Block Party: 2025 Girls Volleyball Week 6 Report
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
October 1, 2025
Just a few weeks ago, we got this inaugural "Block Party" started. And this week, we've already surpassed the midpoint of the 2025 girls volleyball regular season.
District tournament play begins is just a little more than four weeks, on Monday, Nov. 3. But even now, every match counts as we're in the second year of using Michigan Power Ratings (MPR) to determine seeding of the top two teams in every District. Click to link above to see how teams stack up not only in their entire Division but also in their District with pairings set to be assigned Oct. 26.
Records, results and schedules below are those posted for teams on MHSAA.com. Rankings reflect the latest polls posted by the Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association (MIVCA).
Week in Review
The countdown of last week’s five most intriguing results:
1. Plymouth Christian Academy d. Mendon (25-12, 25-12) A 5-0 day for Division 3 No. 3 PCA (24-5-0) at the Division 3-4 Showdown included this most notable win over the Division 4 top-ranked Hornets (21-3-1).
2. Farmington Hills Mercy d. Utica Eisenhower (17-25, 25-13, 15-13) After losing the first set, Division 1 No. 3 Mercy (12-2-0) rebounded to even the score and then hold off No. 6 Eisenhower (19-2-1) in the match decider at the Motor City Power Series.
3. Mendon d. Battle Creek St. Philip (25-18, 16-25, 25-16, 25-21) Coming off a 3-2 run at the Division 3-4 Showdown, Mendon continued to justify its Division 4 No. 1 status with this win over the No. 3 Tigers (16-9-4).
4. Battle Creek Lakeview d. Grand Rapids Catholic Central (19-25, 25-18, 15-10) Lakeview (25-5-5) finished 4-0-1 at its invitational, with the tie also against the Division 2 No. 6 Cougars (19-8-1) before winning the rematch in three sets.
5. Grand Rapids South Christian d. Frankenmuth (25-16, 28-26) This Motor City Power Series matchup pitted the Division 2 No. 8 Sailors (14-7-0) and now-No. 10 Eagles (9-6-4), who entered the weekend ranked Nos. 8 and 7, respectively.
Watch List
With an eye toward November, here are two teams in each division making sparks:
DIVISION 1
Byron Center (19-4-0) The Bulldogs went 13-2 in September and remain an honorable mention in the latest poll after an open weekend. They most recently went 4-0 at their Cristi Curtis Memorial Invitational, and their losses this fall have come against No. 1 Rockford, No. 5 Jenison, No. 8 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern and honorable mention Lowell. Byron Center will get a second chance against Jenison on Oct. 16.
Cadillac (18-3-0) The Vikings have begun another march through the Big North Conference – most notably with a five-set win over Traverse City Central on Monday – and they own solid early wins over Division 3 No. 8 Traverse City St. Francis, honorable mention McBain and Division 4 Ubly. The losses came to Division 3 No. 2 Roscommon, No. 4 Kingsley, and Mount Pleasant, all in weekend tournament play.
DIVISION 2
Kingsford (12-0-0) Despite graduating all-stater Madelynn Kreider in the spring, the honorable mention Flivvers are continuing a pace that took them to a 31-5 finish and District title a year ago. The most notable wins so far have come over Division 4 No. 10 Hancock during a 6-0 day at Kingsford’s season-opening invitational and then Calumet on Sept. 11, and they’ll see Negaunee for a second time Thursday after sweeping the Miners during opening weekend.
Milan (10-4-0) The Huron League is loaded this season with Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central again ranked No. 1 in Division 3 and Flat Rock coming off a win over the Kestrels last week. Add Milan to the mix, with losses only to another league foe New Boston Huron, plus SMCC, Division 2 No. 7 Tecumseh and honorable mention Parma Western. The Big Reds won their first meeting with Flat Rock and have a nice victory over Division 3 honorable mention Bronson as well.
