The Munising girls volleyball team won the first two sets and nearly pulled off a road victory at Ishpeming on Oct. 7.
Unfortunately, however, the Mustangs were unable to finish off their opponents, and the match eventually went into a fifth set, where the Hematites prevailed, 19-25, 22-25, 25-15, 25-21 and 15-12.
Munising came out strong and controlled play early on. “I thought the girls did a great job coming out sharp versus Ishpeming. They seem to always have a bit more energy playing in this gym,” head coach Josh Cole said. “Our defensive passers also did a great job in those first two sets that helped control the two set wins.”
Ishpeming closed the gap late in the second set and used that momentum to take the third set. In the fourth, the Mustangs were able to take a 15-9 lead, but they weren’t quite able to seal the deal in this frame either.
“Got to give Ishpeming ladies the credit that is due and their tough play, but I thought we left a lot of points on the floor in the second half of set four,” Cole said. “Giving a team like Ishpeming an opportunity is never a good thing.”
In the decisive fifth set, Ishpeming built a 10-5 lead. Munising pulled within 11-8 but was unable to make a serious run at the lead.
“The Ishpeming ladies are a tough, resilient group of athletes. They play in a very tough conference in the U.P., and they showed the most grit when it mattered most,” Cole said. “Coach Kat Beerling has done wonders over there with that program in the last four to five years. Her players’ toughness and hard work is a direct reflection of Coach Kat’s personality.”
The Mustangs were led by Bailey Corcoran, who had 10 kills, one block and three digs. Addie Bowerman had nine kills, two blocks and three aces, and Carissa Deatsman was able to get 19 assists, one ace and 12 digs.
On Tuesday, Oct. 8, Munising lost in straight sets at Carney- Nadeau, 25-12, 25-22 and 25-10.
“I feel like we showed up hoping good things would just happen for us, and coming to Carney with that type of mindset will never go in our favor,” Cole said. “Not sure if the backto- back had any effect on the flat play all night, or if it was just straight up not being mentally ready to go. And that is nothing against Carney-Nadeau. I believe their only loss this season is to Forest Park, and they have taken care of business otherwise. The Carney ladies work extremely hard on defense and can really serve the snot out of the ball — wow. I thought [they] had a great game plan knowing that we have two really good middle blockers. Their hitters were good all night going up over the block or swinging for high hands.”
For the Mustangs, Corcoran had six kills and two aces; Bowerman had four kills, one block and one ace; and Hayden Bayer smacked down a pair of kills.
