Marian Meets Championship Expectation in Finishing Repeat Run
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
November 20, 2021
BATTLE CREEK – Winning the MHSAA Division 1 Volleyball Finals title was the expectation for Bloomfield Hills Marian.
Not just Saturday, when that expectation became reality with a 25-18, 22-25, 25-18, 25-19 win against Ann Arbor Skyline. Not just as the postseason began.
That was the expectation from the time the ball was rolled onto the court for the Mustangs’ first practice in August.
“Although it was a goal, that never made us get complacent or get lazy,” Marian senior and Miss Volleyball winner Ava Brizard said. “We always worked our butts off like we were the underdogs, like we were the last-ranked team in the state. We always worked so hard even though people were expecting us to go back-to-back. But we just kept setting that bar higher and higher for ourselves, and I think that’s what really helped us get to this moment right here.”
The title was the second straight for Marian, and fourth in program history. The Mustangs rolled through the season as Division 1’s top team, going 53-1, and dropping just four sets coming into Saturday’s matchup. All this with a giant target on their collective back.
“I felt this enormous amount of pressure all season,” Marian coach Mayssa Cook said. “As a coach you like to think you have more control than you do. I tried to carry as much of it for them – I knew they had a lot on their plate and a lot on them. I will say I was so impressed with their composure and how they handled stress all season long. I absolutely know the four seniors on this team (Brizard, Janiah Jones, Sophie Treder and Sarah Sylvester) are very ready to step into playing roles at the next level. Most girls going into college don’t have this level of experience, level of play under pressure that they have had. So, we’re exceptionally proud of them as a school.”
Marian did not play like a team under pressure, running out to a double-digit lead in the first set and winning comfortably. But Skyline (55-4-2) came roaring back in the second with an attack led by Harper Murray and Cari Bohm, and handed the Mustangs just their fifth set loss of the season.
“I think we just have the offense that has the ability to compete with them,” Bohm said. “With Harper and me, we have some big hitters – Kate (Maley) -- they haven’t seen that competition yet.”
Marian responded to the rare setback, and while Skyline hung tough for most of the final two sets, Marian simply had too much down the stretch.
“Throughout the game, more of in the second and the later sets, we figured out that their right side defense wasn’t as strong, so we started targeting that,” Skyline senior setter Lauren Lee said. “Toward the end of that last set, they kind of caught onto what we were doing and polished it up.”
Brizard and Murray put on the show they were expected to provide as two of the state’s best attackers, each finishing with 25 kills. Brizard was backed by Treder’s nine kills for Marian, while Ella Schomer had six and Jones and Sylvester each had five.
Ava Sarafa had 44 assists and 12 digs for the Mustangs, who played solid team defense. Brizard led the team with 13 digs, while Lauren Heming had 12 and Treder had 10.
Bohm finished with 11 kills for Skyline, and Lee had 46 assists. Jordan Hall had 21 digs for the Eagles, and Murray added 14.
The trip to the Finals was the first for Skyline in its fifth year as a program. It had qualified for the Semifinals in 2019.
“I think this year it was our focus to get to Battle Creek and be in the Finals, and to give whatever team was on the other side a battle,” Skyline coach Chris Christian said. “I’m proud of these ladies, because they gave Marian a battle. It wasn’t like it was two years ago when we were here and we were just not ready mentally, not really equipped. This time, we were ready, and I think for them to be able to see that anything is possible from where this program started five years ago, we’ve come a long way. There still is room for growth for us.”
PHOTOS (Top) Bloomfield Hills Marian raises the Division 1 championship trophy after finishing a repeat title run Saturday. (Middle) Marian’s Janiah Jones (5) sends a potential kill at the block of Skyline’s Kate Maley (11) and Cari Bohm (18). (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)
Bronson Resets After 1st, Reigns Again
November 18, 2017
By Perry A. Farrell
Special for Second Half
BATTLE CREEK – Laingsburg passed the eye test, but Bronson proved to be the real thing.
The Wolfpack stood out athletic and tall, and playing in the Class C volleyball championship match against two-time reigning champion Bronson didn’t seem to intimidate them Saturday afternoon at Kellogg Arena.
Once they hit the floor, Laingsburg started out great, winning the first game.
But after that it was the Vikings prevailing in four, 20-25, 25-18, 25-20, 25-19 to win a third straight title.
It was a dramatic change from the first game to the second for the champs, who finished the year 59-9-2.
“We didn’t really make any adjustments,’’ Bronson coach Jean LaClair said. “We just tried to focus on what we needed to do on our side of the net. I thought it was a pretty gutsy performance because Adyson (Lasky) tweaked her ankle and Keona (Salesman) hurt her thumb. I said, ‘You guys want to play or do you want me to put a sub in?’ They both wanted to stay on the court and play through that.’’
Salesman led the comeback with 19 kills, with Jolie Smoker adding 12 and Ashton Wronikowski 11.
“We got our mental game together,’’ said Salesman. “We reset our minds. We knew that we had to come out stronger than we did the first game. We came out thinking we got this.’’
The Vikings scored five of the first six points of the first set. Laingsburg responded by getting to within a point twice before tying the match on an ace by Maya Ferland.
Bronson scored the next five points with Salesman recording back-to-back aces to give her team a 13-8 lead. But the Wolfpack went on a run of their own to tie the game at 15-15, and took the lead on a kill by Ferland.
Imposing their will at the net with the 5-foot-10 Sophie Strieff (14 kills), 6-foot Ferland (14 kills) and 6-foot Alex Randall (16 kills), the Wolfpack looked the part. And they stunned the back-to-back champs, never trailing after tying the first game as the trio up front fired at the Vikings from all different angles.
“We never talk about the other titles. Each year is different,’’ LaClair said. But in the second game the Vikings played like they were champions, again scoring five of the first six points to set the tone. Lacking execution, the Wolfpack fell behind 15-9 with sloppy play at the net, and Bronson went on to tie the match.
The all-important third game saw the Vikings jump out to an 11-7 lead only to have the Wolfpack get to within 12-10. But from there, Bronson’s experience and poise took over as the defending champs kept Laingsburg off balance and got help from the Wolfpack’s unforced errors. Bronson led 20-14 before Laingsburg rallied to within 20-17 on a spike by Tanner Butler. But despite an anxious moment or two, Bronson prevailed to go up 2-1.
Laingsburg led just once in that second game, but took a 9-8 lead in the third when Bronson hit the ball into the net.
But after tying the score again 9-9, the Vikings charged ahead with nine of the next 11 points to take a commanding 18-11 lead with their third straight title now within reach.
Bronson senior Kiana Mayer, a Miss Volleyball candidate this fall, capped her career with 37 assists.
Laingsburg senior Grace Gregg had 40 assists as the Wolfpack (41-18-3) capped their first championship match with the best finish in program history. Laingsburg entered the postseason as only an honorable mention in the final Class C rankings.
“This was an incredible experience,’’ said Strieff. “It (was disappointing) that we lost, but it was great to get here.’’
PHOTOS: (Top) Bronson raises the Class C championship trophy for the third straight season Saturday at Kellogg Arena. (Middle) Laingsburg’s Maya Ferland puts down a kill past a pair of Bronson defenders.