BUCS OVERCOME OBSTACLES TO HEAD BACK TO NATIONALS

Buccaneers have shot at a three-peat in Casper

The two-time defending national champion Blinn College volleyball team is returning to the national championship tournament once again to defend its title.

After winning the Region XIV Conference Tournament, Blinn received the ninth seed at the national tournament and will face the College of Central Florida on Thursday, Nov. 19, at 2 p.m.

The Buccaneers have won the national championship in three of the last four years, including each of the last two seasons. While this season marks a return trip to nationals for the Buccaneers’ sophomores, it marks first-year head coach Kalie Mader’s national tournament debut.

“I am just impressed by this team’s consistent pursuit of getting better,” Mader said. “It takes a lot of maturity to accept your teammates for who they are and also stand by them and continue to grow.”

The Buccaneers finished the season with a 29-10 record, a NJCAA Region XIV Tournament Championship and a trip to nationals, but it didn’t come easy. Blinn kicked off its roller coaster season going 1-3 at a tournament in Tyler and lost its first conference match to Wharton County Junior College, but has won seven of its last eight matches heading into nationals.

“This season has had its ups and downs but we are definitely going up right now,” freshman outside hitter Danusia Borgeaud said. “It feels so good to prove people wrong and show that we were able to overcome all of the outside chaos.”

Blinn easily put together its best play during the first three matches of the NJCAA Region XIV Tournament. The Buccaneers earned a trip to nationals after beating San Jacinto 3-0 on Nov. 7.

“At times during the season we have been beating ourselves with mistakes,” freshman libero Dana Teets said. “When we figure it out then it is easy to beat our opponents.”

As a sophomore, Abolanle Onipede already owns a national championship ring but wouldn’t mind earning another. The experience with this year’s team has been different than a year removed from a team that finished 40-1, she said.

“It just feels different this year with a new team and coach and we have been labeled as underdogs this year,” Onipede said. “We just needed some time to click and get back to playing solid volleyball.”

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