Heinonen signs with SCSU

Posted on: Dec 14, 2018

After four years patrolling the court as Delano’s starting setter, volleyball standout Brynn Heinonen secured a future college career when she signed a National Letter of Intent to play with St. Cloud State University next fall.

According to Delano head coach Becca Rue, Heinonen made an impression on St. Cloud coach Chad Braegelmann long before she climbed the charts to third place on Delano’s all-time list of assists leaders. During a brief speech just prior to Heinonen’s signing on Nov. 30, Rue recalled talking with Chad Braegelmann, then the volleyball coach at the University of Minnesota-Morris, at a camp when Heinonen was around the middle school age.

“Even in those years, even though Brynn was a lot younger than the girls he was probably more looking at, he commented about how much energy she had and how loud she was,” Rue said. “Even when I was talking to him this summer, he remembered Brynn from years ago and he said that she was this little girl but she played way above her size. She commanded the court as if she was many years older. It’s kind of a small world that now he’s going to be her coach.”

Heinonen thanked her family, teammates and coaches for their support over the years in remarks prior to her signing with the Huskies, who compete at the Division II level.

“I would not be the player I am today without you,” she said.

Some of Heinonen’s favorite high school memories included playing with her older sister Brittni, and making it to the section final in her junior year.

“Delano has given me so many opportunities, and I can’t thank everyone enough,” she said. “I will miss Delano and high school volleyball next year, but I’m super excited to be a St. Cloud State Husky.”

All-around leader
According to Rue, Heinonen finished just 57 assists short of 3,000 for her career, and just 73 digs short of 1,000. She missed one tournament this year, and might otherwise have reached that monumental assists plateau.

“Brynn has always been a spark plug on the court. If you ever played with her you know that,” said Rue. “She has a love for this game that is contagious to those around her.”

The Heinonen family is familiar with college athletics, as Heinonen’s older brother Tyler played hockey and Ellen played volleyball, both at Michigan Tech.

“I know that playing at the collegiate level has been a dream of hers since she’s been coming to camps,” said Rue. “Lucky for us, St. Cloud is pretty close to home, so it will be fun. We’ll get to come and watch her.”

Aside from statistics, Rue said that Heinonen has been a first-team all-Wright County Conference East member twice, received multiple all-tournament team honors, and has also been an academic all-state winner.

“Brynn, over the course of her career here at the high school, has done phenomenal things in volleyball, but also as a student and as a leader in our school,” said Delano Activities Administrator Ryan Tool at the start of the signing ceremony. “So we’re really excited to hear what her plans are for the future.”

With signature in place, those future plans were solidified.

“Brynn has dedicated a ton of time to this sport,” said Rue. “Being able to play Division II is definitely well-deserved. It will be fun to follow her in her next chapter of life.”

• Heinonen is the daughter of Stephen and Amy Heinonen. In addition to Tyler, Ellen and Brittni, Heinonen also has a younger sister, Kayla.

Post Categories: High School