Eden Prairie junior Ashley Brueggeman found Texas had nice weather but hockey and good volleyball made Minnesota home.
The Eagles’ outside hitter lived in Shoreview,before her family moved to Texas for her father’s job when Brueggeman was 7.
She returned to the Twin Cities last year and volleyball made the transition from Texas to Minnesota pretty simple.
“It was really easy because I played a fall sport and the team was so supportive,” Brueggeman said. “Everyone’s so together and so positive towards each other. They made it so much easier.”
In just two seasons for the Eagles, the 6-foot-1 attacker has played a major role for Eden Prairie. Brueggeman had 366 kills, more than 80 blocks and a .394 kill percentage last year. She earned All-Conference Honorable Mention honors and was a member of the 2013 Girls’ Volleyball Class 3A All-Tournament team after the Eagles finished fourth at state.
Brueggeman added to her career totals with 11 kills Tuesday as top-ranked Eden Prairie defeated Lake Conference rival Minnetonka 3-0 at Eden Prairie High School and improve to 10-1 this season.
“She’s obviously a powerful attacker and a really strong blocker,” Eagles’ coach Chad Becker said. “She gives us something that we truly needed last year and we continue to need and she’s a fantastic kind of get for us coming out of Texas.”
Brueggeman is glad to be back in Minnesota and said she doesn’t miss living in Texas.
“Not as much as I thought I would,” she added.
Brueggeman also said volleyball was about the same in Texas as in Minnesota but the southern state focused more on big hitters versus the variety off-speed shots used in the Midwest.
She will remain in the Midwest next year. She decided to play volleyball at University of North Dakota, picking UND over North Texas, among other colleges.
“I honestly didn’t think I’d like (UND) when I visited,” she said. “But I loved it and the coach is great, and I love hockey.”
Her original college plans involved heading to the East Coast because she didn’t want to deal with any more cold weather, but UND surprised her.
Becker, however, is not surprised by her Division I skill level.
“She’s got that D1 attacking and blocking ability,” he said. “We’ll just hope she keeps building in this program and our season and also in her senior year.”
