The Hillsdale Academy volleyball team after their regional win.
Courtesy | Liz Andaloro
The Hillsdale Academy volleyball team made it to the Michigan High School Division 4 state playoffs for the first time since 2013, finishing their season with a loss in the quarterfinal game to No. 1 Mendon High School Nov. 18.
Closing the season with a 25–12–1 record, head coach Katherine Huffman said the Colts defeated their rival, No. 7 Lenawee Christian in the regional semifinals. They then swept Lansing Christian in the regional finals, sending the Colts into the state tournament and securing their first regional title in 12 years.
“Lenawee Christian is a big rival to our team in volleyball, since I’ve been coaching for 17 years, and we have been winning back-and-forth for awhile,” Huffman said. “Lenawee has beat us out of the tournament a few times and we have beat them out a few times. They beat us earlier this year, so we were the underdog in that match. We ended up winning 15–9 in the 5th set that night, advancing us to the regional finals.”
High school junior Zoe Plemmons said this season was historic for the Colts and it was their fiery attitude that led to their success.
“We made it to the state quarterfinals, tying for being the best team in school history,” Plemmons said. “I think the biggest highlight was beating Lenawee to take us to the regional finals. We lost to them earlier in the season and I think we were all prepared mentally and physically to pound them.”
High school senior and captain Liz Andaloro said that she is proud of how hard the team worked this season, citing their big wins as motivation to keep playing.
“We learned how to come together as a team and play for each other when it was needed,” Andaloro said. “Even when we were down on points, we had the drive to continue playing like it was the last time we would be on the court and that motivated us to want every win.”
Given the small size of Hillsdale Academy, Plemmons said the close-knit community contributes to the team’s chemistry and ability to stay strong even in defeat.
“At the beginning of the season, I knew we had a lot of potential and I was very confident in our group of girls,” Plemmons said. “We went so far and even just making it to the state competition was such a blessing.”
According to Andaloro, the Colt’s season consisted of many moments of overcoming adversity, including many team-member injuries, that led to big wins, notably their two wins against No. 6 Concord High School, 2–1 and 3–1, and a win against Climax Scotts High School, 3–2, in October.
“These long games showed us just how much talent and grit this team had,” Andaloro said.
Now that the season has ended, Plemmons said she hopes next season will be even better than this one, but that their goal is to always keep the sport in perspective.
“Something so important to being on a big team is trusting each other and remembering why we play,” Plemmons said. “We play because we all originally fell in love with the sport, and in the end, we play to glorify God on the court. I would love to see us go as far as we did this year, and I believe if we put in the work, we can do anything.”
Andaloro said she hopes the next team of girls will continue to play as a unified team and stay strong.
“Although we are graduating four starters, there is amazing talent in the girls coming up,” Andaloro said. “I hope that they learn to play for each other and play for God because it is when my team realized who we play for on the court that we all began to play as a unified team. I fully believe that joy can be found in everything on the volleyball court.”
