Brungardt keeps athletics in perspective
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BY RON POWELL / Lincoln Journal Star
NORFOLK — Nicole Brungardt’s physical attributes as an athlete are obvious.
Her speed, strength and jumping ability allowed the Norfolk Catholic senior and 2008 Lincoln Journal Star Girls Prep Athlete of the Year to set herself apart. Brungardt was the only female in the state during the 2007-08 school year to earn Super-State honors in both a fall (third-team volleyball) and winter (second-team basketball) sport, and also win two all-class Gold Medals (long jump and 100-meter dash) at the state track meet.
Brungardt was the honorary captain of the Class C-1 all-state teams in both volleyball and basketball. She also won a third Class B gold medal at state track in the 200.
Cross County
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 5-11. Year -- Senior. College -- Concordia, basketball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- The middle blocker earned first-team Class C-2 all-state honors after pounding 381 kills, including 29 in one match. Basketball -- The inside-outside threat was the leading scorer in the state regardless of class, averaging 25.7 points and 10.3 rebounds per game. The third-team Super-Stater and honorary captain of the C-2 all-state team exploded for 43 points against Fullerton. Track -- Lettering as a sprinter, Allison won the Central Conference 100-meter gold medal.
KATIE BIRKEL
Lincoln Southeast
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 5-8. Year -- Senior. College -- North Dakota State, basketball.
SPORTS: Basketball -- Earned first-team Super-State and captain honors for the Class A state champion Knights by averaging 15.7 points, 4.8 rebounds, four steals and three assists per game. Scored 20 points in the state finals against Millard West. Track -- Won the all-class Gold Medal in the 400 (:55.97), eighth on the state’s all-time charts and placed third in the Class A, 200. Ended her high school career by anchoring Southeast’s all-class Gold Medal 1,600 relay team that broke the state record (3:53.42).
MEGAN BOBER
Elmwood-Murdock
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-0. Year -- Senior. College -- Creighton, volleyball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- Recruited as a setter by the Bluejays, Bober was a second-team Super-Stater and first-team C-2 all-stater as a right side hitter/setter. The left-handed Bober had 330 kills (.430 hitting efficiency), while adding 60 ace serves, 60 ace blocks and 250 assists. Basketball -- The younger sister of current Nebraska player Nikki Bober was a first-team C-2 all-stater who averaged 15 points and eight rebounds per game. Track -- qualified for the state meet in the long jump, triple jump and the 1,600.
LAUREN COOK
Lincoln Pius X
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 5-8. Year -- Junior. College -- Oral commitment to UCLA, volleyball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- As one of the best high school setters in the nation, the honorary captain of the Super-State team propelled the Thunderbolts to their second straight Class B state title. Broke her own state record for assists in a season with 1,341. Most of her 165 kills (.435 hitting efficiency) came on deftly placed dumps. Named national player of the year for the junior class (class of 2009) by PrepVolleyball.com. Track -- lettered as a hurdler and sprinter.
ASHLEY HAGEMANN
Elkhorn
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-0. Year -- Senior. College -- Nebraska, softball.
SPORTS: Softball -- Hagemann was a dominant pitcher and hitter, leading Elkhorn to its fourth straight Class B title. Hagemann was 25-1 with a 0.38 earned-run average and 346 strikeouts. Hagemann has the B state record for strikeouts in a single game (20) and career (1,088). At the plate, she hit .536 with 37 RBI. Basketball -- honorable mention all-stater who helped the Antlers reach the state tournament semifinals by averaging 10.5 points and five rebounds per game. Track -- Placed third in the Class A discus (126-1).
JORDAN HOOPER
Alliance
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-3. Year -- Sophomore. College -- Undecided, but is being recruited by several Division I basketball programs and has received interest from Nebraska for volleyball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- honorable mention Class B all-state middle blocker had 172 kills and 114 ace blocks. Basketball -- Hooper is highly sought after by colleges for jumping ability, mobility and size. The first-team Super-Stater averaged 17.5 points, 13.2 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 2.7 blocked shots per game in leading the Bulldogs to a Class B state runner-up finish. Track -- took second in the Class B and all-class long jump (18-2), and also qualified for state in the 200.
