MINNEAPOLIS — A reverse sweep victory in the section championship is consequential enough.
“I was in disbelief,” said Apple Valley sophomore outside hitter Sophia Cowen. “I’ve never cried after a win before. All the emotions came rushing out of me and I just had to cry.”
But this win, for the Apple Valley volleyball team, meant so much more.
“I never thought I would have gone to state,” said senior outside and middle hitter Hannah Gudknecht. “Especially since my freshman year we haven’t had a very good record. Especially for these past three years.”
It had been 23 years since the Eagles went to state. In the interim, things had gotten dire. Like, winning just 12 sets in 27 matches two years ago. Things weren’t much better last season either.
“Kind of hopeless,” said Gudknecht. “It felt like we kind of couldn’t do anything.”
But underneath the losing, Apple Valley was improving. This year, they were not perfect, but finally good. To get there, the head game had to adjust.
“We all have a similar understanding. This is what we want,” said Cowen. “We all want it very deep in our hearts. To have that connection with your team is really important.”
“I knew it was there,” said senior libero Madelyn Welsch. “But we had to have the motivation to get there. And have the mental change and mindset reset.”
“We have a lot of girls that are playing club now. Compared to how it was when I started,” explained Apple Valley head coach Hannah Specktor. “So that definitely helps. The girls getting consistent reps through the winter.”
The team historically has watched the state tournament from the stands.
“Last year I told Hannah, imagine if we played in here and now we are,” said Welsch. “So it’s kind of like a dream come true.”
This year, Apple Valley played in the state tournament. Though it didn’t end with a championship, a mountaintop was reached in 2024.
“From the beginning, seeing where we were, and now escalating up to this point… We lost first round of sections every year,” said Gudknecht. “Now making it to this point has been really exciting.”
