LocalSportsJournal.com

HESPERIA — Not even Homecoming at Hesperia kept the Hart girls volleyball team out of the gym Saturday, and the Pirates were glad they played.  

The Pirates traveled to Hesperia to participate in the Volley against Violence tournament, and won the Silver bracket championship.  

The Pirates got off to a slow start, as they went 0-2-1 in pool play, losing to Grant 0-2 (22-25; 22-25) before they faced White Cloud.  

The Pirates split with White Cloud, losing in set one 26-27, before fighting back to take set two, 25-23.  

In the final match of pool play, the Pirates fell, 0-2, to Hesperia (22-25; 20-25).  

“A lack of communication and movement held us back,” said Hart coach Amanda Van Sickle.  

Following pool play, the Pirates advanced to the Silver bracket, where they took on Reed City.  

The Pirates struggled in the first set and fell, 19-25. The Pirates could have easily given up, but they didn’t. They fought hard and took sets two and three (25-11, 15-8) to advance to the finals.  

In the finals, the Pirates faced Onekama. The Pirates struggled with movement and coverage, but that didn’t stop them from winning 2-0 (25-20; 25-21) to become the silver bracket champions.  

Unofficial stats for the Pirates include:  

Laura Bitely – 10 digs; Mya Chickering – 6 aces, 4 assists, 21 kills, and 32 digs; Mariana VanAgtmael – 3 aces, 1 assist, 3 kills, and 59 digs.  

Addi Hovey – 5 aces, 35 kills, 16 blocks, and 4 dig; Gabby Schmieding – 8 kills and 10 digs; Rayah Helenhouse – 2 assists, 2 kills, and 1 dig.  

Kelsey Copenhaver – 9 aces, 29 assists, 8 kills, and 24 digs; Grace Gamble – 8 aces, 4 assists, 5 kills, 1 block, and 4 digs; and MaKayla Rockwell – 6 aces, 25 assists, and 12 digs.  

The Pirates improve to 23-6-5 overall, and remain 4-1 in the West Michigan Conference Rivers Division. Hart travels to Shelby on Tuesday for the final dual conference match of the season.