SALT LAKE CITY- Utah volleyball has had a long line of great players come through Beth Launiere’s program. Count super-senior Madelyn Robinson as the latest. On December 14, 2022, Robinson was named an AVAC All-American Honorable Mention, ending her career at Utah as the 15th All-American in program history.

Going out with a bang! 💥

Madelyn Robinson has been named an AVCA Honorable Mention All-American 🙌 Nobody more deserving!

🔗: https://t.co/shuT6QfqbX pic.twitter.com/BcK8b1mRp5

— Utah Volleyball (@UtahVolleyball) December 14, 2022

After transferring in 2020 from BYU to Utah, Robinson was set over the past summer to transition to professional volleyball with a contract in hand. Robinson ended up having a change of heart and came back to the Utes instead and finished her final season of eligibility ranked 11th in the country in kills per set (4.51).

“I just thought another year to help me get better would help me get a better contract,” Robinson said of her decision to come back for one more season. “Also, I just wasn’t ready to be done yet.”

A Drive For Greatness

Robinson is a tad reserved about her incredible accomplishments on the court, but her coach, Utah legend, Beth Launiere is not. Launiere could not be prouder of her star outside hitter for her hard work, patience waiting for her turn behind Dani Drews, and just Robinson’s overall drive for greatness.

“The thing that describes Madi is her passion for the sport more than anything and her drive to be great and her work ethic,” Launiere said. “That’s Madi, I think she has had a very positive impact on our culture of our program in terms of- I think we’ve always worked hard, but when you have a player that’s always getting in the gym and getting extra reps before practice and after practice, those kinds of things influence people around you. I think we have a really good culture of people always wanting to get extra work and to get better in the summer. A lot of that as of late is Madi being a role model.”

Diving into winter break head first after we kill our finals this week❗️#GoUtes pic.twitter.com/EE1uKsAwga

— Utah Volleyball (@UtahVolleyball) December 12, 2022

Robinson’s hard work paid off in her final year. On top of ranking 11th in the country for kills per set and earning an AVAC All-American Honorable Mention, Robinson also had seven matches in 2022 with 20 kills or more and led the Utes in kills in all but two matches.

Robinson posted a career best against Oregon in 2022 with 28 kills in just four sets. In total for Robinson’s career, she tallied 1,360 kills, 731 digs, and 135.5 blocks. Robinson leaves Utah a two-time AVCA Pacific South All-Region player and a three-time All-Pac-12 selection in just three years with the Utes.

A Bright Future Filled With More Local Talent

Outside hitters Dani Drews and Madi Robinson may be the latest local talents to go through Utah volleyball, but Launiere has more waiting in the wings. Freshman KJ Burgess showed flashes of greatness in her Utah debut this season. The Utes also have another talented local outside hitter in Lauren Jardine who transferred from Wisconsin to her hometown team.

Launiere doesn’t think the Utah pipeline of local talent will be drying up anytime soon either noting there is a passion in the state for the sport that’s been alive for a long time.

𝐊𝐉 𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐬 ➡️ 𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜 𝐒𝐨𝐮𝐭𝐡 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐅𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐡𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐘𝐞𝐚𝐫❗️

KJ is just the THIRD Ute in program history to win the award 🔥 The future is so bright for this Ute!

🔗: https://t.co/VMeZtAPYgl pic.twitter.com/t0llwJmja1

— Utah Volleyball (@UtahVolleyball) December 6, 2022

“I think volleyball in the state of Utah has been strong for a long time,” Launiere said. “There are a large number of players who play volleyball. We don’t have the numbers that California has or some other states, but there is always a lot of very good Division I players coming out of the state of Utah, and we are fortunate to have gotten some great players through the years. I’ve built this program through a lot of great in-state talent over time, and I think that’s a great place to start building a program from.”

Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for KSLsports.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram: @BodkinKSLsports

 

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