By Ryanne Riet | [email protected]

Former Murray High volleyball team alum Lori Baird was one of eight chosen to be inducted into the University of Utah’s Hall of Fame in 2020.

Baird graduated from Murray High in 2005 and from the University of Utah in 2009. 

She began her athletic career early at Murray High playing on the freshmen team when she was just in seventh grade. 

During her time at Murray, Baird played in four 4A state tournaments and was named a 4A MVP and 4A first team all-state her senior year. 

“I had some really great coaches that pushed me to be better,” Baird said. “Becky Anderson, in particular, helped me look beyond what I already knew about the game.”

Baird racked up a total of 1,236 kills during her college career, ranking seventh on the school’s record books and 561 total blocks which ranked her third. 

She was also recognized as the All-West Region selection, the AVCA third team All-American, and the Mountain West Conference Co-Player of the Year in 2008.

“For sure my greatest achievement is to be inducted into the U of U’s hall of fame,” Baird said. “It’s incredibly humbling to be placed next to some of the greatest athletes to have passed through the U.”

As Baird looks back on playing for the University of Utah, she recounts one of her most rewarding experiences as when her team beat Colorado State to win the conference title. 

“Being a college athlete is not easy,” Baird said. “It was a huge achievement to not only make it through that freshman year, but the entire four years I had committed to. The team camaraderie and game nights made it all worth it.”

Since graduating, Lori has served on an LDS mission, been married, had two boys, obtained a master’s degree, and has done some work as a school counselor. 

In the future Baird hopes to get back into coaching volleyball and looks forward to cheering her children on as they try out different sports.

“Overall, the challenges that came while playing collegiate volleyball really taught me to face life head on,” Baird said. “I contribute a lot of my success post volleyball to the invaluable lessons that I learned while playing.”