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Mabel-Canton (M-C) Volleyball Coach, Lonnie Morken, made history Thursday evening, September 25, reaching an astounding 885 career wins and 150 losses. He moved up to second place for all-time career victories in Minnesota high school volleyball history.
“I’ve never thought about breaking records,” he said. “I just wanted to be number one. I’ve been blessed with some hardworking kids and some supportive parents and a community that just says, ‘Yeah, this is cool. Let’s keep trying to be good at volleyball every year.’”
Morken’s impact on M-C volleyball is undeniable. The school won their first conference championship five years after Morken arrived at M-C. They are presently on a streak of 27 straight league out-right or division titles. Currently, the team is ranked 7th in the state.
Over the years, 34 girls have gone on to play college volleyball, at every level from junior college, community college all the way up to Division One. His own daughters (Sophie and Sahara) now play at Luther College and Gustavus Adolphus in St. Peter, Minn. Former players have competed at North Carolina State, Syracuse, and Fairfield in Connecticut. He has also had 15 former players go into coaching.
Coach Morken’s story begins in Spring Grove, Minn. where he attended Spring Grove Public Schools. He shared that he was competitive and participated in all sports. After graduating from high school, he went on to attend Luther College, where he earned a degree in Elementary Education.
After college, he applied for a teaching job at his alma mater but wasn’t hired. The school was seeking someone from outside the area. At just 22 years old, Morken began teaching at M-C and has now been coaching there for 32 years.
Morken credits the success of the program to three things: “a knowledgeable coach, hardworking athletic kids, and supportive parents.”
Morken’s mentor, retired Stewartville volleyball coach John Dzubay, who currently holds the record for the most wins in Minnesota high school volleyball, said, “The respect goes both ways. I look up to Lonnie, and I consider him my mentor.” “Records are meant to be broken. I can’t think of a better great guy to break my record, and he deserves it.”
Morken starts developing talent early, teaching kindergarten P.E. and introducing organized volleyball by third grade. He also runs a weeklong volleyball summer camp every year. He was inspired by his early experiences coaching summer camps with Dzubay and his other mentor, retired Apple Valley coach Walt Weaver.
Morken mention how supportive the parents are. “None-, 10-, and 11-year-olds don’t have their driver’s license. So how are they going to get to practice? How are going to get to the weight room in the summer? How are they going to get to speed and agility training? The parents got to bring them in. And if they work, they got to find a grandparent or an aunt or uncle, or older brother or sister to bring them in.”
Dzubay credits Lonnie for creating a consistently winning team, beginning with his patience. “He is a great person and a great coach, and they just kind of revere him. I think they are wanting to please him and do what he asked, and that’s a huge thing.”
Bethany Moen, a former player who has coached with him for 24 years, proudly shared that he is incredibly passionate about volleyball and is invested in the players, parents, and the community and has touched the lives of so many.
When it comes to challenges, Morken has a clear philosophy; “Don’t look at what you don’t have. Don’t complain about what you don’t have, look at what you can do.”
As for the legacy he hopes to leave behind?
“I would hope people would say that I’ve never expected the girls to work any harder than I have worked. I hope the girls have seen somebody in me that is going to go all in on their success, not only as a volleyball player, but also as a person. I’m hoping people would say I’m positive, upbeat, energetic, and I don’t make any excuses or give reasons why things can’t happen or didn’t happen. I just look for ways to make things happen.”
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