Women's Volleyball

FORMER WARRIORS SET TO CHASE A NATIONAL TITLE

FORMER WARRIORS SET TO CHASE A NATIONAL TITLE
Posted: Nov 27, 2025

Ottumwa, IA – Six former members of the Indian Hills Volleyball squad have advanced to their respective national tournaments at the four-year level. From the NCAA DI level to NAIA, former Warriors are ready to suit up across the country for a chance at a national championship.

Four former Warriors will have a shot to square off in the NCAA DII National Tournament while a former two-time All-American earned Tournament MVP honors to advance to the NCAA DI National Tournament. See where former Warriors will be competing in the upcoming weeks.

Larissa Barreiros Scatamburlo – University of Alaska Fairbanks (NCAA DII National Tournament)

Scatamburlo has helped lead the Nanooks into the NCAA DII West Regional after posting a 23-5 overall record on the year. The Nanooks punched their ticket to the national tournament for the first time in program history.

An NJCAA All-Region 11 First-Team selection at Indian Hills, Scatamburlo left her mark on the Warrior program from 2022-23, winning the IHCC Competitive Excellence Award while twice being named to the NJCAA All-Academic First-Team.

Alaska Fairbanks, the No. 5 seed in the West Region, will take on No. 4 seed University of Alaska Anchorage in San Diego, CA on December 4.

Gabriela Bieniek – Mercy University (NCAA DII National Tournament)

Bieniek, in her second season with the Mavericks, has helped lead the program to its eighth all-time bid to the NCAA DII Women's Volleyball Championship after posting a 20-4 overall record on the year while winning the East Coast Conference (ECC) Championship. Bieniek has started all 24 matches for Mercy, leading the squad with 354 kills and 47 service aces on the year. For her efforts on the court, Bieniek was named the ECC Player of the Year and earned First-Team All-ECC honors for the second consecutive season.

During her lone season with the Warriors in 2023, Bieniek earned College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honors and was named to the NJCAA All-Academic First-Team.

Mercy will open up national tournament play as the No. 3 seed in the East Region and will take on No. 6 seed Molloy University (NY) December 4 in Waltham, MA.

Ana Carolina Westerich – Adelphi University (NCAA DII National Tournament)

Westerich, in her debut season for the Panthers, helped lead the team to an at-large bid to the NCAA DII National Tournament with a 24-8 overall record. Adelphi has won 11 of 12 heading into the postseason where the Panthers earned the No. 2 overall seed in the East Region.

An NJCAA and AVCA All-American as a sophomore in 2024 at Indian Hills, Westerich recently surpassed 1,000 assists at Adelphi to earn NE10 First-Team All-Conference honors. In three seasons of collegiate volleyball, Westerich has accumulated nearly 3,800 assists.

Westerich and the Panthers will take on No. 7 seed Holy Family in the East Region December 4 in Waltham, MA

Kinga Michalska – Eckerd College (NCAA DII National Tournament)

One of the all-time greats to pass through Indian Hills, Michalska has left her mark on the Eckerd Volleyball program. As a senior in 2025, Michalska earned All-Sunshine State Conference (SCC) First-Team honors after leading the squad with 401 kills and a program record 80 service aces.

Michalska was an NJCAA and AVCA First-Team All-American as a sophomore at Indian Hills in 2023 after posting the fourth-most kills (581) in a single season in school history.

Eckerd will open up national tournament play December 4 as the No. 7 seed in the South Regional and will take on No. 3 Seed Barry University (FL) in Tampa, FL.

Iva Mrkaic – Oklahoma Wesleyan University (NAIA National Tournament)

A two-year member of the Warriors from 2023-24, Mrkaic has helped the Eagles advance to the NAIA National Tournament after posting a 26-3 overall record on the year. The Eagles advanced out of the NAIA Opening Round and will now compete at the national tournament in Sioux City, IA beginning December 4 against Bushnell University (OR).

Mrkaic was twice named to the NJCAA All-Academic Team for her work in the classroom while earning four ICCAC Academic All-Region honors throughout her career.

Sara Van Gisteren – Long Island University (NCAA DI National Tournament)

One of the most decorated indiviudals to wear an Indian Hills uniform, Van Gisteren has made an immediate impact at Long Island. In her inaugural year, Van Gisteren led the Sharks to the Northeast Conference (NEC) Tournament Championship and an automatic bid to the NCAA DI National Tournament. For her efforts, Van Gisteren was named NEC Tournament MVP while earning First-Team All-NEC and NEC Player of the Week honors throughout the year. Van Gisteren leads the program with 388 kills and 52 service aces on the year.

Van Gisteren was a two-time NJCAA and AVCA All-American for the Warriors, including a first-team selection as a senior. Van Gisteren left Indian Hills as the all-time single season and career kills leader.

With a 20-6 overall record, Long Island punched its ticket to the national tournament for the 13th time in program history and will learn their upcoming location and opponent with the NCAA DI Volleyball Tournament bracket reveal on November 30.

NEW YEAR - WHAT TO KNOW

Fans can keep up the Indian Hills Volleyball squad all year long through a number of ways:

HOW TO WATCH

As always, GoHillsTV provides free live broadcasts of all Indian Hills home volleyball games. Fans can tune in a number of ways all season long:

  • GoHillsTV App: Download the Iowa Media Network app on your android or ios device and navigate to the GoHillsTV section
  • Website: https://www.iowamedianetwork.com/gohillstv to catch all live and archived information
  • Roku Streaming Device (new):  Have a Roku TV or streaming stick? Download the GoHillsTV app to start streaming today!

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