By Jacob Ervin, Student Reporter
Northwestern volleyball is gearing up to play in the Great American Conference championship tournament Thursday in Shawnee.
Northwestern is currently ranked seventh in the conference with a record of 7-9 in conference play and a record of 16-14 overall for the season.
The Lady Rangers started conference play 2-0 for the first time since joining the GAC but have struggled with injuries as the season progressed.
One of the players injured was the team’s starting middle, Ravyn Burns, who is seventh in the conference for blocks per set and a fifth year player on the team. She will miss the remainder of her final season.
Addison Wimmer, a sophomore on the team, said the team has lost four starters over the course of the season.
“We’ve kind of been on a rollercoaster this season,” Winner said. “We’ve had to switch up our lineup so many times, and then we got people sick all the time and people are hurt all the time, so our roster is dropping like flies.”
Wimmer has helped with the volleyball team’s fortitude in the face of adversity.
Wimmer, who was named Freshman of the GAC last season, leads the conference in both points and kills for the entirety of the season.
Another contributing factor to the team’s success is the new coaching staff, players said. Jon Bingesser took over as the head coach of Northwestern volleyball in the spring, and Carmae Jones, a junior on the team, said he has brought intensity with him.
“He definitely brings a fiery energy to both practices and games,” Jones said.
Jones, who is the starting middle hitter for the team, also praised their graduate assistant, Leslie Polanco.
This is Polanco’s first year on the coaching staff and her first season coaching. She formerly played in the GAC and is from the Dominican Republic.
“She transformed our team a lot this year,” Jones said. “She’s really been able to help us mentally throughout the season, especially with our losses that have really stuck with us.”
The GAC Championships are at FireLake Arena in Shawnee, Oklahoma on Nov. 10 through Nov. 12.
Northwestern will play in the quarterfinals against Oklahoma Baptist at 5 p.m. Thursday to determine if they will move on to the next round and have a chance at the GAC volleyball championship.