ABILENE – A new age of Abilene Christian volleyball is about to unfold, one unlike any other in its four-decade existence as first-year head coach
Angela Mooney prepares her Wildcats for postseason possibilities and the advent of beach volleyball.
Should the Wildcats finish among Southland Conference's top-eight teams as they have the past two seasons, they qualify for the league's tournament whose winner receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Championships. And when beach season rolls around in early March, ACU will again be tasked with playing upwards of two dozen matches, some of which will be against league rivals Central Arkansas, Houston Baptist, New Orleans and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, all while continuing to practice the indoor game.
The 2017-18 season has taken on all the appearances of a massive operation as Mooney and assistant coach
Ku'ulei Kabalis-Bianconi stretch the definition of multitasking. Recruiting is a year-round affair for all staffs, as is keeping up with all the latest coaching, marketing and social media strategies, plus there's always scheduling, travel planning, camp counseling, and academic advising to be done.
However, in the midst of this controlled chaos is a sound roster composed of 11 veteran talents and eight newcomers, two of which have already competed at the collegiate level. Only two starters are gone from last year's team that finished a surprising third in the Southland Conference at 11-5 – one game behind second-place Stephen F. Austin – but coming back will be starters
Jacey Smith (OH),
Lauren Walker (MB),
Amanda Chapa (L),
Kendall Bosse (S), and
Marybeth Sandercox (OH/RS).
That's quite a solid core for Mooney to build around as Smith made all-conference, while Chapa (4.62 dpg) and Bosse (8.01 apg) ranked among the league leaders in digs and assists, respectively. It should also be noted that Walker was working on an all-conference resume at middle blocker before being sidelined by injury in mid-October. Sandercox joined the starting lineup near the start of conference play, and near year's end she totaled 13.0 or more points in three consecutive matches in wins vs. HBU, Lamar and Nicholls.
Behind this opening wave of starters are a number of dependable returners who took turns contributing quality minutes last fall. Middle blocker
Courtney Miller filled in admirably for Walker with 30 blocks over her final six starts. Liberos
Lillian Drever and
Sofia Resendiz each had several games with 10 or more digs, and fellow defensive specialist
Mikai Brown finished the year with 1.40 digs per set while hammering home 11 service aces.
Mackenzie Kesler backed up Bosse at the setter position and recorded a season-high 20 assists at HBU, while outside hitter
Corinne Grandcolas came off the bench in 25 matches to provide 181 points on 164 kills, 22 blocks and six aces.
Soon the starters and reserves will have to battle a crop of newcomers who want what they have – primarily an opportunity to start, compete and be among the first to lead ACU into the postseason, and perhaps win a conference championship.
This group of novices possesses a great deal of offensive skill as several come in as bona fide outside or right-side hitters who can help shore up the Wildcats' attack. Add to that a great deal of defensive experience on the front and back lines, plus a junior setter (Bosse) who has started 48 contests and an all-conference attacker (Smith), and ACU should be positioned to succeed in both the indoor and outdoor versions of its sport.
"This is a larger class than most teams would typically bring in," said Mooney, "but I am thrilled with the quality of players we've brought into our program as we head into our first year of championship eligibility.
"Athletically and physically, they will help us get better in the gym right away, but the type of young women they're off the court makes our program instantly stronger. They are hard-working, dedicated players who strive for excellence in all areas of their lives.
"As a staff, we're looking forward to the competition they'll immediately bring into our gym, and I'm certain some will compete with the returners for their spots right away."
Short profiles of ACU's incoming recruits are listed below in alphabetical order.
Brianna Acker | 6-1 | Fr. | OH | Killeen, Texas / Copperas Cove HS
Athletic Accomplishments
- All-District honoree
- Offensive Player of the Year
- Collected 315 kills (.349 kill percentage) 124 blocks and 112 digs as a senior
- Part of teams that won district, bi-district and area championships
- Softball and track and field letter winner
Academic Accolades
- Academic All-State and All-District
- 'A' Honor Roll
- Pre Veterinary major
Coach's Comments
"Breanna is very physical player at the net. She has found a lot success at the high school level offensively and we're excited to see what she will do at the collegiate level."
Peyten Boutwell | 6-3 | So. | MB | Lake Oswego, Ore. / Lake Oswego HS / UC Riverside
Athletic Accomplishments
- First Team All-League
- Led league in blocking with 107
- Part of a high school team that won league title her junior year
- Reached No. 1 northwest region ranking with U18 club team
- Recorded six blocks against San Francisco for the UC Riverside Highlanders and five kills vs. Cal State Fullerton
Academic Accolades
- National Honors Society member
- National Charity League
- Math tutor
- Business and finance major
Coach's Comments
"Peyten comes to us with one year of experience at UC Riverside. She already has an excellent understanding of how to balance academics and athletics, which will really benefit our program moving forward. At 6-3, she brings size into our middle position, so we're looking forward to her stepping in and being a blocking force at the net right away.
