LINFIELD UNIVERSITY VOLLEYBALL VERSUS PACIFIC • OCTOBER 15, 2024
Head
WOMEN'S GOLF
MEN'S GOLF
DATE OPPONENTTIME
AUG. 28 LANE CC (Exhibition) 7 P.M.
Aug. 30 at Bushnell 6 p.m.
SEPT. 2 WARNER PACIFIC4:30 P.M.
Sept. 7 at Bridgewater State 4 p.m. EDT
Sept. 8 at Eastern Mennonite 4 p.m. EDT
SEPT. 15 PACIFIC NOON
Sept. 18 at Pacific 5 p.m.
Sept. 21 at Puget Sound Noon
Sept. 22 at Pacific LutheranNoon
SEPT. 28 WHITMAN NOON
SEPT. 29 WHITWORTH NOON
Oct. 2 at Lewis & Clark 5 p.m.
OCT. 11 GEORGE FOX 5 P.M.
Oct. 13 at Willamette Noon
OCT. 19 PACIFIC LUTHERAN NOON
OCT. 20 PUGET SOUND NOON
Oct. 26 at Whitworth Noon
Oct. 27 at Whitman Noon
OCT. 30 LEWIS & CLARK 5 P.M.
NOV. 9 WILLAMETTE 11 A.M
Nov. 10 at George Fox 11 a.m.
Head Coach: Andy Duvall (fifth year)
Assistant Coach: Alex Ponce
DATE OPPONENT TIME
Aug. 21 at Western Oregon (exhibition) 3 p.m.
AUG. 30 COLUMBIA BASIN C.C. 5 P.M.
SEPT. 2 EVERGREEN STATE 7 P.M.
SEPT. 6 CALTECH 7 P.M.
SEPT. 12 CAL LUTHERAN 7 P.M.
SEPT. 15 PACIFIC
Sept. 18 at Pacific
Sept. 21 at Puget Sound 2:45 p.m. Sept. 22 at Pacific Lutheran
SEPT. 28 WHITMAN
Oct. 2 at Lewis & Clark
OCT. 11 GEORGE FOX
5 at Willamette
12 LEWIS & CLARK
Head Coach: Joseph Smith (148-28, 18th year)
Assistant Coaches: Jackson Vaughan, Brett Elliott, Neil Fendall, Bob Barnes, Nicholas Kernaghan, Greg McAnally, Justin Lyons,
WELCOME TO LINFIELD UNIVERSITY
ATHLETIC
Scott Brosius
EVENT MANAGER
Jamie Vasas
COMMUNICATIONS
Conner Jensen, Kelly Bird
STATISTICS
Kira Hawaaboo, Jordan Hayes
PUBLIC ADDRESS AND SCOREBOARD
Steve Oleson
VIDEO WEBCASTS
Eric Albios, Brian Kice, Joe Stuart
OFFICIAL SCORER
Leslie Benton
EVENT PROGRAM
Kelly Bird, Conner Jensen, Jake Downing, Felipe Unker
18 bella rodriguez
WILDCAT SPOTLIGHT
facing the learning curve
Arriving at Linfield with the versatility to play several positions, Kaitlyn Hough is immersing herself in the college game
by kellen wiggins ’28
Afreshman on the Linfield University volleyball team, Kaitlyn Hough stands 5-foot-10 and can play one of several positions when needed. She contributes regularly to the team’s performance on any given night. Though Hough was blessed with immense volleyball talent, she came close to turning her back on the opportunity to become a college student-athlete. She considered quitting volley ball in high school due to developing a lingering dislike for the sport.
Hough comes to Linfield from the tiny farming community of St. John, a town of fewer than 600 people in southeastern Washington. Living in such a remotely located place limited her access to sports. Playing with a club volleyball team required routinely making long road trips, just for practice.
“Coming from such a small town in the middle of nowhere, it was difficult to play club sports,” she says. “I had about a three-hour round-trip drive to practice three times a week.”
Traveling such long distances for practices and tournaments tested Kaitlyn’s love for the sport. It meant having to sacrifice time with friends from home, time for homework, and time with her family.
“Balancing school, club volleyball and other activities was not easy,” she says. “But it taught me amazing life skills that I’m now able to use in my col lege life and I’ll be able to use later on in life.”
Surprisingly, Hough came close to quitting volleyball in high school. She was incredibly determined to compete at the next level and that commitment meant traveling for volleyball and taking her sport very seriously. While she worked to develop her skills in hopes of making her dreams come true, she heard ridicule from doubters for her relentless dedication to volleyball.
“In high school, I got a lot of hate from my peers for putting myself out there in terms of playing club volleyball and trying to play college volleyball, so much that I almost wanted to sto playing and quit my dreams of becoming a collegiate athlete.”
