MCC volleyball signees to remain teammates at Missouri So. St.

A pair of McCook Community College volleyball teammates will continue being teammates as Amerika Jones and Kaylee Palmieri both signed their letters of intent Monday to continue their careers at Missouri Southern State in Joplin, Mo.

Jones, a graduate of Moanalua High School, Honolulu, Hawaii, came to MCC as a walk-on, later earned a scholarship, and is now moving on to an NCAA Division II school – thanks in part to Palmieri, who ultimately became a "driving" force in her volleyball path.

As Jones was looking to move on to a four-year school, one of MCC Coach Hayley Kobza's former teammates reached out to MCC to see if Jones might be interested. Missouri Southern Coach Kalie Mader played with Kobza at Southwestern Oklahoma State University and began following and reaching out to Jones mid-way through the season.

When Jones decided to visit the school in Joplin, Mo., she needed a "driving" partner for the eight-hour drive and recruited Palmieri.

"They told us that if I wanted to go with her, I'd have to schedule an actual visit," said Palmieri, a Gibbon High School graduate. "So I decided to go ahead and work out with the team and see what happens."

"She definitely did great," said Jones. And now they will continue as teammates for the Lions who play in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association conference. Jones is expected to play primarily as right-side hitter and Palmieri as defensive specialist/libero.

Jones, known as 'Rika" by her teammates, is a biology major and plans to continue that path in Joplin. She played in 30 matches this past fall and had 114 kills and 27 block and 47 digs. She had three double-digit kill games with a season-high 12 coming Sept, 25 against Otero. For her career, she played in 47 matches and had 149 kills, 57 blocks and 62 digs.

Palmiero is studying kinesiology and plans to pursue a master's degree in physical therapy. She played in 32 matches with 295 digs on the season, 17 service aces and 41 assists. She recorded 14 double-digit dig games in the fall with her season best 22 coming Aug. 28 against Northeast Community College. For her career she appeared in 53 matches, and had 327 digs, 21 service aces and 44 assists.

In recollecting their favorite volleyball memories at MCC, both players recall the student section rushing the court after a 3-2 win (17-15 in the fifth set) over Trinidad State on a Friday night -- Sept. 24, 2021.

Palmieri said she will always remember the frequent bonding experiences with her teammates over the past two years and also will remember what an inspiration and passionate speaker Coach Kobza is. "Even when we were down, she came in and gave us a little reality check," Palmieri, "She's so good with her words, it gets me fired up every time."

For Jones, one of her vivid memories of her college experience away from the court came on a rainy night when she got her vehicle stuck in the mud. Her coach got the vehicle pulled out and brought to the library where she got her vehicle back the next day -- along with an earful of why she wasn't supposed to be driving in the rain on unfamiliar roads at night.  

Kobza said she's happy for the opportunity both these players are getting in Missouri Southern State.

"Rika had some other options but she was waiting for that last opportunity and it worked out really great that both Rika and Kaylee are going to go on and play together because this group is really close," Kobza said. "It's an awesome opportunity for both of them and Missouri Southern is getting players who can come in and be culture changers."