Natasha Freimuth, Linfield Sports Communications

Volleyball aims to keep building, open 2026 season on the road

By Chase Fisk, Director of Athletic Communications

08/24

Linfield volleyball enters the 2026 season looking to build on a significant step forward under second-year head coach Jenna Street. The Wildcats return several of their top performers from a 2025 team that climbed the Northwest Conference standings and produced the program's highest conference win total in more than a decade.

The Wildcats finished Street's first season at the helm with a 9-12 overall record and a 7-9 mark in Northwest Conference play, placing sixth in the conference standings. Linfield's nine overall wins were the most since winning 11 matches in 2017. The 'Cats seven NWC wins were the most in over a decade. Linfield closed the year on a high note with consecutive victories over George Fox and Lewis & Clark, including a straight-set win over the River Otters in the season finale.

2025 Statistics

2026 Roster

Senior Outside Hitter & Middle Blocker Nora Myre

A Redmond, Washington native, Nora Myre returns as the centerpiece of the Linfield attack after putting together the best season of her collegiate career in 2025. Myre led the Wildcats with 264 kills, averaging 3.14 kills per set, and also topped the roster with 33 service aces. Her impact extended well beyond the front row, as she finished second on the team with 287 digs and averaged 3.42 digs per set.

Myre's versatility placed her among the Northwest Conference's most productive all-around players. She was the only player in the conference to rank among the top 10 in both kills per set and digs per set, finishing fourth and seventh. Her performance earned her First Team All-Northwest Conference recognition. Myre was also named College Sports Communicators Academic All-District and selected to the NWC All-Sportsmanship Team. She enters 2026 having earned All-NWC honors in consecutive seasons.

After immediately establishing herself as one of the Northwest Conference's top defensive players, sophomore libero Naia Alefaio-Foifua returns to anchor the Wildcats' back row. As a freshman, Alefaio-Foifua led Linfield with 316 digs and averaged 3.95 digs per set, finishing fifth in the NWC in the category. She also recorded 30 service aces and 72 assists in her first season.

The Seattle, Washington, sophomore put together a first-year campaign that included one of the program's top individual serving performances when she tied the Linfield single-match record with eight aces in a three-set victory over George Fox. She earned NWC Volleyball Defensive Athlete of the Week honors three times during the season before being selected Third Team All-Northwest Conference.

Sophomore Libero & Defensive Specialist Naia Alefaio-Foifua

Junior Middle Blocker Madison Millard

Junior middle blocker Madison Millard gives Linfield another experienced returner at the net after leading the Wildcats in blocking for the second consecutive season. Coming to Linfield from Kailua, Hawaii, Millard finished 2025 with a team-high 61 total blocks after recording 60 as a freshman in 2024. She also took a step forward offensively, finishing with 98 kills and contributing 27 service aces.

Millard's presence gives the Wildcats continuity in the middle alongside fellow returner Katelyn Mawdsley, who finished second on the team with 38 blocks and third with 126 kills in 2025. Millard enters her junior season having already accumulated 121 blocks across her first two collegiate campaigns.

The roster features a group of six seniors, three of which have spent their entire careers in the purple and cardinal; Bella Rodriguez, Nora Myre, and Margaritah Bañuelos.

Head Coach Jenna Street brought in two Division II transfers, sophomore setter Kaarina Geymann and senior libero Jocie Snyder. Geymann, a native of Beaverton, Oregon, returns to her home state after spending her freshman season at Saint Martin's University. Snyder, a native of Vancouver, Washington, transferred from Dominican (CA) following one season with the Penguins and two prior seasons with the Bellevue College Bulldogs of the Northwest Athletic Conference (NWAC).

Seven Wildcats are set to make their collegiate debuts this Fall, four of which from Oregon, two from Hawaii, and one from Washington State.

The ‘Cats start the season this Wednesday on the road against the Bushnell Beacons at 4 p.m. in Eugene, Oregon. Following an exhibition with Warner Pacific, Linfield volleyball’s home debut comes on September 4, hosting four games as part of the Oregon Trail Classic, the Wildcats will take on Augsburg and Nebraska Wesleyan in the two evening games inside Ted Wilson Gymnasium.

The Oregon Trail Classic wraps up with a matchup against Azusa Pacific in a neutral-site match in Forest Grove on September 5 at 3:30 p.m. Linfield's non-conference slate is complete with a trip to Georgetown, Texas, for three matches in the Southwestern Invitational on September 11 and 12.

Linfield starts the Northwest Conference slate with a road trip to the Whit's, taking on the reigning regular-season champion in Whitworth on September 18 at 7 p.m. The first conference match inside Ted Wilson Gymnasium will come on Saturday, September 26, hosting the Lewis & Clark River Otters at 6 p.m.

Other notable matchups include hosting the 2025 NWC tournament champion Pacific Lutheran Lutes on Friday, October 2, and the annual Senior Night celebration on Friday, November 6, against the Pacific Boxers at 7 p.m.

Three of the Wildcats final four matches this season will come on the road, forced to compete in crucial matches down the stretch, needed to make their first appearance in the Northwest Conference Volleyball Tournament since its inception.