Kozuch Family Adding to Memorable Moments as 'Dream' Run Together Nears End
By
Scott DeCamp
Special for MHSAA.com
November 4, 2026
A photo from several years ago shows a young Madeline Kozuch with a coaching whistle in her mouth, sitting atop the shoulders of her mother. Naturally, they were on a volleyball court.
Fast forward to present time: Kozuch is a standout senior outside hitter for a strong Morley Stanwood team, which her mom coaches.
Robin Kozuch, who was inducted into the Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association (MIVCA) Hall of Fame this year and has led Morley Stanwood to two MHSAA Finals championships, is in her 28th and final season as head coach for the Mohawks.
Morley Stanwood (26-11-0) takes on Lakeview (15-21-1) in an MHSAA Division 3 District Semifinal tonight in Kent City. Mom and daughter know their time together on a volleyball court is winding down, but they hope to keep this journey going as long as possible.
“The more (the end) gets closer, the more sad I’m getting,” Madeline Kozuch said. “She texted me the other day, she’s like, ‘I can’t believe it’s our final year together.’”
“It’s definitely real,” Robin Kozuch said about the bittersweet emotions. “Every step of the way this year – A: Because I’ll be an empty-nester because Piper’s in college; (and B:) I think about, ‘Where will I be this time next year?’ I don’t know how I’m going to deal with that. It’s still different. I’ve been (coaching) since before they were born, so it’s hard.”
Piper Kozuch, a 2025 Morley Stanwood alumna, is a sophomore setter for the Madonna University volleyball team. She and younger sister Madeline will be opponents on the court as the latter is headed to play volleyball for Aquinas College, which is in the Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference with Madonna.
The Kozuchs are a volleyball family. Robin’s husband, Matt, coached the sport alongside his wife for 25 years, including during Morley Stanwood’s Class C title years of 2007 and 2011. Now he’s in his third season as an assistant coach for the unbeaten and Division II top-ranked Ferris State University squad (25-0).
The Kozuchs are rock stars in a volleyball setting. On a related note, Matt Kozuch once was the front man for a rock band. He was lead singer for the band “Dirty Americans,” a Detroit-based group whose work included playing festivals overseas alongside the likes of Metallica, Green Day and Motorhead, plus opening for Alice Cooper once upon a time.
“I got into (volleyball) to help Robin with a dream, and it turned into something I loved. It became a huge passion of mine,” said Matt Kozuch, whose last name is pronounced “Ko-jus,” like the “jus” in au jus.
Robin Kozuch, a Millington native who was inducted into her alma mater’s athletics hall of fame as part of the inaugural class, was a 5-foot-11 outside hitter at the Division I collegiate level. Kozuch spent her freshman year with Michigan State University’s Final Four team in 1995 before she transferred to Central Michigan University. She’s a twin and has four sisters, three of whom went on to play college athletics.
As a coach at Morley Stanwood, Kozuch has amassed an overall record of 902-289-36. She reached her 900th win when her team captured the Central State Activities Association title Oct. 20.
Kozuch has coached or worked with eight nieces or daughters who have gone on to play volleyball in college. She serves as a regional rep for MIVCA, and throughout her tenure at Morley Stanwood she’s been all over the state running camps and assisting with clinics to help grow the sport.
Kozuch plans to continue helping out with the Morley Stanwood volleyball program. She has been grooming her niece, Alexis (Huntey) Cummings, to become the Mohawks’ next head volleyball coach. Cummings (Huntey) was a standout player on the Mohawks’ Class C championship volleyball and girls basketball teams during the 2011-12 school year.
While Robin Kozuch has two daughters, she views her players in much the same way. One player, Morley Stanwood senior libero Saige Ososki, said that Kozuch has been much more than a coach to her.
“Not just from volleyball, but even just being, like, a person,” Ososki said. “She’s so amazing and she’s like a second mom to me. I really look up to her.”