Paris Cosley | 5-11 | Fr. | OH | Round Rock, Texas / Gateway College Preparatory
Athletic Accomplishments
- Volleyball and Track and Field letter winner
- Part of a team sophomore year that went 14-0 vs. district and reached third round of playoffs
- Won two tournament MVP titles during senior year, and recorded a .417 hitting percentage
- Placed first at regionals with U14s club team, second at AAU with U15s, and third at nationals with U16s
Academic Accolades
- Biology and Pre-Med major
Coach's Comments
"Paris has immediately impacted our program with her physical play at the net since joining the team in January. I have seen her grow on-and-off the court and we're looking forward to seeing her compete on the outside this fall."
Lorin McNeil | 5-10 | Fr. | MB | Rockwall, Texas / Rockwall-Heath HS
Athletic Accomplishments
- Four-year letter winner and three-year starter
- First team all-district
- District and high school MVP
- District leading blocker
- Most Improved
- Appeared in 321 sets and collected 554 kills (.230 hitting percentage) with 246 blocks (118 solo) and 24 aces
- Part of teams that went undefeated in district 11-6A and won the regional championship
- Track and field letter winner, competing in the long and triple jumps
Academic Accolades
- Honor Roll
- Mentor with the Dallas Pacers Youth Organization
- P.A.L.S member
- S.M.A.R.T Girls Mentoring Program
- Speech Pathology major
Coach's Comments
"Lorin has proven to have great work ethic on-and-off the court. She will immediately add depth and competition to our middle position. She is fast, dynamic and will impact our team with her blocking right away."
Katelyn Mueller | 6-0 | Fr. | OH | Sugar Land, Texas / Home School
Athletic Accomplishments
- Four-year letter winner
- Two-time homeschool national champion
- Three-time homeschool state champion
- Two-time Living Stone champion
- Part of a team that went 35-3 during 2016 senior season
- Two-year team captain
- State All-Tournament Team
- National All-Tournament Team
- 2016 Living Stones MVP
- 2015 AVCA Phenom List
- 2015 USA Volleyball High Performance gold medalist
- 2014 GJNC (Girls Junior National Championship) Beach National qualifier champion
Academic Accolades
Coach's Comments
"Katelyn is one of very few true six rotation outside hitters we currently have in our program. She has found success with her high school team as well as at the club and high performance levels. She knows what it means to be a winner and we're looking forward to watching her grow and impact our program."
Kenzie Pullen | 5-7 | Fr. | L / DS | Midland, Texas / Midland Christian HS
Athletic Accomplishments
- Three-year letter winner in volleyball and track and field
- Second Team All-State
- First Team All-District
- Registered 288 kills, 380 digs, 23 aces and 22 blocks as a senior
- Rang up 260 kills, 377 digs, 24 aces and 19 blocks as a junior
- Part of a 2016 team that went 27-8 and reached the state's final four after winning bi-district, district, area and regional championships
- Part of a 2015 squad that posted a 28-12 record
- State champion in the 4x100 and 4x200m relays
- State qualifier in the relays, triple jump and 200m
- 2016 state champion in the 4x200m relay and was second with the 4x100m relay
Academic Accolades
- Academic All-State
- National Honors Society member
- Animal Science major
Coach's Comments
"Kenzie will add depth to an already very talented and competitive group of defensive players. I like that she has a good understanding of the game as she was also a hitter in high school."
Kennedy Shelstead | 6-0 | Jr. | MB | Lewisville, Texas / Mineral Wells HS / John Brown University
Athletic Accomplishments
- First Team Defensive MVP as a senior in 2014
- Part of a team that went 34-8 as a senior and reached the regional tournament finals
- Basketball and track and field letter winners
- First team honorable mention at JBU
- Part of two teams at JBU that posted a record of 43-27 and twice reached the conference tournament semifinals
- Totaled 225 kills, 299 points and 89.5 blocks in 2016 with three aces vs. Evangel, 15.5 points vs. University of the Ozarks and 12 kills vs. Bacone
Academic Accolades
- Kinesiology major with emphasis in sports and recreation management
Family
- Younger sister of former four-year ACU women's basketball player Sydney Shelstead
Coach's Comments
"Kennedy comes to us with two years of collegiate experience under her belt. Once she learns and understands our systems she has the ability to become an impact player for us in the middle. I love the fact that Kennedy comes to our program with a first-hand understanding of ACU and all the special things that are happening within athletics and on our campus."
Amy Weiss | 5-9 | OH | Midwest City, Okla. / Home School / North Central Texas College
Athletic Accomplishments
- Played for OKC Stingray Beach, Oklahoma City Storm and Oklahoma Peak Performance
- Ranked 48th in the nation as a junior beach player
- Competed at 2014 USA Volleyball Junior Beach Nationals (Bradford Beach, Wis.)
- Qualified for nationals with Oklahoma Peak Performance
- 2014 All-Region team at NCHC Nationals
- Competed at Home School Nationals from 2012-14
- Placed second at regional tournament with North Central Texas College in 2015 and 2016
- In two seasons at NCTC, appeared in 121 sets (64 matches) with 68 kills, 123 digs, 27 aces and 11 blocks
Academic Accolades
- Valedictorian
- Social work major
Coach's Comments
"Amy committed to ACU as one of our first ever beach players and we couldn't be more thrilled to add her to our roster. She has been able to gain two years of junior college experience and will be bringing maturity to our gym and to the sand the minute she steps onto campus."
