PULLMAN, Wash. – Two talented collegiate players joined the Washington State University volleyball team at the start of the Spring semester, Cougar Head Coach Jen Greeny announced Thursday.
Nicole Rigoni, a 5-8 setter from Beaverton, Ore., transferred after two seasons at Eastern Washington, and Julia Cubbedge, a 5-8 outside hitter/setter from Murrieta, Calif., comes from Colorado State, ranked 23rd in the final 2015 AVCA Top 25 poll.
“Nicole and Julia are quality players who will upgrade our depth at their respective positions, and therefore, upgrade the quality of our team,” Greeny said. “To have them seek us out and want to join a program that continues to improve and compete at a higher level each successive year in the Pac-12, is humbling to be quite honest.”
Nicole Rigoni is a 5-8 setter from Beaverton, Ore., who transferred from Eastern Washington and will be a junior in eligibility for the Fall 2016 season. As a freshman, she played in 27 of the Eagles' 29 matches, starting in 10, and tallied 451 assists and 119 digs. She was named to the Big Sky All-Academic team. In her sophomore season, Rigoni started in all 28 matches and was the only Eagle to play in all 103 sets, contributing 771 assists and 220 digs. She led the team with seven double-doubles, six of which occurring in Big Sky play. Rigoni is a graduate of Southridge High School, after playing for two years at Valley Catholic High School. She finished her high school career with 1,124 assists and 579 kills. She received All-Metro League All-Around First Team honors twice and was named the 2013 Metro League Player of the Year. She also was tabbed to The Oregonian all-state first-team. Rigoni received an invitation to train with USA Volleyball on the 2013 High Performance Team Red. She plans to major in broadcast and journalism at WSU.
Head Coach Jen Greeny said, “Nicole is someone we are very excited about having join our program. She has a high work ethic and is passionate about doing her best in anything she does. Nicole was originally committed to another Pac-12 school coming out of high school, then had multiple Pac-12 schools interested in her when she made the decision to transfer. After talking to Nicole and getting a feel for her personality, we felt she is a person we always seek on the recruiting trail. We are fortunate Nicole chose us and look forward to working with her this spring and beyond.”
Julia Cubbedge is a 5-8 outside hitter/setter from Murrieta, Calif., who transferred from Colorado State University. In her freshman season with the Rams, Cubbedge played in 31 sets and tallied 27 kills. CSU had a 20-match win-streak in 2015 and played in its 21st NCAA Championship tournament last fall. Cubbedge is a graduate of Chaparral High School in Temecula, Calif. where she earned four varsity letters as a right side hitter /setter. She was an All-Southwestern League first-team selection three times and second team once. Cubbedge was named a 2014 Prep Volleyball Senior Ace Honorable Mention. She also was tabbed as a two-time Press Enterprise and two-time Valley News first-team selection. Cubbedge played for the 951 Elite Volleyball Club team. She plans to major in human development at WSU.
Head Coach Jen Greeny said, “We are thrilled Julia joined our family. She has a live arm, can jump, and is very athletic. The combination of all of this has the potential to surprise some people as an attacker because of her height. We will also be working with her through the spring, with a good chance beyond that, as a setter. We are very intrigued to see what transpires of Julia's future with us as it could go a couple different directions. We are thankful Julia is with us.”