2026 All-Minnesota Girls Volleyball Player of the Year: Kaelyn Bjorklund

2026 All-Minnesota Girls Volleyball Player of the Year: Kaelyn Bjorklund The Lakeville South senior setter and Clemson recruit orchestrated the offense for back-to-back Class 4A volleyball title teams. Comment Gift Share By Marcus Fuller The Minnesota Star Tribune November 10, 2026 at 6:00 AM Lakeville South’s Kaelyn Bjorklund, ranked by Prep Dig as Minnesota’s top girls volleyball player in the 2027 class, considered basketball her No. 1 sport growing up. Bjorklund juggled youth basketball and volleyball and remembers wanting to handle and pass the ball like former Hopkins and Connecticut great Paige Bueckers, who’s now a star in the WNBA. “I always watched Paige Bueckers,” Bjorklund said. At 14, she was a rising hoops prospect. Bjorklund strongly considered giving up AAU volleyball after ninth grade to focus mostly on becoming a college basketball recruit. That all changed after her Northern Lights club volleyball team shone on the national stage that summer. “I was planning to pick basketball,” Bjorklund said. “But then I won a national [AAU volleyball] championship in Florida. That’s kind of what changed it all. I was like, ‘Why would I quit club in this fun sport?’ ” She gave up basketball after her freshman season on Lakeville South’s varsity team. Bjorklund didn’t pursue basketball as far as Bueckers did, but the qualities that made her successful in the sport — court vision, toughness, size and athleticism — helped her excel at volleyball and earn Strib Varsity’s All-Minnesota Girls Volleyball Player of the Year honor. “I feel like in basketball and volleyball you really need good court vision,” Bjorklund said. “I feel like I got that mostly from basketball. I feel like my passing ability was really good in basketball.” ADVERTISEMENT advertisement Bjorklund developed her passing skills to become one of the nation’s best setters, running the offense for back-to-back Class 4A title teams in 2024 and 2025. “Top setter in the state over the past two seasons,” Lakeville South coach Steve Willingham said. “She has been the most efficient pin hitter on her No. 1-ranked 4A team. She is a six-rotation, three-way player [offense, defense, setting] who is a threat at any attack position along the net.” A year ago, Bjorklund, who is committed to play at Clemson, was named Minnesota’s Gatorade Player of the Year as a junior. She led the Cougars to a 31-3 record with a state-best 967 assists. Related Coverage Meet the 2026 Strib Varsity All-Minnesota girls volleyball team Girls Volleyball Girls volleyball state tournament brackets are set: See every matchup Girls Volleyball Top 25: Who’s closing in on a state tournament berth? Girls Volleyball This season, the 6-1 Bjorklund has shared setting duties with sophomore Amy Utecht to add more scoring punch to the team. She had over 400 assists but also 200 kills in the regular season while hitting a team-best .326. Her season high was 18 kills in a five-set loss to Eagan. Not many setters try to match Eagan’s Mesa Jameson, who is committed to Pittsburgh, kill for kill late in a big match, but that shows Bjorklund’s competitiveness and versatility. She and Jameson are considered Minnesota’s top volleyball players, regardless of class. “It’s really fun to play those competitive matches,” Bjorklund said. “Mesa and I will see each other in college because we’re both going to play in the ACC. That will be fun.” advertisement Bjorklund’s talent and bubbly personality make her a joy to play with. That was evident last year, when her teammates swarmed her after Lakeville South defeated Prior Lake at Grand Casino Arena to win its second state title. Winning a third consecutive state championship is a challenge, especially after graduating key players. Bjorklund won two state titles with Elleora Utecht and Romi Chlebecek as her go-to hitters, but Chlebecek is gone (460 kills last year), leaving a big hole to fill offensively this season. “I knew this team was going to be different from past years,” Bjorklund said. “We had to bring up a lot of younger girls, so I felt like I had to step up as a leader.” The Cougars’ resolve was tested when they lost three matches in two weeks this fall, as many losses as they had all last season. That included their first home loss since 2024. In those tough moments, Lakeville South’s biggest volleyball star knew she had to be a leader. advertisement advertisement “[I] had to show my leadership more through my voice in huddles and in practice, holding people accountable,” Bjorklund said. “We needed that to make us push even harder to end the season.” Share Comment About the Author Marcus Fuller Reporter Marcus Fuller is Strib Varsity's Insider reporter, providing high school beat coverage, features, analysis and recruiting updates. He's a former longtime Gophers and college sports writer for the Minnesota Star Tribune. See More advertisement advertisement More From Girls Volleyball Meet the 2026 Strib Varsity All-Minnesota girls volleyball team Girls Volleyball Girls volleyball state tournament brackets are set: See every matchup Girls Volleyball Minnesota Top 25: Strib Varsity’s statewide girls volleyball rankings, postseason edition Girls Volleyball advertisement advertisement