It’s not a bold statement to say Kayla Nwabueze is a special talent.

The Bloomfield Hills senior showed that time and again during the 2025 season.

But, just how special a talent was she?

The more people you ask, the more that say Nwabueze is one of the all-time elite players the state has ever seen.

Farmington Hills Mercy coach Loretta Vogel has been on the sidelines for nearly 50 years and she said she’d put Nwabueze up there with anyone.

“She’s a fabulous young lady, and as an attack, I would put her up there in the top,” Vogel said when asked where Nwabueze ranks among the state’s all-time greats. “She got that team (Bloomfield Hills to the finals). I mean, they kept giving her the ball, and if I were the setter, I’d be doing the same thing. I don’t mean to belittle her other players, but sometimes if you really want to win big, you have to go to a go-to player and make them stop you. I think for me, after all these years of coaching, she is right up there, one of those top 10s for me. That’s a lot of years, a lot of girls I’ve seen, like the Carli Snyders, the Jess (Mruzik)s, a lot of people like that. She’s right there.”

The praise for Nwabueze, a Harvard commit, is understandable considering the senior year she put together, leading the Black Hawks to their first state finals appearance before losing to Mercy in four sets.

Nwabueze finished with 751 kills in 2025 while hitting .372 as an outside hitter. She also had 358 digs, making a commitment to being one of the top defenders for her team as well.

For her four-year career at Bloomfield Hills, Nwabueze put up numbers that will be hard for anyone to ever match. She had 2,217 kills, 1,127 digs, 396 blocks, and 179 aces.

Beyond the stats, Nwabueze’s teammates and coaches praised her leadership skills for helping change the program’s mentality.

“The leadership that Kayla has shown, from what I’ve only seen a year, the first day stepping in the gym, you can see the culture and the energy of all the players that were there,” first-year Bloomfield Hills coach Brian Kim said. “That was something that, even from day one for us, it was all about volleyball, and everybody was there to work hard. Everybody was there to have fun. It just made it extremely fun to come in and coach these athletes, every one of these athletes, every single day.”

Sophomore outside Allison Stakoe, who was second on the team in kills this past season, said Nwabueze has been a real mentor for her these last two years.

“Kayla has taught me so much about volleyball, mentally and emotionally and physically, about just staying in the game,” Stakoe said. “She’s really taught me so much these last few seasons. It’s terrible to see her leave, but I’m so excited to watch her at Harvard. I’m going to be rooting for her all the time. She’s just such an amazing player all around. She’s always there to empower you, and be in your corner, and always there to pump you up whenever you’re down.”

Junior setter Brynn Wilcox has had the pleasure of being the one to set Nwabueze these last three years. Wilcox knows that she got an opportunity to work with an elite talent.

“She’s, honestly, one of a kind. There’s nobody else in the country like Kayla,” Wilcox said. “She has the ability to lead each player in such a different way, and she knows exactly what each of her teammates needs. There’s nobody like that, and Harvard’s getting the best player. It’s going to be tough next year without her, but I know that her impact and her leadership, from her being a freshman all the way to now, has helped shape this program, and it’ll continue to live on even when she’s across the country.”

Nwabueze had her pick of the litter when it came to playing at the next level, but put an emphasis on her academics when choosing to play for Harvard.

Vogel believes the Ivy League is getting a player unlike anything it has ever seen.

“She will do really well in college. I know she’s going to Harvard. The academic portion is really big for her, but she could put that whole conference into the NCAA playoffs every year. I’m not kidding. I’ll put money on that,” Vogel said emphatically. “She will dominate, she will. She’s going to dominate there.”

Trailing Grosse Pointe South by four points, Farmington Hills Mercy edged out the Blue Devils in the last event of Saturday’s D2 girls swimming and diving state finals in Ypsilanti to be crowned champs for the third year in a row.

The foursome of Avery Tack, Campbell Shore, Lyla Collins and Ella Hafner — none of which are graduating following this season — slipped past GP South by a little over a second with a time of 3:26.05 in the 400-meter relay. That gave Mercy 337 points to South’s 335.

It secured the sixth title under head coach Michael Venos, including the second three-peat. The Marlins’ previously won a handful of titles in a row (2007-10 in D2, 2011 in D1) under former coach Shannon Dunworth. The win also marked Mercy’s 14th championship overall.

The schools from Birmingham came in just behind the Mercy-GP South tandem. Seaholm came third place with 260.5 points, followed by Groves with 155.5. Berkley took eighth with 96 and South Lyon East came in ninth with 94 to round out the top-10.

