Notre Dame Varsity Volleyball, now 57-5, took its seventh tournament of the year by going undefeated to take the title at the Williamston Invitational.
The Irish opened play defeating St John 25-11, 25-18. Leading the way were Natalie Risi with 13 service points, four aces, 11 kills and six digs, Maddy Chinn with three points, nine kills, four blocks as 12 digs and Olivia Kowalkowski with eight points, three aces and five digs.
Notre Dame defeated Dansville in the second game 25-5, 25-12. Chinn led the charge with 11 kills, six points (five of them aces), and five digs. Risi had 11 points two aces, four kills, three blocks and three digs. Kowalkowski served up eight points with five aces and 16 digs, Aly Borellis had eight points and four assists and Maria Famularo had four points, three digs and11 assists.
In the final match of pool play the Irish topped Lansing Catholic 25-9, 25-13. Famularo finished with 15 service points that included five aces, had eight assists and six digs. Chinn added 10 kills, two blocks and five digs. Risi contributes seven points, three aces, five kills and three digs. Bianca Giglio also added four kills, a pair of blocks, two digs and three assists.
Notre Dame advanced as the top seed and picked up a win over Fowlerville in the quarterfinal. Chinn led the attack with 16 kills, four points and three digs. Borellis scored 12 points with three aces, four kills and 11 digs. Risi added seven kills, six points, two assists and 10 digs.
In the semifinal round Notre Dame faced Grant, a Division Two honorable mention on the latest MIVCA rankings. The Irish came out strong and took the match 25-13, 25-16. Chinn and Risi once again controlled the net as they had 14 and 10 kills respectively. Famularo and Borellis dished out 11 and 9 assists while Emily Mohr had a team-high four blocks. Giglio added three blocks and Kowalkowski had a team-high 11 digs.
The championship match featured another Division Two honorable mention team as the Irish faced Corunna. The matchup did not disappoint as there were several long rallies and great defensive plays on the way to a Notre Dame 25-16 25-22 win. Chinn had 13 kills, five blocks and 12 digs while Risi finished with four points, six kills, and five digs. Famularo had 12 points, three aces, 12 assists and 14 digs while fellow setter Borellis had seven kills, 10 assists and five digs.