Motor City Madness: Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno claims 15 Open championship
Motor City Madness The comforts of home went a long way for Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno at this weekend’s Motor City Madness event. Playing as close to home as it will get, at Ultimate Soccer in Pontiac, Michigan Elite walked…
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Continue ReadingThe comforts of home went a long way for Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno at this weekend’s Motor City Madness event.
Playing as close to home as it will get, at Ultimate Soccer in Pontiac, Michigan Elite walked away with the 15 Open championship thanks to a victory in the final over FaR Out 15 Black, 25-19, 25-22.
“We lost in the finals (of Motor City Madness) last year, so it is nice to come back and win it,” Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno coach Mayssa Cook said. “The team has started to play at their level more consistently. That’s exciting to see as a coach.”
After a 3-0 day on Saturday without dropping a set, Sunday was a little more challenging for Michigan Elite. The day started with a three-set battle with MVA 15 National Black in the quarterfinals (25-14, 19-25, 15-6). They then faced SPVB 15 Elite in the semifinals and also went three sets (25-19, 21-25, 15-10).
“We dropped sets (Sunday) and we had some moments where I think we just got complacent, but overall I am happy with the 3-0,” Cook said.
In the final, Michigan Elite led most of the way in both sets. While not able to really pull away, it never allowed FaR Out to get control and made them chase
Leading the Michigan Elite charge to the title was 2021’s Julia Bishop, the team’s setter. Bishop is establishing herself as one of the top players in the 2021 class with her ability to find the right hitter with the right pass. She also has shown a knack of knowing when to be aggressive and go for the kill herselp.
“I think we really stepped up when we needed to,” Bishop said of her team this weekend. “We were able to control the first pass, which was huge for us. We have been up and down with that. To come out on top, I am really happy with that, of course.”
FaR Out had a little longer road to the final after going 1-2 on Saturday. It defeated Hurricanes 15 Black (25-14, 25-17) in the first round of Sunday’s tournament and then topped Unified 15-1 (21-25, 25-19, 15-9) in the quarterfinals before besting TI Elite 151 (25-15, 25-7) in the semifinal.
Motor City Madness 15 Open
Sunday’s Gold Bracket Results
At Ultimate Soccer – Pontiac
Opening Round
M1: MVA 15 National Black def. ECJ 15 Elite (11-25, 25-17, 15-10)
M2: TeamD 15-Red def. FIVE1 VBC 15-ADIDAS (25-16, 25-18)
M3: FaR Out 15 Black def. Hurricanes 15 Black (25-14, 25-17)
M4: Michigan Elite 15 Elite West def. Michigan Elite 15 Elite East (28-26, 25-17)
Quarterfinals
M5: Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno def. MVA 15 National Black (25-14, 19-25, 15-6)
M6: SPVB 15 Elite def. TeamD 15-Red (25-20, 25-16)
M7: FaR Out 15 Black def. Unified 15-1 (21-25, 25-19, 15-9)
M8: TI Elite 151 def. Michigan Elite 15 Elite West (25-23, 25-23)
Semifinals
M9: Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno def. SPVB 15 Elite (25-19, 21-25, 15-10)
M10: FaR Out 15 Black def. TI Elite 151 (25-15, 25-7)
Finals
M11: Michigan Elite 15 Mizuno def. FaR Out 15 Black (25-19, 25-22)