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Chaska has a long history of successful post season play and each year it is the goal of the Hawks to be contending for a state appearance, according to longtime coach Sue Murphy. The Hawks fell just shy of that goal last year with a team laden with underclassmen, which should bode well for this fall. 

"The 2014 season will provide little change in the Lady Hawks' run for a state tournament appearance," said Murphy, whose team returns six starters with three years of varsity experience with support from a solid bench with varsity experience as well. 

Maple Lake coach Marty Kiebel has high expectations for his team after the Irish qualified for a third straight state tournament last season in what looked like a "rebuilding" season. The Irish were young, but plenty talented.

"We return a number of players from last year's team," said Kiebel. "Our program has an excitement that motivates younger players to strive to become better in the off-season. Coming into this season, that motivation by younger players has never been stronger. In a year that we will return more letter winners than in many years, that desire to "break through" has never been more evident in our younger players. I'm hoping that the motivated younger players, along with our returning veterans create a great competitive atmosphere that makes our entire gym get better at every practice."

Belgrade-Brooten-Elrosa will have a good base of experience coming back with both setters and key outside and right-side hitters and libero back from a 26-win team. 

"Our success will depend on getting better at ball control and improving our net defense," said coach Kevin Weller. "For the first time in many years we won't be very tall so defense will have to be a staple." 

"My expectations are that we will be competitive," said Win-E-Mac coach Lynette Kaster, who has led her team to four straight state tournament berths behind a terrific crop of athletes that also won the Class A state girls' basketball title this past winter. Many of those leaders have now graduated, however, including All-State outside hitter Korbyn Ross and All-State middle Shelby Kaster. "I have several athletes that are willing to work hard and continue playing high level volleyball. I graduated six players off our No. 4 team in the state, but have some great athletes coming up, that just need time to develop into leaders."

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"We have an experienced nucleus returning, but we definitely have some shoes to fill with the graduation of Seurer and Heinonen," admitted Delano coach Rebecca Rue, who led her team to the Class AAA championship match before falling to Eagan. "Last season was a season to remember, and ultimately our team would like to have that experience again. If we stay healthy, remain focused, and believe in one another, great things could happen. Our section is full of tough competition, so we know we will have to be playing our best ball when it comes to section tournament play. Leadership, passing, and court communication will be keys to our success."

Centennial graduated 13 seniors last year, which means it will be a reloading year for the Cougars and coach Jackie Rehbein-Manthey. "We will be looking for players to step up and contribute right away," agreed Rehbein-Manthey. "We compete in a strong conference so we will need to find our groove fast."

New Life Academy has started a very young team that past few years, but that young talent has been maturing and resulted in a 20-win season last fall. "With only a junior libero and no seniors last year, we started all freshmen and sophomores," said coach Wally Bomgren. "This is a great bunch of kids who love the game. They should only improve as they get older." 

Robbinsdale Armstrong is one of the original superpowers in Minnesota high school volleyball, winning five straight state titles from 1980 through 1984 and then another two in three years from 2000 to 2002. Coach Ayesha Khan hopes to return the Falcons to that level and is coming off a 15-victory season last fall, although the Falcons did graduate several key veterans.

THE SKINNY:

Osseo returns four terrific hitters (Hannah Pekarek, Emily Carman, Tina Boe, and Shiah Sanders) from last year's 30-victory team that advanced to the state tournament for the first time in five years. Coach Bill Quan expects them to be the leaders of a new group of Orioles that have their sights set on a return visit.

"They will provide offense and leadership," agreed Quan. "Keys to a successful 2014 will be replacing the setting and ball control that we lost to graduation and to continue to play as a team with good communication and energy."

Moorhead reached the state tournament again last fall, but graduated nine key players off that team. That doesn't deter coach Char Lien, who has won 271 matches in 15 years with the Spuds. "Some might assume that the cupboard is bare, but we return some key players that will help us find success again this season," said Lien. "OH Emily Uglem, DS Bailee Gulseth and MH Brianna Carney will be the catalysts to support the holes left by a talented group from last year. However, the hard work and chemistry that was modeled will be a great blueprint for this squad." 

Fillmore Central reached the Class A state championship match last fall before succumbing to SW Christian. The Falcons return a strong team led by setter Morgan Malley, but must replace top hitter Taylor Case, who graduated this past spring.

