A strong volleyball program. A beautiful campus.

That was enough to sell Brianna Strong on the University of Northern Colorado.

Mount Vernon's Brianna Strong (13) has orally committed to play volleyball at the University of Northern Colorado. (Gazette file photo)

A junior at Mount Vernon High School, Strong said Monday that she has orally committed to play at UNC, a Big Sky Conference member from Greeley, Colo.

“The campus is so pretty,” said Strong, a 6-foot-2 middle blocker who has helped lead the Mustangs to back-to-back Class 3A state runner-up finishes. “It’s beautiful. And I loved the coaches. It’s a strong program, they like to move their hitters around, and I know they want to get to the NCAA tournament within the next couple years.”

Strong is the second player of this current batch of Mustangs to commit to a Division-I program. Shelby Kintzel will play at Northern Iowa next year.

She averaged 1.9 kills per game and posted a kill efficiency of .387 as the Mustangs finished 39-2. They were ranked No. 1 in Class 3A all season, but were upset by Marion in the state finals.

Four starters return for next season, when the Mustangs drop to Class 2A.

In the meantime, Strong is playing for the Iowa Rockets 17-and-under club team that will compete at nationals in late July.