Escanaba volleyball eliminates Gladstone with straight-set win | News, Sports, Jobs - Daily Press

Nov 4, 2024

Gladstone junior Addy Blowers (1) attempts to get the ball past Escanaba junior Ava Stalboerger (23) and Grayson LaMarche during a MHSAA Division 2 district quarterfinal match on Nov. 4, 2024 at Gladstone High School. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

GLADSTONE — Postseason action allows heroes to emerge.

It could be someone who has flown under the radar under the season. It may be someone who has been producing all year long.

Most of the time in postseason action teams expected their better players to perform at their best.

Escanaba volleyball got that performance from senior middle blocker Grayson LaMarche in Monday’s district quarterfinal clash against rival Gladstone. LaMarche tallied 11 kills and five aces in a 25-15, 25-23, 25-18 win over the Braves.

“Grayson is always good, but some nights he’s a little bit fired up. Tonight was one of those nights,” Esky coach Beverly Ziebell said. “We did some of our plays tonight that she executed perfectly.”

LaMarche hammered five of her kills in the first set, which saw her be responsible for three-straight points to take a 22-15 lead. The spurt also aided senior Katey Lamb’s six point service run to win the first frame.

Yet LaMarche’s biggest impact arguably came in the second set with the Eskymos trailing 18-15. A kill from sophomore Brooklyn Beauchamp pulled the orange and black within two points.

It also sent LaMarche to the service line.

The senior rattled off seven-straight points, including a pair of aces, to take a 23-18 lead. A block attempt from junior Susie Moberg was successful, except the ball landed on the Esky side of the floor, ending the run.

But the Braves refused to yield. In fact, Gladstone rallied to claim the next four of the next five points to pull within 24-23. Forcing an Eskymo timeout.

A back and forth rally ensued. A big, exciting play was bound to transpire and sent either side of the crowd into a frenzy.

But Gladstone junior Addy Blowers was found guilty of having one of her feet over the middle line. Esky claimed the set’s final point to earn a 25-23 set two win in anticlimactic fashion.

LaMarche and Lamb weren’t the only Eskymos to rattle off big runs from the service line. Junior setter Mary Kate Tourangeau went on a nine-point run, including a pair of aces, in the opening frame to take a commanding 14-6 lead.

Senior setter Clara Braun also made an impact at the line. She rattled off three aces as part of a six-point run, featuring the Braves being out of rotation on back-to-back plays, for a 19-12 lead in the third frame.

Tourangeau finished with seven assists, four kills, a trio of aces and a dig. Braun accumulated 13 assists, 12 digs and five aces.

“Their serving tonight was unreal,” Ziebell said. “Both of them served an excellent game. They were accurate. They were powerful.”

Junior Harlee Coolman finished with 22 digs and an ace. Junior Chloe Dubord added four digs. Lamb totaled nine digs, a pair of aces and a kill. Senior Sophie Lehto had two digs and a helper. Senior Lily Nelson tallied four digs and a trio of kills. Junior Landry Bray totaled three kills and a dig. Junior Susie Moberg added six kills and three blocks. Junior Addison Noblet contributed two assists and a dig. Beauchamp finished with three kills and a dig. Junior Breleigh Reinhart added a dig. Junior Ava Stalboerger had three kills.

Now the Eskymos turn their attention to Negaunee, their foe in the district semifinal round. Negaunee defeated Esky 26-24, 25-18, 25-14 during the Kingsford Invitational on Aug. 24. The Eskymos conquered the Miners 25-20, 25-19, 25-23 in Negaunee on Sept. 17.

The rubber match is slated for 6 p.m. Wednesday in Negaunee.

“We’re not going to take anything for granted,” Ziebell said. “We’re going to practice hard (on Tuesday), be there and play our game.”

As for the Braves, the 2024 season comes to a close. It was also a season where they took another step forward with a 4-16 record, doubling their win total from a season ago despite dropping 15 of their final 16 matches.

“The whole team has come a long way,” coach Kaitlyn Hardwick said. “I don’t know what changed (after winning our first three matches). It was an energy thing, some games we had it and some games we didn’t. Or we had it in the beginning and we lost it toward the end. But all in all, I feel like they gave it their all.”

Monday also marked the final match for five seniors, a class which Hardwick coached at the freshman level three years ago.

In 2022 the group didn’t win a set. In 2023 the group won two matches. In 2024 the group won four matches.

It’s a slow step forward. Yet, a step forward is a step forward.

“I will also remember them as hard working freshman, growing up and being building blocks of this program,” Hartwick said of the senior class. “They’re some amazing kids and amazing athletes. They love giving back to the community. I hope they leave with volleyball in their heart and continue playing.”

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