Russ Rose Then (1997): “I thought Nikki made some really positive strides last year in the spring. As always, I think her strength is she has all the tools and the knowledge to play, she just has to continue to understand how those things can coincide with her own inner peace, how she can maintain her intensity and focus and still be able to play the game. But I think she demonstrated in the spring that she’s a player that made a major contribution as one of our starting outside hitters. So whether she can continue to do that and keep her health — she’s also a person that seems to come across injuries a little too easily — is very important.”
Russ Rose Now (2025): “Nikki didn’t stay all four years, but while she was here, she practiced hard and contributed to the program. She was a terrific multisport athlete in high school and had a good frame for college volleyball at that time — she was 6 feet or 6-1. She was a person that could ball handle and play well at the net.”
1997 Season (Junior): Played in 29 sets and 17 of 36 matches … ranked 7th on the team with 1.52 kills/set, hitting .239 overall … averaged 1.83 digs/set, good for 5th on the team … her 0.48 blocks/set ranked 8th on the team …
Before Penn State: Playing at North Branch High School in Minnesota, Higley was named first-team MNVBCA Class AA All State in 1994 and was a Volleyball Monthly “Fab 50” selection.
