Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Ness Trusty Safety Net for the Dragons

Larry Scott, SID Emeritus

MOORHEAD, Minn. - Forgive Katy Ness for being downright defensive about her volleyball career at Minnesota State Moorhead. It's just part of the job description.

A three-year fixture in the Dragon lineup, Ness fills the defensive specialist role of libero. It's an essential and often thankless assignment, but one Ness readily accepts.

“Technically, all I can do is receive serves and play defense,” said Ness. “I was an outside (hitter) in high school, but I knew coming here I wouldn't play outside because I didn't have the height.”

Ness had a simple solution. “You just come to learn to play your role and love that part of the sport.”

Ness is well aware of the importance of the libero in today's game, and she's willing to shoulder a bigger part of the load. “I'm looked at as a leader, and if our passing is not going well I'm going to take most of the blame for it, but I like to handle the heat. I'm fine with that.”

Ness appeared in all 27 matches this year and was credited with 567 digs, an average of 6.03 per game. She finished second in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference with 6.38 digs a game and earned honorable mention all-conference honors. She was also saluted as NSIC Player of the Week five times in 2011.

Ness was installed in the MSUM starting lineup early in her freshman season and finished with 456 digs. As a sophomore she reached double figures in digs in 22 matches, and finished with 447 digs, and hiked her career total to 1,470. She needs 338 to replace Emily Hegg as the Dragons' all-time leader.

A three-time all-conference selection at Ada-Borup High School, Ness was named to the Minnesota All-State Volleyball team as a senior. She was also honored as team and conference MVP.

Ness helped the Cougars advance to a third place finish at the 2008 Minnesota State High School Volleyball Championships. She was named to the Minnesota All-State Tournament team and earned All-State Academic honors as well. Ness also served as basketball and track captain of the Cougars.

Despite her classy prep pedigree, Ness knew she would face some adjustments in adapting to college volleyball. It could all be a blur at times.

“The speed of the game, and rotating from base to defense, that was the biggest change,” Ness said. “Getting to your spot is so important. If you're not to your spot when the ball is being hit, there's no way you're going to get it.”

Ness also understands the need for more lineup adjustments. “In college if you're having an off night you can be taken out, but it doesn't mean you're going to lose your spot for good. In high school you weren't likely to be taken out even if you were having a bad game.”

An Elementary Education major with a Math minor, Ness has been named to the Dean's List as a freshman and sophomore, and admits reaching a balance between academics and athletics is taxing at times. “You learn to get used to is, when you have a day off you take advantage of it,” said Ness.

When she graduated from Ada-Borup High, Ness wasn't about to put athletics on the backburner. Sorting out the options was another matter.

“I was looking at here (MSU Moorhead) or Valley City State, because my parents are both Valley City alumni,” she said. “If I went there I was going to play two sports, basketball and volleyball.”

Ness ultimately settled on MSUM. “It came down to if I really wanted to play two sports, and the distance. Plus, I'm such a homebody, and my sisters both live up here. That was part of it, too.”

Playing in the strongest volleyball conference in NCAA Division II presents a lot of challenges for Ness and her Dragon volleyball pals, but she also insists it also affords some special opportunities.

“You're playing against national champions and some of the best players in the country. That's always fun. I came from a high school where we didn't lose much, so it is challenge, but that's what motivates me. We're the underdog, so we have to prove them wrong.”

MSUM head coach Tammy Blake-Kath has been delighted with the contributions of Ness.

“Katy is one of our captains, and a great leader for us,” said Blake-Kath. “She's the glue who holds us together, a great role model for our younger players, especially with her defensive work ethic. Katie is very competitive and has improved a lot with her defense and passing game. That's become one of our real strengths.”

MSU Moorhead, stocked entirely with underclassmen, finished 13-14 overall and 11-9 in the NSIC this fall. The young Dragons suffered through some growing pains in 2011, but Ness is confident the experience will pay major dividends next season.

“We're young and inexperienced, and you can't coach experience,” said Ness. “You just have to play it day-by-day and put the time in.”

Ness will certainly be there again next year to help mentor the younger Dragons. “We want the freshmen to feel comfortable coming in. They're our teammates and we look at everyone the same. Overall, it's just getting the confidence and getting used to the pace of the game.”

Ness plans to explore a career in teaching and coaching in the future and she confident his athletic career, especially volleyball, has taught her some valuable lessons.

“You learn a number of things, including responsibility.”

Consider Katy Ness a fast learner.

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