MENDON — The Mendon volleyball team claimed a regional championship on its home floor Thursday night.
The top-ranked Hornets advanced to the state quarterfinals for the first time since 2020, coincidentally the last time the school won a volleyball state championship. On Thursday, Mendon won in four sets over Battle Creek St. Philip 25-14, 23-25, 25-13, 25-10.
Mendon coach Kenny Herbert said being able to host a regional was a positive for the Hornets.
“It was a great team win tonight on our home court,” he said. “Playing at home gave us a huge advantage tonight and the kids did a great job of staying composed throughout the night.”
Back in 2020, Mendon reached Kellogg Arena and beat Leland in the Division 4 state finals in four sets. Mendon has been in the regionals each of the past two years, but was unable to make the state quarterfinals.
Now, the team is set to take on Hillsdale Academy at Coldwater High School on Tuesday, Nov. 18, in the quarters. The teams will begin the match at 6 p.m. Mendon, which finished the season ranked No. 1 in the final Michigan Interscholastic Volleyball Coaches Association Division 4 poll, heads in with a record of 36-6-1.
Hillsdale Academy ended the year ranked as honorable mention in the final polls and sports a record of 25-11-1. The Chargers earned regional wins over Adrian Lenawee Christian and Lansing Christian to reach the quarterfinals. Mendon did beat Hillsdale Academy a few weeks ago in a sweep.
On Thursday night, the Hornets were led by Cienna Nightingale with 15 kills and 13 digs, Gracie Schultz scored 14 kills, two aces and 19 digs. Lashell Blair added nine kills with five blocks and Brooke Gerth totaled five kills and four digs.
Karyssa Holtz ended the evening with 34 assists. She totaled five kills with 17 digs and four aces. Jadyn Samson had a team-high 24 digs with six assists, Sabrina Monroy scored one kill with three blocks. Graye Lukeman was in on five digs, Michelle Gomez Sanchez added two digs.
Other state quarterfinals to be played on Tuesday feature Traverse City Christian playing Fowler, Crystal Falls Forest Park playing Atlanta and Allen Park Inter-City Baptist playing Ubly.
Contact Sports Editor Brandon Watson at bwatson@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @BwatsonSJ.
This article originally appeared on Sturgis Journal: Mendon beats Battle Creek St. Philip in four sets to win regional volleyball crown
Reporting by Brandon Watson, Sturgis Journal / Sturgis Journal
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