Cloquet finished as the Section 7AA runner-up last year, winning 22 matches for coach Heidi Anderson. But the Lumberjacks graduated three great senior leaders (Sammy Zeadow, Olivia Mayasich and Chandler Beaupre) and will need to find a way to groom new leadership. 

"We return most of our defense, passing, and two starting setters," said Anderson. "We return a talented group that works hard and loves to play the game."

THE SKINNY:

"We are extremely excited about the 2014 season," said Bethlehem Academy coach Franz Boelter.

 The Cardinals should be — Boelter runs one of the most powerful and consistently successful programs in the state. The Cardinals have advanced to 10 of the last 12 state tournaments, each time advancing all the way to the championship match. They've won it all in 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011 and 2012. But last year was one of the few misses under Boelter, largely due to injuries. 

"Hopefully we can maintain a healthy squad for the entire season and enjoy having a great deal of experience returning," said Boelter. "Losing Payton Schultz for virtually the entire season last fall certainly challenged us as we tried to return to the state tournament but fell a match short. The good news is that others had to step up and gained valuable experience. With Schultz and her returning teammates, we will have 9-10 kids with significant varsity experience, and four of them were starters on our 2012 state championship team. The key will be to have everyone healthy. If we can do that, we can win another conference championship and make another run at section and state titles. If this group can become the hardest working group we've ever had, this can be a very exciting season."

"The keys for a successful 2014 season will be centered on the program's ability to be confident in change and their own potential to directly influence the success of change," said new Lakeville North coach Jackie Richter, who follows in the footsteps of legendary Walt Weaver at North. The Panthers missed the state tournament last year for the first time in four years, but had won titles in 2010 and 2012. Richter had plenty of success in 11 years at Minneapolis Southwest, winning 189 matches, but she'll step into her new role without many of the key players who helped North to its heights in recent years, including Miss Volleyball Alyssa Goehner, All-State libero Abby Monson and right-side hitter Sami Flattum. The cupboard is far from bare, though.

Grand Rapids made its first state appearance since 1996 last fall, winning 29 matches in a terrific season under coach Bryan Fideldy. The Thunderhawks could be right back at the X, as they return a highly-talented setter in Sidney Mattson and a very smooth libero in Maddie Keute to lead the way. "Our underclassmen will spend hundreds of hours in the gym in an attempt to replace seven outstanding seniors," said Fideldy. 

"We have a strong core returning to the floor this year," said Farmington coach Michael Woody, whose program moves into the South Suburban Conference after winning 19 matches last fall. "If we can pick up where our three graduates left off, we will be ready for our move into the South Suburban Conference and to make another Section 1AAA run."

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Roseville continues to churn out top teams and this fall should be no different. "We return most of our key contributors from last season and are eager to build on our last few seasons of success," said coach Greg Ueland. "Our team strengths will center around strong passing, defense, and serving. We also have a varied offense that allows many players to get involved. In order for our team to have success, we need to play with a high level of confidence and do the volleyball fundamentals very well. We also need to develop more offensive firepower and weapons."

Cretin-Derham Hall returns three starters and two other key players who saw plenty of time on last year's 17-victory team. The Raiders and coach Rick Kuehlwein have high hopes for the coming season. "We will be tall and athletic with good offense and solid defense," said Kuehlwein, who has a 334-108 career record in 15 seasons of coaching. 

"Our expectations for the 2014 season remain the same," said Mounds View coach Tom Weko, whose team won 20 matches last fall. "We expect to contend for a conference and section title. We lost several talented players to graduation but have younger very talented players ready to step in and pick up where those seniors left off. Our strengths will be our ability to control the ball. Our top receiving and defensive players are returning and will provide stability in those two areas. Finding a replacement for two year starting setter Ashley Linn will be key to our offensive success. We have the players to provide the offensive punch but we'll need to find someone to get them the ball."

"We have two great hitters returning with Denia Brown and Hannah Bliss along with defensive specialist Ruby Vedbraaten," said Nevis coach Heidi Wormley, who took the Tigers to the state tournament in her first season as head coach. "All three of these players have had state experience and understand what it takes to make a great team. We have a very fast floor this year and I expect them to work hard and play together."

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"We expect to have a solid team this fall, with several returning starters," said Edina coach Stephanie Chapek, whose team was 16-15 last year. "I expect us to a be a physical team at the net. The keys to our success will be filling the setter position and having solid ball control."

