WHITEHALL — Every coach hopes their team plays its best at the end of the season. It doesn't happen all the time, but for the Whitehall Vikings, it did. Unfortunately, it didn't result in a trophy, as the Vikes dropped a five-game thriller to Fremont in Wednesday's district semifinals, 25-19, 23-25, 25-22, 15-25, 15-12.
"Honestly, I don't think there's much more we could do," Whitehall coach Ted Edsall said. "We played our butts off. We had energy. We supported each other. Our outsides were good. We just didn't quite pass it good enough.
"If we had serve received a little bit better, that's when we did well, and that's when we won games. We still had a chance because we played so hard. That scoreboard doesn't define how well we played. I'm really, really proud of them."
Whitehall hasn't played as well all season as it did in game four against Fremont. It was a master class of cohesion and passing, great setting by junior Sidney Shepherd, and laser shots by senior hitters Arianna Black and Kayla Mulder. The Vikings raced out to a 10-1 lead and were never remotely threatened, keeping Fremont on its heels each point.
"That's the game where we passed good enough for Sid to get her hands on the ball, and then those kids are unstoppable," Edsall said, referring to his hitters.
Fremont broke open a 15-15 tie in game one to get the first win, and was on the verge of a game two win as well before Mulder went off, firing three kills over the final four points of the game. Another tie score in game three, 13-13, preceded a Fremont win, but Whitehall pushed it to the fifth game with its dominant game four.
The decisive fifth game quickly went in Fremont's favor, with a 7-2 lead, but the Vikings continued to battle, pulling as close as two points before falling short.
"That's what I'm most proud of; they just hung in there," Edsall said. "They just did a great job of not quitting and playing one point at a time. It was impressive. I am really proud of all of them."
The season was, by Edsall's own admission, "a roller coaster." A slow start compounded with fits and starts later in the season as the Vikings struggled to find their identity and develop team chemistry. However, in the end, the group came together when it mattered most. Edsall credited Shepherd for her leadership along the way.
It'll be leadership she'll surely utilize next year when Whitehall has to replace the impressive Black and Mulder. Mulder had 21 kills Wednesday and Black had 12.
"I don't think any team in the state of Michigan sets two kids more than we do, and every team knows it, and that makes it even tougher," Edsall said. "What they've done is fabulous."
Shepherd posted 45 assists and had nine kills. The Vikings only missed five serves and had 12 aces, five of them by Black. The team totaled 10 blocks.
