Grand Rapids Christian Returning to Semifinals, Ready for Next Challenge
By
Dean Holzwarth
Special for MHSAA.com
November 20, 2025
GRAND RAPIDS – A Regional exit from the MHSAA Tournament last year wasn’t necessarily the norm for the Grand Rapids Christian volleyball program.
The returning players aimed to change that and get the Eagles back where they are typically found during the final weekend of the season.
Grand Rapids Christian will make its return to the Semifinals in Battle Creek after defeating Tecumseh 3-2 in Tuesday’s Division 2 Quarterfinal.
It will be the Eagles’ fifth Semifinal appearance over the last seven years, but last season’s five-set loss to South Christian in a Regional Final has provided the fuel for this year’s tournament run.
“After that loss last year, it definitely wasn’t what we expected or wanted, and I think from the moment we lost that game all the returners just felt a different kind of hunger for next season,” Grand Rapids Christian junior standout Grace Goodyke said. “We were already talking about our plans and what we wanted to change and keep going forward with.
“I think we knew this was the season that we had the talent, and all the girls had a love for each other that was super special and we had the opportunity to go far. It came down to the work we were ready to put in.”
Eagles coach Amy Huisken, who returned eight players, said expectations were high coming into the season.
“This is one of the goals that our team set way back in the beginning of the season,” she said. “So this is where we expected to be and wanted to be. Every win and every loss was for this purpose.”
Goodyke, a three-year varsity player, has led the Eagles’ charge and amassed more than 500 kills.
She understood the winning tradition of the program as an incoming freshman. The Eagles won three consecutive Division 2 championships from 2018-20.
“I had to buy into the culture pretty quickly, and I think our upperclassmen did a great job of showing me about the legacy that they came into,” Goodyke said. “This season we talk a lot about playing for each other and just trusting everybody to do their roles. We are just super close, and we use that to our advantage.”
The Eagles have played this season without senior Mallory Bremer, who tore her ACL and MCL during club season. But a core of key players has stepped up to lead the way.
Junior captain Piper Cebulski has 490 assists and is nearing 1,000 for her career, while junior Taylor Frost has provided leadership on the court while reaching 1,000 assists during Districts.
Sophomore Mya McKinnon is a two-year starter in the middle and has a hitting percentage over .400.
“We obviously have talent, but if you don’t have anything to back talent then it doesn't take you too far,” Huisken said. “The girls know who they are playing for, and it's the person next to them. Everyone works so hard in their role, knowing it's what the team needs to be successful. No selfishness and everyone working for each other.”
The Eagles tied for the championship in the Ottawa-Kent Conference White, facing the likes of Grand Rapids Forest Hills Northern, East Grand Rapids and Grand Rapids Catholic Central.
Grand Rapids Christian also has played against the top teams from the other side of the state.
“It makes us a battle-tested team, so we’re ready for tough moments,” Huisken said. “We do that on purpose, and we understand that our end result isn't going to say we're 25-0. But the losses are part of our story and how we got here. It's important for us to have that tough schedule, and we've had it throughout the tournament, too. There’s only one team we’ve played that hasn’t been ranked.”
The Eagles (36-9) will clash with reigning champion Detroit Country Day (27-9) in Friday’s Semifinal.
“They are a very good team,” Goodyke said. “I think we expect it to be a highly-competitive match. We do know that our coach has scheduled us against top teams in the state all season long, and our conference is pretty difficult so that prepares us as well.
“Those are the types of games we like. We’ve trained for those types of games, and I think we are ready to go out and just have fun and show the work that we’ve put in.”
Two more West Michigan teams advanced to this weekend.
Byron Center is in the Semifinals for the first time in 32 years after sweeping Ann Arbor Skyline 3-0 in a Division 1 Quarterfinal.
“This team is very special and their team chemistry is as good as any team I have ever coached,” Bulldogs coach Missy Ritz-Johnson said. “They are exceptional teammates that work very hard together, and their success is largely due to who they are as people and how much they care for each other. I couldn’t be more proud of this team.”
The Bulldogs (37-5-2) will face Farmington Hills Mercy (40-5-3) today at 4:30 p.m., while Rockford (46-1-1) meets Bloomfield Hills (42-6-1) in the other Division 1 Semifinal.