Beyond that, Royal Oak finished 11th (74 points), Rochester Adams ended 12th (69), South Lyon was 15th (47), Walled Lake Northern finished 17th (27), North Farmington took 23rd (19) and Holly finished 26th (13).

GP South beat out Seaholm (Leah Isaksen, Payton Garn, Layla Stephens, Madailein Howard; 1:46.96) and Groves to win the 200 medley relay and jump out in front to start the day at Eastern Michigan. In the 200 free relay, the Blue Devils won again, just barely defeating Mercy’s same quartet by 31-hundredths of a second.

Elsewhere, the Marlins made headway when Hafner (1:47.53) came runner-up in the 200 free to Adrienne Schadler (1:46.85) of Ann Arbor Skyline as both surpassed the former D2 record held by Marian’s Mollie Pulte. Tack, who took second in the 200 IM as a sophomore, won it this time around with a time of 2:04.64.

Hafner set a new D2 record in the 500 free with her prelim time of 4:49.74, but a mark of 4:49.90 in the finals was only good for second as Schadler raised the bar with a winning time of 4:48.50.

West Bloomfield’s Eichbrecht wraps career in record-breaking fashion at D1 swim and dive finals

South Lyon senior Emma Klotz was just two-hundredths away from winning the 50 free event a year after Whitney Handworth of GP South, who again took first, beat Klotz out by three-hundredths. However, Klotz got her revenge in the 100 free, banking the Lions 20 points with her time of 50.70 that beat out runner-up Handwork (50.92).

Seaholm's Isaksen was just the winner of the consolation final in the 100 backstroke last fall as a sophomore, but showed off her improvement and came second this year by finishing with in 56.83. Her teammate, freshman Payton Garn, shared the spoils with Groves' Livvy Kamp as both split first-place honors in the 100 breaststroke with their finals times of 1:02.76.

Additionally, Rochester Adams junior Morgan Rea scored 431.75 points to handily win the diving competition.

Berkley senior Tessa Moleski was the victor in both the 50 and 100-yard paralympic freestyle.

Division 3 at Holland Aquatic Center

Bloomfield Hills Marian finished runner-up for the second year in a row, ending Saturday's finals with 228 points compared to the 373 scored by winner East Grand Rapids.

Cranbrook-Kingswood, who took second in 2023, finished sixth place this year with 134 points, and Country Day was seventh with 116. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep ended 24th place with 16 points, and Bishop Foley came 30th with six points -- five of those earned by sophomore Avery Wood in the 100 breaststroke.

EGR won all three relays. The Pioneers set a new D3 record of 1:44.65 in the 200 medley, which saw the Yellowjackets (Quinn Norlander, Jill Heller, Allie Schwartz, Lauren Clark) end just behind them in a time of 1:48.55. Marian (Cece Grace, Lila Soloman, Peyton Rehbine, Catherine Howe) was runner-up to EGR in the 200 free relay. The Mustangs finished that one ahead of Country Day (1:39.33) with a mark of 1:37.43.

Country Day's Norlander, a third-place finisher in two individual events as a sophomore last season, ended only behind Wayland's Laney Wolf as she came second in the 100 freestyle in a time of 51.32. Additionally, Norlander shaved almost three seconds off her finals time from 2024 in the 100 backstroke. Her second-place mark of 54.77 was only second-best to Camryn Siegers, who set a new D3 record (53.37).

In the 500 free, Marian junior Stella Glorio (5:10.58) only trailed repeat winner Ella Dziobak of Divine Child as no one came close to her finish of 4:56.20. The Mustangs also scored 16 points with Soloman's third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke (1:06.06).

All of the Irish's points derived from freshman Anna Caudill's third-place finish in diving (369 points).

Saline quarterback Tommy Carr, the grandson of former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, has switched his college commitment to the Wolverines.

He had been committed to Miami of Ohio.

Carr (6-foot-3, 195 pounds) is ranked a three-star prospect by 247Sports. He is ranked the No. 7 player overall in Michigan in 2026 and the No. 29 quarterback nationally in the 2026 recruiting class.

Saline’s run in the Michigan high school football playoffs ended Friday night with a 42-28 loss to Detroit Cass Tech in a Division 1 regional final. Carr led Saline to a 10-2 record this season, passing for 2,797 yards and 37 touchdowns

Carr is the younger brother of Notre Dame quarterback CJ Carr and the son of former Michigan QB Jason Carr.

Michigan’s 2026 recruiting class has 25 commitments and is ranked No. 10 nationally by 247Sports.

Semifinal pairings for teams in the MediaNews Group-Michigan Cluster coverage areas:

(All games are Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025)

 

DIVISION 1

SF1: East Kentwood (10-2) vs. Detroit Catholic Central (12-0) at Jackson, 1 p.m.

