Wisconsin Lutheran 2018 Season Preview and Players to Watch

Wisconsin Lutheran had a very successful 2017 season. They got second place in the Grayslake Central Ram Slam (IL) and made the semifinals in the Woodland Conference tournament with some big name schools: Greendale, Pewaukee, and New Berlin Eisenhower. They then went on to win their first regional championship in nine years. The Vikings had some key players and leaders that helped the team achieve success in 2017 and will continue to do so through the 2018 season.

Grace Beyer (Class of 2019, Setter, Uncommitted): This is Grace’s fourth year as a varsity starter. She had 769 assists in her 2017 season and has had over 2,000 assists in her volleyball career at Wisconsin Lutheran. She led her team in aces as well. She made first team Woodland West, All Woodland Team, and Honorable Mention All State. She is a strong leader on the court and her consistency is key for the team’s success.

Carissa Sundholm (Class 2019, Outside Hitter, Uncommitted): Carissa has been a varsity starting athlete for the past four years. Her leadership and responsibility has grown throughout her time on the team. Carissa is a versatile hitter with a great vertical and a wide variety of effective shots. She had 291 kills during her junior year.

Morgan Dunn (Class of 2019, Libero): Morgan will be a third year varsity player. She brings energy and spunk to the team as well as extremely consistent and powerful serves. Morgan lead the team in digs last year; receiving 767 serves and digging 547 swings. She will continue to lead the team from the back row and provide energy through her dynamite plays.

Riyan Clement (Class of 2019, Opposite, Uncommitted): This will be Riyan’s third year as a varsity volleyball athlete. In her second year on varsity Riyan contributed 220 kills and 35 blocks. Riyan is a setter during her club season and is clearly a very dynamic athlete. She strengthened the right side position for the Vikings and should continue her awesome play throughout the 2018 season.

Julia Triechel (Class of 2020, Outside Hitter, Uncommitted): Julia has been a varsity starter since her freshman year. This past season, she made 2nd Team All Conference for Woodland West. With 376 kills and a 33.1 kill percentage, Julia made a massive impact on her team’s success. She also contributed 49 aces, 557 serve receive attempts, and 265 digs. Julia has a massive vertical and has great ball control which has improved drastically over the past few years.

While there are some very experience players who will make a huge impact on the Viking’s success this coming season, there are also younger players who will develop and contribute to the team dynamic. Coach Dave Baacke’s goal for the team is “to stay focused on the process of getting better every time we step on the court so that by the end of the season we are playing our best and can play deeper into the postseason.”