KK HOUSER
Lincoln Southeast
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 5-5. Year -- Junior. College -- undecided, but is being recruited by Purdue, Minnesota, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Iowa State, Nebraska and Kansas State.
SPORTS: Softball -- honorable mention all-state shortstop hit .325 with 32 stolen bases and 36 runs scored. Basketball -- first-team Super-Stater averaged 13.4 points and almost five assists a game as the point guard on Southeast’s Class A state championship team. Track -- placed second in both Class A and all classes in the 100 high hurdles and 300 low hurdles at state. Her :14.50 in the 100 hurdles is tied for sixth on the all-time charts. Ran a leg on Southeast’s all-class Gold Medal 1,600 relay team that broke the state record.
PAIGE FRAUENDORFER
Humphrey
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-0. Year -- Junior. College -- undecided, being recruited in both volleyball and basketball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- earned first-team Class D-1 honors with 380 kills, 45 ace blocks and 151 digs last fall. Basketball -- honorary captain of the D-1 all-state team averaged 19.2 points and 10 rebounds per game to lead Humphrey to a third-place finish at state. Track -- won the Class D long jump and was on Humphrey’s 1,600 relay that took second. Also qualified for state in the triple jump.
GINA MANCUSO
Papillion-La Vista
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-0. Year -- Junior. College -- oral commitment to Nebraska, volleyball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- two-time first-team Super-Stater powered the Monarchs to the Class A title with her all-around play. Mancuso, one of the top outside hitter prospects nationally in the class of 2009, had a state-leading 669 kills (.373 hitting efficiency) to go with 76 ace blocks, 29 ace serves and 418 digs. Basketball -- honorable mention all-stater who helped Papillion-La Vista reach the state tournament by averaging 9.2 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. Track -- took seventh at the state meet in both the high jump and 800.
KELSEY PETERSEN
Kearney
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-0. Year -- Senior. College -- Iowa State, volleyball.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- despite playing most of the fall with a shoulder injury that required offseason surgery, Petersen still finished with 325 kills (.324 hitting efficiency) as a middle blocker and outside hitter. She also contributed 75 ace blocks and 168 digs. Track -- because of the shoulder surgery, Petersen wasn’t cleared to high jump until the final three weeks of the season. She responded by defending her Class A title (5-7). Also qualified for state in the long jump.
EMILY SISSON
Millard North
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 5-3. Year -- Sophomore. College -- uncommitted.
SPORTS: Cross country -- defended her all-class Gold Medal after breaking the girls state meet course record (14:25.18) for the second straight year. Track -- Led Millard North to the Class A team title by winning the 800, 1,600 and 3,200, and running on the victorious 3,200 relay. Her 10:21.71 in the 3,200 at the Arcadia, Calif., Invitational is second on the state’s all-time charts; the 4:51.42 in the 1,600 she ran at the Kansas Relays is also second all-time, and her 2:14.15 at state in the 800 is eighth all-time. She’s moving to Lees Summit, Mo.
HAYLEY THRAMER
Ewing
VITAL STATISTICS: Height -- 6-2. Year -- Junior. College -- undecided, but is being recruited by a number of Division I programs.
SPORTS: Volleyball -- first-team D-2 all-stater and second-team Super-Stater paced Ewing to the state finals. She had 451 kills (.470 hitting efficiency), 160 ace blocks and 55 aces. She was also a primary passer in serve receive with a 92.1 percent rating. Basketball -- as a first-team all-stater, Thramer averaged 12 points and 11 rebounds per game as the Tigers won their second straight state title. Track -- placed seventh in the Class D high jump.
While there were plenty of highlights in Brungardt’s career, the 5-foot-9 Wayne State volleyball recruit had to overcome some adversity. Dealing with those tough times required a mental approach that’s almost as important as the physical skills.
