HITTING THE TRAIL!

The morning workout on Saturday was a short trip down the trail on blades or bikes. It was a great way to start the day!

A GOLD MEDAL AND A NEW SEASON!

Today was the first day of the 2011 pre-season. We are in the new Stroh Center getting ready for a great 2011 season. We open the season in Annapolis on August 26th. We open the Stroh Center on September 9 against Michigan State!

Pre-season fun...is Coach Van De Walle playing hide and seek?

Spirits are high on the first day! Leah, Kari, Laura, Kaitlyn, Emily, and Ashley are feeling good about practice...a little blurry but good. :)

I like the way Libby is sealing the net! You never know - Herzberg got a couple of shots in the front row last year.

Madi Nitta brings home the Gold! Check out the story at BGSUFalcons.com. Congrats Madi! What an awesome job!

TOP OF THE CLASS!

How do you judge success? Think about this...Coach Van De Walle has the most wins of any Coach in the MAC and her BGSU teams have more AVCA Team Academic Awards than any other team in the MAC. For the 11th consecutive year the Falcons have earned the AVCA Team Academic Award. Only one Division I school in the country has a current streak of more than 11 consecutive awards from the AVCA. The BG Volleyball program has earned the award 12 times in Coach Van De Walle's career which is more than any other school in the MAC. That is pretty impressive. Congratulations to Coach Van De Walle and the Falcons on another great year in the classroom!


http://www.avca.org/awards/team-academic-award/

SUMMER UPDATE!

Last Friday we finished the last of our summer volleyball camps. We had three successful camps (one skills camps and two team camps). The staff was great and the campers were awesome! It was the first event to use the new Stroh Center. It was fantastic! We can't wait for our home opener against Michigan State on September 9th. Our match with MSU is the first BGSU athletic event in the Stroh! You should come and check it out!

During camp some of our players went to El Zarape (outstanding local Mexican restaurant) to celebrate Leah Shaw's Birthday. Leah is one of our incoming players. In the picture on the left - Madi Nitta, Kari Galen, Lauren Mizgalski, and Kaitlyn Skinner enjoy a night at El Zarape with Leah Shaw on her 20th birthday!








In an earlier blog entry we talked about Madi Nitta competing with the USA Women's National Deaf Team at the USAV Nationals. To the left is a picture of the hardware they took home and below is a team picture. Madi is number 9. Congrats again to Madi and the USA Women's National Deaf Team!

SEASON TICKETS NOW ON SALE!

Just in case you missed it on BGSUFalcons.com, our season tickets just went on sale. You can get two extra tickets for the first BGSU Athletic event in new Stroh Center by buying season tickets. Cost is $35 for the 11 home matches. Be part of history by helping us sell out the Stroh Center on September 9th when we host Michigan State! You can read the story at http://www.bgsufalcons.com/index.aspx?path=wvball&.

Nitta on U.S. Deaf Women's National Team!

Madison Nitta (Senior from Manhattan Beach, CA) is a member of the U.S. Deaf Women's National Team which won the Bronze Bracket at the USA Volleyball Open National Championships in Dallas, Texas. CONGRATULATIONS to Madi and the U.S. Deaf Women's National Team. Next up for the U.S. Deaf Women's National Team is the Friendship Games in Washington D.C. June 31 through August 6, 2011. U.S.A., U.S.A.,U.S.A.,U.S.A....

WELCOME LEAH SHAW!

Leah Shaw has officially joined the Falcon family. Below is the release from our sports communication office. WELCOME TO BG LEAH!

Bowling Green, Ohio – Bowling Green State University volleyball coach Denise Van De Walle has announced that junior college transfer Leah Shaw will play at BGSU beginning in the fall of 2011. Shaw won a National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Championship in 2009 at Illinois Central College.

Hailing from Princeton, Ill., Shaw is the daughter of Dan and Jean Shaw. She played three years of varsity volleyball at Princeton High School, leading the team to a 90-27 record from 2006-08. She was honorable mention all-state in 2008 and the Bureau County Republican Volleyball Co-Player of the Year as a senior. She was twice named a unanimous first team All-NCIC recipient as well and was a member of the National Honor Society.

From there, she went on to Illinois Central College, where she was named to the All Tournament Team at the 2009 NJCAA National Championships. During the past year, she was an NJCAA Second Team All-American and an Academic All-American.

“I am thrilled to have Leah join our volleyball family,” Van De Walle said. “From the moment I talked to her on the phone to when I met her on campus, she fit right in. The team loved her instantly. She is a very gifted athlete who will play multiple positions for us. She is an excellent student, a great competitor, hits the ball hard, and is used to winning. Not too many athletes get the honor of playing on a National Championship team, being named an All-American in their sport and in the classroom. Leah has all three to her credit. She is the last volleyball player that I will sign in my career. She’s a special one.”

At Bowling Green, Shaw plans to study earth and environmental science.

Van De Walle has announced that she will retire following the 2011 season which will also be the first year for the program to compete in the new Stroh Center.