Teams from 2020 Returning to State
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2020 was a bit of an odd year for everything, including high school sports. The WIAA had a fall and an alternate season in the spring and held a state championship for both. A lot of teams are returning this…
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Continue Reading2020 was a bit of an odd year for everything, including high school sports. The WIAA had a fall and an alternate season in the spring and held a state championship for both. A lot of teams are returning this year to the state tournament!
Here is a breakdown of teams who are returning to the state tournament after an appearance in 2020:
Division 1:
Burlington (2020 Fall State Runner-Up)
Burlington has one of the strongest long-running programs in the state. In fact, since 2010, Burlington has only NOT made it to state one time. This will be their 8th straight appearance in the state tournament. They have a large core of athletes at a variety of ages contributing in a major way. Right side Lydia Biggin Lydia Biggin 5'10" | RS Burlington | 2022 State WI had 19 kills in the sectional final alone and leads the team in kills this season. Middle hitter Abby Alan Abby Alan 6'0" | MB Burlington | 2023 State WI was right behind her with 16 kills in the sectional final match. Sophomore setter Ella Safar Ella Safar 5'9" | S Burlington | 2024 State WI runs this offense cleanly and efficiently. Pin hitters Morgan Klein Morgan Klein OH Burlington | 2022 State WI (2022) and Kenna Kornely (2023) also contribute in major ways on the court.
River Falls
River Falls also has a pretty long history of state appearances. Their first state appearance was in 2016 and they have not missed a state tournament since. Seniors Maddy Doerre, Haley Graetz Haley Graetz OH River Falls | 2022 State WI , and Dani Lien Dani Lien OH River Falls | 2022 State WI are key players on the Wildecats offense. Junior setter Morgan Kealy Morgan Kealy 5'11" | S River Falls | 2023 State WI has a light and fast touch on the ball and keeps the offense moving at a fast tempo. Morgan also leads the team in aces and has over 100 kills on the season. There are a large number of highly impactful athletes on this team and they all contribute in major ways.
Appleton North (2020 Alternate Season State Champions)
Appleton North had a heck of a run in 2020 and has not slowed down at all since. This team is overflowing with talent and has 6 athletes committed to play college volleyball. They include Kennedy Martin Kennedy Martin 6'6" | OH Nation Ford | 2023 #23 Nation NC (2023, Committed to Florida), Bella Van Lannen Bella Van Lannen 6'0" | RS Appleton North | 2022 State WI (2022, Committed to Northern Colorado), Karissa Fortune Karissa Fortune 6'2" | OH Appleton North | 2023 State WI (2023, Committed to Drake), Berkley Mischler Berkley Mischler 6'1" | MB Appleton North | 2022 State WI (2022, Committed to Lipscomb), Olivia Lasee Olivia Lasee 6'3" | MB Appleton North | 2023 State WI (2023, Committed to Lehigh), and Brianna Cantrell Brianna Cantrell OH Appleton North | 2022 State #104 Nation WI (2022, Committed to East Tennessee State). Other major impact players on this team include outside hitter Ella Demetrian (2024), setter Emerson Van Lannen Emerson Van Lannen 5'10" | S Appleton North | 2024 State #144 Nation WI (2024), and libero Madisen Miller Madisen Miller 5'8" | DS/L Appleton North | 2022 State WI (2022).
Division 2:
McFarland (Competed D1 in 2020)
McFarland has had an amazing couple of years of volleyball. They made state appearances in 2019 and 2020 and are back now for a third year in a row. They have some huge offensive weapons including Gwen Crull Gwen Crull 6'2" | MB McFarland | 2023 State WI (2023), Hannah Rounds Hannah Rounds RS McFarland | 2022 State WI (2022), Avery Pennekamp Avery Pennekamp 5'11" | OH McFarland | 2022 State WI (2022), and Ainsley Pennekamp. Setter Maddy Fortune Maddy Fortune 5'8" | S McFarland | 2022 State WI (Committed to UW-Stevens Point) runs the offense while libero Holly Casucci leads the back row.
Luxemburg-Casco (2020 State Champions)
Luxemburg-Casco won the state tournament in 2019 and 2020 for Division 2 and they are back for more. Setter Emma Johnson Emma Johnson 5'10" | S Luxemburg-Casco | 2022 State WI (Committed to UW-Green Bay) is a huge leader and energizer on this team. She has over 1,000 assists this season alone and leads the team in aces. Sophomore libero Brook VandeHei is scrappy, fast, and fearless in the back row. Autumn Flynn Autumn Flynn 5'11" | MB Luxemburg-Casco | 2023 State WI (2023), Grace Holschuh Grace Holschuh 5'11" | OH Luxemburg Casco | 2022 State WI (Committed to UW-Green Bay), Kylie Hanson Kylie Hanson 5'8" | OH Luxemburg-Casco | 2023 State WI (2023), and Campbell Onell (2025) all have a huge impact on this team offensively as well as on defense.
Division 3:
Howards Grove (2020 Fall State Champions)
Howards Grove has won the Division 3 state championship for the past two years. They are incredibly dynamic and play a gritty and defensive style of volleyball. Impact players for Howards Grove include outside hitter/liberos Saige Damrow Saige Damrow 5'8" | DS/L Howards Grove | 2023 State #17 Nation WI (2023, Committed to Wisconsin) and Karissa Kaminski Karissa Kaminski 5'9" | DS/L Howards Grove | 2022 State #166 Nation WI (Committed to Dayton). Both are huge assets on both offense and defense and both have trained with USA Volleyball in the High Performance/National Team Development Program. Setter Emma Baierl Emma Baierl 5'8" | S Howards Grove | 2022 State WI (Committed to Truman State) has earned playing time on varsity since her freshman year and has 2,346 career assists. Mallory Godziewski (2024), Josie Larson (2023), Myka Roethel (2022), Elle Kennedy Elle Kennedy 5'5" | DS/L Howards Grove | 2024 State WI (2024), and Olivia Baierl Olivia Baierl 5'8" | DS/L Howards Grove | 2024 State WI (2024) all also see significant playing time and have a strong impact on this team.
Division 4:
McDonell Catholic (2020 Fall State Runner Up)
2020 was McDonell’s first state appearance in 10 years and they are back again! There will be a number of familiar faces and impact players who were on the team last year including Marley Hughes Marley Hughes 5'8" | OH McDonell Central | 2023 State WI (2023), Kait Ortmann (2022), Destiny Baughman (2022), and Lauryn Deetz (2022). Sophomore setters Emily Cooper and Abby Bresina are other high-level players on this team who bring a lot of consistency.