David Goricki The Detroit News Published 4:43 PM EST Nov 17, 2018 Battle Creek — No. 2 Mendon dominated top-ranked Leland, earning a sweep (25-16, 25-21, 25-14) in the Division 4 championship match at Kellogg Arena on Saturday morning to hoist the ultimate trophy for the first time since 2001. It would be safe to say Mendon (49-6-3) saved its best for the big stage. After hitting at a .333 clip with eight aces in a semifinal sweep over No. 4 Southfield Christian Thursday afternoon, it hit a sizzling .392 with 11 aces against Leland, guided by legendary head coach Laurie Glass, who is on pace to get win No. 1,000 next season. “It’s an absolutely amazing feeling,” said first-year Mendon head coach Heather Bowers. “These are amazing girls and they deserve it and they’ve earned it. This team has always clicked really well. They have really good chemistry so they just went out there and played their game. “We work in practice on serves quite a bit and one of our game strategies is to get that team out of system right away no matter who it is and it has worked for us the entire tournament.” Mendon swept through the tournament in all but one match, losing the first set in the regional final against Battle Creek St. Philip. Leland held a three-point lead in the second set before Mendon rallied for the 25-21 win. Again it was 5-foot-9 sophomore outside hitter Anna Smith leading the way. Smith, who had… [Read full story]
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