REGIONAL - As the high school volleyball season wound down last fall, the next stage in the careers of two area players was just about to begin.

North Woods’ Kayla Tschida and Northeast Range’s Hannah Reichensperger earned the opportunity to take their games to the next level on Minnesota North traveling teams beginning in November, with both concluding at national tournaments in June.

Tschida played on the Minnesota North 15-1 Navy team and Reichensperger played on the Minnesota North 13-1 team.

Tschida’s team went 8-2 to earn the bronze medal out of 48 teams at its national tournament in Chicago, only losing a pair of third-set tiebreakers against teams from Puerto Rico and Colorado.

“It was a very unforgettable experience,” Tschida said. “It’s not something you get to do every day. There were a variety of different teams, some very good and some not so good. It was an experience I’ve always dreamed of having during my volleyball career.”

Reichensperger’s team went 9-3 to earn 37th place out of 96 teams at its national tournament in Florida, concluding a season in which it took on, and took down, several older teams.

“The National Tournament down in Florida was amazing,” Reichensperger said. “We played 12 matches and played teams from Florida, California, Indiana, Kentucky, Illinois, Colombia, Nebraska and Texas. We also got to see teams from Peru, Puerto Rico and Ecuador. The competition down in Florida was pretty much the same as we see in all of the tournaments that we played in; there were some really tough teams and there were some teams that weren’t so tough. It was so much fun.”

The intensity level of the programs ratchets up even higher than the high school season, the players said, with opportunities to grow and expand their games.

“I would say that it is more intense than playing volleyball during the school year,” Reichensperger said. “We play volleyball for seven months, with tournaments almost every weekend. The competition in the 13s age division, in bigger tournaments down in the Cities, is really good. Most of the tournaments that we played in we played up in the 14s division. The highlight of the season would be taking first place in a 14s tournament down in the Cities, beating out our own 14s national team.

“What I learned was that I can be friends with ‘the competition.’ Some of my teammates on my Minnesota North team are players on teams that I will see during the school year. It’ll be cool to actually know the competition this year. I think it makes the game more fun.”

“I think Minnesota North is more intense because you play game after game,” Tschida said. “I learned lots of new things from the program and my teammates. The program taught me how to be a better volleyball player. My teammates taught me how to be a better teammate.”

Playing so much volleyball, especially late-night practices in Duluth, was sometimes a challenge, but one that both players savored.

“Offseason volleyball is really long and there was a lot of traveling, but all of a sudden it was over,” Reichensperger said. “I miss it already.”

“I love volleyball,” Tschida said. “If I could do it year-round for the rest of my life, I would do it.”