DIVISION 3
Kalamazoo Christian (17-6-3) Coming off last year’s run to the Division 3 Semifinals, the No. 6-ranked Comets are facing a schedule filled with Division 1 and 2 teams. They’ve won 10 of their last 12 matches, the defeats coming two weeks ago at the Battle Creek Lakeview Invitational to Division 1 Portage Northern and Division 2 Chelsea. The only loss to a non-D1/D2 opponent came during a season-opening invitational to No. 5 Pewamo-Westphalia, which K-Christian also defeated that day.
McBain (11-7-0) The honorable mention Ramblers have won nine of their last 10 matches as they settle into Highland Conference play with the biggest coming up Thursday against No. 2 Roscommon – which defeated McBain in tournament play Aug. 29 and also ended the Ramblers’ 2024 run in the Regional Finals. McBain already has avenged an early loss this fall to honorable mention Manton and will see the Rangers again Oct. 28. The other defeats came three times to No. 4 Kingsley and once to Calumet and Cadillac.
DIVISION 4
Fowler (13-5-1) A Regional finalist last season, Fowler will definitely be prepared for top competition during tournament time. The Eagles started this season defeating current honorable mention Onekama and have taken losses to Division 1 Portage Northern, Division 3 No. 3 Plymouth Christian Academy, Division 4 No. 2 Ubly (twice) and No. 5 Mount Pleasant Sacred Heart. Fowler also tied and then defeated Division 1 Midland Dow at the start of September. The Eagles will get their next major challenge Thursday at Pewamo-Westphalia.
Ishpeming (12-2-1) An opening draw with Newberry and losses to Negaunee and Calumet are the only flaws during an otherwise excellent start. Ishpeming then defeated Newberry at the Rudyard Invitational and will have a chance to see Negaunee again as well. Unranked at this time, the Hematites could equal last season’s 16 wins by the end of this weekend at the Escanaba Elks Invitational, where most notably they’ll see No. 8 Crystal Falls Forest Park.
Can’t-Miss Contests
Be on the lookout for results of these matches and tournaments coming up:
Thursday – Fowler at Pewamo-Westphalia – A pair of top 10 teams top the Central Michigan Athletic Conference standings as P-W (16-5-3) is No. 5 in Division 3 and Fowler (13-5-1) is No. 6 in Division 4.
Saturday – Motor City Power Series at UWM Sports Complex in Pontiac – The most intriguing pool this weekend includes Division 1 No. 2 Bloomfield Hills (23-2-1), honorable mention Dexter (10-1-0), Novi (13-7-0), Saline (13-5-0) and Lake Orion (12-12-1).
Saturday – Pontiac Notre Dame Prep quad – The Fighting Irish (17-10-1) welcome Division 2 honorable mention Edwardsburg (19-7-0), Birch Run (18-6-2) and West Bloomfield (7-4)
Tuesday – Lansing Catholic at Ionia – Lansing Catholic (14-3-1) fell out of the Division 2 honorable mentions this week, but Ionia (19-3-0) moved up to No. 9.
Tuesday – South Lyon at South Lyon East – These neighbors and Milford head into the final week of the Lakes Valley Conference schedule vying for the top spot, with Division 1 honorable mention South Lyon (21-5-0) undefeated in league play and East (23-5-1) with just a loss to Milford.
PHOTOS (Top) Okemos blockers attempt to deflect the ball during a sweep last week of Lansing Waverly. (Middle) Warren Regina sets for a kill attempt against Notre Dame Prep during a Fighting Irish sweep. (Okemos/Waverly photo by Larry Arreguin/Team Arreguin Photos. Regina/Notre Dame Prep photo by Adam Sheehan.
Shelby's Gauthier Ascends to Top of State, National Volleyball Record Lists
By
Geoff Kimmerly
MHSAA.com senior editor
December 12, 2025
Navea Gauthier concluded her Shelby career in 2024 with 16 record book listings – and the much sought-after record for career kills both in Michigan and nationally.
