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Holy Family Catholic lost several starters from last year's 14-14 team, as seven varsity players graduated. But Fire volleyball has key returning players including senior captain and All Conference setter Katharine Mallak, who led the team with over 750 set assists in 2013. She should hit the 2,000 mark this season as she manages the offense of this team. 

"She is one of the top setters in the state and a valuable asset to this program with her dedication to the sport," said coach Mary Stude. "Her leadership and decision making will play a vital role as this younger group of athletes takes the court."

After competing with young teams in recent years, Hopkins will be a senior-led team in 2014. The Royals return six of their top seven players from last year's 21-victory squad and will look for that senior leadership to carry the team deep into the season. 

"The Royals have the talent and depth to make a successful run in the Lake Conference as well as the section tournament," said coach Vicki Seliger-Swenson. "One of the biggest challenges for the Royals will be finding the right player-combinations to create positive team chemistry. This is a special senior class that could do great things for the Royals. Add in a couple of younger players and the Royals will be a team that will battle in the top-ranked Lake Conference." 

"We will be bringing back a very experienced team this year," said Owatonna coach Jason Kaytor, who has led his program to state tournament appearances two of the last three years. "We are returning all but two players from last years section runner up team. We will be very competitive in the Big 9 conference as well as in the section."

Stewartville is easily one of the winningest programs in the state, qualifying for 21 of the last 27 state tournaments, although the Tigers have missed the last two state tournaments. That leads to an interesting year ahead according to longtime coach John Dzubay, one of just three coaches with more than 800 career victories in state history. 

"We have been blessed with above average height over the past few years, but will be quite short in 2014, with no players in the 6-foot range," admitted Dzubay. "We will have to improve our ability to keep the ball in play and make intelligent decisions on offense. I hope that we will become a very tough serving team which will give us a chance to set up our defense. We do have some experienced players returning, but will be looking for new faces who can step up to the challenge of competing in the always tough HVL and Section 1AA."

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Blooming Prairie returns its "big three" and for coach Gina McLaughlin and the Awesome Blossoms, it's a welcome return. The trio occupies three key positions for the team: hitter Taylor Hagen, back row ace Nicole Inwards and setter Madison Worke. They helped the program to 22 victories last fall.

"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 return with six seniors next year, all of who received playing time last year," said St. Peter coach Carmen Hanson, who rode that group to 19 victories and the South Central Conference title. "Defensively we bring our libero Brooklyn Braun, one of the top dig leaders in the state, defensive specialist Lauren Chobat and our 'twin towers' Olivia Hass and Paige Lubiani on the front line. We strive to be a scrappy team, and have the competitive drive to succeed. Offensively we have the capability to run a quick paced offense which we feel will be a huge advantage for us against our competition."

Wayzata has annually been strong under 17-year head coach Scott Jackson, who has averaged exactly 20 wins a season in his tenure. This year should be no different, although the Trojans must adjust to a mix of returning veterans and newcomers expected to step into key roles.

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"Although I lost six strong seniors to graduation my expectations are still set high," said Cannon Falls coach Melissa Huseth, whose team won 19 matches. "Our defense and serve receive will remain strong and there are a number of young players who will be competing for offensive positions. I have players returning with a couple of years varsity experience who are fantastic leaders. With their guidance I believe we have much potential as the season progresses."

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. 

The 2014 season will bring a new generation to Jordan's perennially strong volleyball program. One constant will be coach Colleen Chambers, who has overseen plenty of quality play in 26 years. 

"Although an overall young team, we look to have all the pieces to put together a competitive season," said Chambers. "Returning players Brooke Sievers and Kenzie Hennen, along with the return of setter Lexie Chambers, will bring leadership to this young squad. Our tough schedule will help prepare us to compete in the postseason."

New London-Spicer will feature one of the top hitters in the state in senior Sydney Stone, whom the Wildcats hope can power them to the state tournament after winning 18 matches last fall.

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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.

"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."

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."

St. Michael-Albertville will be returning plenty of experience this year, with a roster that may have as many as 10 seniors according to coach Ryan Dehnel. "For us to take another step, we will need a couple newcomers to step up and we will have to utilize our strengths a little better offensively," explained Dehnel. "Our goal every year is to be a little better serving, passing, and defending, and this year will be no different.

