BOZEMAN — Recent Gallatin High School graduate Cadence Lundgren capped off a storied high school career last weekend, helping lead her team to victory in the fourth annual Montana All-Star Volleyball Classic.
Now she looks ahead to Kansas State as she'll suit up for the Division-I Wildcats in her next chapter.
"Just being able to have left my mark the way that I did, is just, it means a lot to me, for sure," Lundgren said about her time in Bozeman. "I’m forever grateful for my career here, and I would not be the volleyball player I am without this school."
In the all-star match at Lockwood High School in Billings, Lundgren led with 19 kills as the Blue Team grabbed the four-set win over the Red Team.
"It was a really cool game to be able to compete in because it was with a bunch of my high school players too," Lundgren said. "Big Sky Volleyball represented the game well too, so it was really good to just have a diverse group of girls competing for the last time before we all head to college."
Big Sky Volleyball is a local club program with some of the best players from the state — and an organization that Lundgren gives much credit to for her development both on and off the court.
"I have been playing with them since I was10, so it’s definitely been a really big part of my career, for sure," Lundgren explained. "That club has been so supportive and so welcoming to me, has really grown my game on so many levels, not just as an athlete alone, but as a person, too."
For Lundgren, her senior season was one she will remember for years to come — especially with it being capped off with Gallatin’s first state volleyball title.
"My senior high school volleyball season was one of the best," she said. "I would not take anything that happened for granted at all. I had a really great time and a great experience. And it was obviously my third year with Gus (coach Erika Gustavsen), so (our) relationship continued to be super strong. We always had each other’s back throughout the season, which I really appreciated."
Lundgren helped build the Raptors program from the ground up and now leaves a legacy behind for the team to build on.
"To show up in the gym with a winning mentality," Lundgren said about the legacy she hopes she left. "I feel like that’s always something I’ve brought to every court that I’ve stepped on is just having the urgency to want to win, and I feel like that is the mentality I was able to spread to some of my girls. I just I love the game. I really do, and having that passion that I can spread to other girls is really what I love to do."
