MUSKEGON — Fruitport made Montague pay for not converting on a chance to steal game one of Saturday's district final at Orchard View, dominating the final two games to earn a 25-22, 25-14, 25-9 sweep and advance to the regional round.
The Wildcats (28-14-4), led by a serving run from junior Gentry Knop, scored five straight points down the stretch of game one to tie it at 20 and put them in position to snag game one and put some pressure on the top seed. However, consecutive Montague errors put Fruitport back on top, and the Trojans closed out game one.
"We came out strong,
we played strong and we knew that we were at the end of our rope," Montague coach Gretchen Schneider said of game one. "We
gave everything."
Montague did rally from a 6-0 deficit in game two to take an 8-7 lead, but after that, Fruitport took complete command and was never threatened again.
Even as the match progressed, Schneider said, the team was aware that repeating its comeback from two days prior against Spring Lake was a much taller order this time around.
"You could see it in their eyes when they
came back after that first loss," Schneider said. Even though that's how it played out
on Thursday night for us, this
one had a little bit different feel to it...They were not going to make the mistakes that
Spring Lake made."
The 'Cats were unable to slow down Fruitport's Sadie Haase, a Grand Valley State commit who looked every bit the star of the show Saturday, less at the net than at the service line. Haase went on a lengthy serving run during game three that buried Montague in a 18-3 deficit much too large to climb out of.
"Sadie, their middle, is a difference-maker, and she just kept
them in the game," Schneider said. "She was on. My playmakers were a little off
today, and every one of them knew it. We struggled."
The 'Cats didn't look to be in sync, possibly because of the pressure Fruitport constantly forced on their side of the net. The Trojans were there to turn back almost any good Montague sequence.
"You can't take anything away from Fruitport," Schneider said. "They are volleyball-driven. They're seasoned. They've been here before. They
know what it takes."
Maizie Collins led Montague defensively with 12 digs. She and Ava Pumford had three kills each. Knop had four aces. Jaelyn Sundberg posted nine assists.
It was Knop's serving that seemed to drive what success Montague did have in the match. Schneider said Knop has been a serving asset her entire time on the varsity.
"She's been
the go-to server," Schneider said. "That's what she was brought to the varsity team for,
was serving. She has often been in the gym alone just serving baskets and baskets full of balls."
Collins, Sundberg, Jordan Netcott and Ava Pumford headline a senior class of six that ended productive and lengthy Wildcat careers Saturday. Six juniors, though, will return, and Schneider said all are in it "for the long haul" as Montague looks to continue its success.
"We love volleyball at Montague," Schneider said. "We're building the program."
