invitationals over the first three weekends of the season, the coaching staff will have the luxury to play multiple rotations and get valuable in-game experience to allow everyone to gel together before conference play begins in early September. Coach Thornburg has also noted that he is encouraged to witness a high competitive drive among the incoming athletes that has motivated everyone in a short amount of time.
One additional nugget for the program is the amount of local athletes on the roster. Paired with returning players from Defiance County in Chafins (Tinora) and Veronica Vazquez (Hicksville), the Yellow Jackets now sport seven athletes from the 419 area. Those athletes include Rodriguez (Hilltop), Brodbeck (Archbold), Dickinson (Tinora), Kate Suter (Bowling Green) and Amina Chamoun (Sylvania Southview). Speaking on local talent, Coach Thornburg says, "I want all local volleyball talent to consider being a Yellow Jacket in the future. This will hopefully increase fans and make the atmosphere at matches exciting. They are a great group that is working really hard to be a great representation of where our athletics department is."
Defiance College opens play on Friday afternoon by co-hosting the Racer Yellow Jacket Classic with the University of Northwestern Ohio. DC is hosting four matches on Friday and Saturday while UNOH in Lima hosts three contests per day. Beginning at noon on Friday, Defiance will match up against IU Northwest, Brescia, Governors State, and Goshen to get the season started.
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