PARK TWP. – As soon as the ball was served, the Volley Night Lights tradition was underway.
The inaugural outdoor volleyball match pitted two of the area’s best against each other with West Ottawa hosting Holland Christian on Friday, Aug. 21, at West Ottawa Stadium.
Hundreds of fans got their glimpse of the first of what is scheduled to become a tradition, and got to witness history – and a strong match with the Panthers edging the Maroons in a four-set match that very nearly went a fifth set.
“It is a huge thing, not just for West Ottawa but for girls volleyball. The girls work really hard, and for them to have a special event like this, they get to show off to a big community and convince people they should be at more of our games,” West Ottawa coach Kaitlyn Lawton said.
The players had never experienced something quite like it.
“This will be a big thing every year and people will look forward to it. It was super exciting to see all the people who came out to support us. It was exciting to see how everyone came together to put this together,” West Ottawa’s Akiah Garvelink said. “We had to talk a lot more and trust our teammates to be there for us.”
West Ottawa Athletic Director Bill Kennedy and Holland Christian AD Dave Engbers found the portable outdoor court from a club that was downsizing and collaborated on the idea.
Kennedy then purchased an outdoor pole and net system to complete the needs.
He, staff volunteers and the football team put the court together early on Friday, piecing the squares together.
The plan is for Holland Christian to host the event next year and have it trade off each year with hopefully a long Volley Night Lights tradition.
“I love that this was the first annual. Next year, we will host it, which will be awesome. It was a fun experience – something we haven’t done,” Holland Christian coach Kylie Leeuw said. “The fact that we had the mental toughness after two sets to be able to come back and win one and come really close and trade off the lead in the fourth shows a lot in what we are able to do.”
Play elevated on outdoor court
What made the event extra special is that it was a quality match between two of the top teams in the area.
The teams lived up to it.
The Panthers took an early lead and kept the momentum going, winning the first two sets 25-16, 25-19.
But the Maroons stormed back to win the third set 25-14, setting up a pivotal fourth set.
The fourth set was close and the Panthers needed extra points to close out the match 27-25 after Holland Christian staved off multiple match points, nearly forcing a fifth.
Tied 25-25, Mia Perez entered to serve and dialed up back-to-back aces to close out the match.
“I was nervous, but I wanted to win for my team. I took a deep breath, told myself I could do this and I will do this,” Perez said. “I tried to go short in the first one, then I went long to change it up. It was awesome to end the match like that. It was a great feeling to finish something so strong.”
That helped it live up to the hype.
“We watched videos other teams that did this and it was awesome. We were so excited to do this,” Perez said. “Once we started playing, it got even better – the cheering, the hype video – everything was amazing.”
Lawton said it was an incredible way to finish.
“Those were phenomenal serves. She did her job. The girls showed up today and I couldn’t be more proud,” Lawton said.
Contact sports editor Dan D’Addona at Dan.D’Addona@hollandsentinel.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter @DanDAddona or Facebook @HollandSentinelSports.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: West Ottawa volleyball opens Volley Night Lights outdoor series vs Holland Christian
Reporting by Dan D’Addona, Holland Sentinel / The Holland Sentinel
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Dan D'Addona, Holland Sentinel | USA TODAY Network
