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Women's Volleyball 6/16/2021 2:42:00 PM Matt Scheerer, FightingHawks.com

Tiffin Adds Five to Volleyball Class of 2021

GRAND FORKS, N.D. – The University of North Dakota volleyball program announced the addition of five signees on June 16, giving the Fighting Hawks seven fresh faces in the lineup for the 2021 season. UND announced the signings of Maddy Hornyak and Ashlyn Olson on Nov. 11.

“This class of seven gives us depth and the ability to be competitive in the gym. As a result, we will be much improved from last season,” said Head Coach Jeremiah Tiffin. “All of these new players are used to winning and don’t settle for anything less. They are going to fit seamlessly into our team culture and continue to improve it from day one. In addition, these new student-athletes will continue to add to our excellence in the classroom. I am so excited to have these incredible individuals join us in Grand Forks.”

The seven new Hawks will join a squad that returns 10 letterwinners and three starters, including leading attacker Lexi Ahrens and team captain Madi Hart. UND will open Summit League play on Sept. 23 in Grand Forks when it hosts Oral Roberts at The Betty Engelstad Sioux Center. To view the Fighting Hawks Summit League schedule, click here.

A breakdown of the five signees with quotes about each from Coach Tiffin are listed below. For more news and updates on Fighting Hawks Volleyball, visit FightingHawks.com or follow UND Volleyball on Facebook or @UNDvolleyball on Instagram and Twitter.

UND VOLLEYBALL JUNE SIGNEES

Julianne Carlat
6-0 | MB
Las Vegas, Nev. (Bishop Gorman HS)

Kortney Carney
5-9 | S
Moorhead, Minn. (North Dakota State College of Science)

Sierra Ellett
5-10 | OH
Scottsdale, Ariz. (Arizona State)

Jocelyn Julson
5-8 | DS
Bismarck, N.D. (Century HS)

Taylor Pribyl
6-0 | OH/MB
Omaha, Neb. (Jacksonville State)

JULIANNE CARLAT
6-0 | MB
Las Vegas, Nev. (Bishop Gorman HS)

CARLAT'S TOP-5
* Won two state titles at Bishop Gorman (2018 and 2019)
* Led state of Nevada in blocks in 2019
* Two-time Scholar Athlete Award winner
* Advanced to a pair of USA Division National Championships, winning gold with her 15U team and silver with her 18U team
* First Team All-Region (Southern Nevada)

Juliane is someone that came on our radar late, but we are glad she did. She has what we are looking for in our middle hitters: a heavy arm and good footwork that will allow her to be available in transition. I believe she will fit into our team culture quite easily and I am excited to see what the future holds for her.

Head Coach Jeremiah Tiffin

Kortney Carney
5-9 | S
Moorhead, Minn. (North Dakota State College of Science)

CARNEY'S TOP-5
* NJCAA National Player of the Week (Feb. 20, 2021)
* Named to the Region XIII All-Region team
* Earned All-Mon-Dak Conference honors
* Averaged 10.5 assists per set
* Began her career at Concordia Moorhead

Kortney is a player that will give us good depth and competition at the setter position. She has the ability to see the court early for us an she brings a winning mentality from her time at NDSCS. She has been a pleasure to get to know during this process and I can’t wait to have her on campus.

Head Coach Jeremiah Tiffin

SIERRA ELLETT
5-10 | OH
Scottsdale, Ariz. (Arizona State)

ELLET'S TOP-5
* Four-year member of Arizona State's beach volleyball team
* Competed in the Canyon Classics last season
* Helped the Sand Devils to a 21-win season in 2019
* Won an Arizona State title with Notre Dame Preparatory HS
* Father, Dave, played 16 seasons in the NHL

When I was talking to Sierra on the phone it was apparent that her priorities lined up with our programs. She is going to take the experience she has on the beach and be able to translate it to indoor very quickly. Her ball control will be an asset to us and she will be able to hit a lot of shots. I’m expecting her to be a great leader for us in her fifth year and help bring this program back to the level we expect it to be.

Head Coach Jeremiah Tiffin

JOCELYN JULSON
5-8 | DS
Bismarck, N.D. (Century HS)

JULSON'S TOP-5
* Class Valedictorian
* Won two state volleyball championships
* Also helped Century to three state basketball titles
* Earned all-conference honors in 2020
* Named to the 2021 NDHSCA-Optimists All-Star team

Jocelyn is a winner. Every team she is a part of is successful and a lot of that is because of her work ethic and temperament. She’s showed how hard she is willing to work in coming back from an ACL injury and that paid off in her senior year when she didn’t lose a game all year. In addition, being a valedictorian has proven that she knows how to balance her time on and off the court. I have no doubt she will make our team better and be an amazing representative of North Dakota volleyball in the community as well.

Head Coach Jeremiah Tiffin

TAYLOR PRIBYL
6-0 | OH/MB
Omaha, Neb. (Jacksonville State)

PRIBYL TOP-5
* Appeared in 18 matches with nine starts in 2019 at Jacksonville State
* Helped the Gamecocks to a 20-10 record and an Ohio Valley Conference Championship
* Led the freshmen class with 44 kills, and add 27 blocks in her first season at JSU
* Finished her high school career with over 1,000 kills
* Two-time state tournament qualifier with Concordia Lutheran HS, including a state championship in 2016

I knew immediately that Taylor would be a great asset to our program. She has experience playing multiple positions and as a result will be able to see the court in different ways. Coming in as a transfer from a successful program she will be able to bring that experience and be a model of what a winner looks like on and off the court.

Head Coach Jeremiah Tiffin