Byron Center All-Stater Johnson Set to Represent US at Pan American Cup
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
August 26, 2026
BYRON CENTER – Byron Center volleyball coach Missy Ritz-Johnson had known for a while that her daughter, Mallory Johnson, possessed all of the attributes and intangibles to become a top-notch libero.
It became obvious at a young age.
“I would say when she was young that she often knew where the hitters were going to hit the ball better than, sometimes, they did,” Ritz-Johnson said. “She has had an ability to read hitters and anticipate what they are going to do, which makes her a really good defender. A lot of natural ability to read and understand the game, and she’s been thriving at that position.
“She’s really athletic and really competitive, and that's a good combination to have at that position.
Johnson, a 5-foot-6 senior, has blossomed into one of the top liberos in the country and was recently named to the U23 USA Volleyball Pan American Cup roster.
She traveled to Colorado Springs, Colo., earlier this week to train with the team at the United States Olympic Training Center before leaving for Managua, Nicaragua, to compete September 1-6.
“It’s a great opportunity, and every time I step in this gym at this training center (in Colorado) it’s crazy to think that I'm even here,” Johnson said. “But the girls are amazing. They are great people, great athletes and great competitors. It's really fun, and I learn every time I come here and grow as an athlete and as a person.”
Johnson made the team after spending a week at the training center in mid-July.
“Obviously I was so grateful to be selected to try out, and when I made the team I was speechless and overwhelmed with joy,” Johnson said. “I called my mom right away and tried to gauge what was even going on. I really didn’t know what to expect going into it, but it was super competitive.”
After leading the state-ranked Bulldogs to an 8-0 start with four wins at both the Cornerstone Showcase and Traverse City West Invitational, Johnson will take a brief hiatus from her high school team and return on Sept. 7.
“I have talked a lot with my teammates about my absence, and they are all cool with it and doing great,” Johnson said. “I talk to them almost every day and ask them how practice went. They are all set and more than capable of handling business without me. For me, I think competing in these games will only make me grow and get out of my comfort zone. Hopefully I’ll bring my talents back to high school and see what we can do this year.”
Johnson, who first started playing club volleyball when she was 8, is one of nine returners for a talented Bulldogs’ squad that lost a thrilling match (3-2) during last season’s Division 1 Semifinals to eventual champion Farmington Hills Mercy.
That heartbreaking defeat has provided motivation for this year’s group.
“That loss hurt,” said Johnson, who made the Division 1 all-state team last fall as an outside hitter. “I know, personally, I have changed so much from that loss, and I’ve learned so much. I know that it sucked for the other eight returners, too. There’s been a mood switch with this team, and I know we all want it really bad this year.”
Johnson's personality and leadership fit well for her libero position, and she has embraced it fully.
“I’ve known nothing else, and I find myself just loving my position as a libero,” she said. “I love being in charge of the backcourt, getting to celebrate with my teammates and putting them in good positions to make plays.”
Ritz-Johnson said her daughter has been involved with the Olympic Developmental Program since she was in seventh grade and has worked hard to achieve her goals.
“She’s worked really hard to earn these opportunities,” Ritz-Johnson said. “She has a love for the game and has never complained about going to practice. She loves to practice and compete, and her favorite sport is one she is best at, which is not always the case.”
Last June, Johnson committed to a collegiate powerhouse, the University of Nebraska, after receiving interest from about 30 programs.
“It was pretty surreal, and I just remember watching them on TV when I was in sixth grade, and obviously Nebraska is a very big deal,” Johnson said. “I watched them and was thinking, ’Holy cow, I want to go here. I want to play at this level, and I want to be involved in this atmosphere.’”
“I’ve been to camps there since seventh grade and been out to campus every year since then. Every time I went there I loved it, and it felt like home. I knew I wanted to be there, and it wasn't a super-hard decision for me.”
Ritz-Johnson is excited for her daughter to play at such a high-profile program.
“There’s no place like Nebraska, as they say,” she said. “They’ve had attendance records and sell out when they travel and just the way the team is treated. The coaching staff is really special.”
Dean Holzwarth has covered primarily high school sports for Grand Rapids-based WOOD-TV for five years after serving at the Grand Rapids Press and MLive for 16 years along with shorter stints at the Ionia Sentinel and WZZM. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Allegan, Kent and Ottawa counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Mallory Johnson (2) serves during last season’s Division 1 Semifinal against Farmington Hills Mercy. (Middle) Johnson huddles for a moment during that match with her teammates including, from left, Kinsley Whitfield, Lainey VanTol and Caitlin Hartson.
Yale's Dykstra Wasting No Time Showing Superior Multi-Sport Potential
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
March 28, 2024
Sadie Dykstra’s already long list of accomplishments from less than two years of high school – three all-state medals, multiple all-conference awards and a league MVP to name a few – may seem shocking.
And to most, it justifiably is.