She totaled 3,706 over four seasons, moving past legendary Alisha Glass from Leland on both lists. Gauthier also made the single-season kills list all four of her seasons, with her 1,034 as a junior in 2023 ranking third and her 987 as a sophomore ranking fifth. Her career total will be submitted to the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) as a national record as well.
Gauthier is continuing her career at Ohio State.
See below for several recently-added listings to the girls volleyball record book, and click the heading to see the record book in full. Several more applications have been received and are in the process of being confirmed.
Girls Volleyball
Fremont 2023 graduate Carle Bruggema earned 10 record book entries over her four seasons and finished on career lists with 2,781 assists and 368 aces, both over 464 games played. She also made the single-season aces list twice with 115 as a junior and 116 as a senior and is listed six times for either single-match aces or assists. She’s playing at Goshen College in Indiana.
More than a decade later, Mallory Lenhart has moved to the top of the list for single-season assists for the 1,874 she totaled as a senior in 2010 in leading Temperance Bedford to the Class A Semifinals. She went on to play at Lourdes University in Ohio.
Calumet’s Helen Beiring and Laina Kariniemi led their team through a five-set Regional Final win over Elk Rapids in 2022 – both making the record book in the process. Beiring, then a senior, had 40 kills, while Kariniemi, a junior, tied for seventh-most assists in one match with 65. Beiring is continuing at Northern Michigan.
Indian River Inland Lakes’ run to the Division 4 Quarterfinals in 2022 featured several noteworthy individual performances, led by senior Natalie Wandrie’s 616 kills to make the single-season list in that category. Then-senior Hannah Robinson, then-junior Erica Taglauer and then-sophomore Brooklyn LaBrecque also were added for single-match accomplishments. Wandrie is playing volleyball and softball at Lindsey Wilson College (Ky.), and Robinson competed in track & field at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Fla.)
Fenton’s Eva Long was added a second and third time to the single-match aces list, with 10 in a three-set match against Holly and then 12 in a three-set match against Flint Kearsley both in 2023 as a sophomore after making it originally with 12 aces during a match her freshman year. She recently completed her senior season and will continue at North Carolina State.
Jayden Marlatt capped her four-season Johannesburg-Lewiston varsity career in the fall of 2023 on the MHSAA all-time kills list with 1,614, including 34 in a match. She’s joined among recent additions by then-sophomore teammate Lexi Hogle, who had 52 assists in the same four-set league-clinching match against Fife Lake Forest Area on Oct. 17, 2023. Then-senior Brooklyn Latuszek was added twice for aces in one match, with 12 and 10, and 2023 graduate Serena Hogle was added with 48 assists in a 2022 match. Madison Peppin joined the list of players with at least 10 aces in a match when she totaled that number in a sweep of Gaylord St. Mary in 2024. She just finished her junior season. Marlatt plays softball at Ferris State, and Latuszek played at Alpena Community College.
A pair of Marlette four-year standouts were added, one for a high-achieving match in 2023 and the second for a career accomplishment. Senior Emma Heussner made the single-match assists list for 47 in a four-set win over Ubly that fall. Gabby Martinez, also a senior that season, reached the aces career list with 308 and plays at St. Clair County Community College.
Senior Ashley Strefling became the first Three Oaks River Valley player in the volleyball record book, finishing her four-year varsity career in 2023 with 2,680 assists. She posted a career-high 812 as a junior. She plays at Florida State College at Jacksonville.
Saginaw Swan Valley’s Marli Robinson added two more record book listings as a senior in 2023 to finish her career with three. She had 46 assists in a match for the second time and finished her three-season career with 2.,745 assists over 365 games and three seasons.
