Working hard to meet high expectations

Minneota’s volleyball team were the first to unveil the newly renovated Minneota gymnasium Tuesday night when they opened the season against Wabasso.

That may seem like a small matter to some, but consider the fact the Vikings didn’t have many home games last year, they are on fire for a great season — and a new gymnasium with a lot of surprised fans means a lot to the team.

“The gym looks great. We didn’t get a lot of home games here last year so the girls are excited,” said Coach Hayley Fruin. This is a team that doesn’t need much to be excited.

When it comes to experience, only Jennifer Krog is gone off a squad that took second in the state last year.

“This year, expectations are high and the target is on your back. We can’t take anything for granted and the girls know that. We’ve got to get better at the game,” said Coach Fruin.

For many years Section 3A was “owned” by Minneota. Then along came Tracy-Milroy-Balaton to break the string and create one of their own.

Then, out of the blue, Minneota rose up and beat TMB in the section finals and rolled into the state tournament. Now, there are several good reasons for optimism — and one of them was created by the summer Junior Olympic (JO) Volleyball system in Southwestern Minnesota.

Two of the Vikings played on JO teams that won the nationals this past summer in Orlando, FA. Hitters Lydia Sussner, a senior, and freshman Natalee Rolbiecki brought the Orlando experience home to the Vikings.

“The experience playing against the best of the best and with good coaches in JO’s will pay off,” related Coach Fruin. Not that anybody will be surprised by Sussner.

For three years she’s been laying a trail of broken dreams on the other side of the net with her thundering blows and game-changing kills.

And the fact that, “We go to her every chance we get,” is also not a secret. Coach Fruin knows where her bread is buttered and Sussner has been the ticket she punches to the promised land.

But now, along comes Rolbiecki, who as an eighth grader did the nearly unthinkable and landed on the Class A State All-Tournament team last fall. “What, she’s only an eighth grader? I can’t believe it,” was the cry that echoed across many a gym.

Now, the long, lanky freshman has shaken loose from that binding title and has emerged as a legitimate threat at the net. With Sussner, they create a one-two punch that many will find hard to beat. “It’s great to have them, one in the middle and one on the outside,” the coach said about Sussner and Rolbiecki.

But wait — there’s more. When you’re father is an international weight lifting guru who helps the entire team with their physical fitness training, there’s a special asset in the room.

That’s the case for senior hitter Lizzy Gillingham. Her father Brad has lent his expertise to the team and in the process has helped daughter Lizzy become a legitimate threat at the net.

“She can jump out of the gym,” said Coach Fruin. She chuckled as she said, “Can you image if she was a couple of inches taller?”

There’s an old saying in baseball that goes, “Tinkers to Evers to Chance.” They were an infield combination for the Chicago Cubs that was adept at turning double plays from shortstop to second to first.

Well, now maybe Minneota has the, “To Sussner, to Rolbiecki, or to Gillingham,” moniker about their solid front row. And when you talk about going, “To ...” the hitters, you’ve got to know there’s someone who can, “Get it to them.” Well, there is!

Last year, Morgan Kockelman was trying to join a long line of excellent Minneota setters, including her sister Taya. “It’s hard to replace a setter and it’s hard to get going. And it took a while for her to get comfortable with the others,” said Coach Fruin.

But when she did it came just in time. “By tournament they were all clicking,” said the coach.

Now, Kockelman is experienced and has some super fire power up front to feed the ball too — and she’s anxious to do just that. Minneota had a couple of scrimmages before they opened the season Saturday at Hopkins Lindbergh in the Fall Classic against Rush City, where they won, 3-0.

They don’t keep official score, but the Vikings won both the Minneota Scrimmage and the one at Marshall. “We were down a couple kids at the scrimmage,” said Coach Fruin. Seniors Sydney Larson and Brooklyn Nelson didn’t play in the opener, although Nelson was cleared before the Marshall scrimmage.

Larson suffered illness and will take a couple of weeks to return.

Nelson is coming back from a knee injury that kept her out all of last year. Both will be needed for relief this year. “It wasn’t so bad holding them out because we had to go with a different lineup and it was good using some different kids,” said Coach Fruin. The coach called Larson, “A tough kid. She’ll be back,” and indicated both added leadership to the team. “That helps tremendously,” she said. Our back row is definitely our strongest suites. People think they get a hit and we’re right there.

Abby is the leader but Ellie Pesch and Morgan Hennen are right there. When it comes to retrieving the ball, getting back up to the net and saving those shots to the back court, again, the cupboard is not bare.

Abby Hennen, now just a sophomore, proved last year she, “Can see the court well and she’s not afraid,” as the coach said. Sister Morgan, a junior, is adept in the back court, in the middle or even at the net. And her swing is becoming a powerful tool.

Add in sophomore Ellie Pesch, a small package who is close to the floor and good for many saves, and you’ve got reason to believe the ball won’t hit the floor often. In reserve, but counted on when need will be the juniors — Rachel Vlaminck at the net, Madison Sorensen at setter, Abby Rost and Ali DeVlaeminck at the net.

“If something is not going right, we have players on the bench to help out,” added Coach Fruin. It’s unrealistic Minneota won’t have it’s sights set on a state championship.

Yet, it’s first things first, with much work to be done.

“We’ve got to get better from last year and they’ve got their sights set high,” said the coach. But there’s lots of tough competition ahead. Rush City was ranked No. 10 and Minneota beat them to start the season.

And Wabasso, Tuesday night’s opponent, was ranked No. 7 in the initial poll. Waterville-Elysian-Morristown got the top nod. They were a good team last year and they received the benefit of a solid transfer player from Bethlehem Academy. Minneota will likely see them down the road in a tournament.

“So, it will be tough,” related Coach Fruin. She is taking it seriously as well. “You don’t want any regrets as a coach. So I’m taking it as serious as I can,” she said.

Her goal is to depend, “On our defense, hit the ball and put the ball away and get in the opponents minds.”

Last year, the Vikings specialized in, “Coverage of the floor,” and Abby Hennen led that charge. And on offense, “Each hitter knowing where the opening is and where to put the ball.”