Photo by Jake McNeill: The 2025 Marshall volleyball team includes (front row, left to right) Madi Mernaugh, Halle DeVos, Makia Radtke, Kezlyn Pinckney, Reese Drake, Brynn Webb, Anna Thor, Kailyn Pearcy, Sara Dallman, (back row) Sydney Bauer, Chicka Nwakama, Brooke gillingham, Kyah Pinckney, Avery Fahl, Julia Fahl, Nora Holmgren, Trinity Brownlee, Laurel Ryks and Bentley Krull.

MARSHALL — High expectations are the norm when it comes to programs as successful as Marshall volleyball. The Tigers have won nine championships since 2003 — two more than any other program has in Minnesota history — and have finished as the state runner-up another six times. Among those runner-up finishes was the 2024 season, when Marshall fell in four sets to Alexandria. Yet, the Tigers return all but two players from last season and once again enter the year surrounded by championship expectations.

“We’re going into the season with a little bit of a chip on our shoulder. We’re a little bit fired up after losing that game against Alexandria,” Marshall setter Brooke Gillingham said, adding that she feels that Alexandria had a strong group of players, but that Marshall doesn’t want that to happen again. “We just have that reminder in our head like, ‘Hey, this happened last year, so we better clean it up this year and get it done right away.'”

The bulk of Marshall’s senior core has contributed more than just presence to the team’s success. Reese Drake and Avery Fahl were both selected to the Class 3A All-State team as juniors, with Drake also earning the nod as the Independent’s Player of the Year in volleyball and girls basketball season.

Gillingham joined Drake and Fahl on the Class AAA All-Tournament team after the Tigers’ run to the championship round, while Kezlyn Pinckney thrived as the team’s starting libero in her first year in the position.

“We have eight seniors… and they’ve all been through it before, so they know what it takes [to win a championship],” Marshall head coach Dan Westby said. “There’s no replacement for experience… but we’ve also got some players with some talent, so when you combine those two things, we ought to be able to do some things.”

Fahl and Drake have each also played meaningful roles on two state championship runs for the Tigers, while Gillingham started at setter on the Tigers’ most recent in 2023. She also put together one of the best setting seasons in state history that year, tallying 1,128 set assists in her first year starting at the position. That figure ranks fourth in state single-season history, just two slots behind her older sister Maysa’s mark of 1,201 set in 2021.

Last season, Marshall switched from a 5-1 rotation to a 6-2, with Fahl and Gillingham splitting setting duties. Fahl finished the regular season with 462 assists while Gillingham ended with 458. The biggest adjustment for Gillingham was having to hit, she said, adding that it’s harder to run the middle behind the center in the 6-2, but that the Tigers figured it out as the season went along and that having more hitters and more experience this time around should allow them to hit the ground running.

The team will start this year with two setters but see how things go as the season progresses, Westby said, adding that they’re just looking to get their best six players on the court in whatever way possible.

Drake led the team’s attack last season with 400 regular-season kills on a .279 hitting percentage, as well as 387 digs in the back row to trail only Kezlyn Pinckney’s 465. Fahl was also a two-way specialist with 265 kills on efficient .366 hitting, 297 digs and 63 ace blocks, while Laurel Ryks contributed 268 kills in her first season as a primary member of the varsity rotation.

“Our main goal this year is really just to use everybody,” Gillingham said. “Everybody’s a big part of the team, so our coaches remind us a lot in practice — me and Avery, especially, being the setters — to keep everybody involved, give everyone a chance to score, let everybody share a bit of success so we can come together as a team.”

The Tigers graduated two seniors after last season, Audree Larson and Ali Pederson. Larson was a starting middle blocker for the team, with her 23 ace blocks trailing only Fahl. Still, Marshall has some talented underclassmen coming up to help fill that role, including senior Trinity Brownlee, 5-foot-10 sophomore Chika Nwakama and 5-foot-11 freshman Nora Holmgren.

“Hopefully those players that don’t have as much experience look to the kids who do, and look for help when needed on the court and at critical times throughout the match,” Westby said. “Those kids with that experience ought to be able to make those things happen. Those kids have been in a lot of big-game experience, and because of that, when we’re faced with critical times, you should be able to get things done at that point.”

“I think as a team, we’re close together and always have been, but we’re still working hard every single day, getting 1% better every day,” Avery Fahl said. “That’s what our coaches say all the time, and have fun. I mean, it’s volleyball, it’s a fun sport.”

Halle DeVos will also have an increased role for her senior season after tallying 45 kills and 96 digs as a junior.

The Tigers are the top-ranked team in Class 3A to start the season, but their talents will be tested early. They hosted No. 3 Willmar for their home opener on Thursday, and take on Class 4A No. 7 Chanhassen today.

“All of us are just really, really, really excited to have a home game and to play Willmar, because they’re a good team. We’re very, very, very excited to play,” Fahl said.