But it’s come as little surprise for those in Yale who saw her grow up and do, well, anything.
“I’ve always known that she’s kind of special,” said Yale boys track coach and Dykstra family friend Brian Bearss. “She was that kid that, when other kids would be playing and learning how to ride their bikes, here comes Sadie and she’s yelling, ‘Look at this,’ and standing on the seat riding the bike. She’s always been exceptional as far as being an athlete.”
Dykstra is entering her sophomore track & field season at Yale and has already established herself as one of the best female athletes in the state. Want to argue against that? Check out this résumé:
Volleyball: Two years varsity, second-team all-Blue Water Area Conference as a sophomore.
Basketball: Two-time first-team all-BWAC selection, BWAC all-defense and BWAC MVP as a sophomore, BCAM all-state honorable mention as a freshman, sophomore all-state honors still pending.
Track: Unbeaten in the BWAC as a freshman with four league titles (long jump, 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles and 1,600 meter relay), three all-state finishes at 2023 Lower Peninsula Division 2 Finals (fourth in long jump, fifth in 100 hurdles, sixth in 300 hurdles).
Again, just a sophomore.
“I can’t believe that I get to coach her,” Yale girls track coach Ashley Garofalo said. “She has a drive and a mindset that I can’t teach somebody. Nobody can teach you to have this. She gives every single thing that she has in every single sport. I think it does help when you’re so good at it. It makes you want to do it more.”
Basketball gets Dykstra’s most attention and it’s the one she’d most like to play at the next level. The 5-foot-11 guard is getting interest already from Division I college programs.
But it wouldn’t be right to say her heart is with one sport or another.
“I enjoy all my sports,” Dykstra said. “I like all my teams. I have a different team for each one, and I get along with all those girls. I think each one, it flows into the next one, and helps strengthen things for my other sports. Volleyball helps my legs for basketball. In basketball, I’m getting in shape for track.”
You don’t have to look far to find where Dykstra gained her love for athletics. Her parents, Kerry and Brad, both played basketball at Calvin College. Kerry graduated as Calvin’s all-time leading scorer in 1999 and is still sixth on the all-time list. She also served as Yale volleyball coach for 10 years, just recently stepping down.
Brad was a two-sport athlete at Calvin, playing baseball as well. He also played baseball at Grand Valley State. He coached basketball at Yale from 2006-10.
“We’re a very sporty family,” Sadie Dykstra said.
So, when it came time to enter high school, there was never a thought of specializing.
“I came in with the mindset of, I’m going to play three sports each season and enjoy them, too,” Dykstra said. “I don’t want to be in them and have them be the most awful things in the universe. I came in with the mindset of enjoying all three sports.”
While basketball is her current collegiate goal, she did say that competing in basketball and track & field would be something she would consider if given the opportunity. Bearss said Dykstra has Division I potential in track & field, adding that heptathlon could best suit her.
But there are still two more years to figure that out. The next thing for Dykstra to enjoy is track, the sport in which she had the most early success. And while outdoor meets are still a couple weeks away, she’s already locked in.
“She’s just a natural leader, and I think that’s why she’s so disciplined,” Garofalo said. “(Tuesday), I was going over a workout with somebody else, and she just started her warm-ups on her own. She’s not afraid to lead 60 other kids, even though there are juniors and seniors.”
Dykstra has big goals for this spring, mostly based around performance marks. She’s eyeing the Yale school long jump record of 18 feet, 1¾ inches, which is less than an inch longer than her personal best of 18-1. She’d like to move that record closer to 19 feet.
Her 100 hurdle PR (personal record) sits at 15.59 seconds, and she’d like to knock that into the low 15s or even high 14s. For the 300 hurdles, where her PR is 47 seconds, she’d like to get down to 45.
“I have big goals, and I think I can get to them,” she said. “But that’s something for the end of the season to play out and see how that goes.”
Anybody who’s watched her wouldn’t doubt that Dykstra can reach those goals. And that list, along with those accomplishments, continues to grow.
“Last year we went to Ortonville Brandon, and we had really nice weather that day and the competition was really good – a lot of schools there,” Bearss said. “Even with all of those great athletes, you could just kind of see, people are pointing and looking, ‘There’s that girl from Yale.’ They’re taking notice. Every once in a while, you get kids that turn heads like that.”
Paul Costanzo served as a sportswriter at The Port Huron Times Herald from 2006-15, including three years as lead sportswriter, and prior to that as sports editor at the Hillsdale Daily News from 2005-06. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Genesee, Lapeer, St. Clair, Sanilac, Huron, Tuscola, Saginaw, Bay, Arenac, Midland and Gladwin counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Yale’s Sadie Dykstra launches into a long jump last spring. (Middle) Dykstra brings the ball upcourt against Armada. (Below) Dykstra stands at the net during volleyball season. (Photos courtesy of the Dykstra family.)