The long-awaited return to action for the Raider volleyball team is over.
Northwestern College will resume its 2020 season following a near three-week absence as they play at Dakota Wesleyan Wednesday night, Sept. 30. First serve at the Corn Palace is scheduled for 7:30pm with the junior varsity match preceding at 6pm.
The Tigers are 3-2 and currently in sixth place in the GPAC heading into Wednesday night’s match against Northwestern. They are 6-2 overall but host Presentation (S.D.) in a non-conference game Tuesday night prior to the Raider match. DWU began the season with three straight wins, defeating North Star Athletic Association teams Mayville State, Valley City State and Presentation. They also have wins over Briar Cliff (2x) and Morningside in conference play and lost twice to Dordt.
Wilber is in the midst of her seventh season as the head of the DWU volleyball program and is nearing her 100th win (96 heading into Presentation match). Wilber’s first season was 2014 and her DWU teams have seen gradual improvement nearly every year. She guided DWU to its best season in nearly 30 years in 2019 where they finished with a 20-12 record, 4-11 in the GPAC. Four starters and six players return from last year’s squad.
Wednesday’s match will be the first for the Raiders since a 3-0 home win against Bellevue played on Sept. 10. They also have a win against the University of Northwestern (Minn.) played on a neutral floor on Sept. 5. Northwestern is 2-0 on the year and will making its GPAC debut Wednesday night against DWU.
Van Den Bosch, now in his 16th season, holds a 429-120 overall record and 78% win percentage during his time as head coach. He has led Raider teams to the national tournament 10x and to a top 25 final ranking 11x. Last year, Northwestern finished the regular season with an unbeaten record, going 16-0 in the GPAC, and 32-2 overall. Nine of the 10 players from last year’s rotation return.
