The Winona State University volleyball team defense has served as a catalyst for their wins all season, and one of the keys to having a great defense is having a great defensive specialist, or a “libero.”

When the libero of the past three seasons graduated last spring, the Warriors needed a player who was ready to keep their solid defense alive.

First-year Becca Pagel was more the ready for the task, according to head coach Joe Getzin.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better player to fill in the shoes of our past specialist,” said Getzin. “We have been able to transition defensively so well because of her, and I’m excited to see what else she can accomplish.”

Pagel was team all-conference her sophomore, junior and senior years in high school. She also served as a point guard for her high school basketball team.

“Growing up I would go watch my older sister play. She was the one who inspired me to play and I always wanted to be like her,” Pagel said. “I remember in middle school I saw our high school going to state for the first time, so I knew right then and there I wanted to be on a successful team and make it to the top.”

Her sister and older brother both had careers in volleyball and basketball at Upper Iowa University.

“It was a very competitive family,” Pagel said. “Watching both my siblings definitely pushed me to work harder.”

Her choice in coming to Winona State was not difficult, her personal standards instantly clicked with Warrior’s philosophies.

“It was a perfect fit, I liked the coaching staff and I loved the team,” Pagel said. “The girls are great, they’ve been supportive of me since the beginning and I love how we instantly connected.”

Pagel is part of a first-year class who have done the job of filling in the roles the seniors left. Fellow first-year Kate Masberg is happy to have her as a teammate.

“She gives us so much confidence when she’s out on the court. She’s always there to pick us up whenever we feel we aren’t playing well,” Masberg said.

“Becca has done an amazing job so far, she took a huge role coming in on a first-year spot and taking a senior spot as libero,” senior blocker Lauren Kudronowicz said. “She is strong and confident in what she is doing and it just makes it so much easier to trust her in the back row.”

Pagel is off to a solid start to the season so far, recording 354 digs and 81 assists. She had a game against Grand Valley State University where she recorded a season high 31 digs.

But her favorite game this season was against the University of Minnesota Duluth. The team ended up losing the match in the last set, but Pagel thought it was the team’s best performance all year.

“We were the underdog going into that game, so we really wanted to get the win,” Pagel said. “We played our best all season, we just need to close out these matches against ranked teams.”

The match on Friday, Oct. 13 was Winona’s biggest conference competition yet, facing Duluth, ranked number five. The match went down to a fifth game but the Duluth would pull it out to win.

The Warriors went down in the first game. They were all tied at 16 but the Bulldogs would go on a 6-0 run to go up 16-22 and would end up winning it 26-22.

“I felt like I did poorly the first game, but my teammates picked me up and we performed a lot better the rest of the match,” Pagel said.

The Warriors responded in the second game with a run of their own. Tied at 18, the Warriors ended the game with a 7-2 run to take the second game 25-20 with the help from a few blocks by Lauren Kudronowicz and errors by the Bulldogs.

Kudronowicz ended the match with five blocks and 10 kills.

The Warriors dropped the third game to go down 1-2 in the match but responded again in the fourth game.

They opened the game on a 16-8 run, a run the Bulldogs would not be able to come back from as the Warriors took the game 25-20

Senior outside hitter Danielle Rampart made 7 of her 19 kills with help from senior setter McKenna Larsen, as well as Pagel herself.

Rampart ended the day with 11 digs on defense to go along with her 19 kills. Larsen finished the night with 36 assists and 11 digs.

“Having [Rampart and Larsen] on the team is amazing. They are both intense players and consistent and overall great leaders that are just fun to play with,” Pagel said.

Being alongside those seniors has helped Pagel in her transition to the team, but the seniors also recognize how lucky they are to have a player like her.

“Coming in as a freshman she has played tremendously,” Larsen said. “She has grown so much over the season, whenever you need a pass or a dig she is always there. I can’t wait to watch her over the next three years to see what she does. She is going to do amazing things.”

The Warriors opened the last game of the day leading 10-6 with two blocks and two kills from Kudrononwicz but the Warriors could not hang on as the Bulldogs finished the game on with a 9-3 run to win the match.

Pagel finished the game with 26 digs, one of her best performances all season.

Even though it was a defeat, Pagel said it was the Warrior’s biggest test all season and they felt that match could’ve gone either way.

They played another match on Saturday against St. Cloud State University in a “must win” game following the loss.

“We came out strong this match and we didn’t let the loss to Duluth affect us,” Pagel said.

The Warriors ended up taking care of business taking all three sets by scores of 25-11, 25-22, and 25-18.

The Warriors have notched sweeps in six of their last seven matches.

They dominated offensively in the match, recording a .301 attacking percentage. Comparatively, St. Cloud’s recorded a .054 percentage for the night.

“We knew we played great on Friday, so it was important for us to get the next win and get back on track,” Pagel said.

She ended the match with 13 digs in the straight set sweep.

Pagel and the Warriors continue their homestand this weekend with another big conference matchup against Southwest Minnesota State University, ranked number two and the University of Sioux Falls.

“This weekend will be another test for us to see if we can get to that next level and get a big win,” Pagel said. “I’ve only been on this team a short while but I feel like we’ve been playing with each other forever already.  I can’t wait to see what else we can do this season.”