Onekama continued its district volleyball reign, sweeping Suttons Bay 3-0 (25-15, 25-16, 25-23) for a sixth straight championship.
“We’ve been working so hard all year, and we came into this saying, rankings are nothing, everybody’s out to get everybody. We played really hard, and we are really excited that we are moving on,” Onekama senior Hailey Hart said. “The past couple of weeks, we’ve been playing at our top level … We all love each other, and we have so much fun while we’re out there.”
The Portagers (34-9-3) will face Hale (19-9-4) Monday at 6 p.m. for the right to compete for a regional championship.
Onekama took a commanding 17-9 lead in the first set behind the lethal arms of Hart and junior Delaney McCarthy to take the set 25-15 (1-0).
The Portagers would mount another strong run to start the second set, before the Norse would take its first lead of the night, 10-9. Onekama would recover quickly to go on a 15-6 run and earn the second set 25-16.
In the third set, Suttons Bay would not waver as they led for most of the set by as many as three points. Sutton Ba would force an Onekama timeout down 16-13.
The Portagers would tie the game 20-20, winning several 50-50 exciting volleys.
Both the Portagers took the lead during the final five points as Onekama finished the game and captured its fourth consecutive district championship with a 25-23 third-set win.
“They fought hard, and they put on a great game on the court tonight. I’m very proud of them. It’s just a joy to coach them,” Onekama coach Linda Elo said.
Elo credits the Portagers serving plan and execution for the win.
Hart led with 13 kills, 2 aces, 5 digs, while McCarthy had 15 kills, five assists, two aces, and three digs. Elizabeth McKenough had 23 assists, four kills, two blocks, an ace, and three digs. Senior Aleah Blackmore was patrolling the net with four blocks and an ace.
Aubrey LeSarge added two aces and five digs, while Ava Mauntley had 26 digs and two aces.
Suttons Bay ends one of the best volleyball seasons in program history with a 24-2-0 record and a share of the Northwest Conference championship, along with Onekama and Buckley.
The Norse were led by Ava Anderson with 13 kills and nine digs, while senior Megan U’Ren had two aces, seven kills, nine digs, and a block. Leah Clarke managed 21 assists and six digs.
“I am so proud of them … Some of these girls I’ve coached for five years, so I couldn’t be more proud,” Suttons Bay coach Olivia Dohm said. “They never gave up.”
