Last week the CCHS gym was filled with girls’ grades 7th -12 pushing hard in conditioning drills and working diligently on setting, receiving, bumping and serving volleyballs, skills needed to compete in the always competitive Polar League. Enthusiasm was high as the kids practiced under the watchful eye of Coach Zimmer.

Viking Volleyball Head Coach Marley Zimmer greeted 50 kids grades 7-12 for volleyball, a number not seen in many years at Cook County High School.

“For the first time since I have been here, we will be able to field five entire teams, a seventh grade and an eighth-grade team, and have full C- B- and Asquads,” said Ms. Zimmer.

In addition to increased numbers, Ms. Zimmer has seven seniors to help provide leadership to the younger kids.

“Over 30 girls attended the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) summer camps,” said Ms. Zimmer. “Many of those kids were 7th and 8th graders. Those camps are aimed at teaching kids how to play specific positions. Augsburg College also held a summer camp here for our girls that was well attended.”

Cook County had long been the smallest school in the large school Polar League, but that has changed with Wrenshall/ Carlton joining forces and moving to the large school division and Cook County bumping down into the smaller school division.

That’s good news for the football team, who will now play schools more Cook County’s size; unfortunately, the change came too late for the volleyball team. “We will still have to play Esko, Barnum and the other schools in the Large School division because the volleyball schedule was set before the announcement came,” Ms. Zimmer said. However, she noted that the girls’ basketball team would play against schools our size in the winter.

The Viking’s first game of the season is an away against Silver Bay on August 29. The Vikings first home game is scheduled against Two Harbors on September 14. The JV takes the floor at 5:15 p.m. while the varsity will play at 6:30 p.m.