Matchup of 1 vs 2 Goes to St Mary in 5
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
November 23, 2019
BATTLE CREEK – The Monroe St. Mary Catholic Central volleyball team didn’t mean to be prophetic when it made “I’ve got your six” its season motto.
But on Saturday, the saying’s original intent – that each team member had the other’s back – gained a new meaning as the Kestrels brought home the school’s sixth MHSAA Volleyball Finals title with a five-set victory against Schoolcraft.
St. Mary (50-2) won 25-27, 25-21, 19-25, 25-18, 15-12 at Kellogg Arena to claim the Division 3 championship, the program’s first since 2014.
“Being here last year and going through a five-set loss (in the Semifinals) really fueled us,” St. Mary coach Karen O’Brien said. “I just think to have that experience of playing in that gym with the lights and the fans helped us. We wanted this from Day 1. We knew this was our goal to be here. It’s great for the four seniors to be able to come back and win our sixth. I know the reporter Jeff Mead (Friday) asked, ‘Does that six mean the sixth state title?’ It never was intended to be that way. But it might be a coincidence.”
It’s the first title for the Kestrels under O’Brien, who previously coached at Eastern Michigan University. O’Brien underwent treatment earlier in the season for her third battle with ovarian cancer.
“I don’t want to do anything but coach them when I’m going through treatment,” O’Brien said. “Because it’s something to look forward to, and I can leave cancer (to the side).”
While going through treatment, O’Brien lost her hair and had a temporary tattoo on her forehead that symbolized the team’s other saying, “Allow your faith to be stronger than your fears.” She had one on her wrist Saturday, along with every member of the team.
“Last year when we were here, the fears got the best of us,” O’Brien said. “The tattoo is just a reminder to have faith, not only in God, but in our players and the coaches and the program. And it was really just a reminder of that.”
The Kestrels had to have faith Saturday, as the much-anticipated battle between the top two teams in the Division 3 rankings lived up to its billing. The teams proved to be very evenly matched, and any multi-point run seemed like a major victory.
“I think we played a great game, and if we play them again, maybe we beat them in five,” Schoolcraft coach Erin Onken said. “I think that matchup goes more sets than three every single time. We have a ton of respect for them, and we knew it was going to be tough.”
It was the No. 2 Kestrels who made the final run, winning the final three points. St. Mary senior Samantha Michael and junior Mikayla Haut combined for a block on Schoolcraft star Andelyn Simkins to close out the match.
“Coach O’Brien always says if you see a hitter moving in, you’ve gotta move with her,” Michael said. “We just got our hands up, we pressed the six and we got her. It was just like the best feeling. It felt unreal.”
Simkins led all players with 28 kills in her final match. She also had a team-high 23 digs for the Eagles (48-7-1).
“It’s definitely not easy (defending Simkins),” Michael said.
Schoolcraft raced to an 11-4 lead in the first set, but St. Mary came all the back and even led 20-19. A Simkins kill ended a back-and-forth finish to the set and gave Schoolcraft the initial match lead.
The second set was following the same back-and-forth path, until SMCC was able to open up a four-point lead at 19-15, forcing a Schoolcraft timeout. While the Eagles were able to match SMCC the rest of the way, they couldn’t get closer than three points and the Kestrels tied the match at a set apiece.
Simkins was a force in the third set, helping her team get a little bit of separation midway through. She had eight kills in the set, but that didn’t even cover the impact she made, as on multiple points she fired more than one spike at the SMCC defense to keep the Kestrels off balance. She closed out the set with a deft tip and put her team one set from a title.
The Kestrels had different plans, however, racing out to a 9-4 lead in the fourth set to force a Schoolcraft timeout. The Eagles fought back to within one at 14-13, as Simkins had four kills in a five-point stretch. But SMCC was able to stretch the lead back out and force the fifth and deciding set.
Haut led St. Mary with 27 kills and 24 digs, while junior Anna Dean added 12 kills. Senior Payton Osborne had 24 digs, junior Grace Lipford had 26 assists, and senior Sarah Reicker had 24 assists.