Despite receiving criticism from her peers for her dedication to the sport, she pushed through and kept working to achieve her goal of continuing her playing career beyond high school.
With her hometown now about a six-hour drive from the Linfield campus, it raises the question, how did she happen to connect with Linfield and put the wheels in motion to become a thriving student-athlete? Hough began with a set of criteria for what she was looking for in her future school. She wanted to be more than five hours away from home and closer to the ocean. That’s when she discovered Linfield and began researching details about the university. She found she loved the environment of McMinnville and liked that Linfield has a renowned exercise science program.
Collegiate sports are a big jump from high school sports. Most first-year athletes in college programs don’t receive huge roles due to the time necessary to adjust to new strategies and the pace of play. Freshmen usually need time to develop to learn intricate systems and techniques to seamlessly fit in. But Hough wasted little time in finding ways to contribute to her team, an accomplishment for which she credits her versatility for her success.
“Growing up in such a small town, I was trained to be a versatile player,” she says. “This is helpful to my team, especially right now when a lot of my teammates are injured. I’m able to step up and help out in whatever position I’m needed in.”
Despite Hough’s success in the early going of her first season, there are elements to the college game that she must tirelessly work on to develop.
“The beginning of this season has definitely been a learning curve. I think the biggest challenge I’ve encountered is adjusting to playing with new teammates and playing for a new coach.”
To ease the new learning curves, she has seen massive support from her teammates. Knowing her teammates have her back gives Hough the confidence she needs to play at her best.
“My teammates have been so amazing! They are unbelievably supportive and truly believe in me and my volleyball skills,” she says with a smile.
Hough is eager to expand to her great start to her career at Linfield. Knowing she has the full support of her teammates and coaches “has really helped me gain confidence playing on a collegiate court to trust my prior training and knowledge, because it’s what got me here in the first place.”
TED WILSON GYMNASIUM
Ted Wilson Gymnasium bears the name of the man who coached the Linfield basketball team to more championships than any individual in school history. Over 20 seasons, Wilson directed the Wildcats in over 500 games, compiling a 324-213 record. Riley Gymnasium was nicknamed the “House of Hustle” out of respect for Wilson’s high-scoring teams, which averaged a school-record 96.5 points a game during the 1977-78 season. The nickname remained when Wilson Gym replaced Riley Gym in 1989.
The numerous accomplishments of past championship teams and individuals from each of Linfield’s varsity sports programs now proudly encircle Wilson Gym’s court. Sixtysix banners now surround Wilson Gym’s playing surface and include every program with championship success. All team and individual national champions are recognized, as well as all national runners-up, both team and individual.
Additionally, a summary of every sport’s conference championship history is displayed, with some conference championship listings dating as far back as the 1930s.
The full-service facility contains locker rooms, offices and classrooms, a fully equipped athletic training room along with display areas that house the trophies and recognitions
of past Linfield teams and athletes.
In 1920, Riley Gym was built adjacent to historic Pioneer Hall at a cost of just over $25,000. Riley Gym served as the basketball home of the Wildcats for 67 seasons. A granddaddy of small college gyms, Riley played host to its first game in December, 1921, and its last game in February, 1989.
Linfield’s first on-campus basketball court was located on the north end of campus in the building now known as Newby Hall. The floor was miniature by today’s standards and there were no boundary lines. The surrounding walls prevented players from leaving the playing area. As a game was about to start, someone would check that all the doors were closed tight, the ball would be tipped off at center court, and it was every player for himself.
Up until 1907, Newby Hall, nicknamed the “Chem Shack,” was illuminated by candles with tin reflectors. In this era, many of the gyms the Wildcats played in were smaller and even more primitive than the one on the Linfield campus.
Around 1900, Linfield played its home basketball games in the old pavilion in the city park. Following practices and games, players had to heat their own shower water using a wood-burning boiler.
TED WILSON GYMNASIUM
HEAD COACH LACEY BELL
no stranger to the sport
Though Linfield is Lacey Bell’s first collegiate head coaching job, she’s not new to leading high-caliber volleyball programs
Lacey Bell has been named interim head coach of the Linfield University volleyball program, bringing with her 15 years of professional and semi-professional international playing experience to her new position.
Bell comes to Linfield from Pacific University, where her most recent role came as an assistant varsity coach and recruiting coordinator. She also was in charge of leading the Boxers’ junior varsity program.
Her volleyball resume is unique, combining extensive playing and coaching opportunities. As noted, she has 15 years of professional and semi-professional international playing experience, most notably as player-coach and seniors elite team captain with Volley Ball Pexinois Niort France, a club team located in France’s central-west coast region.