“Nicole’s always been able to put athletics into their proper perspective,” said her father, Tim Brungardt, a fullback at Nebraska in the early 1980s. “When she was little, as soon as she was done with a sports activity, she was on to the next thing. She would say, ‘Let’s go swimming’ or ‘Let’s go to the mall and shop.’
“She’s never been superemotional about a big win or a disappointing loss. Sports are fun, she loves the competition; but when the game is over, she doesn’t dwell on it.”
That kind of attitude kept Brungardt going after some disappointment and heartbreak.
Norfolk Catholic’s Class C-1 girls state basketball title in March came one year after being on the losing end of one of the most dramatic finishes in state tournament history. The Knights led Crofton by two points in the final seconds, only to see the 2006 and 2007 girls athlete of the year, Amber Hegge, dribble her way through the Norfolk Catholic defense and bank in an off-balance three-pointer at the buzzer.
Brungardt never needed to replay those final seconds in her mind. “They showed it on TV around here all the time,” Brungardt said. “That’s what sports is all about. It was a cool way for Crofton to win a state championship. Not so much for us.”
The Knights’ turn at late-game heroics came in March when they overcame a 14-point deficit late in the third quarter and rallied for a 52-50 win in the state finals over Bishop Neumann. Brungardt, who averaged 17 points per game as a senior, scored 19 points in the state finals, sharing team-high honors with junior all-state guard Jessica Zaruba.
Brungardt also came up with clutch performances late in the track season. She ran the 200 in 24.4 seconds at districts, moving her into a tie for third on the state’s all-time charts in that event.
Her state meet started with the long jump on Friday, and she trailed Alliance’s Jordan Hooper going into her final jump. Brungardt hit a leap of 18 feet, 2 inches on her last attempt, matching Hooper’s best. Brungardt got the gold because her second-best jump was better than Hooper’s.
Things stayed positive for Brungardt on Saturday, despite one setback. After the Norfolk Catholic 400 relay team was disqualified, Brungardt recovered to win the 100 and 200. She finished with six individual state track gold medals for her career.
“When the pressure is on her, that’s when Nicole does her best,” Knights girls track coach John Bellar said. “You don’t want to say, ‘Nicole Brungardt can’t do something,’ because she usually can.”
Which may be why Brungardt chose volleyball as her college sport, just for one last chance to get it right.
The Knights were undefeated and ranked No. 1 last fall when Centennial knocked them off in their first-round state tournament match. In 2006, they pushed eventual champion Columbus Scotus to five games in the semis before falling. Brungardt fought through a case of vertigo at the 2005 state tournament, but the outside hitter still had 18 kills in a first-round win over Chase County and 25 kills in a five-game loss to Lincoln Lutheran in the semifinals.
Brungardt blasted 342 kills as a senior, but was also a defensive force with 362 digs. She added 66 ace blocks and 35 ace serves.
Brungardt had college opportunities in all three sports, which made choosing difficult.
Drake and Wyoming had interest in basketball. Nebraska and Iowa State made offers in track. David Lipscomb discovered her in volleyball, despite playing no offseason club ball.
Brungardt played summer select basketball before her freshman, sophomore and junior years, two years with Nebraska Elite and one summer with the Pinnacle Bank All-Stars. The guard, however, decided to stay home last summer.
“I was burned out on basketball, I was done with it,” she said.
The choice then came down to Nebraska and Iowa State in track and Wayne State in volleyball.
A visit to a Wayne State practice in late March finally sold her, and coach Scott Kneifl added Brungardt to an already strong recruiting class that includes second-team Super-State middle blocker Shelby Schultz of Cambridge and second-team Super-State outside hitter Tali Fredrickson of Grand Island Central Catholic.
“There’s so much I have to learn about volleyball and I’m excited about that challenge,” said Brungardt, an Academic All-Stater who will major in education at Wayne. “We have some very, very good volleyball players coming in, so I’ll have to prove myself.”
Reach Ron Powell at 473-7437 or rpowell@journalstar.com.
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