June Newsletter

Welcome New Subscribers | NSAA Spring Championship Officials | Norfolk Volleyball Day | NSAA/NHSOA News | Her Call Feedback | Camp Wisdom

Welcome New Subscribers!!

Happy summer, team! We have some new subscribers—I’m so glad you’re here! We are almost to 200 subscribers—invite someone so we can get over the hump!

Thanks to Nate Neuhaus for his recent outreach to Nebraska officials about Her Call, and thank you to Ref’s Life for promoting this platform. I highly recommend you follow Ref’s Life, as well as RefMasters Magazine. Their content is great for any official.

NSAA Spring Championship Officials

The following officials took the field at this year’s NSAA Spring Soccer and Track Championships. Congratulations to all of you!

Soccer

• McKenzie Derowitsch - Lincoln, NE

• Annabella Glatte - Omaha, NE

• Danae Greig - Omaha, NE

• Brittney Hageman - Omaha, NE

• Maddie Hanson - Omaha, NE

Track

• Wendy Wortmann - Head Umpire - Hartington, NE

• Stacey Brandt - Umpire - Clatonia, NE

• Karen Flamig - Umpire - Hartington, NE

• Dwana Nevels - Umpire - Omaha, NE

Norfolk Volleyball Day

Norfolk, NE, hosted its first-ever “Volleyball Day” on June 13. An all-star game sponsored by Northeast Community College was played on an outdoor court. Kim Kwapnioski is on the committee for this event, and shared some pictures—thank you, Kim! The officials on the game were Karen Wietfeld and Melissa Braun, both from Humphrey, Nebraska. Congrats, ladies, and well done!!

NSAA/NHSOA News

• You can find links to all NSAA/NHSOA clinics on the “Camps and Clinics” page or on the NSAA Officials page.

• The NSAA 2025-26 Officials Registration is now open. Click HERE for instructions on the registration process (scroll down).

• The NSAA Officials Summit will be in Kearney, NE, on August 2. Click HERE to register and HERE for the agenda; the event begins at 8:30 am at the Younes Conference Center.

• NHSOA Facebook page - Please like and follow the NHSOA Facebook page! Click HERE! Starting in July, this will be another resource you can use to grow as an official.

Her Call Feedback

Don’t forget to fill out this quick feedback form on your experience with Her Call. It will take under 60 seconds to complete. I have received some great feedback and would love to hear more. Thank you in advance for your help! Click HERE for the form.

Camp Wisdom

I attended a basketball officiating camp in Lawrence, KS earlier this month (yes, at the legendary Allen Fieldhouse, which, side note, has no air conditioning!) The camp consisted of a combination of working games and classroom sessions. I learned a ton!

My favorite session was about professionalism. Here are some key takeaways from that session, led by Aaron McFatridge, an official from McKinney, Texas.

A professional:

• Doesn’t panic under pressure

  • A thermometer tells the temperature, but a thermostat regulates it: be a thermostat.

• Has pride without the ego

  • “You’re always going to get my best effort.”

  • Be coachable and own your mistakes—and don’t sell people out

• Has presence and poise

  • People make an impression about us in the first 8 seconds that they see us—do I look confident?

• Is committed to growth

  • We don’t rise to the situation—we fall to our level of training

  • Study a rule per week

  • Work on communication with coaches!

• Wants to make everyone around them better!

Officials of all stripes are expected to be professional—you don’t last very long in this hobby without it!