After a coaching vacancy and a challenging 2023 season, it has been an offseason of uncertainty for the Wildcats – but as they sat alongside new coach Tim Nollan last Monday, the squad’s stars emphasized the program’s hunger and ambition for the upcoming season.
Sophomore setter Alexa Rousseau and junior middle blocker Kennedy Hill represented Northwestern at Big Ten Media Days in Chicago and described an experienced and close-knit group ready to take on the challenge of Big Ten volleyball.
Nollan, the team’s leader, joined the team in February after serving eight years as head coach at Grand Canyon University. His hiring followed the departure of former head coach Shane Davis, whose alleged harassment and bullying of the players put the program in an unpleasant light last season.
But the ‘Cats are putting last year’s coaching change and 15-15 record behind them and are ready to step into this year’s lineup. Before their season opener on August 30, here are a few takeaways for the exciting season ahead:
Nollan fits into the team and aims to win the tournament in his first season
Since his arrival in February, Nollan has been warmly welcomed into the tight-knit Wildcat squad. The team was briefly without a coach during the offseason, a situation that brought its own challenges, but Nollan has quickly thrown himself into preseason preparation with the group.
“When Tim came in, he was very respectful of the values that we had as a group of girls in our program, but also made sure to seamlessly integrate his goals and values with things outside of volleyball like mental training and mental health,” Rousseau said. “I think it was a great match and we were able to listen to him really well and be really competitive.”
On the court, the new coaching staff’s main goal is to finally earn a playoff spot. NU has struggled to put things together in the past – despite having a ton of talent – and has fallen repeatedly in the NCAA Tournament, sometimes by heartbreaking margins.
Under Nollan, the program is thirsting for change.
“Every year since my freshman year, we’ve gotten a little closer to our goal, and while that can be frustrating, it’s also incredibly motivating,” Rousseau said. “After getting some top-10 and top-15 wins in those seasons, we’ve started to realize what the best thing about a program is, and that’s confidence.”
“Being underestimated motivates us every season,” Hill added, emphasizing the underdog mentality the group has adopted as it battled for playoff spots this season.
Conference expansion to introduce new West Coast style of play
With a new schedule in mind that will feature UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington in Big Ten competition, the Cats are excited to experience the different playing style of their West Coast counterparts.
Oregon will prove to be a particularly tough addition to NU’s conference schedule as it prepares for a Nov. 15 game in Eugene, which the Wildcats have already expressed particular anticipation for. The Fighting Ducks finished the 2023 regular season ranked No. 8 in the nation, with a 26-5 record and strong momentum. Last season, they beat the ‘Cats 3-0 in a non-conference game.
“(The West Coast schools think) a little more outside the box. Matt (Ulmer) at Oregon does a really good job, very offensive-minded. USC and UCLA play a little different style of game based on serve and pass,” Nollan said. “They approach the game differently, so you have to prepare for it differently every night.”
NU has a number of West Coast ties, which is an advantage as it prepares for this new style of play. The team features five players from California and Oregon, including rising star Hill, who Rousseau says “knows this style of volleyball.”
Nollan himself was an associate head coach at USC and most recently an assistant coach at Pepperdine, where he contributed significantly to the volleyball IQ of the West Coast team.
One last season for Rousseau
This season will be the last for Rousseau, who has been a standout playmaker and reliable team leader for the Cats over the past four seasons – and she wants to finish strong on and off the field.
“I’m working on completing my legacy. I’m just helping these girls as I leave the program knowing that they’re at their best … and letting them know that I was and will continue to be their biggest cheerleader,” Rousseau said. “Leaving a place better than you found it is kind of my approach this last season.”
The rising sophomore ranks sixth on the program’s all-time assist list with 3,315 assists, broke the 40-assist mark 10 times last season and is fifth in the Big Ten for most season assists, underscoring her central role for NU in preseason preparation.
Nollan said Rousseau had a strong breakout preseason performance this spring and he expects that trend to continue as she now has her final chance to lead the team to a winning season.
“She’s a rock,” Nollan said. “She’s versatile, she’s a dual threat, she sets the pace really well. She can do it all.”
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Twitter: @alycebrown
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