Tabit Twins Drive Top-ranked Team in B
September 1, 2015
By Bill Khan
Special for Second Half
MOUNT MORRIS – In the heat of an intense volleyball match, it could be easy to get the wrong impression about Hannah and Sarah Tabit of Mount Morris.
A raised voice or a stern stare isn't an alarming indication of discord between the two. They're not mad at each other. They're not being mean. It's just two highly driven twins who have learned over the course of 17 years together which buttons to push without hurting each other's feelings.
"Their chemistry is great," Mount Morris coach Jim Pender said. "I sympathize with them sometimes, because I'm an identical twin, too. Joe and I, when we competed, we got on each other. It wasn't anything we can't handle.
"Sometimes it seems like they're yelling at each other. It's just a different thing with identical twins. The kids now understand they're not yelling at each other. They're so competitive. They want the best out of each other. That's how they get it out of each other."
The tough-love approach seems to work.
The Tabits have been an integral part of Mount Morris' success over the past three seasons and to their fast start and No. 1 ranking in Class B as seniors this year. Sarah is an outside hitter who was second-team all-state after registering a school-record 867 kills last season. Hannah, an outside hitter and setter, made third-team all-state despite being limited by an injury.
Both are committed to play next season at Saginaw Valley State University, a short trip up I-75 from their hometown. Starting next fall, a new set of teammates will have to get accustomed to the in-your-face manner in which the Tabit twins motivate each other on the court.
Between twins, nothing that happens in the midst of competition is taken personally when they head home.
"I feel like I can be a little more firm with her and it's not like she'll cry or something," Sarah said.
"It's just because we've been playing together for so long," Hannah added. "We have a lot of chemistry together. If we mess up, we've got to figure out what's wrong. We have to fix it."
The Tabits have played volleyball together for quite a while, but not for as long as some high school teammates.
They became enthralled with the sport in elementary school when they went to Mount Morris matches to watch their brother's girlfriend play for the Panthers.
They couldn't wait to play volleyball themselves – but they had to.
Their father, Mount Morris assistant coach Pat Tabit, has witnessed many cases of burnout among athletes who have been playing the same sport from a young age. He didn't want that to happen to his daughters.
"Our parents actually wouldn't let us play until we were in sixth grade," Hannah said. "We kept trying to ask if we could. They'd say, 'Not yet, just wait it out.' They finally let us play. My dad didn't want us to get tired of it too quick, because it happens to a lot of girls who play now and start in third or fourth grade. He didn't want us to die out of it."
The Tabits enter their senior season very much energized about volleyball. It helps that they are on a team that could deliver only the second MHSAA championship in school history in any sport. The 1984 softball team won the Class B title, one year after Pender graduated from the school.
Mount Morris has won five district titles over the last seven years and nine overall, but has never advanced beyond regionals. The Panthers were strong before the Tabits arrived, but the program is at a different level with the twins leading the way.
"People come into the gym now and ask, 'When are those two going to be seniors?'" Pender said. "It seems like they've been on the team forever. They're noticed in the gym. Sarah got MVP of the first tournament and Hannah was on the all-tournament team. I haven't had too many players who could be a dynamic player for anybody in the state of Michigan. They know what's at stake and bring their game every time."
The Panthers didn't even make it out of their district last year, but it was understandable -- they lost to eventual Class B champion North Branch in the District Final. The teams have typically met in the regionals, with North Branch eliminating Mount Morris in that round in 2009, 2012 and 2013.
The teams are again in the same district this season. It will be played Nov. 2-7 at North Branch, the seventh-ranked team in Class B.
It's a testament to Mount Morris' returning talent that it earned the No. 1 ranking, despite its early exit last season and its history of never making it out of regionals.
"We're very happy about it, but we've still got to work hard every day," Sarah Tabit said. "That way we can maintain that No. 1 spot the whole season."
Mount Morris is off to a 16-1 start after three tournaments that have featured some of the best teams in the state. The Panthers beat Chelsea (No. 8 in Class B) and Birmingham Marian (preseason No. 9 in Class A) to win the first of two tournaments in Brownstown. They lost to Lake Orion (No. 2 in Class A) in the semifinals of the second tournament in Brownstown.
In their own tournament last Saturday, the Panthers beat long-time nemesis North Branch 25-13, 25-19 in the championship match.
In addition to the Tabits, libero Lauren Gibbs received postseason honors last year by making the all-region team as a freshman. Gibbs was injured and unable to play in the district, leaving the Panthers shorthanded against a powerful North Branch team it beat during the regular season.
Junior Summer Bruce, junior Mahogany Malone, sophomore Linda Allen, senior Kayla Sorensen and senior Madeline Clarke are other key contributors from last year's team.