SF2: Detroit Cass Tech (12-0) vs. Rochester Adams (10-2) at Troy Athens, 1 p.m.

DIVISION 2

SF1: Orchard Lake St. Mary’s (9-2) vs. Portage Central (12-0) at Haslett, 1 p.m.

SF2: Birmingham Groves (9-3) vs. Dexter (11-1) at Ypsilanti, 1 p.m.

 

DIVISION 3

SF1: Lowell (10-2) vs. Mt. Pleasant (12-0) at Greenville, 1 p.m.

SF2: Warre De La Salle (6-6) vs. DeWitt (12-0) at Grand Blanc, 1 p.m.

 

DIVISION 5

SF2: Monroe Jefferson (11-1) vs. Pontiac Notre Dame Prep (10-2) at Westland John Glenn, 1 p.m.

 

DIVISION 8

SF2: Allen Park Cabrini (11-1) vs. Hudson (12-0) at Adrian College, 1 p.m.

 

————

 

8-PLAYER FINALS

(At NMU’s Superior Dome)

DIVISION 1

Martin (12-0) vs. Montabella (11-1), 11 a.m.

High school football playoff scoreboard for Round 3, regional finals

BLOOMFIELD HILLS — In nearly every set of Tuesday night’s D1 regional semifinal, Birmingham Groves built an early lead of at least four points over St. Clair Shores Lakeview.

Twice the Huskies tied those sets, and though they controlled another from start to finish, it proved to not be enough as the Falcons emerged victorious in four sets, winning by scores of 25-22, 25-23, 17-25, 25-17.

Tuesday’s second semifinal at Marian High School between the two young teams began with the Falcons jumping out to a 10-4 start, yet eventually Lakeview vanquished the deficit and led at 17-16.

With Groves up 22-21, sophomore Kamryn Bambrough and Olivia Michalak provided points to leave the Falcons one away, and though a tip by sophomore Lauren Boatman provided the Huskies hope, Groves didn’t let it slip.

Again, the Falcons established a 9-3 advantage in the next set, but Lakeview was pesky as ever to get it even at 16-all. When Groves followed that up with three unanswered, Lakeview answered with five of the next six. Still even at 23-23, senior libero Margaux Nollet stepped up to push one over, then a tandem effort at the net for the winning point put Groves up two sets.

Asked bout the team’s propensity to come out of the gate on a roll in sets, Groves assistant coach Ashley Dixon responded, “Our girls have been working hard all season to make that who they want to be. In that third set, we kind of fall short sometime, but I think we’ve been proving time and time again that that’s not us.”

The exception to the Falcons’ early rule came with Lakeview on the brink of elimination. This time, the Huskies (15-21-1) got off to a 10-5 start, and as Groves labored through some attacking errors, Lakeview’s lead remained steady around six or seven points throughout as senior CeCe Decker set up Boatman and classmate Emma Mulrenin on back-to-back kills to win the third set.

“I think it’s somewhat (to do) with the perception we started the year with ourselves,” Lakeview head coach Kevin Nugent said of his side’s ability to battle back after falling behind. “Being a strong team and figuring out as the match goes along that we can do a lot of things that we’re prepared to do and just sticking with the process. I think that’s probably the difference in a lot of these games. We’ve just had those slow starts, and then you work a lot to get back in it, and you kind of get spent. And then you need every point at that point, and it gets exhausting trying to win points, especially against a team that has good hitters that can put the ball away.”

Photos of Birmingham Groves vs. St. Clair Shores Lakeview in a D1 volleyball regional semifinal

As Nugent alluded to, that effort seemed to finally take its toll by the time the Huskies battled back from Groves' third early lead. Ahead just 7-6, the Falcons went on a 7-1 run and gradually mounted a cushion of double-digits.

Still, Lakeview made the Falcons breathe a sigh of relief after staving off the match point seven consecutive times before Groves could finish the job.

On laboring to get that decisive point, Nollet, one of just four seniors for the Falcons, said, "(It was) just trying to stay confident. Don't be afraid. We were up by a lot, so I wasn't too afraid. It would have been nice to get it done quicker, but we stayed as a team and finished it strong, so it was OK ... I think our energy definitely up (as much in the third), and we had troubles with communication, but we cleaned it up pretty quickly."

As with Groves, Lakeview relied on few (three) seniors this season, so its future remains bright despite what it will miss from Decker, Mulrenin and Bethann Dostine.

"We return a lot of young kids," Nugent said. "Our seniors were incredible this year. They really set a great example, so I think the team coming back next year has a much better understanding of what's required to be successful. I owe that debt of gratitude to them and their sacrifices. So I really look forward to next year, but gonna miss the seniors, because they were really valuable to the culture, the team, everything."

