ESCANABA, MI – The Bay College Norse Volleyball Team will look to play spoiler in their first ever season of competition this fall.

The Norse will join the rest of the athletics department in joining the Michigan Community College Athletic Association (MCCAA) this season.  The MCCAA will be split into three conferences and Bay will compete with Alpena, Delta, Grand Rapids, Muskegon, and North Central in the North.  In the recent coach's poll, Bay was picked to finish last in the division, which comes as no surprise given that there is no history to help compare to the other schools.  Grand Rapids, who won the Western Conference last year, was picked to win the North this year.  Another first-year program, North Central, is projected to finish second.  Muskegon, coming off of a 23-11 season, and Alpena who finished 4-8 last year, tied for third in the voting.  Delta College is reviving their program after a five-year hiatus, and finished fifth in the poll. 

Dan Porath will lead the Norse, taking the reigns after a long stint at UW Green Bay – Marinette.  The Escanaba native jumped at the opportunity to lead the Bay Program.  "The idea of being the first head volleyball coach at Bay is very exciting," said Porath.  "I am excited for the opportunity to build a volleyball program in my hometown.  With that I am also very motivated to build a great program."

Porath will be assisted by Faith Demeuse, who played for Dan at UWGB-Marinette, and Brooke Jorasz, a former head coach at Bark River-Harris High School.

Twelve student-athletes will be looking to make history as the first ever Norse Volleyball Players.  Despite being a first-year program, they will come into the season with at least one player with experience as a college athlete.  Tianna Taylor (SO, Gwinn, MI) will become a two-sport athlete this year, and will look to use her experience as a member of the Women's Basketball Team at Bay to help lead this group.  She is joined by a robust group of attackers competing for time on the court.  Leah Allan (FR, Oconto, WI), Riley Johnson (FR, Chatham, MI), Victoria Paquin (FR, Gwinn, MI), Allie Roman (SO, Gladstone, MI), Emma Rutter (FR, Chatham, MI), and Kylee Tadisch (FR, Coleman, WI) round out the list of hitters for the Norse.

Coach Porath lists two student-athletes setting up those attacks.  Amber Caylor (FR, Wausaukee, WI) will be the main setter and Alissa Sanville (FR, Gladstone, MI) will be the second setter. Both have been working hard as setters for the Norse.

Tori Jandt (FR, Peshtigo, WI), Abigail Rexford (FR, Escanaba, MI), Graci Varoni (FR, Bark River, MI) and Sanville will mix in with defensive grouping.  Jandt or Rexford will wear the libero jersey for the Norse.

Coach Porath has been pleased with the makeup of the roster and their work so far.  "I think we have put together a roster that will compete.  We have depth that will help our practices be competitive.  We will surprise some teams.  These girls are laying the foundation of who we are going to be as a program."

Bay's Athletic Director, Matt Johnson, expressed his excitement with the addition of the Norse Volleyball Program.  "I am excited for the team to get to compete as the first Bay College volleyball team, this is a distinction that no one will ever be able to take away from them.  Coach Porath and the team have been working hard the past few weeks and they are more than ready to begin competing.  We have a great group of young ladies both on and off the court, they will represent Bay College very well. Go Norse!"

Bay College kicks off the season with the Opening Weekend Tournament hosted by All in Volleyball in Rockford, Illinois.  They will compete in four matches on Saturday, August 20 and Sunday, August 21.  The Norse make their home debut on August 27 as they host a triangular against Alpena and Hibbing Community College.  After spending the first half of September on the road, the Norse return home to begin MCCAA play, hosting Grand Rapids and Muskegon on September 16 and 17.  Conference play concludes on October 22 on the road, and the Norse wrap up their regular season play on October 25, when they host Finlandia University.

Coach Porath went on to talk about his expectations for this coming year.  "We know this is our first year of volleyball.  The expectation is for us to compete and learn every day.  Winning and losing will take care of itself.  We will win and lose the right way.  I am not going to put a number of wins on it but I will be surprised if we are not more in the middle vs finishing last.  I think the style of volleyball we are going to play will be exciting and I know the girls will give their 100% every match.  With volleyball being a new sport for us at Bay College it would be great to have the community come support us."

For the latest scores, statistics, and news follow the Bay College Norse on Facebook and Twitter or go to www.baynorse.com.