White Pigeon's West Finds Multi-Success

By Wes Morgan
Special for MHSAA.com

September 5, 2017

Before most high school students have blistered their fingertips on a hot Pop-Tart in a rush to get out the door and to school on time, White Pigeon sophomore Claycee West has already completed a rigorous cross country workout.

It’s not for love of the sport that West logs miles at 5:10 a.m. with longtime Chiefs coach Pete Mestelle. She doesn’t even like the sport. But with volleyball also demanding her precious time, the two-sport fall athlete gets in her workouts whenever she can. And in this case, it’s before the sun comes up.

When that doesn’t work with her packed schedule, she’ll squeeze in a run when the nets and the sun start to come down.

West, who had a phenomenal freshman year, which included a scholar-athlete award on top of three varsity letters and a trio of Berrien-Cass-St. Joseph Conference all-league team nods in volleyball, basketball and track & field, made the mature decision to tack on another athletic endeavor in order to see improvement in all the others.

“It’s just keeping me in shape,” said West, who also participates in club volleyball and basketball during the offseasons. “(Mestelle) really got me in shape for track season and he has put a lot of work into me. I couldn’t do anything without him. He’s helping me tremendously.”

It works both ways. Mestelle’s girls cross country teams in recent years have struggled to put enough runners on the course to register team scores. This year, though, the Division 4 Chiefs have more than 10 girls on the roster. West, with no long distance running experience, is already vying for the top spot.

She may not reap the same rewards right away as she did in her other sports, but West’s competitive nature won’t allow her to be just a participant.

“She is probably going to be our No. 1 or No. 2 runner,” Mestelle said. “It’s going to help her with her mind. It’s not just running; you have to think about what you’re doing. Her form has really come a long ways.”

West is grateful to Mestelle for making himself available so early in the morning and the commitment required to make playing two sports at once possible.

Mestelle made light of his pre-dawn pledge.

“It helps keep me young,” he said.

West is a middle and outside hitter for the volleyball team, she’s the returning point guard and leading scorer for the basketball team and she qualified for the 2017 Lower Peninsula Division 4 MHSAA Track & Field Finals in both the 200 and 400 meters last spring. Her time of 1 minute, 00.89 seconds in the 400 was good for seventh place and all-state status.

In hoops, West scored 236 points as a rookie with 43 assists, 58 steals, 14 blocks and 89 rebounds.

But cross country is an entirely new challenge.

“I love to win, and I’m very competitive,” West said.  “Honestly, at first (in cross country) I wasn’t trying to win. We had our first meet last week and I did OK. It killed me to see how I did compared to how I perform in other sports. I think that will change because I want to win. It’s hard for me because I dislike running, so it’s a mental challenge more than anything.”

It may sound contradictory, but West claims the demanding schedule keeps her fresh mentally and physically.

“I think the biggest thing is that I don’t wear myself out,” she said. “I love what I do, but if I do one thing for way too long, I’m going to get tired of it. I love so many different things that it’s easy for me to change it up. It works out my body differently. I don’t overwork myself just in one area.”

In a time when the topic of sports specialization in high school is heavily debated, West is a case study in how a multi-sport experience has far more benefits than that of a one-track approach. And for a small school such as White Pigeon, that attitude is vital to fielding competitive squads.

“So driven,” White Pigeon girls basketball coach Brooke McClure said of West. “She works really hard. Anything you want in a kid, a student-athlete, she’s it. She’s been like this since she was a little girl. We’re really fortunate to have her. She inspires other girls to do better in school and in sports.”

Wes Morgan has reported for the Kalamazoo Gazette, ESPN and ESPNChicago.com, 247Sports and Blue & Gold Illustrated over the last 12 years and is the publisher of JoeInsider.com. He can be reached at [email protected] with story ideas for Berrien, Cass, St. Joseph and Branch counties.

PHOTOS: White Pigeon's Claycee West awaits a serve during a volleyball match. (Middle) West works to get around a defender during last basketball season. (Photos courtesy of Wes Morgan.)

Novi Seniors Go Out With 3rd Class A Win

November 18, 2017

By Perry A. Farrell
Special for Second Half

BATTLE CREEK – Two of the greatest athletes ever to compete for Novi High School finished two of the most memorable volleyball careers in school and state history Saturday at Kellogg Arena.

Setter and Miss Volleyball Award winner Erin O’Leary and outside hitter Abryanna Cannon led the Wildcats as they captured their third straight Class A volleyball title with a 25-23, 25-9, 25-23 victory over a young Bloomfield Hills Marian team in their last match as high school teammates before they face off as Big Ten rivals at the college level.

O’Leary is signed with University of Michigan, and Cannon is signed with Northwestern. Cannon finished her high school career with 18 kills and 15 defensive digs, while O’Leary had 33 assists and 11 kills to conclude her fourth trip to the Finals and third title run.

“I came in a few weeks before the start of school (junior year) and I went into the gym and I knew these players were special,’’ said Cannon, who moved from Traverse City West midway through her career. “I couldn’t have asked for more. It has been a great experience. Erin is just an incredible setter. She made things easy for me.’’

The Wildcats finished 57-3 to run coach Jennifer Cottrill’s record to 286-24-2 in six years guiding the program.

“I don’t know if I or the team understands the gravity of what we have just done,’’ said Cottrill. “They are just really good student-athletes. They deserve it. It’s amazing that they have accomplished what they had set out to do.’’

Marian (45-12-1) actually led 12-10 in the first game before the Wildcats reeled off three straight points to take a 14-12 lead.

When it reached 17-13, first-year Marian coach Lauren Duquette was forced to call a timeout. Her team got the score to 20-20 but couldn’t gain the advantage. A Cannon dink shot over the net ended a two-point win for the Wildcats.

“It was the first time in the tournament we played under pressure, and winning that first game was the difference,’’ said Cottrill.

Novi came out swinging in the second game, scoring eight of the first 12 points to force Duquette to again call a timeout.

Novi continued on to build a double-digit lead (19-7), with the Mustangs having no answer.

Cannon and Kathryn Ellison (who will next play at Kent State) kept pounding winners at the net while O’Leary kept the motor running with her all-around game.

The lead eventually swelled to 21-7 before Marian scored another point. An ace by Cannon ended the second game as the beleaguered Mustangs faced the inevitable.

But it was a loose group at the other end as O’Leary danced to “Don’t Stop Believing” and hugged teammates as she zeroed in on her third title.

“It’s about the team,’’ said O’Leary. “What makes it so much easier is that we focus on each other as a team. We’re a family. Our parents are family, and we are all so close.’’

Hanging on, Marian trailed 10-9 in the third game, then led 14-12 before another ace by Cannon started a rally for the Wildcats.

A soft spike by O’Leary gave the Wildcats a 19-18 lead. Marian made one last push, getting to within 22-21. But a Cannon block put Novi back within two points of the title, and moments later the Wildcats clinched it.

Ellison added 12 kills and 14 digs for Novi. Junior setter Maddie Dowd had 18 assists for Marian, which advanced to its first Final since 2013 by avenging two losses to Farmington Hills Mercy in the Semifinal.

“They were just so much taller than us,’’ said Duquette of taking on Novi’s hitters.

But noting the run, she added, “This is my first year here, and what my team has been able to accomplish in 3½ months … I may look normal, but I’m crazy and I put them through a lot.’’

Click for the full box score.

PHOTOS: (Top) Novi’s Jaeda Porter tries to put a kill between Marian’s Christine Audette (8) and Maggie DePorre (2). (Middle) The Wildcats’ Erin O’Leary serves during her final match.