When the Bobcat volleyball coaches approached me to do a top 20 countdown of the all-time greatest players during my era with the program, I instantly hesitated. The reason: I didn't want to step on any toes because Montana State has had a plethora of talented athletes since my first year in 1988, which was also the first season women competed under the Big Sky Conference umbrella.
I knew if I had to list players from 1-20 my Facebook message box would light-up with former athletes putting in their two cents. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy corresponding with former players and the group I usually hear from holds a special place in my heart. They were good, funny, and full of shenanigans.
So, as I thought about the list, the idea to do a top 10 favorite teams list suddenly became much more palatable. Over the course of the next ten weeks, while we all look for things to do with our Thursday and Saturday nights without volleyball in Shroyer Gym, I will revisit ten teams which during my 32 years covering the Cats standout in the back of my cobwebbed mind. Again, these are not necessarily the best teams, but the teams that have had an impact on Bobcat Athletics, Montana State University, and my career as Sports Information Director.
I would also be remiss if I didn't mention that before the Bobcats started play in the Big Sky Conference, there were some amazing teams in the '70s and early '80s led by some of the best coaches in the country. Names like Terrall, Moe, McKinzie, Williams-McMullan, Wagner, McCanlies, Ditchfield, Kinney, Usitalo, Koughan, Ryan, Cruz, Griffith and Dirks set the foundation for what Bobcat volleyball is today, and they will always be remembered in the annals of Bobcat history.
No. 9
The 1992 Bobcats Front Row (l to r): Nancy Flores, Vilenda Stevens, Jenny Ohnsorg. Middle Row:
Bekki Kirsch, Kim Steffel, Kelly Modrow, Joanna Lofgren, Teresa Kritzberger, Stacie
Welch. Back Row: Brittney Haas, Lorrae Russell, Janessa Watt.
The 1992 Bobcat squad was an interesting mix.
On one hand, it featured senior Kim Steffel, who arguably is one of the top players to ever don the Blue and Gold.
And, on the other hand, it was going to have to rely on seven freshmen to find success.
Steffel, a product of St. Paul, Minn., who graduated from Concordia Academy, was the ultimate utility player.
As a freshman, she played on the right-side. As a sophomore, she started the season setting. However, midway through the season the coaching staff also needed her offensive prowess, so they decided to go with a 6-2 offense and Steffel set and hit for the remainder of the season. As a junior, she found a groove on the outside. And, in her final season, was moved to the middle blocking position.
As a middle blocker, she posted eye-popping numbers: 431 kills, a .277 attack mark, 42 assists, 52 service aces, 278 digs and 171 total blocks. She is the only middle blocker in Montana State history to lead her team in digs. For her efforts, she was named to the AVCA Northwest All-Region squad, along with players from Stanford, UCLA, USC, and Washington. The honor remains the highest accolade bestowed on a Bobcat volleyball player.
"Was it ideal to play a different position every year?" Steffel said. "No, but I will tell you it made me a better coach." Steffel has served as the head coach at her alma mater Concordia Academy in Roseville, Minn., where she's worked for the last 26 years. She has continued a tradition of success at the school and has led the Beacons to a pair of Minnesota State Tournament runner-up finishes.
"The experience I gained my senior year being the leader of the team was invaluable," Steffel said. "The team was a couple of seniors and a ton of freshmen and sophomores. The coaches told me to keep everyone together and we just made it work."
One of the newcomers on the squad was another Minnesota product. Kelly Modrow came to MSU from Minnetonka. Modrow, along with freshman Joanna Lofgren, earned the starting spots on the outside, neither having played one point of collegiate volleyball. The duo finished their first season combining for 549 kills and 484 digs.
"There were so many questions coming into the season," Modrow said. "There was a coaching change, I had left the comforts of home, and we had so many newcomers.
"But we also had some great seniors," Modrow added. "I remember Kim Steffel. She just out-worked people and never took a play off and she really made an impression on me."
It took the Bobcats a couple of weeks to find its identity. It finally won its first match with a 3-0 decision over Oral Roberts. The following weekend, MSU travelled to Richmond, Kentucky to participate in the Eastern Kentucky Invitational. The Bobcats knocked off North Carolina State, EKU and James Madison for the tournament title.
"We were a very athletic group and it just took some time to find a flow," Steffel said. "We really got a long both on and off the court."
According to Modrow, who is now Kelly Lindseth and a coach at CMR High School in Great Falls, the team never lacked being competitive. "We were just as competitive in practice as we were in matches."
Montana State finished the season 12-17 overall, which doubled its win total from the previous season. The Cats also went 4-10 in Big Sky matches, with half of its contests going five sets. MSU entered the final portion of the season looking for its first Big Sky win. A 3-2 decision over Eastern Washington on Halloween night ignited a four-game win streak as MSU defeated Weber State, Northern Arizona, and Idaho State all in five sets.
"When I look back on my senior season, I can remember the small-town feel of Bozeman, the great community support, my teammates and I loved how all of the student-athletes really knew each other. It was a great time and I wouldn't have changed anything," Steffel said.
Sideouts:
The 1992 squad had five Minnesotans with Modrow and Jenny Ohnsorg-Killian being the final class in the pipeline to the Land of 10,000 Lakes…Steffel is the only Bobcat to earn three all-Big Sky Conference honors playing three different positions…Steffel was induced in to the Montana State Athletics Hall of Fame in 2007…the lone Bobcat marriage of the group was between Brittney Haas and former track standout JW Matheson…the couple is believed to be in River Falls, Wisconsin, where Brittney works as a physician's assistant.
Where Are They Now:
Kim Steffel Duis – Lino Lakes, Minnesota
Teresa Kritzberger Warne – Moorhead, Minnesota
Kelly Modrow Lindseth – Great Falls, Montana
Jenny Ohnsorg Killian – Chaska, Minnesota
Joanna Lofgren Agan – Vancouver, Washington
Bekki Kirsch – Helena, Montana
Lorrae Russell – Sacramento, California
Brittany Haas Matheson – River Falls, Wisconsin
Vilenda Stevens – Morrison, Colorado
Stacie Welch Connors – Anaconda, Montana
Nancy Flores – NA
Janessa Watt - NA
Carl Weissman – Head Coach – NA
Mia Arndt – Assistant Coach – NA
If any former alum would like to reconnect with Bobcat Volleyball or update their current whereabouts, please email Tom Schulz, Sports Information, with your contact information – tschulz@msubobcats.com We would love to hear from you!