Schoolcraft junior Kayla Onken had 53 assists and 15 digs, while junior Anna Schuppel had 13 kills. Juniors Kelby Goldschmeding and Allie Goldschmeding added 21 and 16 digs, respectively.
PHOTOS: (Top) St. Mary’s Abby Costlow (4) winds up for a kill attempt during Saturday’s Division 3 Final. (Middle) Schoolcraft’s Maggie Morris (9) blocks a St. Mary attempt.
Bronson Becomes 4th to Complete 4-Peat
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
November 17, 2018
BATTLE CREEK – With one set standing between them and a fourth straight MHSAA championship Saturday, several members of the Bronson volleyball team spent the break doing the “Cha Cha Slide.”
They were very clearly comfortable in Kellogg Arena. And while a game Unionville-Sebewaing team made them earn it, the Vikings left their second home with that fourth title, defeating the Patriots 25-19, 25-19, 25-23 in the Division 3 Final.
“This team is totally different than our teams of the past,” Bronson coach Jean LaClair said. “They don’t get excited, and we just kind of play calm. We have that calm demeanor all the time, and that sometimes worries me. Even today, they weren’t excited, they just took care of business. That’s one of the things that makes them special.”
Bronson (58-6) became the fourth program in MHSAA history to win at least four volleyball titles in a row, joining Portage Northern (1992-95), Marysville (1997-2004) and Battle Creek St. Philip (1992-95 and 2007-14).
For this group of seniors, however, it started well before they were freshmen.
“I think it really makes you appreciate the team, because we’ve seen so many great players go through this program,” senior Ashton Wronikowski said. “Kiera (Lasky), Jolie (Smoker), me and Paris (Outwater) managed, so when we were 5th and 6th-graders we were on this team. We were riding buses everywhere, we were going to practices, we were in this family since we were in junior high.
“Seeing so many great players go through this program and how the team chemistry is, there’s no words for it. It’s incredible how so many people can just come together and unite for a common goal.”
Lasky and Wronikowski played in all four title victories, and as Lasky astutely pointed out during the post-match press conference, she doesn’t know any other feeling than winning at Kellogg – although there was something different about this one.
“This one is just really bittersweet, I guess,” she said. “Going out with a win and going out with my favorite people. It’s exciting.”
While the Vikings won in a sweep, USA (44-5-1) did make things exciting throughout the match, building multiple leads that required long Bronson runs to overtake. Bronson went on a 12-1 run to take a lead and pull away late in the second set, and trailed 12-6 in the third before gathering itself and putting the match away.
“I’m happy with the way we played; it just wasn’t our day today,” USA coach Teresa Rose said. “This is our first time being (in the Final), and maybe the atmosphere of it, we just couldn’t capitalize sometimes on getting to their attacks and defending as well as we could have. They played with their hearts, and I’m proud of the way they played.”
In the third set, LaClair didn’t have a chance to address her team after it fell behind 12-6.
Lasky took care of that.
While the senior libero didn’t want to repeat what she said in that huddle, it clearly worked.
“I kind of told (LaClair) ‘Just go away. I’ve got this,’” Lasky said. “We really came out of it, got a couple points back, and then after that we were like, ‘OK, next ball, that last play doesn’t matter.’ That got the job done.”
Lasky finished with 14 digs and five assists in her final match for the Vikings, while junior Keona Salesman led the attack with 19 kills. Smoker added 13 kills, Wronikowski had six, and Meagan Lasky had 35 assists.
Rylee Zimmer led USA with 16 kills and 10 digs in her final match for the Patriots. Nichole Schember had 28 assists, and Maci Montgomery had 14 digs.
“I think (the Finals appearance) will do a lot for our program,” Rose said. “I think there’s a lot of kids that want to come and play like Rylee and Nichole and Grace (Williamson), and they see them in the community and they want to be like them eventually. They want to be state champions or runners-up. I think it’s good for our program. Good for our community and our school.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Bronson walls off the top of the net during its Division 3 Final win over Unionville-Sebewaing on Saturday. (Middle) The Vikings hoist a championship trophy for the fourth straight season.