State Tourney the Goal for Cloquet Volleyball

Reached sectional finals last two seasons

CLOQUET, Minn.- The Cloquet Lumberjacks are hoping that the third time will be the charm this year if they were to once again play in the sectional finals.

Led by Head Coach Heidi Anderson, Cloquet has reached the sectional finals two years in a row but lost in both appearances. Despite those losses, the Lumberjacks have won 44 games over those two seasons. Coach Anderson says she’s impressed with how her players have approached their pre-season practices and scrimmages.

“We’re working on trying to be relentless in pursuing the ball. Just kind of going after everything, having good team communication. I think the team’s been working hard at attention to little details and kind of putting in the work to pass a little bit better.” says Coach Anderson, who was named the Sectional Volleyball Coach of the Year. “The last couple days, we’ve gotten to go to the section scrimmage and kind of see the other teams in our area…and we like how we look.”

The Lumberjacks have five seniors on their roster, including all-state outside hitter Ava Carlson. Through experience, she and fellow senior Lexi Niemi believe they know what it will take to propel their team forward to the state tournament.

“Just a lot of bonding and communication.” claims Carlson. “I know we have a lot of new girls coming up this year, so just working together with them so we can get better as a group.” Meanwhile, Carlson is excited to get back to playing in front of her home fans. “Personally, I love when we make a big play, and there’s a big student section, everyone’s cheering and it’s just a great atmosphere that comes with it.”

“I’m trying to be a positive person on the court and off the court, I try to pick everybody up and say nice things.” Added Niemi, who can play at both outside hitter and libero.

Cloquet’s volleyball season on Tuesday when they host Duluth East, who swept the Lumberjacks in their two regular season matches last year.