MOUNT PLEASANT — The Traverse City Central Trojans accomplished what they set out to do. Make history.
The Trojans needed five sets to do it, outlasting Flushing in a 25-10, 26-28, 21-25, 25-14, 15-8 victory in Thursday’s Division 1 volleyball regional final at Mount Pleasant.
“I just feel it changes how volleyball is looked at,” Central junior libero Sidney Richmond said. “We’ve come a long way, and I feel like it’s going to continue over the years.”
Central installed new banners in the gymnasium not long ago, but the volleyball one doesn’t have a space for regional title dates, since the program had never accomplished the feat.
“We set a goal at the beginning of the season, we’ve worked our butts off, and tonight we accomplished it,” third-year Trojans coach Emily Wilbert said. “It feels pretty sweet to see our hard work and determination payoff. Not to mention making program history.”
TC Central (39-1-1) moves on to Tuesday’s quarterfinal in Hudsonville against No. 6 Rockford (38-9-0), which defeated No. 8 Jenison 25-17, 28-26, 25-21 in its regional final and is the only team to hand Central a loss this season.
The Rams also knocked Central out of regionals in the 2022 final at Midland.
A win in Hudsonville would hit more milestones, putting the Trojans at 40 wins for the season and earning the program’s first trip to Battle Creek.
“We’ve been working to make history since my sophomore year,” said senior outside Elyse Heffner, who led the Trojans with 29 kills. “We made it to regional finals and lost; and then last year, we lost in the (regional) semifinals. We’ve definitely been wanting this really, really bad. I know Marley (Richmond) and I, having been on the team when we lost in the finals, wanted to get it and overcome that hurdle. It was super cool to make history with this team.”
The next highest kill total in the long match was 17.
Flushing finishes 29-10 and was led by senior setter Lili Smith, who finished with 17 digs, 18 assists and 17 kills.
Central made it look like it’d be over quickly for the Raiders, convincingly winning the first set 25-10 and ending on a 10-1 run with a Richmond ace closing it out.
Flushing turned things around in the second set, erasing an 8-5 Central early lead and holding off several TCC runs to win 28-26. Flushing then got out to a 7-3 lead in the third and withstood a Central run to win 25-21.
“The kids were just so ramped up on nerves, so we really had to get through that moment,” Flushing coach Rebekah Winkel said. “It’s unfortunate that it took a set to get through it because if we would have been able to come out and perform right away in that first set, you just don’t know what will happen. But I’m really proud of them for bouncing back, because that’s hard to do, too.”
The Trojans took control of the fourth set early with an 8-0 spurt on multiple kills by Heffner and Macaire Kudary before winning 25-14.
The squads traded points early in the fifth and deciding set, with the score 8-8 before Heffner took control with five kills and junior Sable Dankers ended the match with a tip over Flushing’s blockers that fell in for the championship-clinching point.
“Number six (Heffner) rips,” Winkel said. “She did a good job. One of the things we talked about coming into tonight is really capitalizing when she’s in the back row. We did that really well in sets two and three; and unfortunately, we just couldn’t keep her back there long enough in four and five.”
Central had only been pushed to five sets once this season, while Flushing did twice last week in districts.
“We were all a little on edge,” Heffner said. “It’s so hard to go to five sets and come out playing super strong, just because it’s such a short amount of points played. We were down on our confidence a little bit, and it really just showed in the fifth set how much we truly cared for each other — because we came out with so much energy. I know I didn’t want to be done. I know Marley didn’t want to be done, and our whole team cares so much for each other, and nobody wants this season to be done because it’s so special.”
Heffner finished the match with 29 kills and 14 digs, while Erica Heffner had 11 kills, six aces, 18 digs and four blocks. Kudary chipped in 12 kills, 14 digs and two blocks, and Dankers had five kills, three digs and three blocks.
“She’s our big hitter,” Richmond said of Heffner. “She just gets it done.”
Senior co-captain Marley Richmond doled out 50 assists, while Sidney Richmond logged 35 digs, seven assists and an ace. Annika Powis added three kills, two digs and a block, and Hadley Humphrey had a pair of digs.
“It’s very exciting, especially for Erica and I, since our sisters are on the team,” Sidney Richmond said. “It’s also exciting for the team because it’s the first time in history and their last chance.”
Elyse Heffner and Marley Richmond were named co-MVPs for the game.
“Elyse was a dominant force on the outside, our go-to player who consistently delivered,” Wilbert said. “Marley fueled our momentum with her defense and hustle, capping it off by serving out the fifth set to win the match.”