Top-Ranked Northville Cooking Up More Historic Possibilities After 2022 Finals Run
By
Keith Dunlap
Special for MHSAA.com
September 14, 2023
NORTHVILLE – Northville head volleyball coach Sarah Lindstrom often likes to have themes for her teams going into a season.
After the program made its first appearance in an MHSAA Final last year, Lindstrom let members of each class on her team try and come up with their own theme going into the start of this year, and then a vote was taken by the squad to select the best one.
So, what was the winning theme chosen by the team?
“Let us cook,” as chosen by the junior class.
“I thought it was fun,” said senior libero Ashlee Gnau, who was one of the many girls who voted for that theme. “I really did like it.”
The team plays on that theme when offensive and defensive players of each match are awarded giant forks or spoons.
“We know last year by missing it as close as we did, that we have to put in even more work,” Lindstrom said. “They essentially want everyone to know that they are not going to be sitting at the dinner table. They are the ones that are going to be serving the meal.”
So far, the Mustangs have served up lots of wins and what’s believed to be a historic ranking.
Northville enters Thursday with a 14-1 record and is currently ranked No. 1 in the Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association Division 1 poll.
Lindstrom believes it’s the first time the program has been ranked No. 1, and the team has tried to strike a balance between being proud but also knowing championships aren’t won in September.
“The first thing I said was that: ‘We’re ranked No. 1, but I can guarantee you we’re not going to be ranked No. 1 the whole year,’” Lindstrom said. “‘When that happens, let’s not freak out about it. It’s not a big deal.’”
Northville may or may not be ranked No. 1 the rest of the year; but regardless, it’s obviously on the short list of Division 1 title contenders.
The Mustangs return 10 players from their team that lost to Bloomfield Hills Marian in the 2022 championship match. Five are college-bound. Junior setter Ella Craggs has committed to Illinois State, junior outside hitter Mallory Reck has committed to Marist, middle hitter Avry Nelson has pledged to Eckerd College in Florida, senior libero Greta McKee has committed to Wright State and Gnau has committed to Syracuse.
Following the loss to Marian in the Final, then-senior Abby Reck left some departing words for the returning group, essentially saying they would be back in Battle Creek in 2023 because they know what it takes now.
“This year, we have a lot of returners and so many people who fill in so many shoes that we lost last year,” Gnau said. “I think learning from that experience, you’re going to have a huge target on your back, but you’re more prepared for the pressure. It was an amazing experience. Being that close last year makes us want to win it all this year.”
Lindstrom noted the experience from last year’s run seems to have paid dividends already, especially in a win at No. 3 Clarkston earlier this fall.
“Our starting middle blew her ankle four points into that game,” she said. “We had a player out on the court who had never played all year and wasn’t even on the team last year. Because she was surrounded by so many other kids (who) have played in that type of pressure, it just makes us a big force.”
So big of a force that don’t be surprised if Northville cooks and serves up the school’s first volleyball state championship come November.
Keith Dunlap has served in Detroit-area sports media for more than two decades, including as a sportswriter at the Oakland Press from 2001-16 primarily covering high school sports but also college and professional teams. His bylines also have appeared in USA Today, the Washington Post, the Detroit Free Press, the Houston Chronicle and the Boston Globe. He served as the administrator for the Oakland Activities Association’s website from 2017-2020. Contact him at [email protected] with story ideas for Oakland, Macomb and Wayne counties
PHOTOS (Top) Northville’s Avry Nelson (6) winds up for a kill attempt during last season’s Division 1 Final against Bloomfield Hills Marian. (Middle) Ella Craggs sets for a teammate at Kellogg Arena.
North Branch Class of '24 Finishes Decade Together with Finals Repeat
By
Paul Costanzo
Special for MHSAA.com
November 18, 2023
BATTLE CREEK – A decade’s worth of team volleyball came to an end Saturday afternoon for eight North Branch seniors.
So while the Broncos had just won their second-straight Division 2 title, the tinge of sadness to the tears streaming down their faces was understandable.
“All of us started, a majority of us eight seniors started when we were 8 years old in North Branch volleyball club,” Broncos senior Alana Deshetsky said. “No one, pretty much, left until they were in high school and played one or two years at a different club. We were all trained here and all played with each other since we were 8, so I think we have a deeper connection than most other teams.
“We pulled up a picture this weekend from our first year, and pretty much all of us girls were in it. It was really sad to see girls that I’d played with forever, and I won’t play with again. Most teams end on a low, but when you end on a high, you want it to keep going.”
While they won’t get to keep things going after the 25-18, 25-14, 25-18 win against Grand Rapids West Catholic at Kellogg Arena, this group has left a legacy that will never be forgotten at a program that was already considered one of the state’s elite.
For the first time in program history, North Branch won back-to-back titles. That came after a runner-up finish in 2021, giving a class that had been major contributors since they were freshmen three Finals appearances in four years.
And, as freshman, they lost in five sets to the eventual Division 2 champion, Pontiac Notre Dame Prep.
“I think it was something (coach Jim Fish) definitely saw the potential in us,” senior libero Hailey Green said. “We were freshmen. In that game our freshmen year, we were just trying to hang with Notre Dame Prep. I think our junior year it kind of hit us. Like, ‘Oh, we’re in the state finals.’ It definitely hit us last year.”
Fish definitely saw it early. When they were eighth graders, Fish coached them in a summer tournament in Ohio. It was a tournament that featured a varsity and JV division, and for the first time in his career, Fish chose to coach the JV group.
“(People) said, ‘Why are you coaching them?’ And I said, ‘Because I know what we’re going to be doing,’” Fish said. “We’ve been working with this group for a long time. As good of players as they are, they’re nicer kids. They’re team academic all-state, individual academic all-state. Phenomenal kids in the community.”
North Branch (56-4-1) spent the entire season ranked No. 1 in Division 2, and Fish scheduled the best competition he could find throughout the state – and even in some adjoining states – to keep his group sharp.
It worked, as did playing with a target on their backs the entire season.
“These teams scouted us very hard all season long,” Deshetsky said. “Our last tournament, I think we looked around and there were five cameras on our court scouting us for the postseason. This postseason was very difficult, because teams knew us as much as they could have, inside and out. They knew what we would do, because when you’re at the top, you’re the target, and everyone was coming for us.”
North Branch defeated the No. 2 team Grand Rapids Christian in Thursday’s Semifinal, but didn’t let down at all in the Final.
Aubree Deshetsky led the North Branch attack against West Catholic with 14 kills, while Clara Gyomory had nine. Adrienne Greschaw had 31 assists. The Deshetsky sisters led the defense, as Aubree had 19 digs and Alana had 13.
Brooke Tietz had seven kills to lead West Catholic, while Emma Tuttle had six. Alivia Mott had 11 assists, while Amelia Gagnon had 12 digs and Grace Steiner had 10.
“It was a great match – North Branch is a super good volleyball club,” West Catholic coach Megan Eversman said. “I think our kids gave a fight as hard as they could fight against that team. I’m just really proud of all of their efforts that they had.”
While North Branch had loads of experience at Kellogg Arena, West Catholic (38-10-6) was making its first Finals appearance.
“I’m just really proud that our team could get here,” Tuttle said. “I think we worked really hard this season to get here, and for our last season, I’m really proud.”
PHOTOS (Top) North Branch players celebrate their repeat Division 2 title win at Kellogg Arena. (Middle) Grand Rapids West Catholic's Mia Henne (4) sends a kill attempt into the block of Kaela Chingwa (10) and Clara Gyoromy (14). (Below) Adrienne Greschaw sets the Broncos' offense. (Photos by Hockey Weekly Action Photos.)