Powered on Tradition, Unionville-Sebewaing is Unstoppable
(Photo Cred: Paul Adams of Huron County View Sports)
Unionville-Sebewaing has had a death grip on success in Division 3 volleyball for quite some time now. The entire 2010 decade to be exact. Thursday night marked Unionville-Sebewaing’s ninth consecutive district title and this season marked their eighth time being amongst the top of the Greater Thumb West Conference. The only other team to have defeated USA for the crown was Cass City in 2010 for both conference and district. In 2016, three points stood between a three-way conference share between USA, Cass City, and Reese. Reese being the lone victor. Despite these rare occurrences, the Patriots of USA have reigned supreme.
Photo By Paul AdamsThis season was looking to be the one to break the streak of championships. After quite the rough start, going into October, USA stood at an 8-9-4 record. They were at the bottom of the GTW pact with a 2-2 record. Come October, something clicked, the Patriots began marching back and leaving their opponents for dead. They would march on to only suffer one loss from then to now. This lone loss came from the hands of a tough Stevenson squad in the Ann Arbor Skyline tournament.
The Patriots would go on to win their eighth GTW conference title. Despite the trailblazing performances, it was sure to be coming to a halt when they would encounter the number 12 ranked Harbor Beach Pirates in the opening round of districts. Harbor Beach was riding on the wave of a historic season and showed a huge sense of consistency throughout the season. USA was coming on hot late in the season, and the question was when would the fire be put out?
To answer the question, the fire has only gotten bigger.
Composed and determined, USA is still that team. Unionville-Sebewaing not only snatched yet another district title, but they ran away with it. After they epically steamrolled past Harbor Beach, it was obvious, this was USA’s to lose. Every athlete to compete in a red, white and blue jersey is made for moments like these. They would go on to own both Lakers and Cass City in the semis and finals respectively, walking away unblemished with three straight sweeps.
Even Coach Teresa Rose was surprised by the performance.
“I knew we were going to be in a tough district this year with Harbor Beach, Cass City, and Bad Axe,” Rose said. “I mean, they are all tough teams. Laker can be a good team. But to come out and win every game in three is not what I expected.”
Photo By Paul AdamsSurprised but not shocked, she later commented on how her athletes hate to lose and find any way possible to be victorious.
The key to USA’s road to victory was their defense. Maci Montgomery led the floor defense like no other. There was no ball she could not get to and her relentless pursuit was contagious. Against Harbor Beach, four different players logged double-digit digs. Everyone got into the action. If USA was unable to get the ball down, their defense was so sound, the opposing offense would eventually error in an effort to find ways around it.
It was rare when the offense wasn’t able to get the ball down though. The Patriots brought the big guns locked and loaded this week. Grace Williamson was big in these rounds of the tournament leading the team in kills. Allyson Kemp did usual Kemp things. But the big game-changer was the steady play of Brynn Polega. A former pin player moved to the middle, Polega showed her most consistent of play all season. Not only was Polega big in her play, but she was big in her leadership, leading her squad in post-rally huddles.
Photo By Paul AdamsAnother one bringing all they had for the cause was the sophomore setter, Kylie Bohn. Bohn’s been known for putting up big assist numbers and this week was no different. Bohn averaged 13.7 assists per set throughout the week. More impressively, Kylie had her best all-around showing all season. She was shutting hitters down, throwing in some dumps and played great defense. With someone like Montgomery behind you, it’s easy to not worry about defense. Against Cass City, Bohn had a career-best, nine digs! As the season goes on, the more confidence you can see shine through this youthful player.
As the Patriots continue on yet another post-season march, they shift focus on potentially upending another ranked opponent. The number 10 ranked Saginaw Valley Lutheran Chargers will have to endure one intense rowdy environment come Tuesday. Not only will they enter the land of the Patriots, but they will have to face off against the home squad who has quite the following behind them. The Chargers boast quite a dynamic defense similar to USA’s, led by senior libero Kelsey Vittitow. It’ll be one for the books!
View Through the Stat Sheet
Grace Williamson, Jr, MB – 43 kills, 6 blocks, and 38 digs
Allyson Kemp, Sr, OH – 40 kills
Brynn Polega, Jr, MB – 31 kills, 5 aces, 4 blocks, and 26 digs
Maci Montgomery, Jr, Lib – 55 digs, 2 aces, and 96% reception rate on 56 attempts.
Kylie Bohn, Soph, Setter – 123 assists, 15 digs, 4 blocks, and 2 kills