Michigan coaches relieved to get clearance for 2020 MHSAA season
The elephant in the room was finally shown the door. While high school volleyball teams around the state had been holding practices for weeks, the possibility of the 2020 fall season being postponed or cancelled was very real. Two regions…
Access all of Prep Dig
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingThe elephant in the room was finally shown the door.
While high school volleyball teams around the state had been holding practices for weeks, the possibility of the 2020 fall season being postponed or cancelled was very real.
Two regions in the state were allowed to begin competition, but the majority of the state still waited for weeks with bated breath.
On Thursday, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer passed a pair of executive orders, opening the door for the MHSAA to give the green light for indoor competition to begin throughout the state starting on Wednesday.
“We were at practice when the news came through and I got to tell them. They were obviously pumped up about it,” Lowell coach Jordan Drake said. “They were excited to say the least.”
Excitement is the common theme throughout Michigan, but many of the coaches know that there is a lot of responsibilities being put on administrators, coaches and athletes around the state.
“I’m super excited for our kids. I just hope that we can all continue to be smart and safe,” Bronson coach Jean LaClair said. “I think that our athletes and coaching staff have been doing that. Everyone needs to do the right thing now, which is wearing a mask when out in public.”
LaClair, who is also the athletic director at Bronson, knows as well as anyone that keeping everyone as safe as possible is important.
“We shouldn’t have to remind people to wear a mask anymore. Whether you agree with it or not, people need to be masked to keep others safe. I will use myself as an example. I’m a high-risk person, so it’s really important for people to wear a mask when they are around me,” she said. “If everyone is doing what they need to do, which is wear a mask, I think we will get through our season. We just have to have kids and community members be smart.”
The majority of volleyball programs in Michigan have been challenged to prepare for their season outdoors, with wind and temperatures creating new obstacles to overcome.
With indoor practice and competition being allowed to start on Wednesday, things can return to a sense of normalcy.
“We really tried to keep it as normal as possible. We had a sport court, so that was a huge bonus to have that,” Drake said. “The wind and sun obviously played a factor and made for challenges during practice. However, I think that experience will help the girls appreciate being inside the gym even more.”
Both Lowell and Bronson actually made lengthy trips to Region 6 of the state, the northern parts of the lower peninsula, in order to get some matches in. Region 6 and Region 8 were the only two regions in the state given clearance to play indoors prior to Thursday.
Lowell went to Traverse City and picked up three, three-set wins over Traverse City Central, Traverse City West and Grand Haven.
The Red Arrows were the 2019 Division 1 runner-up and have some high hopes for 2020. They find themselves No. 2 in our initial 2020 D1 rankings.
Lowell has just three seniors this year, but all are very impactful. Jenna Reitsma Jenna Reitsma 5'11" | OH Lowell | 2021 State MI (Marquette) is one of the top players in the entire state on the outside. Emma Hall Emma Hall 5'11" | DS/L Lowell | 2021 State MI (Gannon) at libero and Sophia Powell Sophia Powell 5'9" | S Lowell | 2021 State MI at setter provide great leadership at key positions.
“The thought definitely crosses your mind over time (that there wouldn’t be a season) and that would have been really awful for the whole team, but especially our three seniors,” Drake said. “Those three have put a lot of time and work into this and they care about the program and want to go out with a bang. I’m definitely grateful to be able to coach them once again.”
Scheduling for the 2020 season will be altered. Big weekend tournaments won’t be able to be held under current health restrictions, so teams will have to opt for more quads.
That adjustment could be a good thing in the eyes of LaClair.
“We have most of our schedule set and it’s going to be more quads,” she said. “I was ready to go in that direction anyway. I had quads setup before any of this hit to begin with. A lot of the quads we will be going to will be three-out-of-five (sets). Usually I only get my seven league matches to be three-out-of-five. This year I am going to get a lot more opportunities for matches to go five sets. I am excited about that. I think it’s going to better prepare us for the state tournament.”
The Class C/Division 3 state champs from 2015-18 are hoping to make a deep postseason run again in 2020.
The Vikings have a lot of depth and leadership. Leading the way is senior setter Meagan Lasky and middle Skye Woodman. Among their opening three matches this season was a five-set victory over 2019 D4 runner-up, Leland.
Bronson is No. 4 in our first D3 rankings, while Leland is No. 2 in D4.
“I am excited about this team,” LaClair said. “We have some kids that have been a little bit overlooked in the past. We have a little more depth than we have had in the past. They are working their butts off. They have some funky tan lines right now, but they have been working hard and playing together as a team. I am just thankful that we are getting to play.”