Groves' next task on Thursday is formidable in No. 2 Bloomfield Hills, who beat Grosse Pointe South in the evening's first semifinal. But in the moment, the focus for the Falcons was on going as far as anyone in the building from the program could recall. They were last district champs in back-to-back years in 2013-14.

"I've been with Groves for four years, and we've always kind of lost earlier during districts, so it means a lot to be able to push into regionals, especially since we haven't done it for volleyball in a long time," Nollet said.

With so much returning, she speculated like it could be the first leg of another back-to-back, adding, "Honestly, the underclassmen are really, really strong, and it just makes me excited for what Groves has to come. I'm excited for them next year to kind of build on this momentum."

CLARKSTON – Jen Bunting added some track practice to the volleyball practices at Oxford during recent weeks.

No, the Wildcats did not head out literally out to track around the football field, but Oxford did endure some serious increase of running at practices down the stretch.

There was a reason – conditioning in case Oxford had to endure some five-set matches in the postseason.

“We won the (Oakland Activities Association) White (Division) at 8-0. We swept every team we faced in the league,” said Bunting. “The girls hated me in practice for the last 3-4 weeks because I made them run miles and miles and miles. But it’s proven me right. I knew we would have to play some five-game matches in the tournament and here we are with two straight that have gone five games. The kids weren’t used to that all season. So, I made them run a lot in practice.” 

Oxford has had to play some lengthy games in the postseason as Bunting predicted. Five days after defeating Clarkston in five sets to win the school’s first district since 2002, Oxford ended up outlasting Clinton Township Chippewa Valley 3-2 Tuesday night in the first of two Division 1 regional semifinals matches at Clarkston High School. The Wildcats rallied past Clinton Township Chippewa Valley 25-11, 21-25, 23-25, 25-12, 15-12 in a match that took nearly 2.5-hours to complete.

While junior Sienna Austin ended the marathon match with a tip kill right by the net, it was the play of junior outside hitter Brenna Mirovsky, who recently made an oral commitment to play at nearby NCAA Division I Oakland University, who took over in the fourth and fifth sets.

“Coach just told me to move around the ball. Their defense started moving back so this really helped the team and I started to get more hits,” said Mirovsky of the late-game surge. “And also getting our team hyped, it really helped our momentum go.”

Mirovsky had four straight kills and five kills over the final eight points in the fourth set to help Oxford (27-12-5) force a Game 5. In that fifth set, Mirovsky added three more kills, as the Wildcats came back from an early 2-1 deficit to quickly build a commanding 12-4 lead in the set.

After Chippewa Valley closed to within 14-12, the Wildcats closed it out to advance to the regional finals for the first time since the 1990s. The Wildcats were knocked out by Utica Ford in three sets in the 2002 season, the last time they even played a regional game but that was in the regional semifinals.

This time around, Oxford is trying to stick around for a while, as the Wildcats will play in the regional finals Thursday at 7 p.m. at Clarkston. Oxford will face Romeo in the regional finals – a game between two teams not listed as honorable mention in the polls.

Mirovsky finished with 16 kills to pace Oxford. Senior Jess Romine led the way with assists, senior Tara Swanson anchored the back line and led the team with digs, and Austin and senior Ellasyn Glaz also had strong games attacking and with kills for Oxford.

Oxford also focused on keeping the ball away from Chippewa Valley senior Reagan Lesley, who is the Big Reds’ all-time leaders in kills.

“We told the girls to do the best you can to keep the ball away from her (Lesley),” said Bunting. “We did a good job at times, especially in the last two sets. But (Chippewa Valley) played incredible defense tonight. We had some amazing hits where we thought stuff was going down, but they dug it up. This ended up being an amazing five-set game and we found a way to win it. It was a great match, they made us push for it, made us earn it.”

Lesley still had 15 kills and sophomore Ava Creech added 10 kills for Chippewa Valley (30-11-5). Senior Samantha Mondalek added 18 digs for the Big Reds, who had four sophomores and two freshmen gain minutes this season.

Chippewa Valley won its first district this season since 2014 and still has a relatively young team with just three seniors. The Big Reds were involved in a five-set thriller for the second consecutive game but just came up short.

“We weren’t going out without a fight, that’s for sure,” said Chippewa Valley coach Chris Hull. “This was a great match. We didn’t give them any easy points. We went out there to see what we can do and we were up 2-1 and then they tied it at 2-2. We made them earn it in the fifth. I’m proud of them. We played them tough.

