The 2017 Tiger volleyball team has seen a drastic improvement from last year when the team went 12-22. With an entirely new roster of young freshman, the turnaround has been exciting to watch for Tiger fans. The team currently sits at 20-14 with the District J Tournament still to play this weekend. This is a preview of the teams in the District Tournament.
No. 1 Seed: Iowa Western Community College
The Reivers have had another dominant season under fourth year coach Alicia Williams going 34-1 on the season and 4-0 in conference play. The number two team in the country will be the favorite to advance to the national tournament this year. Dominant is word that comes to mind when describing the Reivers this season. The team has only given up twelve sets all year and only one in conference play. Iowa Western Community College will take on Vincennes University in Game 1 of the tournament.
No. 2 Seed: Indian Hills Community College
The Warriors have put together another respectable season going 27-13 on the year and 2-2 in the conference with both losses coming from Iowa Western. Lindsey Michel is in her sixth season as head coach of the Warriors and has eclipsed 170 wins in her tenure. The Warriors are led by sophomore outside hitter Jessica Da Silva, who leads the ICCAC in kills and Kills per set with 514 and 3.54 respectively.
No. 3 Seed: Marshalltown Community College
The Tigers have improved remarkably from last years 12-22 mark, this season the Tigers have reached 20 wins for the first time since 2013. Head Coach Justin Hoskins has turned programs around in the past as he took Brunswich Community College from a one-win season in 2013 to twenty wins in 2015. With an all-freshman team in 2017, the Tigers will look to make some noise in the tournament. The Tigers will take on the Warriors of Indian Hills in the Game 2 of the tournament starting at 3:00 pm Friday, October 3rd.
No. 4 Seed: Vincennes University
The 27-10 Trailblazers enter the tournament as the 4 seed under Head Coach Gary Sien. Sien is in his first year as Head Coach with the Trailblazers after spending the previous 16 years as the head coach at Kankakee Community College. With over 500 wins in his career, his wealth of knowledge may payoff as the Trailblazers will take on the Reivers of Iowa Western Community College in Game 1 of the distract tournament.
The District J Division I Volleyball Tournament will take place November 3rd and 4th in Council Bluffs, Iowa and will be hosted by Iowa Western Community College. Matches will be played in Kanesville Arena on the Iowa Western Community College campus. All matches will be streamed live on the Reiver Sports Network, which can be found on www.goreivers.com. Links to the live stream will also be posted on the MCC Athletics Twitter and Facebook pages.
