NORTON SHORES – The Grand Haven volleyball team has dominated the Division 1 district landscape for the past two decades.
This season the Bucs were looking to capture their 15th straight district title, and their 19th in the last 20 years, but it wasn’t as easy as it’s been in past years.
Grand Haven struggled a bit this season, posting a 15-32 record coming into to districts. And the Bucs were challenged every step of the way, surviving a first-round match against a determined Reeths-Puffer squad on Monday, then battling through a tough five-set semifinal match against Coopersville on Wednesday.
The final hurdle came on Thursday night, when the Bucs lost the first set to Mona Shores in the district title match on the Sailors’ home court, but rallied and won three straight sets after that and emerged with their 15th straight title.
Grand Haven lost a crazy opening set by a 34-32 margin, then won the next three by scores of 25-18, 25-20 and 25-21.
[1]The Bucs will host a Division 1 regional tournament starting on Tuesday night. They will face Rockford at 7 p.m. in a semifinal match.
“We talked about some of the lumps we took this season, how this has not been the type of season we have had in the past, and how our conference is one of the toughest in the state and how it prepared us for this,” said Grand Haven coach Aaron Smaka. “We have had to fight through some tough moments to get to the point where we could handle this. I don’t know if we could have done this earlier in the year.
“The theme for the season has been the process, and how players needed to add or bring something to make the process better. Now we get to go to regionals at home and see what we can do there.”
Izzy Whittaker paced the Bucs with 16 kills, most of them happening at crucial times in the contest when Grand Haven was behind or clinging to a small lead.
“I think losing that first set really motivated us tonight,” said Whittaker, who is a junior. “I don’t think anyone on the team stressed out about possibly being the team to lose districts, but it honestly pushed us to work harder.
[2]“It means so much to me, being the first season that I get to play with my sister (sophomore Alena Whittaker), and it means so much to me to win this.”
Senior Paige Redder also had some key kills down the stretch, despite suffering a mild ankle injury at the end of the opening set.
Redder bounced back from her injury, returning at the beginning of the second set and finishing with 13 kills.
“I am feeling great, and most of the tears were because I didn’t want to be done for the night being a senior, and I didn’t want this to be my last night,” Redder said. “I always had in the back of my mind that we needed to keep this streak of district titles going. But mostly I was just focused on the play of the game and getting every point. I am so happy and proud of the team, we worked so hard and we deserve it.”
The opening set remained close throughout, with the biggest advantage going to Grand Haven, which had an early 8-2 lead.
[3]The Sailors managed a comeback and forced a 25-25 tie before going back-and-forth with Grand Haven until the match was tied at 32-32.
Mona Shores won the first set by scoring the last two points on a kill by Ava Dunn and a ball hit out of bounds by Grand Haven.
The Bucs never trailed during the second set, but Mona Shores managed to cut its deficit to 17-15 before allowing Grand Haven to close it out with an 8-3 run.
The Sailors led early in the third set, and at one point held a 9-5 advantage, but Grand Haven finally tied the contest at 9-9 and took a lead it never relinquished.
Mona Shores overcame an 11-7 deficit early in the fourth set by going on a 7-2 run to take a 14-13 lead. Grand Haven quickly regained its advantage before the Sailors cut their deficit to 21-20 late in the fourth.
The Bucs closed out the match going on a 4-1 run. Redder scored three of the final four points, including the clincher on a kill.
Grand Haven was led defensively by Redder and Mia Swierbut with 19 digs apiece.
“My girls did everything I asked,” said Mona Shores coach Kathy Hellmann. “They left their hearts out on the court and did the game plan that we talked about. I am very proud of how they battled.”
The Sailors finished the season with a 16-22-1 record overall.
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