Lakeville South chasing volleyball Three-Peat, but Eagan looms as biggest threat

Lakeville South chasing volleyball Three-Peat, but Eagan looms as biggest threat Alec Ausmus KSTP Lakeville South and Eagan Could Collide in State Tournament The last two seasons ended the same way for Lakeville South’s volleyball team: with a state championship trophy.Now the Cougars are chasing something even more difficult, a third consecutive state title.Lakeville South remains one of Minnesota’s premier programs and is once again among the favorites to bring home a championship. But with back-to-back titles comes added pressure.“We know we have a target on our back,” senior outside hitter Elleora Utecht said. “We don’t expect by any means to win it. We know we have to work as hard as any team out here, but 100 percent it’s in our minds. We would love to make it happen.”Utecht, a Mississippi State commit, headlines a roster loaded with Division I talent.The Cougars are led by senior setter Kaelyn Bjorklund, the reigning Minnesota Gatorade Player of the Year and a Clemson commit. Bjorklund was a key contributor on both championship teams and believes those experiences could pay dividends in another postseason run.“I mean playing in Grand Casino Arena with all of those people there makes those tighter games in the smaller gyms more calm,” Bjorklund said. “We’ve played in those big games, we’ve played in the state championship, we know how the emotions feel.”Lakeville South’s quest for a three-peat, however, may require getting past a team that has already proven it can beat the Cougars this season.That team is Eagan.The longtime rivals have become two of the state’s top contenders, and another meeting could be waiting in the state tournament.“It’s like, OK, we’ll see South here, we’ll see South there,” Eagan’s head coach McKenna Melville said.Like the Cougars, the Wildcats have championship aspirations of their own.“We think about it,” Melville said in her fourth season leading the Wildcats. “It gives us the excitement more than the nervous jitters, more of the excitement jitters.”Eagan’s star power starts with senior outside hitter Mesa Jameson, a Pittsburgh commit and one of the state’s most dominant players.Jameson put that on display earlier this season when she delivered 39 kills in a victory over Lakeville South.“It was so stressful, but I love those types of games,” Jameson said. “During those games I feel like my level of play increases. I feel like I play really good under pressure.”Eagan proved Lakeville South can be beaten.The Cougars, meanwhile, have spent the past two years proving they know how to respond.And if both teams continue on their current paths, a state tournament showdown featuring some of Minnesota’s top talent could determine who finishes the season on top.