“I have to give them a lot of credit. They double-blocked Reagan just the way they should. They had to make adjustments and we made some adjustments,” added Hull. “When we were able to get around the block, they were there to clean it up. It was a good defensive game for both of us. They happened to score a little bit more than we did in that fifth set and that was it.”

YALE – Defending state champion Detroit County Day keeps cruising through the Division 2 state tournament.

The top-ranked Yellowjackets took down honorable mention Marysville, 25-17, 25-15, 25-13 in a Division 2 regional semifinals match at Yale High School.

Elise Hiemstra led Country Day with 14 kills, three aces and seven digs, while Payton Woodruff dished out 37 assists to pace the Yellowjackets.

Demi McCoy added nine kills and seven digs, Leah Green chipped in with seven kills and six blocks, and Sici Guerrant followed with six kills, three aces and three blocks for Country Day (20-8-1). 

Marysville, the Macomb Area Conference White Division finished 31-14-1. The Vikings, which feature nine seniors, just couldn’t keep pace against the defending state champs.

Country Day will face fellow state-ranked and powerhouse North Branch Thursday at 7 p.m. for the regional championship.

North Branch (41-8-0) outlasted fellow state powerhouse Pontiac Notre Dame Prep 25-19, 25-27, 25-18, 25-10. The Bronchos have won 13 straight matches.

Notre Dame Prep finishes 31-15-2.

Aubree Deshetsky was unstoppable with 31 kills,18 digs and two aces to pace North Branch. Hannah Thomas added 10 kills, three blocks, and four aces.

Allysse Deshetsky collected nine kills and two aces, Haley Henry led the defense with 22 digs, while Kylie Doherty collected 39 assists for the Bronchos, who entered the state tournament ranked second in Division 2.

HARTLAND – A volleyball coach probably would never admit to wanting to see their team drop the first two sets of a match.

But, South Lyon coach Deena Maher knows that dropping the first two sets to Brighton in Tuesday’s Division 1 regional semifinal at Hartland High School only made what happened next even sweeter.

The Lions fought off a match point in the third set, which sparked a three-set rally and gave South Lyon one of its biggest wins in program history by coming back to best the Bulldogs, 17-25, 15-25, 26-24, 25-23, 15-12.

“I’m incredibly proud of them. I mean, we were a point away from our season being done, and we fought that off and came back with a win and pulled this off,” Maher said of her team. “It just speaks so much to how strong they are, both mentally and physically. They just never quit, and I’m so proud of them.

“It’s a huge win for us. All these girls are friends. They know each other, and I think it really speaks volumes about the South Lyon program and who we want to be.”

South Lyon (41-11-1) looked outmatched in the early stages of Tuesday’s contest with Brighton (34-9-2). The Bulldogs were producing powerful swings and their size at the net posed problems for the Lions’ offense.

Brighton took the first two sets in somewhat convincing fashion.

But, then things started to shift.

Brighton’s swings weren’t sustaining the same power as consistently, and South Lyon kept digging the ball up and making the Bulldogs play longer and longer points.

Brighton held a 24-23 lead in the third set, but the Lions won a lengthy rally and forced an attack error on the Bulldogs. Brighton would then commit two more errors on consecutive points to give South Lyon the set, 26-24.

“I feel like as a team, we all like, we all came together in the moment and just said, ‘nothing matters, just play for each other,’” South Lyon sophomore Julia Kavaliauskas said. “Then, I just feel like we all wanted it so bad.”

More of the same played out in the fourth. Brighton was getting a little slower and a little less enthusiastic. The Lions took advantage by utilizing a lot of different arms and making a lot of tough digs. Trailing 23-22, the Lions tied things up off a Brighton error, then junior Kate Sulkowski came through with a kill to put South Lyon ahead. Senior Lauren Chanko followed with an ace to force the fifth set.

“I did not sense frustration, which shows a lot of growth for us. Early in the season, we would have been really frustrated at that point,” Maher said. “But, they really just kind of had a mentality of just keep going, and gosh, that just paid off so well in the end.”

The Lions led throughout most of the fifth set, as they kept finding ways to win points. The key moment came with the Lions up 8-7, as senior setter Lucy Stoll ended a long rally with a great read and dumped the ball in the back right corner of Brighton. That sparked a 5-0 run to put South Lyon up 13-7.

Photo gallery from the D1 volleyball regional semifinal between South Lyon and Brighton

While Brighton made it interesting, the match concluded eventually on a kill from senior Teagan Wesner.

“(Brighton) came out with so much energy, and their energy lasted a lot longer than I thought it would,” Maher said. “They're such a good team, but I knew that we could outlast them in a five-set match. We've done it before. We've proven ourselves over and over in that sense, and I knew if we could just get to that point, that we could win. And we got there.”