While in France, she taught American culture and language to students in grades 5-12 and headed Volley Ball Pexinois Niort France’s
development youth program, coaching boys and girls ages 6-17.
Bell began her collegiate playing career at Eastern Washington University before transferring to Gonzaga University for her final three seasons. She completed a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and political science at Gonzaga, where she was a member of the Bulldogs volleyball squad as a right-side hitter and outside hitter.
Bell earned a master’s degree in philosophy from the University of Poitiers in France. She holds regional and national French Volleyball Federation coaching certifications.
She becomes just the fifth Wildcats head coach in the last 45 years, succeeding Haley Domeck, who led the program for four seasons.
Linfield begins the second half of the Northwest Conference slate with a 1-7 league mark and a 4-11 overall record. The Wildcats welcome Pacific (8-8, 3-5 NWC) to Ted Wilson Gym tonight. The Boxers currently occupy sixth place spot in the conference standings while the Wildcats reside in eighth place.
LINFIELD AT A GLANCE
Nora Myre continues to set the standard for Linfield with a team high 119 kills to go along with 116 digs. Paige Richards anchors the defense with 142 digs while Madison Millard remains a force on the front line with 34 blocks. Kanoe Contreras has been the lead facilitator for Linfield this season with an impres-sive 258 assists in 2024.
PACIFIC AT A GLANCE
The Boxers’ lethal attack is spearheaded by the combination of Mara Murphy and Emma Velcheck. Murphy ranks second in the NWC with 181 kills while Velcheck is close behind with 180. Kaitlyn Westby leads the defense with 28 blocks while Danica Nelson tops the Boxers in digs with 277.
SERIES HISTORY
Linfield leads the all-time series against the Boxers 41-20. The Wildcats are 2-1 in the last three matchups with the lone loss coming earlier this season in Forest Grove.
19 madison millard
NORTHWEST CONFERENCE
vollEYball STANDINGS
4
journey deponte
LINFIELD’S WILDCAT TURNS 100
It has been a century since Linfield athletic teams were first called “Wildcats.”
According to historical accounts, as competitive athletics grew in popularity and prominence during the 1920s, the student body voted in 1924 that the athletic mascot would be known as a “Wildcat” because Linfield was “a small school with a lot of fight and scratch.”
Before the 1924 vote, spectators at Linfield sports events cheered for the “Baptists,” owing to the school’s early heritage, or the “Cardinal and Purple,” a reference to the school colors.
The current Linfield athletic logo, showing a scowling Wildcat wearing a jauntily cocked sailor’s cap, first became a visual fixture on the sides of the football team’s helmets in 1963 under Hall of Fame coach Paul Durham.
Regarded as one of the most influential coaches in school history, Durham directed the Wildcats from 1948 to 1967. In 20 seasons, Durham rolled up a career record of 122-51-10 while leading Linfield to seven conference titles and two appearances in the NAIA championship game.
Though that version of the Wildcat logo underwent only minor cosmetic changes over the next six decades, the basic logo from the 1960s remains the recognizable symbol of all Linfield varsity athletic teams today and by extension, it has come to represent many periphery segments of campus life, too.
Linfield teams also sport one of the most unique color schemes in all of college athletics. The college adopted the current colors of Cardinal (Red) and Purple in 1917.
Jeff Brooks ‘87
Emily (Fellows) Terry ‘14
Karleigh (Prestianni) Potter ‘13
Melody (Sherman) Rosen ‘06
A Heritage of Confident Service
Macy & Son is in the business of helping people and meeting the individual needs of McMinnville area families for five generations.
Five game-changing individuals, plus a national championship team, have been selected for induction into the Linfield Athletics Hall of Fame
The 26th Linfield Athletics Hall of Fame class is set to be enshrined inside Ted Wilson Gymnasium on Saturday, October 26. Pacific Office Automation again is serving as title sponsor of the annual event, which follows that afternoon’s football game. This year’s class includes two former soccer players: all-time leading goal scorers Jeff Brooks of the Class of 1987 and Emily (Fellows) Terry, from the Class of 2014. Joining them this year are softball standouts Emily (Keagbine) Conner ’11 and Karleigh (Prestianni) Potter ’14, track and field sprint champion Melody Sherman ’00, and the 2013 national championship baseball team. Get tickets at golinfieldwildcats.com/halloffame2024.
THE LINFIELD SPORTS NETWORK
All LSN broadcasts, both live and on demand, can be accessed at golinfieldwildcats.com/watch or from within the Linfield Athletics app on mobile, tablet or smart TVs
The Linfield Sports Network continues to bring fans live action of all home Linfield volleyball matches in 2024. Fans can enjoy live video webcasts and play-by-play commentary on their computer, tablet, mobile device or Smart TV.
