Junior College Teammates, Friends Reunite at NSU

9/27/2018 1:55:00 PM | By: Ricky Thomas Jr., SID Intern

NORFOLK, Va. - The distance between Europe and Odessa College is undoubtedly far. But, when your dream is to play Division I volleyball, you have to sacrifice. A word given new meaning to Norfolk State volleyball teammates Anna Rupertova and Bojana Bolozan as they left Europe to attend the Texas junior college.

"There is no collegiate level volleyball in Europe, so if you want to continue playing, you come to America," said Rupertova, a native of the Czech Republic.

Following Rupertova's freshman season at Odessa, Serbia native Bolozan and local Texas product Halley McKnight joined her at Odessa for their freshman seasons. Like the aforementioned pair, McKnight also had dreams of playing Division I volleyball, but being an undersized setter, she attended junior college to prove herself.

McKnight did just that, totaling 447 assists, with a good amount going to hitters Rupertova and Bolozan.

"We became closer friends because we spent so much time together. Halley's the setter and me and Bojana are both hitters, so it's natural," Rupertova said. "Our connection on the court seemed natural, too."

At Odessa, Rupertova was named second-team National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-American, MVP of the Western Junior College Athletic Conference (WJCAC), and ended her career with 510 kills, the most in school history.

Rupertova signed with Norfolk State University following her sophomore season and simultaneously became the first member of the trio to commit. After departing for NSU, they realized how much things changed.

"We talked and always knew what was going on in each other's lives, but it's not the same when you can see them every day," Rupertova said. "Like when I got hurt last year, they were here for me, but couldn't literally be here for me the entire time."

Following their sophomore seasons, McKnight was named to the All-WJCAC team for averaging 5.09 assists and 2.40 digs per set. Bolozan earned second-team NJCAA Division I All-America honors and earned the WJCAC MVP Award.

After being at NSU for a year, Rupertova became a trusted resource for the coaching staff. When approached about the possibility of the staff recruiting her former teammates, Rupertova assured them of their decision. When talking to her friends however, she did not sway their decision either way.

"I didn't do any convincing, but I told them what I liked and then let them decide for themselves," said Rupertova, who redshirted the 2017 season at NSU due to injury. "I was happy the two people they (coaches) recruited were the ones I was closest too."

For McKnight and Bolozan, the opportunity seemed too good to pass up.

"After me and Bojana's last year, we both knew we still wanted to play together and we both received opportunities to play for Norfolk State, so we took it," McKnight said. "It's great for us all to be together again because I never thought I'd see Anna again."

Now, the trio is playing together and continuing similar individual successes early in the season. Bolozan leads the team in blocks, with 22. Rupertova leads the team in kills (72) and digs (61). And McKnight leads the team in service aces, with 13, and is first in the MEAC in aces per set (0.57).

"Right now we're playing better individually and most importantly, as a team," Rupertova said.

With conference play approaching, NSU looks to improve on the lessons learned throughout their early non-conference schedule to solidify their place in the MEAC.

"I think our team is focused this year and we can be really good," Bolozan said. "Also, the crowd at our first home game was really loud and it helped a lot, so we really want to make volleyball more popular at this school, and that starts by winning."

NSU volleyball plays against Coppin State Friday at 6 p.m. and Morgan State Sunday at 3 p.m., both at Gill Gym, in the first two MEAC Northern Division matches of the year.

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