As Ososki recalled, she and Madeline Kozuch hit it off as friends during third grade. Their relationship continues as they spend a lot of time together as teammates in three sports.
At Morley Stanwood, particularly in girls athletics, many student-athletes play multiple sports.
Kozuch, a well-rounded individual who carries a 3.89 GPA that’s still rising, excels in volleyball, basketball, and softball. During the 2025-26 school year, Morley Stanwood was a conference and District champion in all three of those sports. The Mohawks’ girls basketball team captured a Regional title and softball squad was a Regional finalist.
“All of our girls sports are really strong and everyone plays the same (sports),” Madeline Kozuch said. “Every volleyball player plays basketball and softball. We’re all super close and very competitive and we always go super far, so I just feel like it’s more family.”
Not surprisingly, volleyball has a special place in Madeline Kozuch’s heart, and she’s thrived. Last season, she earned all-conference, all-region, first-team all-state, was named Big Rapids Pioneer Dream Team Player of the Year and made the MLive Muskegon Chronicle Dream Team.
This season, the 5-foot-8 Kozuch has recorded 564 kills, a .331 hitting percentage, a .449 kill percentage, 78 aces, 381 digs, and passes at a 2.1 clip. In her career, she has compiled 1,178 kills; 1,200 digs, and 78 aces.
Kozuch has played volleyball at a high level for quite some time, including with her Inside Out travel team that competes nationally.
Dominant as she is on the court, Madeline Kozuch has a soft side as well.
“She’s honestly a really caring person – almost sometimes to a fault,” Robin Kozuch said. “She’s very empathetic. I think sometimes she’s a little too nice about hurting people’s feelings. She’s gotten better this year about stepping up and demanding things from her teammates, taking more of a vocal role and pushing her teammates. … Piper had no problem with that.”
That’s not to say Madeline Kozuch lacks competitiveness. Far from it.
It’s in the Kozuch and Ill (Robin’s maiden name) families’ blood.
“I think everybody would say Robin (is most competitive), but I know deep down I hate losing,” Matt Kozuch said with a chuckle. “I think maybe after she thinks about it, she might say it’s me, too. But I think it’s pretty close to even, Robin and me both. We just don’t want to lose, man.”
Robin and Madeline Kozuch both acknowledged that the mother-daughter dynamic can create some pressure to perform and bring about naysayers, but they keep their noses to the grindstone and continue to deliver.
While Robin Kozuch plans to keep pitching in with Morley Stanwood’s program when she can, her family’s focus will shift to her daughters’ collegiate travels. It’s been quite the journey as it stands.
“It’s been sad watching it wind down,” Matt Kozuch said about Robin and Madeline’s careers at Morley Stanwood coming to an end. “It’s been an epic career for Robin and Matty, too.”
Added Ososki about her coach and teammate: “I just think those two do so much for our school and our program. They are amazing at what they do and, I mean, we probably wouldn’t do any of this without them. I’m just so thankful for them.”
Scott DeCamp has worked more than 25 years in sports media, including 21 at MLive Media Group as a reporter and editor. He is founder and owner of DeCamp Creative Solutions. Email him at [email protected] with story ideas for Lake, Mason, Mecosta, Muskegon, Newaygo, Oceana, and Oceola counties.
PHOTOS (Top) Morley Stanwood’s Madeline Kozuch celebrates a moment during a match this season against Big Rapids, with her teammates joining in as well. (2) Kozuch sits atop her mom Robin’s shoulders with the coach’s whistle. (3) Morley Stanwood coach Robin Kozuch enjoys a moment with her Morley Stanwood players, including Madeline (10). (4) Madeline Kozuch poses for a photo with her parents and the softball team’s District championship trophy won this spring. (5) Kozuch (10) smashes a kill attempt against Big Rapids. (Action photos by Scott DeCamp. Childhood and softball photos provided by the Kozuch family.)
