Nov. 6, 2021, PORT HURON, Mich. – The Grand Rapids Community College volleyball team's season came to end after losing to Terra State Community College in Saturday's NJCAA Region XII Great Lakes B Tournament championship.
GRCC dropped its opening match of the tournament to Muskegon Community College on Thursday. But the team responded by sweeping both opponents on Friday, and got a chance at redemption against the Jayhawks in the semi-finals. GRCC swept the Muskegon 25-18, 25-19, and 25-21 to advance to the championship against Terra State Community College of Ohio, ranked No. 7 in the nation. GRCC fell short in a hard-fought match.
This season reminded the GRCC assistant coach Amanda Glaza of 2017, when the team suffered a loss to No. 1- ranked Owens Community College at the regional final. GRCC was ranked No. 3 at the time.
"We knew it was going to be an uphill battle after losing our first match to a very good Muskegon Community College team,” she said. “But winning five in a row is tough, and I think we just ran out of gas in the end. A ton of credit goes to Terra State. It has a very great team and played amazing. It will do very well in Iowa and deserves to represent our region."
After falling behind by nine in the opening set against Terra State, the Raiders - ranked No. 6 in the nation - clawed back to make it just a one-point game. But the Titans would hang on for a 25-23 win. After losing the second set 25-19, GRCC made a few adjustments and was ahead late – but could not close the door on the Ohio Community College Athletic Conference champs. GRCC had three set points, but lost 26-24 to win their second straight district title.
The loss ends the Raiders’ season with a 24-7 overall record. Terra State, which has not lost since getting swept by the GRCC on Oct. 3, will head back to the NJCAA DII National Tournament with an impressive 35-3 record.
GRCC’s Annie Holesinger and Audrey Torres were named to the All-Tournament team after outstanding play over the past three days.
Holesinger, a sophomore from Rockford, had a match-high 15 kills against Muskegon in Saturday's opener. Torres had 11 against the Jayhawks and a team-high 10 against Terra State.
Some of the highlights for GRCC this season was an 18-match winning streak spanning 66 days, a 10th conference title, finishing 14-0 in Western Conference play, and an MCCAA Championship, the team’s fifth in the last six years.
Regional tournament statistical leaders:
- Kills: Torres, 50; Holesinger, 49; Kara Hecht, 36; Kylie Oberlin, 20; Karissa Ferry, 16; Eliza Thelen, 14.
- Assists: Shannon Russell, 156; Ola Nowak 23.
- Digs: Nowak, 52; Torres, 49; Audrey Gower, 39; Hecht, 25; Russell, 30; Morgan Fugate, 10.
- Blocks: Holesinger, 16; Ferry, 9; Oberlin and Thelen, 7; Hecht, 6.
- Aces: Russell, 9; Torres, 8; Nowak and Hecht, 6.
Post-season awards are scheduled to be announced Nov. 8.