'We have terrific leaders in our captains, Malissa LeClaire, Kate Drimel, and Freya Macari Hanson, and a very dedicated group around them. I am excited to see where we can go this season."

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"This season will be a tester," admitted Blaine coach Celeste Gorman, whose program reached great heights the last few years, but has now suffered steep graduation losses. "We will be inexperienced in that this group has not played together much. Despite losing so many talented players to graduation we will continue to keep our expectations of the team high." 

Gorman's keys to having a successful season always weigh on the ability to control the ball so, "we will spend a great deal of time working on that. We also have two strong leaders in our senior captains, Taylor Morgan and Rebecca Hawkins. Our other seniors are also capable of pushing each other so this group is capable of keeping us focused on our goals, on the big picture - team work."

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."

"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."

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."

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Braham is an overlooked sleeping giant in the center of the state, as the Bombers again won 20+ matches last fall for coach Britne Engelking. The Bombers return a host of good athletes looking to advance to state out of Section 5A.

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."

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.

Totino-Grace is looking to improve on last year's 18 victories and could very well do so under new coach Kayla Cole. The Eagles have one of the top contenders for this year's Miss Volleyball in senior hitter Hope Schiller, but she has plenty of help from young setter Eliza Dahly and libero Madison Kroehler.

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Cambridge-Isanti should be considered a favorite out of Section 7AAA, as the Bluejackets return nearly their entire team from a 22-victory season. Only two seniors who played secondary roles have graduated, setting up a great season for coach Vicki Courts and the Bluejackets. 

"We graduated six seniors so we will be quite a bit younger, but not necessarily in a rebuilding mode," said Mabel-Canton coach Lonnie Morken. The Cougars are rarely rebuilding, but only reloading under Morken. He has racked up 523 victories in 20 years and seemingly routinely wins 30 matches a season, including last year's 32-3 mark. But it could be tough without graduated Belle Sand, the three-time conference player of the year.

"It will be a different look considering three of the six seniors started since 8th grade and compiled a 158-18 record while on the varsity," agreed Morken. "The younger kids want to keep our program at a high level and will work hard in doing so. We will have to be sharp in our serving and defense if we want to compete with the top teams. We won't be taller than anybody we play so we can't afford a lot of foolish errors. We are very much looking forward to the fall"

Mabel-Canton has won 16 straight conference championships and has averaged 28 wins a season over that span. 

"We will certainly have a new look to our varsity team but our goals will remain high," said Morken.

Martin County West will be returning a number of starters from last year's state tournament team with significant experience, according to former coach Mary Sussenguth, who stepped down to pursue her master's degree after three years with the Mavericks. "A strength again will be the ability to spread the offense around to different hitters," said Sussenguth. "We will be able to have a well balanced attack and an experienced back row."

The Mavericks are certainly a consistent winner, as they've had four state berths in the last six years including a second-place finish in 2010.

Thief River Falls welcomes in a new coach this fall, as Kerri Wichael takes over for Laurie Bitter, who stepped down to pursue her principal internship in Warroad this year. Bitter had led the Prowlers to their only state tournament berth in school history (2012) and won another 27 matches last season, finishing as section runner-up for the second time in three years. Wichael takes over a team that lost many graduates from that squad, but does return kills leader Meleah Biermaier, 6-foot-2 middle Madison Brekke and libero Emily Bergland, a team leader and captain. 

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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." 

"This team will go into next season having played a number of contests together," said North St. Paul coach Steve Anderson, whose team won 21 matches last year and looks to be a strong contender in Section 4AAA. "Our keys to success will be using our team chemistry to our advantage and utilizing the many talents that everyone brings to the table. This team has the potential to be unpredictable offensively and will consistently play tenacious defense."

Sibley East and coach Chip Wolverton expect to take another step forward this year with very experienced junior and senior classes that helped the program to 20 victories last fall. "That experience along with their desire to work hard and improve will be our strength," said Wolverton. "This group became very close last year and maintaining that bond will help us have a great season." 

Spring Lake Park has the old and new in its favor this fall, welcoming in new coach Joy Johnston but returning a host of players that helped the Panthers win 18 matches last fall, including All-North Suburban Conference co-MVP Bailey Israelson.