Live coverage begins 15 minutes prior to the start of each match. Broadcasts include a postgame wrap-up.
LSN live broadcasts are under the direction of Joe Stuart, the athletic department’s Broadcast Operations Coordinator.
In his fourth year in the position, Stuart oversees all technical production and management of LSN broadcasts as well as providing play-by-play commentary on football, basketball, baseball and softball webcasting in addition to assisting with other athletics communications needs.
Linfield junior Brian Kice begins his second season as the play-by-play voice of Wildcats volleyball. Kice, from Albuquerque, New Mexico, began his broadcasting experience with the LSN last season. Sophomore Eric Albios, a secondgeneration Wildcat, returns as program director for all volleyball broadcasts this fall.
brian kice
joe stuart eric albios
LINFIELD ATHLETIC BAND
The new-look band no longer marches but director Joe Ready is excited for the group’s long-range potenital
Linfield sports fans may notice a new look to the band performing at games this fall. Previously known as the Linfield Marching Band, the revitalized Wildcat Athletic Band will continue supporting Linfield’s athletic teams by performing a variety of musical tunes and bringing a fun atmosphere to events.
“The Wildcat Band is focused on musical excellence and entertaining audiences,” Ready said. “Fans and community members should expect engaging, higher quality music performances during athletic and community events.”
Leading the Wildcat Athletic Band is Joe Ready, who began at Linfield in August. Ready earned his Bachelor of Music from the University of Oregon, and Master of Music from Bowling Green State University, both in tuba performance. Prior to moving back to Oregon in 2018, Ready was an associate member with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago.
“The unlimited potential of what the Wildcat Band can be is what attracted me to this position,” Ready said. “I appreciate the sense of community and culture at Linfield.”
The band – currently 18 members strong – made its debut at the Sept. 7 home football game against Denison. Linfield students of all majors and skill levels are welcome to join. As a bonus, band members are eligible for up to $2,000 in scholarships and can earn paracurricular credit for participating. On average, the band rehearses five hours per week, with performances on nights and weekends during football and basketball seasons.
NEW TO LINFIELD
Aiyana Henderson played collegiately at three schools before embarking on a club coaching career that has included both indoor and beach volleyball programs
Aiyana Henderson joined the Linfield coaching staff as an assistant volleyball coach in September.
She brings experience coaching both club indoor volleyball and club beach volleyball for the past four years in Washington, California, and Oregon.
Henderson played collegiate indoor and beach volleyball at Multnomah University, Corban University, and Los Angeles Harbor College.
At Los Angeles Harbor College, she earned first team all-South Coast Conference recognition and was among the top five producers in the SCC in eight different statistical categories for indoor volleyball.
At Corban, she was a part of the 2023 Warriors team that reached the NAIA Beach Volleyball Championships before finishing as the national runner-up.
She graduated from Multnomah University in 2020 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with a concentration in marketing.
The Spokane native is a graduate of Ferris High School where she competed in varsity volleyball and track and field.
AIYANA HENDERSON
LINFIELD IN THE NEWS
English major Emma Bare’s winning entry in the Frederic Fadner Critical Essay Contest will be published in an annual journal
Linfield University student Emma Bare ’25 earned international recognition from the Sigma Tau Delta international English honor society for a critical essay that she submitted for publication.
The English major from Camas, Wash., is the recipient of the Frederic Fadner Critical Essay Award. Her winning entry –“Interrogating Torture and Surveillance in J.M. Coetzee’s ‘Waiting for the Barbarians’ in a Post-9/11 Space” – applies a post-structural lens to the portrayl of torture and surveillance in the novel.
The Frederic Fadner Critical Essay Award honors the best critical essays submitted to the Sigma Tau Delta Review. As the award winner, Bare received a $500 prize. In addition, her essay will be published in the 2025 edition of the annual journal.
“I woke up and I looked at my phone and I saw something from them, and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh,’” she said. “And I looked at the first word it said, congratulations. I re-read it,
I think, like, five times. Even still, I’ll look at it again, just to make sure I’m not losing my mind.”
Originally, Bare wrote the essay for an assignment in her postcolonial literature class during her sophomore year. The next year, she took a critical methods class, in which students revise an old paper they were proud of and apply a critical lens to it. This is where the award-winning paper was born.
Bare submitted the essay to the Sigma Tau Delta Review in April and learned of the award in August.
Sigma Tau Delta is an international English honors society with over 770 chapters internationally. The organization focuses on high achievement in literature on college campuses. Students can submit original works to The Sigma Tau Delta Rectangle, which focuses on creative writing, or the Sigma Tau Delta Review, which Bare submitted to that focuses on critical essays.
Bare currently serves as chapter president of Sigma Tau Delta on the McMinnville campus.
