The gym at Two Harbors High School has been loud and lively lately, and not just with the usual back-to-school bustle, but with the thrum of a volleyball program that has grown into one of the largest and most spirited groups on the North Shore.
Head coach Ashley Paulson, now in her tenth year with the program, says the growth has been steady, intentional, and rooted in something deeper than numbers.
“I remember 10 years ago that our numbers, we had enough to make all the teams that we wanted, but it does get a little overwhelming when you look into the gym and see so many kids,” she said. “I think this is probably the most kids that we’ve had in the program that I can remember.”
Nearly sixty athletes are in the program this year, with about thirty showing up for each summer conditioning session over the break. The growth, Paulson believes, isn’t accidental. It’s cultural.
“We want the kids to have fun and enjoy playing the sport and have fun with their friends,” she said. “Once they understand that, hey, this is fun and I’m enjoying myself, and then they get a little taste of what the competition is like, then they kind of get into that mode.”
Fun, in Paulson’s vision, isn’t just a word or a concept. It’s a strategy. The team’s summer calendar included Dairy Queen runs, team-building nights, and recently a glow-in-the-dark practice that lit up the court and the team’s social media account.
“It’s more than just showing up in a gym and sweating and working hard,” she said. “It’s having fun with your friends.”
That sense of belonging is central to her coaching philosophy. Paulson started playing volleyball at eight years old, and she remembers what the sport gave her, stating, “As a kid growing up, volleyball always kind of felt like a place where my confidence grew and I could be myself.”
When she talks about her vision for the program, she returns to that memory.
“I want kids who feel like volleyball and the court, the gym, and their team is a safe place to be that helps build their confidence and helps encourage them in a positive way,” she said. “I want kids to feel safe.”
Her definition of growth isn’t just tied to roster size.
“When I say growth as a program, it’s not so much as growth in numbers, but growth in passion and growth in just building people up,” she explained.
She wants athletes who stay, who don’t quit, who feel motivated to improve and connected to their teammates.
“Success in my mind isn’t measured by wins or losses, but by how the kids feel when they leave the court,” Paulson said.
That philosophy has shaped a program that now spans five teams: two junior high squads, C-team, JV, and varsity. The coaching staff includes five coaches, all returning from last year. The junior high program is led by longtime coach Angel Poe-Johnson, who has been coaching in Two Harbors for about thirty years.
“She’s really great with those younger kids,” Paulson said. “Not only just building the skills, but just teaching the love for the sport and hanging out with your friends and doing something that’s fun.”
Angel is joined by Brianna DeLong, whom Ashley described as “phenomenal.”
The staff’s cohesion is one of the program’s strengths.
“We all work and communicate very closely to one another,” Paulson said. “It’s easy when you have coaching staff that sees your vision and helps and wants to make it happen.”
The season opened August 27 with a marathon home match against International Falls, a program that mirrors Two Harbors in size and structure. All five teams played at home that night. Varsity’s match stretched more than two and a half hours and ended in a narrow fifth-set loss, 14–16.
“It didn’t go the way that we wanted,” Paulson said. “But we knew that it was going to be pretty even.”
She noted that the two programs have traded wins and losses over the past several years, so, “I knew that it was going to be a pretty challenging game.”
The loss didn’t dampen her optimism. She spent the next day reviewing film and stats, identifying strengths and weaknesses.
“That first game of the season, there’s always a big question mark,” she said. “Our weaknesses and our strengths are really going to stand out during that first match.”
The team had practice the following day, then the varsity players asked for an extra open gym session Saturday morning.
“We have Monday now to fine-tune a couple more things before we head to Silver Bay on Tuesday,” Paulson told me over the weekend.
She sees plenty of things the team is already doing right, first pointing to the mentorship already happening on and off the court.
“We have some really great leadership from our returning varsity girls, very positive and supportive,” Paulson said.
The varsity roster includes ten players, three of whom are new starters.
“It is nerve-wracking stepping onto the court in your first varsity set,” she said, but the returning players have been “very, very helpful as far as helping to build confidence into those new girls.”
The captains this year are seniors Alicia Hurd and Elaina Anderson, and junior Olivia Haglund. All three are veteran varsity players.
“They all have been really phenomenal leaders,” Ashley said of the captains who were selected through a peer questionnaire that asked JV and varsity athletes what they look for in leadership. “Those three were hands down some of the top three that the rest of the program looks at.”
There are areas to improve, and Paulson was candid about them.
“The things that we need to work on is just having a clear idea of what our roles are going to be out there,” she said.
Communication is another focus.
“Maybe nerves got the best of us on Thursday and our communication could do some improvement there.”
She expects both issues to resolve as confidence builds, advising, “When we have more confidence, then our communication is better.”
The younger athletes are another bright spot. The C-team is primarily ninth graders, many of whom played junior high last year and had an incredible season.
“They did really good at the junior high level and now as ninth graders, I think they’re going to be a lot of fun,” said Paulson.
Her hopes for the season remain grounded in her philosophy.
“Every season I hope that the girls walk into the gym not only at improving their volleyball skills, but just improving their overall confidence in themselves and that their passion and love for the sport continues to grow,” she said. “My hope is that they finish the season here feeling proud of themselves and excited to continue to grow.”
As the program enters its third week of the season, the gym is full, the energy is high, and the future looks bright. Good luck to the Two Harbors Agates Volleyball in their 2026 season!