South Lyon had a lot of balance offensively, with six players having five kills or more. Kennedy Duncan led the way with 16 kills, while Wesner, Sulkowski, and Kavaliauskas each had eight kills.

Setters Stoll and Mari Hardin combined for 44 assists.

Brighton was led by setter Delaney Gilmore, who had 53 assists. Cynthia Ockerman had 20 kills, while Madison Smith had 18, and Vivian Jones had 16.

The Lions advance to Thursday’s regional final where it will face third-ranked Farmington Hills Mercy at 7 p.m. from Hartland High School.

South Lyon met Mercy early in the season at a quad, where it lost a best-of-three in three sets. Maher knows her players will be ready for another upset attempt, and would have been alright starting the regional final on Tuesday night.

“They're ready to go,” Maher said of facing the Marlins. “I think I can put them on the court now.”

South Lyon defeated Brighton in a D1 regional semifinal volleyball match at Hartland High School on Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2025. The Lions won by scores of 17-25, 15-25, 26-24, 25-23, 15-12.

FLAT ROCK – It was one team’s match, then another’s, and by the fourth set it looked like it was anyone’s game on Tuesday night down in Flat Rock.

Fresh off their first district title since 2021, the Flat Rock girls volleyball team welcomed in Wixom St Catherine for the second of two Division 2 regional semifinal matchups. And after a bit of up-and-down play early on, the hometown Rams moved one step closer to their first-ever regional crown, downing the visiting Stars 3-1 (25-17, 15-25, 25-11, 25-19) to advance through in the state tournament.

“I told the girls we were on a bit of a rollercoaster, especially in that second set,” Flat Rock coach Morgan Delhey said. “We were happy we got out of it, but we definitely need more for Thursday.”

After a few quick ties early to start the evening, Flat Rock pulled ahead 7-3 behind the serving of Sarah Giroux and never really looked back. St Catherine battled back to make it a 10-8 game, but the Rams quickly re-extended their lead and cruised to the 25-17 win after taking advantage of some Star miscues.

If the visitors maybe weren’t ready in the opening set, they sure were in the second as they jumped out to an 8-0 lead before allowing the regional hosts to creep back into it. The Rams regained composure and went on a 10-5 run to put themselves within three, but this time it was the Stars taking advantage of miscues from the opposition late to even the match up at one set apiece.

“We just told the girls it’s not about what’s on the other side of the court, it’s the team on our side that we’re playing against,” St Catherine coach Jayson Oliver said. “We knew they had a good outside hitter and we were just trying to contain (Giroux) a little bit.”

Flat Rock returned the favor in the third set, going on a 6-0 run of their own to set the tone while barely letting St Catherine get into the double digits.

The Stars attempted to put together a late push and an ace from Scarlett Paquette made it 22-11, but they were too far behind as a push over the net from Reagan Higdon ended the set in favor of the Rams.

The final set saw the teams tied a dozen times before either side got to 15 points. As things got heated, each side tried to stay calm.

“We missed three serves during those first 15 points, so we were stopping ourselves from going on those runs,” Delhey said. “We had to be able to string together some runs, while also playing it a bit safe with our serve.

“We did just that and that’s where we kind of took off after that.”

Led again by Giroux, Flat Rock broke the 12-12 tie and cruised from there. St Catherine got to within four, but a solid tip from Zoe Ryan and an ace from Higdon all but secured the win.

With the loss, St. Catherine finished 22-13-1 on a season that included the program’s third straight district title. And with just three seniors, the future looks bright for the folks from Wixom.

“Our team is young,” Oliver said. “We did have three seniors playing, but I have a freshman on the court and three sophomores playing. Just the maturity level and making some plays – we will definitely grow.”

In the win, the Rams had two players in double-double stats.

Lily Klein finished the night with 10 kills and five blocks, while Higdon and Giroux each turned in double-doubles, combining for 29 kills and 24 digs.

“Three people being in double digit for kills is absolutely what we needed to do,” Delhey said. “I’m happy for Zoe, who had 28 assists too, so she did a good job adjusting, and Lily with our block – that was something we really stressed this week.”

UP NEXT

With the win, Flat Rock (34-7) moves on in the D2 state tournament bracket to face an all-too-familiar opponent in the regional finals when they take on Milan.

Earlier in the evening, Milan took care of Dearborn Divine Child in four sets in what was another Huron League-Catholic League semifinal matchup. It will be the fourth meeting between the two Huron League rivals, including two wins for Milan in Huron League play.

