NORFOLK – Blocking off time to focus on volleyball and her studies is important to Alexa Cunningham.
The rural Wausa native, a Northeast Community College volleyball player, and fellow Wausa High School graduate Jaxon Claussen, a Northeast men’s basketball player, recently were honored as members of the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference Academic All-Region First Teams.
To be recognized for their efforts in the classroom during the fall semester of 2023-24, First Team performers had to receive a 3.5 grade-point average or above while Second Team members earned between a 3.0 and a 3.49 GPA.
On the court this past fall, Cunningham helped the Northeast volleyball team finish with a 20-15 overall record – including six wins and five losses in the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference – during the 2023 season.
The Hawks’ season ended on Nov. 1 after they fell 3-0 to Ellsworth Community College in the Region 11 Tournament Quarterfinals in Iowa Falls, Iowa.
“Transitioning from a high school level of play to the collegiate level of play was an adjustment, but once I had gotten more comfortable, I found the confidence I needed to play up to that level,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham noted Northeast head volleyball coach Amanda Schultze and assistant coach Savannah Nelson “did an amazing job teaching me new things every day.”
“They helped me develop a high volleyball IQ,” Cunningham said. “I learned new drills, skills, and I got better at the skills I already knew coming into college.”
Schultze shared her thoughts about Cunningham’s first season playing volleyball for Northeast.
“Alexa had a great first year with us,” Schultze said. “She is quick side to side and did a nice job getting touches on the ball.”
Cunningham, a 6-foot-1-inch freshman, plays at the middle blocker position for Northeast.
“Playing collegiate volleyball truly is another level of play that I had to learn, but I think that was the best thing for me because I was always learning and developing myself as a player in practices and games,” Cunningham said.
“Playing at a higher level was motivation for me to become a better volleyball player because I knew that I had to work hard for my spot on the court every day,” she said.
Cunningham explained what her strengths are on the volleyball court. “I feel that my strengths on the volleyball court were attacking the ball and blocking,” Cunningham said. “I got progressively better at blocking as the season went on and my blocking had been the best it has ever been by the last few games of the season. I also feel that one of my biggest strengths was being the person to encourage my teammates on the court and cheer them on from the bench as well.” Schultze described what she sees as Cunningham’s strengths as a volleyball player. “Her biggest strength, in my opinion, is her quickness as a middle blocker,” Schultze said. “There is a big difference in the tempo of the game when you get to college, and because of her quickness, side to side, she was able to get to a lot of blocks. Alexa also does a good job running behind the setter and hitting the slide attack.” Cunningham felt there is always room for improvement in whatever she does. “Now that I have my first year under my belt and I know more about the collegiate level, there are so many skills that I can work on to make myself a better player,” Cunningham said. “I struggled with connecting with the ball at times because I was moving faster than what the play was, so in the (offseason), I plan to work on controlling my body and recognizing where the ball is. “I also think I need to work on being more strategic with my attacks and where I hit the ball on the court because I seemed to only do two types of middle attacks when there are so many more that could’ve created a better opportunity for a kill,” she said.
Schultze explained what Cunningham will work on during the offseason before the start of the next volleyball season.
“This spring, we will work on getting the ball to Alexa more and having her keep that ball in front of her when she hits,” Schultze said.
Cunningham described her favorite part about playing volleyball at Northeast.
“There are a lot of things that I love about playing volleyball at Northeast, but all the friendships I was able to create with my teammates really was one of my favorite things looking back on the season,” Cunningham said.
“Being able to create those friendships helped me gain so much confidence on the court, and even off the court, I feel like I will always have someone that I can go to,” she said.
Cunningham described Northeast’s 2023 season as “up and down,” but she was pleased the Hawks ended up with a winning record overall.
“We started off the season strong, and as we got to the middle of the season, we were faced with many injuries that affected girls that were starters, but we didn’t let this affect our attitudes and efforts,” Cunningham said. “We found girls that worked hard to fill those spots and I think that shows just how strong our team chemistry was because we never let the change affect us.
“We just kept working hard together all the way to the end of the season,” she said. “As we move into next year, I am excited to see what we can bring as sophomores next year with more work in the (offseason) as well as what we can gain with the incoming freshmen.”
Schultze agreed with Cunningham, saying Northeast “had a pretty good season.”
“We had some injuries we had to work through, but some freshmen really stepped up and helped lead the way,” Schultze said. “I look forward to bringing this group of freshmen back as sophomores next year. We have some great leaders and it will be fun to watch them take over and lead the new freshman class next year.”
Outside of volleyball, Cunningham is currently on track to be an agriculture-transfer student in the spring of 2025, when she will transfer to a university to complete a bachelor’s degree in agronomy focusing on crop science.
“I chose this path because growing up on the farm, I found crops fascinating and I wanted to know more about why they respond to environmental and management factors the way they do,” Cunningham said.
Cunningham, whose parents are Derek and Renae Cunningham, recalled she had many family members, friends and members of the Wausa community come out and support her at Northeast’s home volleyball games this past season.
“I felt so grateful and blessed to look into the stands and see all of the people I had supporting me in high school come with me into my collegiate part of my career and still cheer me on,” the younger Cunningham said.
“I cannot express how grateful I was to have such a strong support system and cheering section,” she said. “I would like to thank everyone who supported me this (past) season, whether it was in person at my home games or virtually over livestream. Your support never went unnoticed, and I truly appreciate it.”
To see Cunningham’s 2023 season stats, people may visit her profile on Northeast’s official athletic website at northeasthawks.com.
