Her mom, also her assistant coach, played Division II volleyball and now Ella Walker is following in her footsteps. On Wednesday the Proctor High School senior signed her National Letter of Intent (NLI) to play volleyball for the University of Sioux Falls.

“My mom continued her career and played at UMD all throughout college, and I decided that I would like to beat some of her records. So that’s a big part of just the competitiveness,” Walker laughed. “Then the other part was I love the sport. Ever since I could walk, I’ve been playing volleyball so I just decided to continue it.”

Standing at 6’2” Ella Walker stoodout both in stature and skills for the Rails.

Graduating from UMD in 1998, her mom Kirsten Walker (Eidsmoe) became one of just 10 Bulldogs to record 1,000 career kills and 1,000 career digs.

Earlier in the day, fellow Proctor standout AJ Reyelts announced his commitment to play Division I hockey for Lindenwood University in Missouri. A junior goalie last year he posted a .926 save percentage with 2.34 goals against average.

Also Wednesday, Grand Rapids celebrated two collegiate signings:

Jessica Lofstrom signed her NLI to play basketball for the University of Jamestown. Last winter she helped the Thunderhawks to the state tournament averaging 16 points and eight rebounds a game.

Braya Laplant committed to play volleyball at St. Cloud State University. This year she helped Grand Rapids to a Class AAA state consolation championship.