Marian Finishes Strong To Win Its Third Straight D1 Title

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Already having suffered a loss to Northville earlier in the season, Marian wasn't going to stand for another one.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The two-time defending champs split the first two sets of Saturday's D1 final with Northville and found itself trailing 19-12 in a crucial third set.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That's when the Mustangs found their championship mettle that pushed it to rally and take the third, and follow that up with a dominant fourth to secure its third consecutive championship, 22-25, 25-22, 25-22, 25-11.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“This is our home court. We've been here now a third year in a row. This is our home court and I knew we had that advantage. We had the experience of playing on this stage, in this gym. We know the way it smells, it looks, all that stuff,” Marian coach Mayssa Cook said. “All season was about that 3-peat. We were happy to make it here, but we wanted to win. That, from Day 1, has been our goal.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"align":"right","id":248150,"width":263,"height":307,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image alignright size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/pd/uploads/2022/11/Marian-vs-NV-D1-VB-Final-21-877x1024.jpg" alt="" class="wp-image-248150" width="263" height="307"/><figcaption class="wp-element-caption">[player_tooltip player_id='66330' first='Ella' last='Schomer']</figcaption></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The rally in the third set was really the difference in the match and it came in part due to the serving of senior libero <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='66305' first='Lauren' last='Heming']</strong>. She sparked a 7-0 run with a pair of aces to tie the set. Senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='152524' first='Molly' last='Banta']</strong> would follow with a pair of aces later in the set, then <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='156287' first='Isabelle' last='Busignani'] </strong>had back-to-back kills to close things out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the fourth, Northville looked a bit shell shocked as Marian established an 18-6 lead before closing out the championship.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“They got mad,” Northville coach Sarah Lindstrom said of Marian. “A team like that, when they get angry, it is a scary team. You saw them realize that they weren't going to let us do that to them. That is at least how it felt for us. Kudos to them.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Mustangs of Northville used a rally of their own to overcome an 18-13 Marian lead. Northville closed out the set by scoring 12 of the next 16 points.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>“I'm proud of the girls for coming out and taking that first set,” Lindstrom said. “That was the set that was probably the scariest for all of us because we knew (Marian) had done this multiple times before. We were hopeful to come out strong and we did.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>Marian Standouts</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore OH <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='156287' first='Isabelle' last='Busignani']: </strong>27 kills (.301), 20 digs</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior S <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='66328' first='Ava' last='Sarafa']: </strong>45 assists, 10 digs</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior OH <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='66330' first='Ella' last='Schomer']: </strong>14 kills, 17 digs</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior L <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='66305' first='Lauren' last='Heming']: </strong>20 digs, 5 aces</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior OH <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='152524' first='Molly' last='Banta']: </strong>4 kills, 14 digs, 3 aces</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2><strong>Northville Standouts</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior OH <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='66325' first='Abigail' last='Reck']: </strong>21 kills, 19 digs, 3 aces</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore S <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='156293' first='Ella' last='Craggs']: </strong>45 assists</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Junior MH <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='110315' first='Avry' last='Nelson']: </strong>12 kills (.300), 3 blocks</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior L <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='108714' first='Taryn' last='Rice']: </strong>20 digs</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Senior RS <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='230898' first='Lauren' last='MacKellar']: </strong>8 kills</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->