"In the last six years, we've been ranked in the top 10 because of the tournaments we've been playing in," Pender said. "We've been playing some strong competition and competing with them. We graduated only two seniors, and they were basically in the same spot. We beat some really good teams last year. It puts a little more pressure on me, though, when they say you're that good. You have to have the kids to do what you need to get ranked. Now we have to put everything together. It puts a little added pressure."
Bill Khan served as a sportswriter at The Flint Journal from 1981-2011 and currently contributes to the State Champs! Sports Network. 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) Hannah Tabit works to get a ball past two opponents at the net during a match last season. (Middle) Sarah Tabit connects earlier this fall. (Below) The Tabit twins, numbers 12 and 16, lead the top-ranked team in Class B. (Top and middle photos by Greg Tunnicliff/Genesee County Herald; bottom photo courtesy of Mount Morris athletic department.)
Senior-Led Lake Orion Earns 1st Title
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
November 17, 2018
BATTLE CREEK – With 10 seniors on the roster, it’s fitting this year’s version of the Lake Orion volleyball team was the one to bring the school its first MHSAA volleyball title.
And while they’re plenty talented, that group brought a trait coach Tony Scavarda said was the difference in getting his program over the top:
Grit.
“We’ve been in situations this year several times where we were down late in sets, and they don’t stop playing,” Scavarda said. “Even the set we lost tonight, they could have just said, ‘Eh, we’ll win the next set.’ But no, they came back, it was 23-24, and fought even to the very end of that set. They’re very resilient, gritty, and they don’t let any set go without a fight.”
Lake Orion defeated Rockford 25-18, 25-23, 23-25, 25-16 on Saturday at Kellogg Arena to claim the Division 1 title. It was the program’s second trip to the final game, with the first ending with a loss against Rockford in 2011.
Thanks to a 30-kill effort from senior Paige Briggs and a 50-set effort from senior Wren Macaulay, it was clear there wouldn’t be any heart break this time.
“Honestly, it just feels unreal,” Macaulay said while hugging the championship trophy. “Being here for four years and on the team and losing the last three years, it feels so good to end on a winning streak and not with tears this year. It’s exciting, it’s really exciting. It still hasn’t hit me yet.”
The Dragons (68-6) not only brought home the first state title in school history, but became the first team from the Oakland Activities Association to win at the Finals level, something Scavarda learned at the post-match press conference.
“We knew it was the first ever for Lake Orion, which was a pretty big accomplishment. But to be the only one from the OAA, seeing that it’s one of the toughest leagues year in and year out in the state, that’s surprising,” Scavarda said. “But I knew these guys had it in them. It was just a matter of putting it together at the right time.”
After controlling much of the first set, Lake Orion found itself trailing for much of the second. That’s when it decided to lean a bit more on Briggs, who had 10 kills in the frame.
“My whole thought was Wren really likes to spread the ball around, and it opens Paige up a lot of times,” Scavarda said. “I specifically told her though, I don’t care if Paige’s legs fall off tonight, I want to take this in three. She can rest tomorrow and the next day. We gotta get that second set. That’s a big momentum thing; even though they got that third set, we knew that we were still up 2-1. It’s still a nice little cushion to have.”
Rockford (47-12-1) didn’t relent in the third, leading for much of it before holding Lake Orion off late.
“We’ve been in that situation a couple times before, and they handled themselves very well,” Rockford coach Kelly Delacher said. “They continued to fight throughout that third set, and did a good job of squeaking out a win there.”
But Lake Orion grabbed control of the fourth set early, and kept Rockford at arm’s length throughout before closing the match, fittingly, with a kill by Briggs, assisted by Macaulay.
“I feel like our team is really good at being calm in those tough situations,” Lake Orion senior middle blocker Leigha Boes said. “Especially when it’s close, we really don’t hear the cheering and the crowd and the other team.”
Senior libero Ciara Livingway had 13 digs for the Dragons, while Boes had nine kills. Kendal Robertson added six kills and four blocks, while Sydney Smith had seven kills and 11 digs.
Senior Lindsay Taylor led Rockford with 20 kills and 14 digs. Emmy Webb added 12 kills, while Emilee Karelse had 36 assists.
“I’m super proud with how my team played,” Delacher said. “It’s not an easy thing coming out and playing under bright lights and cameras and a big, huge crowd from your school, and I thought they performed very well under the pressure throughout the whole tournament. Lake Orion is a very good team, and they’re a very deserving champion.”
PHOTOS: (Top) Lake Orion hoists its first MHSAA championship trophy Saturday at the Kellogg Arena. (Middle) Dragons Wren Macaulay (10), Leigha Boes (13) and Paige Briggs put up a block as Rockford’s Emmy Webb sends a kill attempt through.