“It’s going to be a battle either way,” Delhey said. “They know our weaknesses, but also our strong suits. We have a bit of a game plan, but whether we execute will be up to the girls- they know they’re capable, it’s just being able to put it together.”

Game time is set for 7 p.m. on Thursday, Nov 13 back at Flat Rock High School.

It was back-to-back “Huron League vs Catholic League” matchups for a pair of Division 2 girls volleyball regional semifinal tilts Tuesday night at Flat Rock High School.

The nightcap of said matchups pitted the hometown Rams, fresh off their first district championship in four years, welcoming in a steady Wixom St Catherine program that had won its third consecutive district title overall.

A tightly-contested battle early on eventually saw Flat Rock, who finished the season ranked No. 10 in D2 according to the Michigan Volleyball Coaches Association, advancing through with a win in four sets over the visiting Stars from St Catherine (25-17, 15-25, 25-11, 25-19).

Photo gallery is courtesy of Samantha Elliott.

HARTLAND – Farmington Hills Mercy was having a block party at Hartland High School on Tuesday, but not many were invited to enjoy it with the Marlins.

Particularly, Orchard Lake St. Mary’s.

No. 3 Mercy tallied 10 blocks against the Eaglets, while deflecting dozens more attacks, to secure a 25-9, 25-17, 25-13 win in the D1 regional semifinal.

“It’s something we’ve been working on,” Mercy coach Loretta Vogel said of the blocking. “We knew St. Mary’s had some hitters they like to go to, so that helped us know where we needed to be. But, our girls work hard on their blocking and their timing was really strong tonight.”

The blocks occurred early and often for Mercy, as four of their first six points came from a block.

Once the offense got going, the Marlins (39-5-3) were able to work the ball around to their deep roster of hitters, not giving the Eaglets (34-7-4) a chance to get in the set.

In the second set, Mercy got senior outside hitter Cree Hollier going. She had three quick kills to help Mercy establish a 7-1 lead. Hollier finished with eight kills in the set.

The senior has played middle for Mercy the last three years but transitioned to the outside this fall as it would best help the team.

“It’s definitely been a learning experience, learning a whole new position, but it’s been a lot of fun, and my teammates have just been awesome, as well as the coaches just guiding me through,” Hollier said of the shift to outside. “I think as the season has gone on, I’ve definitely gotten more comfortable.”

Despite being listed at 5’10”, Hollier’s vertical leap has allowed her to hold her own against anyone in the past, and is now even more impactful on the outside, where she believes she can get up to 10’2” or 10’3”.

“I actually started off as a DS. I didn’t start hitting until, like, my 14s or 15s. Here at Mercy volleyball was actually when I fully got into the middle. So, I’d say when I learned I could jump was definitely when I was like, ‘all right, I can compete with them.’ But even that was also just a learning experience,” Collier said of her ability to play against longer competition.

In the third set, Mercy was able to get out to a 9-1 lead and never gave the Eaglets a chance to get back into the match.

Photos of No. 3 Farmington Hills Mercy vs. Orchard Lake St. Mary’s in a D1 volleyball regional semifinal

The Marlins had their full complement of players back this week after freshman setter Kaelyn Easton and sophomore middle McKenzie Andrews competed for Team USA’s U17 squad in the 2025 NORCECA Women’s U17 Continental Championship in Costa Rica last week, winning gold.

Easton finished with 30 assists, while Andrews had five kills and three blocks.

“They got a couple US national kids on the team, and they got about nine or 10 D1 kids,” OLSM coach Ross Talbott said of playing Mercy. “They’ve been around, I don't know how many years, you know, and our program has been around just five years. We'll get there. We move up in their league next year. We're going to get better and better and better.”

Hollier finished with 13 kills to lead the offense, while Kate Kalczynski had nine kills and three aces. Ella Andrews added four kills, four aces, and two blocks.

The Eaglets were led by junior Avery Kapeller and junior Katelynn Dabish, who each had six kills.

OLSM graduates just three from this roster, which won 37 matches, a CHSL title, and a district championship.

“We'll just keep rebuilding. We just need to catch up in years,” Talbott said of growing the program to the level of Mercy. “We just need to catch up to Mercy and Marian, and it will take some time to build a program. I think there's a foundation already there.”

Mercy advances to Thursday’s regional final where it will face South Lyon. The Lions defeated Brighton in five sets in Thursday’s other semifinal. The two will meet up at Hartland High School at 7 p.m.

BIRMINGHAM – Oftentimes, high school football playoffs games can be decided on a couple of key plays.

Birmingham Groves picked up two major plays Friday night and a lot of little ones in recording a 36-22 Division 2 district finals triumph over visiting Warren Cousino.