Several Croswell-Lexington standouts from the last decade reached the record book, including setter Annalise Weeder who was added for six single-match assists totals, 1,203 during her junior season and 3,356 over her four-year varsity career from 2020-23. Standout hitter Brooke Smith was added 37 kills in a 2014 match, 747 kills total that season and 1,582 over her three seasons from 2012-14. Makayla Shell was added for 159 blocks as a senior and 455 over her career. Additionally, Morgan Moore and Danielle Ripenbark were added for single-match accomplishments and Rachel Soper for 1,254 assists in 2014. Smith went on to play at Grand Valley State, Shell at Wayne State and Moore at St. Clair County Community College.
Kara Vyletel has reached the record book for a big-hitting season as a senior at Ann Arbor Huron in 2014. Vyletel had 805 kills over 145 games, which at the time would’ve ranked 15th since the start of the rally scoring era. She went on to play at Hillsdale College.
Setter Mady Pahl and hitter Molly Gerow played significant roles in making Beaverton a force during their four-year varsity careers from 2017-2020. Both were added to the records for multiple accomplishments, Pahl most notable for 2,817 career assists and Gerow for 2,106 career kills, including a high of 675 as a sophomore. Pahl played softball at Hope College.
A pair of Big Rapids Crossroads Academy servers earned the first listings for their school and this sport in 2024. Junior Dani Nostrant had 16 aces during the second game of a match against Walkerville, tying for the fourth-most aces in one set and with her 18 for the match ranking 10th all-time. She also had 13 in a four-set match against Holton that season. Senior Kristy Warczinsky also was added to the single-match aces list with 12 against Walkerville that fall.
Three Rivers’ Southland sisters both made their ways into the record book over the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Jenna Southland, a hitter who graduated in 2024, was added three times including for 671 kills as a senior and 1,490 over three varsity seasons. Miley Southland, a setter, was added four times and is on the career list with 2,952 assists not counting what she added this fall as a senior. Jenna Southland is playing at Hillsdale College.
Braylyn Hernandez starred in multiple sports for Burr Oak and reached the volleyball record book with 342 career aces through her final season in 2024. She actually began her varsity career in the sport in eighth grade, although her aces from that season are not counted in the total for record book purposes. She’s playing volleyball, basketball and softball at Glen Oaks Community College.
Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern setter Lexie Stotenbur already ranked on the career assists list with 2,727 through three seasons and entering this fall. She’s also in the record book for 1,320 assists as a sophomore in 2023 and 49 in a five-set win over Grand Rapids Christian that season.
Rudyard’s Lily Kwiatkowski earned a listing with 34 kills during a five-set match against St. Ignace on Nov. 12, 2024. She just completed her senior season.
Zeeland East’s Lizzie Risdon also made the single-match kills list, as a sophomore, with 34 during a five-set win over Hamilton on Oct. 3, 2024. She’s committed to Ohio University.
A pair of Caledonia standouts were added – Jessica Maier for 54 assists in a 2023 match against Grandville, plus 1,245 assists as a junior that fall and 2,601 over her three-year varsity career, and Aubrey Reynolds for 17 aces in a 2024 match last season against Muskegon. Maier is playing at Roosevelt University in Chicago, and Reynolds is a junior.
Lansing Catholic’s Leighton Marlan reached the record book with 111 aces as a sophomore in 2024, becoming the Cougars’ first athlete to make a list in this sport.
Grayling’s Cali D’Amour had already made the MHSAA records in softball and is playing that sport at Davenport. She added a volleyball listing as well as a senior in 2024 with 31 kills in a match against Harbor Springs.
Nearly two decades later, Yale setter Cydney Biessel has been added for 4,076 career assists, which rank 11th. She finished her four-year high school career in 2008 and went on to play at Wayne State.
A pair of Niles setters made the single-match assists list in successive seasons. Then-senior Kaydence Jacobs did so with 52 assists in a 2024 match against South Bend Adams (Ind.), and freshman Mena Hover set the school record and made the list with 54 this fall against Sturgis. Jacobs plays now for Lake Michigan College.
PHOTO Shelby's Navea Gauthier goes up for a kill attempt during a 2022 match. (Photo by Farmer's Fotos.)