After missing last season due to injury, Norris junior setter Malorie Boesiger is picking up where she left off.
In fact, she’s much better.
Boesiger, daughter of Titans’ coach Christina Boesiger, leads the state in assists with 790. She’s one reason why the defending Class B champion is 26-0 and ranked No. 1 in the overall Top 10.
“It feels great,” she said. “We had a great season last year and I’m super-happy to be more of a part of it this season.”
Boesiger, a Nebraska pledge, was sidelined last year after undergoing knee surgery. Her mother was able to alter the team’s attack by using two players who had no previous varsity setting experience — Zoe Rademacher and Harper Gable — to take over for Malorie.
That duo combined for more than 1,000 assists as Norris snapped Omaha Skutt’s nine-year run of state championships by defeating the SkyHawks in the 2024 Class B final.
Malorie’s main contribution was providing instruction and encouragement from the bench, but her long rehab is now over and she hasn’t missed a beat since dishing out 1,093 assists as a freshman.
“She’s on another level from where she was as a freshman,” coach Boesiger said. “She’s physically stronger and has become an even better student of the game.”
Christina said it wasn’t long after her daughter’s operation that she was back in the gym preparing for the future.
“She was sitting on boxes and setting two days after her surgery,” the coach said. “She couldn’t wait to get back after it.”
Still, mom needed to keep a watchful eye on Malorie that she wasn’t overdoing it.
“She was videotaping my workout and sending it to the doctor, making sure what I was doing was OK,” Malorie said. “My own mom was being a tattletale.”
With the rehab complete, the Titans’ setter said she’s back at 100%. That was evident in the season-opening triangular against Wahoo and Aurora when she had 51 assists in a pair of two-set sweeps.
“It was so fun to be back,” she said. “My doctor said we just needed to be patient with the recovery process, and that was right.”
With Boesiger back at setter, undefeated Norris has dropped just six sets. The Titans won the Lincoln Pius X tournament this past weekend, an event that included several ranked teams.
“We knew going into this season that we were going to be the team with the target on our backs,” Malorie said. “I’m super thankful that I’ve been able to contribute.”
Boesiger’s sets have helped teammate Alli Bornschlegl, who is second in the state with 346 kills. Kaelynn Lottman (151 kills), London Meints (149) and Loryn Piening (141) also have played key roles for Norris.
“We don’t really look at our (26-0) record,” coach Boesiger said. “After graduating seven seniors from last year’s team, we just wanted to go out and play hard every match.”
Christina added that her daughter’s recovery has been a team effort.
“The doctors told us all along that she would make a full recovery,” the coach said. “We just had to be patient and trust the plan.”
The immediate volleyball plan is to stay on track for a return trip to the state tournament. The Titans have several challenges before then, including the Eastern Midlands Conference tourney Oct. 11 and a match against host Elkhorn North on Oct. 14.
“There are so many really good teams in Class B this season, and many are in our conference,” Christina Boesiger said. “We know we have to be at our best all the time.”
That was the case Tuesday night as the Titans stayed unbeaten with a reverse sweep over visiting Gretna. Boesiger had 48 assists as Norris survived the fifth set 16-14.
Malorie, whose sister Maisie plays for the Huskers, said winning a second consecutive championship is the obvious goal for the Titans.
“We all want that really badly,” she said. “But like my mom says, we just need to focus on playing them one at a time.”
mike.patterson@owh.com, 402-444-1350, twitter.com/MPattersonOWH
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