The 2020 volleyball season was, uh … what
exactly? Weird? Oh yes. Abbreviated? For sure. Covid-19 meant fewer matches, no
regular-season tournaments and an ending that did not end with a state
tournament, which might have been the weirdest thing of all.
Teams just practiced and played, practiced
and played, with no real tangible trophy-related goal in sight at the end of it
all.
That is now in the rear-view mirror, which
was clear when the 2021 state volleyball tournament opened Wednesday at Xcel
Energy Center in downtown St. Paul. The crowds were large and loud, the play
was top-notch and the mood was one of celebration. As it should be.
It was quite different from the ending in
2020.
“It was November
20 or whatever, there was a ton of emotion and we played our last match at
Maple Grove,” said Wayzata coach Scott Jackson. “We had like a mock section tournament
and we played a really good Maple Grove team to finish. We had a lot of emotions;
there were kids crying and there was a coach crying.”
The Trojans
finished 13-0 last season and improved to 32-0 this fall with Wednesday’s Class
4A quarterfinal sweep of Roseville. They have won 52 matches in a row since
falling to Minnetonka in October 2019. Wayzata went on to win the state title
that year, meaning they are the defending big-school state tournament champions
… regardless of the weirdness of 2020.
Still, there
were lessons to be learned from last fall.
“It felt
abbreviated but we were so thankful for that opportunity to have that time; the
most important thing here is that these guys are going to be friends for life,”
Jackson said. “They've created an unbreakable bond with one another by playing
so hard for one another. There is a huge potential reward at the end of this
one. We've had a longer time together so it's all icing on the cake right now.”
Wayzata will meet Rogers in Thursday’s
semifinals. The Royals, playing at state for the first time, defeated Lakeville
North 3-1 in the opening round. Rogers has a record of 27-4 and is one of only
five teams to win a set against Wayzata this season. The Trojans defeated Rogers
3-0 during the regular season and 2-1 in a tournament at St.
Michael-Albertville.
“I'm elated
with what's happened this year, the way the team has really come together and
really developed throughout the season,” said Rogers
coach Bo Schmidt. “We
flew under the radar, we're the new kids on the block. All season we weren't
ranked in the top 10. Our record was 24-4 before the section tournament started
and we still didn't crack the top 10. So we're kind of using that like, ‘Hey,
we're here guys.’ This is what we can do and we’re just so excited to showcase
that here.
“(Wayzata
is) an undefeated team going into this semifinal, the oddsmakers are saying
we're a long shot, right? … I'm excited. I'm excited because we’ve got nothing
to lose. We're going to go out there and play our best game. And we're going to
give them all they can handle and when we come out on top, it's going to be
that much sweeter.”
The Roseville
Raiders, playing at state for the first time since 2016, are also embracing the
experience. They will meet Lakeville North in Thursday’s consolation bracket.
Raiders
coach Greg Ueland said there were good things to come out of the 2020 season.
“I think we
were just all really happy to play last year and it really kind of reminded you
of the ‘Why’ behind it,” he said.
“Then you
add the fun that this team really thrives on, like there's something out there,
we’ve got to prove something, there's something to achieve. And our state
tournament is special. I have coached a lot of different sports, I've been to a
lot of the state tournaments and we have a lot of great ones in Minnesota. But
this one ranks toward the top. Minnesota volleyball is special and for us to be
here and to have that goal to work toward is special.”
Roseville
senior Sophia Gondek said, “We put out a goal right at the beginning of the
season of what we wanted to accomplish, and that was state. I think the whole
year we had something to work towards the whole time and we all just worked
together. We all acknowledged it and we just worked so hard.”
Welcome back
to state, everybody.
State Volleyball Tournament
Wednesday’s Quarterfinals
Class 4A
Wayzata defeats Roseville 25-9, 25-9, 25-14
Rogers defeats Lakeville North 21-25, 25-15,
25-19, 26-24
Eden Prairie defeats Forest Lake 24-26, 24-26,
25-22, 25-18, 21-19
East Ridge defeats Bloomington Jefferson 11-25, 25-17, 25-21, 28-26.
Thursday’s semifinals
1 p.m.: Wayzata vs.
Rogers
3 p.m.: Eden Prairie vs
East Ridge
Class 3A
Marshall v St. Paul Highland Park
Monticello v Grand Rapids
Kasson-Mantorville v Sauk Rapids-Rice
New Prague v Chisago Lakes
Thursday’s semifinals
5 p.m.
7 p.m.
Thursday’s Quarterfinals
Class 2A
9 a.m.
Southwest Christian v Mounds Park Academy
Jackson County Central v Annandale
11 a.m.
Cannon Falls v Hawley
Sauk Centre v Greenway
Class 1A
5 p.m.
Mayer Lutheran v South Ridge
Bethlehem Academy v Breckenridge
7 p.m.
Minneota v Badger/Greenbush-Middle River
Legacy Christian v Walker-Hackensack-Akeley
--MSHSL media specialist John Millea has been the leading voice of
Minnesota high school activities for decades. Follow him on Twitter @MSHSLjohn
and listen to "Preps Today with John Millea” wherever you get podcasts.
Contact John at jmillea@mshsl.org
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