March 23, 2010

Rio volleyball inks Alexander's Ogg

Rio Grande --- The University of Rio Grande RedStorm volleyball program has expanded by one with the addition of Albany Alexander High School's Nicole Ogg. Ogg signed a national letter of intent to play volleyball for the RedStorm beginning in the fall of 2010.

Ogg, an outside hitter and defensive specialist, was excited about having the opportunity to play at the college level. "I'm excited. I had planned on just going to Hocking (College) and focusing on school," Ogg said. "Me and (current Rio Grande player) Whitney (Smith) were talking and she was saying that there were some positions that, needed not to be filled, but that could use more players and that's when I really decided that I wanted to go there and pursue my volleyball career and to pursue my college degree in accounting."

Rio Grande head coach Billina Donaldson tapped back into a program that was fruitful for her in 2009 and she is excited about the addition of Ogg. "I brought Whitney (Smith) in, the all-around player who did tremendous things for us this year and I go back to her school where Nicole played outside and defensive specialist for them, and just watching Nicole play, she's plays head and shoulders above kids that I've seen play at the college level," Donaldson said. "Nicole is just excited to get on a team and be playing again and we're in no way just going to let her be on the team, we expect to use her right away in our program."

"We expect big things out of her," Donaldson added. "She's a big play maker, she comes up with plays where the ball should hit the floor and she doesn't let hit the floor. We're excited about adding another Alexander girl to our program, because it is a very successful program. The bottom line is that these girls know how to win, they know what it feels like to win and they don't like to lose."

"I look for big things out of her right away, I'm not going to wait a couple years for her to get experience and play well. She's just going to be one of those kids that steps in and makes a difference right away," Donaldson said. 

Ogg is also excited about the opportunity to be reunited with former Alexander teammate and sophomore-to-be Whitney Smith, who completed a very successful first season at Rio Grande in 2009. "We got to play together when she was a senior, I didn't play very much but we got time on the court together," Ogg said. "I'm really excited to get to play with her again; she's an amazing athlete and an overall great person." 

Smith served as a good conduit of information for Ogg, which helped in making her decision to sign with Rio Grande. "Whitney said that they (the volleyball program) were progressing and that they didn't have the best season but they were going to work hard and try to get that," Ogg said. "I just want to be part of something that's rebuilding, I was with a rebuilding team this year and I just wanted to be with a program and to help it be successful would be amazing." 

As she enters her college career, Ogg discussed the goals that she has set for herself while wearing the Rio uniform. "I just want to be better as a player, talk more, pass better, serve better, just be an overall better volleyball player," she said. 

Nicole is the daughter of Terry and Cheryl Ogg. 

Ogg joins Kelsey Martin of Jackson High School, Caity and Cindy Willis of Athens High School, Jordan Nolan of Buckeye Valley High School and Kayla Landaker of River View Warsaw High School as the current members of the 2010 Rio Grande volleyball recruiting class. 

Rio Grande posted an 18-19 overall record in 2009 while finishing in third place in the Mid-South Conference with a 9-5 mark.