"Our expectations for the 2014 season are high," admitted Rosemount coach Smokey Vitek, whose young team won 22 matches last year and looks to be on the verge of becoming a strong state tournament contender. "We have a strong group of returning players with varsity experience and a solid group of upcoming players. As always keys to success will be players coming into the season in shape and focus and minimzing injuries to key players." 

Minneapolis Southwest is in transition this fall, as former coach Jackie Richter stepped down to take over at Lakeville North. The Lakers welcome in new coach Joanna Lyons, who does inherit several key veterans who helped the Lakers to another 20+ victories last season.

Note: Robbinsdale Armstrong has replaced Braham as a last-minute substitute, but Hayfield shifted from Pool 2 to Pool 6).

"We will have to find new ways to score and new leaders to step forth due to graduation," said Hayfield coach Jeremy Struck, who won 20 matches in his first year with the Vikings. "This year's team will be taller and will cause some havoc at the net. We will need to rely on our quickness and to continue to play scrappy defense to win games."

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Minnetonka will look for continued success with some different faces a year after winning 25 matches under coach Karl Katzenberger. But it won't be easy. After graduating two All-State players and two All-Conference players the lineup will look markedly different than in years past, according to Katzenberger. "The Lake Conference and Section 6AAA will be tough as usual and the Skippers will be tested at every step of the way."

Hill-Murray is fired up after advancing to the state tournament for the first time in program history last year. And the Pioneers didn't just make it, they ended up finishing second to the juggernaut Marshall program and winning 29 matches. 

"We are excited to try to get back to the tournament," said coach Tim Walen, who has won five straight Classic Suburban Conference titles and seven of eight. But the Pioneers are in the new Metro East this year, which will look plenty similar. "We lost some key players to graduation but have some tremendous players returning. We are excited for the new season and the opportunity to build off of last season's success. We will need to have excellent ball control as we will look to spread the ball around and to be a balanced offense. Creating a contagious energy and working as a team with be the key to any success we hope to have."

East Ridge will feature one of the top hitters in the  Suburban East Conference in senior Claire Whitman, who racked up almost 250 kills last fall. The Raptors will look to improve on last year's 19 victories, although both the conference and section are tough.

Jackson County Central quite possibly has had the second best team in Class AA the past few years, but the Huskies have had the misfortune to play in the same section as juggernaut Marshall. Last fall, JCC again won 24 matches and advanced to the Section 3AA final, but lost to Marshall. As it has during that stretch, expectations of coach Teresa Van Epps and the Huskies are to have a strong fundamentally sound team with great defense and determination. 

THE SKINNY:

Prior Lake has a great balance of talent across its grade levels, something that should provide the Lakers with sustained success under coach Mike Dean. Last fall, Prior Lake won 23 matches and begins this year as a top-10 ranked team.

St. Croix Lutheran is returning four starters from last season's 31-2 team, although two that are missing are big losses for coach Rachel Grev. All-State outside hitter Kira Grev and All-State setter Afton Sobasky both have graduated after setting numerous school records and leading the Crusaders to their first state tournament in 2012. 

"This should bring with it a good base for us to build on," said Grev. "We look to be competitive again in the Tri-Metro Conference as well as in our section. Several strengths will be our defense, setting, and team chemistry. These girls have been playing together for several years and know what it takes to elevate their game to the next level. The keys to our success this season will be to fill the hitting spots and improve our blocking."

"At Andover the expectation is that we work together as a team and the focus is on hard work and communication," said coach Connie Huberty, who has led the Huskies to seven state tournaments in 10 years. "The strengths of the team will be the fact that we have a number of returning varsity players so they understand the level of commitment and will have played on the court together. The key to us having a successful season is to increase our volleyball IQ and create opportunities for us to earn points." 

"While we graduated a number of great players, we have a lot of younger players that are great athletes and are incredibly committed to improving," said Southwest Christian coach Greg Sayuk, whose team won the Class A state title last year behind a strong senior class anchored by Class A player of the year Mackenzie Horkey, All-State setter Rachel Carlin, All-State middle Abby Palkert and outside hitter Abby Vandergalien. All have graduated, though, leaving plenty of questions around the Stars this fall. 

"I think we will challenge for the conference and section titles again this year in the hopes to take another crack at a state championship," said Sayuk. "We always look towards a foundation of defense and serve receive to be successful."