Area volleyball alum hits floor with Knights

NORTH PLATTE, Neb. — Maywood-Hayes Center alum Avery Johnson and the North Platte Community College volleyball team will begin a new season this week.

The Knights will head to Beatrice for the RKP Invite where they will take on Highland Community College at 11 a.m. Friday. That game will be followed by a second volleyball match at 3 p.m. vs. Cloud County Community College.

Action will continue Saturday as the Knights play Colby Community College at 9 a.m. and Coffeyville Community College at 11 a.m.

NPCC will be led by oach Alexa McCall and assistant coach Kylie Wroot.

“We are excited to get started this season,” McCall said. “The players have been working hard in the gym, and it will be good for us to see some competition.”

Returning this year for the Knights are sophomores: Allie Schneider, of Humphrey; Johnson, of Hayes Center; Sarah Wamsley, of Sidney; Katy Bartell, of Eustis; Madison Neely, of Broken Bow; Payton Hoatson, of Sutherland and Kimberlyn Krise, of Briggsdale, Colo.

The other half of the team consists of new recruits: Morgan Ramsey, of Bartlett; Tessa Metschke, of Chambers; Kylie Licking, of Mullen; Alexis Becerra, of Denver, Colo.; AnnaLise Glosson, of Akron, Colo.; Karley Spillane, of Colorado Springs, Colo. and Avery Okeson, of Parker, Colo.

During her time at Chambers/Wheeler Central High School, Ramsey was selected for the Northeast Nebraska All-Star Game and the Nebraska Coaches Association All-Star Game.

She made the Omaha World-Herald First Team, Lincoln Journal Star All-State First Team and Niobrara Valley All-Conference First Team in 2019 and 2020.

Ramsey’s classmate, Metschke, will be joining her at NPCC. Metschke was also selected for the Niobrara Valley All-Conference first team in 2018-20.

She made the Niobrara Valley All-Conference Second Team in 2017, the Lincoln Journal Star First Team in 2020 and the Omaha World-Herald Second Team in 2020.

Licking was chosen to compete as part of America’s Team in the 2021 Down Under Games in Australia. She was an Omaha World-Herald Honorable Mention in 2020 and Lincoln Journal Star All-State Honorable Mention in 2019.