MSU-N inks two new volleyball standouts

The Montana State University-Northern volleyball team is coming off its best season in a long, long time. And already, MSU-N head coach Bill Huebsch is busy building for the future.

Huebsch recently announced the signing's of middle blocker Jessica Scarber of Broadus, as well as defensive specialist Sydney Stolearcius from Saskatoon, Sask.

The 6-1 Scarber had a stand-out career at Broadus, which included being named First-Team All-Conference this past season, and Second-Team All-Conference as a junior. She led her district in total blocks for three straight seasons, while lettering in volleyball for four years. At the conclusion of this spring, Scarber will also have lettered in track and field for four years.

Stolearcius

And not only is Scarber a standout on the court, she's also a star in the classroom. She's a member of the National Honor Society and carries a 3.74 GPA in high school.

Scarber said Northern was her top choice because "She really likes the small town atmosphere of Havre and the support the community offers collegians. Second, after meeting the team and being able to scrimmage with them, she has experienced the feeling of being part of Northern's volleyball family and is excited to become a part of it. Finally, after meeting Coach Huebsch and getting to know him as a person and a coach, she believes that Coach Huebsch is definitely the right coach for her to become the best athlete that she can become."

Scarber, who plans on majoring in nursing at MSU-N, is the daughter of Henry and Stephanie Scarber.

The 5-5 Stolearcius comes to Havre from an outstanding background in Canadian volleyball. She was able to play at the high school level in the eighth grade. She played her final two years for Saskatoon Christian Cougars, and helped them capture the school's first-ever medal in volleyball. Outside of high school, Sydney played for the Saskatoon Explosion and last year for the Saskatoon JCVC U18 Extreme as they won Silver Provincial medals and were successful at the 2011 Canadian Nationals and Las Vegas Invitational. As a defensive specialist, Sydney has been selected for 2012 Team MVP China, an elite program where they travel and compete against SIS China Team at different Saskatchewan venues. In return, Team MVP China travels to China to complete internationally later this month.

Also competing in track and field and badminton, Stolearcius was has excelled, including being voted her school's Female Athlete of the Year. She also stands out in academics, maintaining a 3.9 GPA, and she plans on majoring in biology at Northern.

Scarber

Stolearcius said she is "Excited to attend Montana State University-Northern. She loves people, her great friends and can never spend enough time with her teammates. In her opinion, it's a perfect match because MSU-N is exactly that – friendly and a big community of awesome people. She is excited to become a part of a championship team with Coach Huebsch and her Skylight teammates."

Stolearcius is the daughter of Rob and Denise Stolearcius.