The Rams, who lost to Northville in last year’s championship match, defeated Traverse City Central 3-0 in a Quarterfinal.
All four Finals are slated for Saturday.
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) Grand Rapids Christian takes a photo with their newly-won Regional championship trophy last week. (Middle) The Eagles’ Grace Goodyke gets up for a kill attempt against Tecumseh during Tuesday’s Quarterfinal. (Photos courtesy of the Grand Rapids Christian girls volleyball program.)
Forest Park Returns to Championship Week Seeking to Continue 2-Month Winning Streak
By
John Vrancic
Special for MHSAA.com
November 18, 2025
L’ANSE — This has been quite a ride for the Crystal Falls Forest Park volleyball team.
The Trojans improved to 41-1 on Thursday, defeating Ishpeming 25-13, 25-18, 25-14 in a Division 4 Regional championship match.
“I didn’t imagine we would win 41 matches this season.” Forest Park coach Bobbie Jo Anderson said. “That’s beyond our expectations, although the girls worked hard.”
The Trojans will continue their postseason journey tonight when they meet Atlanta (36-1-2) in Quarterfinal match at 6 p.m. in Manistique.
The Regional championship was the third in four years for the Trojans, who fell to Hancock in straight sets in last year’s Regional Final at Baraga. Forest Park met Hancock in last week’s Regional Semifinal, this time winning 26-24, 25-23, 25-21.
“We didn’t like the outcome last year,” Trojans senior Ava Fischer said. “It’s absolutely a relief to win the Regional this year. We came into this season knowing we had a real good team. I’m so excited.”
Forest Park’s only loss took place Aug. 23 during a season-opening tournament in Mount Pleasant, where it dropped a 2-1 decision in the semifinals to Division 3 Saginaw Valley Lutheran, a team it had beaten in pool play earlier that day. Valley Lutheran also advanced to tonight’s Quarterfinals.
The Trojans had reached the Division 4 Semifinals twice in a row before last year’s earlier exit, and just missed reaching the 2023 championship match in falling to Leland in five sets at Battle Creek’s Kellogg Arena.
“After losing to Hancock last year, we knew we were going to come back stronger,” junior Tessa Bartoszek said. “We did morning workouts and open gyms during the summer. It’s awesome to be moving on.”
Bartoszek produced a key defensive play during the second set against Ishpeming, which featured Baylor recruit Mya Hemmer and finished this fall 23-6-2. The Hematites were trailing 14-11 when it appeared the ball was going to land on Forest Park’s side of the net. Bartoszek somehow prevented that from happening, dug up the ball and returned it to Ishpeming’s side, enabling the Trojans to go up 15-11 on a defensive error.
A seven-point service run by sophomore Harper Anderson also helped the Trojans get going in the opener.
“That was huge,” Coach Anderson said. “Volleyball is a game of momentum, and you want to keep that on your side.
“The first set definitely set the tone. The girls were able to relax a little more after winning that one.”
The Trojans have won their own invitational, ‘The Rock’ Invite at Gladstone, Escanaba Invitational and defeated Great Northern Conference champion Kingsford, Marquette and Calumet in a quadrangular at Kingsford during the regular season.
Forest Park also captured the Skyline Central Conference title prior to taking District and Regional championships.
Fischer is the team’s leading hitter with 467 kills this season, with five more Trojans totaling at least 100. Senior Elsie Williams and junior Vienna Price share setting duties, and Williams also is second on the team with 196 kills to go with her 502 assists. Fischer also leads the team with 351 digs, and Anderson has a team-high 89 aces.
Fischer and Williams are the team’s only seniors. Right behind Williams in kills is freshman Josie Anderson, one of three underclassmen in the primary playing group.
John Vrancic has covered high school sports in the Upper Peninsula since joining the Escanaba Daily Press staff in 1985. He is known most prominently across the peninsula for his extensive coverage of cross country and track & field that frequently appears in newspapers from the Wisconsin border to Lake Huron. He received the James Trethewey Award for Distinguished Service in 2015 from the Upper Peninsula Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
PHOTO The Crystal Falls Forest Park girls volleyball team takes a photo after winning its District championship against Wakefield-Marenisco on Nov. 6. (Photo courtesy of the Forest Park school district.)