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Aug. 12—GRAND FORKS — From 2022 to 2025, the UND volleyball program did not add a single in-state recruit out of high school.
This year's incoming freshman class has two: setter Mackenzie Dufner of Minot and Ellee McIntosh of West Fargo.
The rest? Mostly international players.
Head coach David Nguyen enters
his first year at the helm
with 10 new players, seven of whom are freshmen. The diverse group has made an impression in training camp this summer.
"They're very, very good," Nguyen said. "We have a lot of athleticism and we have a lot of size with this group. That's what our M.O. is recruiting either way, to try to bring in those sorts of players that can bring this program to the next level.
"With the girls that are here, with the new players that are coming in, it's just really impressive what they are able to already do and already have built in. It's going to be exciting to see, because you're going to find a few of them in the starting lineup."
Dufner and McIntosh signed with the Fighting Hawks while Jesse Tupac was still leading the program. Nguyen, however, is keeping the local recruiting rolling, as evidenced by
May-Port-C-G standout Paetyn Strand's commitment
over the summer.
The Hawks brought in three transfers in addition to the freshman class: graduate outside hitter Andrea Zaric of Mercyhurst, sophomore middle blocker Tessa Jacobson of North Dakota State College of Science and junior middle blocker Lilliana Montest of Maryland Eastern Shore.
With so many new faces and a coaching change, the first portion of camp focused on getting everyone accustomed to the system. UND will also have a tuneup before the season starts with a scrimmage against Jamestown on Aug. 21.
The Hawks will open the regular season against Eastern Washington in Seattle on Aug. 28 as part of the Seattle U Tournament.
"My goal is to have this team going out there and playing their hearts out every single time," Nguyen said. "Doing it together, doing it in a way where we know it's going to be clean volleyball. That's the thing that we've been trying to preach in our gym the whole time since I've gotten here.
"We didn't start clean, I can tell you that. The first couple days it was definitely kind of rough. But once the player got used to everything, once the players got used to the system and the lingo, it's getting a lot better now."
The roster wasn't completely overhauled in the offseason, though. Junior right side An den Hamer, junior setter Reagan McIntosh and senior outside hitter Lauren Perugini are three key returners who will serve as team captains.
"All of our captains have taken a step forward to really make the team their own," Nguyen said. "They've been great. They've been very, very mature. They've been able to set up different things for the newcomers, whether it's the international players who might be in the U.S. for the first time or some of the players that are around here. But they've been doing a really good job of getting the team together and just doing little things outside of volleyball as a team."
UND finished with a 7-20 overall record in 2025. The Hawks were 4-12 in Summit League play, good for seventh place.
Nguyen was hired in December after spending four seasons at Fairleigh Dickinson. He replaced Tupac, whose contract was not renewed at the end of the season.
UND posted a 35-77 record in Tupac's four years as head coach.
Nguyen was named the Northeast Conference (NEC) coach of the year twice during his tenure. Fairleigh Dickinson made the NCAA tournament and won the NEC regular-season championship under Nguyen.
Continue reading...
This year's incoming freshman class has two: setter Mackenzie Dufner of Minot and Ellee McIntosh of West Fargo.
The rest? Mostly international players.
Head coach David Nguyen enters
his first year at the helm
with 10 new players, seven of whom are freshmen. The diverse group has made an impression in training camp this summer.
"They're very, very good," Nguyen said. "We have a lot of athleticism and we have a lot of size with this group. That's what our M.O. is recruiting either way, to try to bring in those sorts of players that can bring this program to the next level.
"With the girls that are here, with the new players that are coming in, it's just really impressive what they are able to already do and already have built in. It's going to be exciting to see, because you're going to find a few of them in the starting lineup."
Dufner and McIntosh signed with the Fighting Hawks while Jesse Tupac was still leading the program. Nguyen, however, is keeping the local recruiting rolling, as evidenced by
May-Port-C-G standout Paetyn Strand's commitment
over the summer.
The Hawks brought in three transfers in addition to the freshman class: graduate outside hitter Andrea Zaric of Mercyhurst, sophomore middle blocker Tessa Jacobson of North Dakota State College of Science and junior middle blocker Lilliana Montest of Maryland Eastern Shore.
With so many new faces and a coaching change, the first portion of camp focused on getting everyone accustomed to the system. UND will also have a tuneup before the season starts with a scrimmage against Jamestown on Aug. 21.
The Hawks will open the regular season against Eastern Washington in Seattle on Aug. 28 as part of the Seattle U Tournament.
"My goal is to have this team going out there and playing their hearts out every single time," Nguyen said. "Doing it together, doing it in a way where we know it's going to be clean volleyball. That's the thing that we've been trying to preach in our gym the whole time since I've gotten here.
"We didn't start clean, I can tell you that. The first couple days it was definitely kind of rough. But once the player got used to everything, once the players got used to the system and the lingo, it's getting a lot better now."
The roster wasn't completely overhauled in the offseason, though. Junior right side An den Hamer, junior setter Reagan McIntosh and senior outside hitter Lauren Perugini are three key returners who will serve as team captains.
"All of our captains have taken a step forward to really make the team their own," Nguyen said. "They've been great. They've been very, very mature. They've been able to set up different things for the newcomers, whether it's the international players who might be in the U.S. for the first time or some of the players that are around here. But they've been doing a really good job of getting the team together and just doing little things outside of volleyball as a team."
UND finished with a 7-20 overall record in 2025. The Hawks were 4-12 in Summit League play, good for seventh place.
Nguyen was hired in December after spending four seasons at Fairleigh Dickinson. He replaced Tupac, whose contract was not renewed at the end of the season.
UND posted a 35-77 record in Tupac's four years as head coach.
Nguyen was named the Northeast Conference (NEC) coach of the year twice during his tenure. Fairleigh Dickinson made the NCAA tournament and won the NEC regular-season championship under Nguyen.
Continue reading...