Milana Ready to Shoulder Repeat Run
By
Tom Markowski
Special for Second Half
September 29, 2015
ROMEO – Gia Milana’s pace at this stage in her life is as fast-paced as the sport she plays.
Milana, a 6-1½ outside hitter at Romeo, is one of 10 finalists for the 2015 Miss Volleyball award presented by the Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association. There are those who contend she’s the favorite.
Ask Milana about the award and she’s a tad reserved, deflecting the attention given to an athlete who plays a team sport who’s under strong consideration for an individual honor.
“I try not to think about it,” she said. “Volleyball is a team thing for us. I really haven’t thought about it. I don’t think about it. I’d rather win and not think about an individual award.
“It would be the biggest honor. But I’m more focused on making my team better.”
Winning. That’s what Romeo did last season. The Bulldogs won the school’s first MHSAA title, downing Novi in five sets in the Class A Final, and this season they’re off to a 22-4 start and ranked No. 7.
This year’s team is different in many respects. For one, there are just four seniors. Not only did graduation put a premium on the amount of talent coming back, but it also left an opportunity for returning players to take over leadership roles that were so important in 2014.
“Last year at this time,” Milana said, “I feel last year’s team would crush us. We have the potential. Our transitional defense is horrible. To make another run we have to have the mentality that the ball won’t hit the floor.
“If we want to make another run we have to step up our game. One or two players can’t do it. Volleyball is a team-oriented sport.”
After spending six seasons as the junior varsity coach, Stacy Williams is in her 10th as varsity head coach. Williams played the sport at Sterling Heights High School and then Macomb Community College before she got into coaching. Williams credits former Romeo coach Bruce Udvari for nudging her into the profession. And she has nothing but gratitude to her former boss.
Williams also has nothing but praise for her star player.
“She’s a leader by example,” Williams said of Milana. “She’s 100 percent committed to every play. She has some pretty amazing attacks. The cool part of the team is, offensively, we have some real strong players. And then you have Gia. Teams will focus on Gia and it helps in a sense. People are looking at her, and it opens it up for others.”
Among the “others” are juniors Jodie Kelly and Payton Klein, and seniors Erica Labaere, and Nicole Nowack.
This season the libero position, often a strength for most teams, has been a bit of question mark for Williams. She’s used as many as five or six players. Recently, according to Milana, Nowack has shown steady play in that spot.
A back injury hampered Milana’s play at the start of last season. She missed the first 20 games and said it took a while for her to get back into the flow.
This season she hasn’t missed a beat. Through the first 25 games she had 315 kills. Even so, her role is different. Before high school and in her first three high school seasons, Milana was always the younger player facing girls older than her.
“I’m the core now,” she said. “It’s a different experience being the leader. It’s been quite a transition.
“We won states. We’re expected to win it again. We’re doing good in the transition. We know we have to work harder in practice.”
Finding her future
Milana committed to University of Maryland and plans to enroll in January. She chose Maryland because of its coach, Steve Aird, who is in his second season after serving as an assistant at Penn State.
Another reason Milana chose Maryland was its campus. College Park is a rural area, and for a girl from Romeo who spent her first 12 years on a farm, it has its attractions.
“I like the rural, pretty campuses,” she said. “I didn’t want to go to a college that was in the city, like Michigan.
“Maryland was horrible (when it was a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference). Now they’re in the Big Ten and … they’re better. I want to be a part of building a program.”
Maryland is 10-6 overall and 0-2 in the Big Ten.
Tom Markowski is a columnist and directs website coverage for the State Champs! Sports Network. He previously covered primarily high school sports for the The Detroit News from 1984-2014, focusing on the Detroit area and contributing to statewide coverage of football and basketball. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties.
PHOTOS: (Top) Gia Milana, 14, encourages her teammates during last season's Class A MHSAA Final against Novi. (Middle) Milana connects against Temperance Bedford during the Semifinal win.