Above, A pair of Pirates go up in tandem to attempt to block the shot of Grass Lake junior Jasmine Carr.
All Stories by
Paul Snyder
Sports Writer
Lady Pirates have a big week at the net
Coach Lisa Bradley’s Napoleon Pirates volleyball team is playing well at the right time with district tournament action right around the corner. The Lady Pirates went 4-1 last week raising their record to 10-6 on the season, defeating arch-rival Columbia Central on Monday, Cascades Conference foes Grass Lake and Michigan Center on Tuesday and Thursday, and going 1-1 on Saturday, falling to Hudson while downing the Erie Mason Eagles.
Monday at Columbia the Pirates won a hard-fought first set 28-26 and the second set 25-14, dropped the third set 22-25, before coming back and winning the fourth set 25-21.
Tuesday, the Lady Pirates hosted Grass Lake and took down the Warriors in four sets, 25-11, 19-25, 25-14 and 25-14. Momo Hampton led the Lady Pirates with 24 points, eight aces and 30 assists. Jasmine Carr and Abby Buttigieg led the Warriors with seven points each. Buttigieg was 14-14 serving to go with 24 digs while Carr was 9-9 serving along with 10 kills.
Thursday the Lady Pirates raised their conference record to 5-2, capturing third place in the Cascades Conference after taking down the Michigan Center Cardinals at home. Napoleon took the first two sets, 25-13 and 25-17, fell in the third set 21-25, before finishing the night with a 25-22 win in the fourth set. Bradley led the way for the Pirates with 11 points and three aces.
Saturday the Pirates traveled to Hudson for a match with the host Tigers and the Erie Mason Eagles.
The Pirates fell to the Tigers in two set 11-25 and 13-25, but bounced back against Erie Mason winning in four sets, 25-23, 20-25, 25-22 and 25-22. Hampton led the Pirates for the day with 18 points, three aces, 34 assists and 14 digs.
Napoleon closes out the regular season this week hosting Lumen Christi this Tuesday and plays in the Cascades Quads on Thursday. The Pirates start MHSAA district tournament action next Wednesday at Hanover-Horton.
Grass Lake travels to Stockbridge for a non-league match this Tuesday before beginning the Cascades Quads Thursday. The Warriors open district play at Lumen Christi against Monday’s winner of the Lumen Christi–Michigan Center match-up.
Columbia volleyball has a tough 1-2 week
The Columbia Central volleyball team returned to the court last week after being shut down for a week due to COVID-19. The Lady Eagles were a little rusty, going 1-2 on the week and falling to 12-5 on the year.
On Monday, the Eagles hosted arch-rival Napoleon, falling to the Pirates in four sets. Bailey Surque led the Lady Eagles with 16 points, five aces, 23 digs and 15 kills.
Tuesday night in their home finale of the season, Columbia got back on the winning track, taking down the Ida Bluestreaks in four sets. After dropping a 23-25 first set, the Eagles came back to win the next three sets, 25-14, 25-22, and 25-18. Senior Katie Taylor and junior Kenadee Tompkins led the way for the Eagles with 15 points each. Tompkins also had three aces, 37 assists, and 24 digs while Taylor had six aces and 19 digs.
Thursday, Columbia traveled to Hudson for a match-up with the second-place Tigers. The Eagles fell in four sets, losing the first 21-25, winning the second set 25-21, before falling 12-25 and 20-25. Mia Taylor led Columbia with 11 points, four aces, 22 digs, and seven kills.
The loss created a three-way tie for third place in the Lenawee County Athletic Association as the Eagles, the Dundee Vikings, and Blissfield Royals all have 4-3 records in the conference.
The Eagles close out their regular season this week traveling to Onsted Tuesday for the LCAA Quads, play at Quincy on Thursday, and travel to Mt. Morris Saturday for the Mt. Morris Quads.
Columbia Central will begin its MHSAA district tournament play Monday at Hanover -Horton against Vandercook Lake.
Onsted v-ballers remain perfect in LCAA
The Onsted Lady Wildcats remained perfect in Lenawee County Athletic Association conference play (7-0) at Onsted on Senior Night Tuesday against the Blissfield Royals. But the win didn’t come easy as the Royals became the first conference team to push Coach Rhonda Hubbard’s Lady Cats to five sets this season.
Onsted won the first set 25-16, dropped a tough second 23-25, came back to win the third set 25-17, only to have the Royals battle back and win the fourth set 20-25. That set up the fifth and deciding set, with the Cats coming out on top, 15-12.
Izzy Kisor led the Wildcats with 16 points, going a perfect 22-22 serving with four aces. Senior Kayla Ross had 14 points going 24-24 serving with one ace, 26 digs, 11 kills and four blocks.
Taylor Boss and Ruby Foster had six points apiece with Foster going 13-14 serving with two aces, seven kills and five blocks, while Boss was 10-10 serving and had two aces. Kamryn Ross led the Wildcats with 40 assists. Mya Hiram contributed 11 kills and 10 digs, while Kennedy Ross had 10 kills and two blocks. Brianna Benz chipped in with 12 digs and Kate Gorney added seven kills.
Saturday the Wildcats traveled to Williamston for the Williamston Quads, going 2-1 on the day.
The Lady Cats opened the day downing New Lothrop in two sets 25-6 and 25-19. Onsted then suffered only their third loss of the season, falling to East Grand Rapids in three sets, 18-25, 25-18, and 22-25. The Wildcats bounced back to defeat Williamston in two sets, 25-16 and 25-12.
Taylor Boss and Kate Gorney led the Wildcats, with Boss getting 24 points, going 28-33 serving with three aces, while Gorney had 20 points, going 25-28 serving with 13 aces and four kills. Ruby Foster was 23-25 serving with five aces,16 points, eight blocks and six kills. Kayla Ross had 10 points with two aces, going 23-23 serving along with 29 digs, 14 kills, and 10 assists. Mya Hiram notched 15 kills and 15 digs to go with one block. Kennedy Ross tallied 17 kills and two blocks. Kamryn Ross had a team-high 36 assists for the day, while Brianna Benz contributed with 24 digs.
The Wildcats hosted the LCAA Quads on Tuesday and the annual Volley for a Cure Wednesday with Concord, Jonesville, and Lenawee Christian. Onsted hosts the Lenawee County championship this Saturday.
