By Jan Schultz
The Imperial Republican
A ninth place national finish in junior college volleyball competition likely will result in a number of players garnering post-season honors.
That was true for North Platte Community College (NPCC) recently as four of its players earned national and state recognition.
Among the NPCC players gaining post-season honors was RyAnn Spady of Imperial, the Lady Knights’ starter at the libero position, a back row position who passes the ball and plays defense.
Spady, a sophomore, earned Nebraska Community College Athletic Conference (NCCAC) all-conference honors. She is the daughter of Brad and Kim Spady of Imperial.
According to NPCC Coach Sally Thalken, Spady was a big part of this year’s team success.
“RyAnn really developed as the year went along to where she was truly playing her best ball towards the end of the season,” Thalken said.
“She was really solid for us from the service line and as libero,” she added.
Three other Lady Knights also gained post-season recognition.
Erica Brown of Hershey was named a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Second Team All-American, and earned NCCAC all-conference honors, All-Region IX honors and on the Omaha World-Herald’s (OWH) First Team.
Brandi Dye of North Platte earned NCCAC all-conference, All-Region IX and OWH First Team honors.
Alexa Hopping of Sutherland received NCCAC all-conference, All-Region IX and OWH honorable mention honors.
The NPCC team was honored in North Platte Jan. 20 after bringing home a ninth place finish from the Division II national volleyball championships, ending their season with a 30-15 record.
In addition, Coach Thalken was recently named the 2009 Two-year College Women’s Volleyball West Region Coach of the Year by the American Volleyball Coaches Association.
Thalken just completed her 29th year as the Lady Knights coach. She has an overall record of 810-528.