Team Preview: Northfield Raiders
Immediately making their presence known in the early stages of the 2019 high school volleyball season are the Northfield Raiders. Currently unranked in the class AAA poll, that may change very soon as respect for the Raiders will increase following…
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Continue ReadingImmediately making their presence known in the early stages of the 2019 high school volleyball season are the Northfield Raiders. Currently unranked in the class AAA poll, that may change very soon as respect for the Raiders will increase following a great week of volleyball success against high quality opponents. With back-to-back wins over #9 ranked New Prague and #7 Prior Lake, the 2019 version of Northfield volleyball is the real deal. The Raiders needed five sets to defeat New Prague in a very exciting match before sweeping Prior Lake 3-0. If early season results over some of Minnesota’s best teams are any indication, Northfield should be expected to be in the hunt for a berth into the state tournament. In 2018, their season ended with a tough five-set loss in the Section 1 semifinals to Lakeville South , class AAA’s third-place finisher at state.
With the graduation of a key outside and middle, the Raiders entered the season looking for some answers regarding that offensive production. In a big way, the activity on the left pin has quickly become one of the most trusted roles for point scoring with the rise and presence of two junior outside hitters. Rachel Wieber Rachel Wieber 6'0" | OH Northfield | 2021 State MN (Prep Dig #66 | 2018 Big 9 all-conference honorable mention) and Megan Reilly Megan Reilly 6'0" | OH Northfield | 2021 State MN (Prep Dig #54). Wieber played a consistent ball control role for the Raiders last season and has exploded out of the gates in 2019 with her offense at the net. She currently leads the team with 44 kills on the season with an average of 4.0 kills per set on a .309 hitting clip. She has been in double-figure kills in each of the Raiders’ first three matches, tallying 23 against New Prague. The offensive balance is a big strength for Northfield, as Reilly complements Wieber extremely well averaging 3.8 kills per set at a .303 attack efficiency. Junior middle Sylvia Koenig Sylvia Koenig 6'1" | MB Northfield | 2021 State MN leads the team in hitting efficiency at .426 while averaging 2.2 kills her set. Her effectiveness is proving worthy of respect from opposing defenses, which allows Wieber and Reilly some space on the pins. The fourth piece to the Northfield offense is veteran senior right side Bronwyn Timperley Bronwyn Timperley 5'11" | MB Northfield | 2020 State MN (Prep Dig #22 | 2018 Big 9 all-conference selection). She is a Northern Colorado commit and currently averages 1.5 kills per set at .286 percentage. The floor general is senior Lida King Lida King 6'1" | S Northfield | 2020 State MN (Prep Dig #80) and she has shown her vast improvements with her mobility, quickness, touch, and location, which is proving to be such a huge piece to their early success against some quality opponents. She currently averages 10.5 assists per set, amassing 40 assists in their first match versus Farmington (in three sets) followed by 52 assists in the five-set match with New Prague and 28 versus Prior Lake.
Defensively, this may be where Northfield is at their best although their offense right now is low error and showing good balance. Junior libero Emma Torstenson Emma Torstenson 5'11" | DS/L Northfield | 2021 State MN (Prep Dig #7 | 2018 Big 9 all-conference selection) is a Colorado commit and consistently provides her Pac-12 caliber skills in serve receive and defense that keeps Northfield in system often. She is steady with a current average of 4.6 digs per set, which includes picking 28 digs against New Prague. Torstenson has incredible support around her as Wieber’s back row skills are high level as well as she is averaging 3.2 digs per set while Timperley collects 2.8 digs per set with 19 of those earned against New Prague.
Northfield’s depth is a mix of juniors and freshmen as their roster has only two seniors. Additional roster members are:
- Emma Hodapp – 2021 | MH
- Laura Wellbrock Laura Wellbrock 5'10" | OH Northfield | 2021 State MN – 2021 | DS
- Sydney Jaynes Sydney Jaynes 6'0" | OH Northfield | 2023 State #48 Nation MN – 2023 | OH
- Annelise Larson Annelise Larson 5'11" | MB Northfield | 2023 State MN – 2023 | MH
- Teagan Timperley Teagan Timperley 6'1" | S Northfield | 2023 State MN – 2023 | S
Look for Northfield to continue to compete extremely well going forward and to work their way into the class AAA rankings very soon. They have a great collection of individual talent, a goal to win the Big 9 conference for the third straight year, and a hunger to ultimately advance through the section tournament for a spot in the 2019 state championships. Don’t be surprised if they get there.