Jeremiah Whitley had an 85-yard rushing touchdown and Dominic Taylor added a 62-yard pick-six to go along with a sack and eight tackles in leading the Falcons to their sixth district title in program history.

It was Taylor’s interception returned to the endzone that broke the camel’s back, as Cousino was trying to put together a game-tying drive. 

“So basically we have been going over that all week about there passes. We have a great scout team – the whole team played great defense. And I just baited him (the quarterback) on that interception,” said Taylor, one of just three returning starters this season. “I just stayed there in the middle, caught the ball here, brought the ball to my chest and took it to the house. That was a game-changer.

“We might have lost a lot of guys that graduated. But our seniors have been together since we were sophomores and we had to realize the great guys leave – great classes leave and we knew we had to step up as seniors,” added Taylor. “We’ve been playing football long enough to step up. We want to make a name for ourselves and we wanted to win another district championship and go even further this season.”

After starting 2-3, the Falcons (8-3) have now won six straight games.

Veteran Groves coach Brendan Flaherty saw his young team really start to mature by mid-season and the Falcons have taken flight this year into the regional finals.

“Judah Skobie got that huge block (on the long) touchdown run by Whitley and Dominic had that interception returned for a touchdown. You talk about guys making big plays,” smiled Flaherty. “This was a tight football game and we knew they had some players. They are a great team. It’s the second round of the playoffs and there’s no weak teams at this stage. They’re all good teams now. Cousino tested our mettle a little bit and they are well-coached and I have a ton of respect for what they’ve been able to do.

“But our guys have matured a lot this season. We did start 2-3,” continued Flaherty. “I just think that these guys mostly had new roles this season and it took some time. But we made plays tonight that we might not have early in the season. We had those two long scores, had some nice drives, tipped some passes (in the secondary) and just did a lot of the little things it takes to win a great football game.”

Groves racked up 350 total yards in the slugfest Friday – 310 on the ground and 40 through the air – and had three rushing touchdowns, one passing touchdown and one interception for another score in downing the high-powered Patriots, who came in averaging 33.1 points a game.

The Falcons never trailed and advanced to the regional finals for the second straight year and sixth time since 2016. Groves – which won regional championships in 2016, 2018, 2022 and 2024 – will visit fellow powerhouse Detroit King for the regional title next weekend.

Groves went ahead for good when Whitley scored on a 6-yard run with 6:12 left in the third for a 29-22 advantage in the tight game.

With Cousino (7-4) driving as part of a 12-play series, it was Taylor who leapt in front of a Cousino receiver while quarterback Brick Sandridge was being hit and picked off the pass before racing 62 yards for the score and a commanding 36-22 lead with 1:46 still left in the third quarter.

The Groves defense made that 14-point lead stand down the stretch, as Cousino had its last two drives stall out on downs.

Cousino finished its best season in several years with a 7-4 record and a berth in the district finals. Coach Brandon Genette and his staff have quickly turned the program around with a respectable 24-16 record over four seasons (2022-2025).

Before then, Cousino finished 0-9 during the 2021 season and actually forfeited their last four games and scored just 42 points that season.

“The seniors were freshman when we started the rebuild and they stuck around to help us make the district finals this year,” said Gennette. “The previous four years before I got here, Cousino was just 3-31 in that time span. I can’t thank these seniors enough, really all four senior classes, for relaying our foundation and helping us become a very competitive team again. It’s been a long time.

“We lost to a very good Groves team with a lot of tradition. They were a play away from getting to the state finals last season and they are always making runs it seems,” added Gennette. “We knew this would be a tight game and I think it just boiled down to them making a couple of more plays than we did tonight. Hats off to them.”

On just the second play from scrimmage, Whitley broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage and also picked up a huge block from Scobie and raced 85 yards for the score and a 7-0 advantage, as Groves never trailed in the game.

After Cousino countered with a swift four-play drive capped by Daniel Carter’s 38-yard touchdown sprint, Groves went ahead again on its next drive.

The Falcons jolted ahead 15-7 with 6:10 still left in the first quarter when quarterback LeVelle Shannon hit Joshua Hammonds on a 15-yard strike down the middle and Whitley scored on the ensuing two-point conversion run.

The conversion was set up by an offsides call against Cousino.

The Patriots did claw to with 15-14 with 2:15 left in the first stanza when Sandridge scored on a 1-yard plunge.

Groves again took the lead when Whitley scored on a 5-yard touchdown sweep around left with 10:02 remaining in the second quarter and Gage Watters drilled his second extra point for the 22-14 halftime lead.

Cousino finally evened the score in the third quarter after a nine-play drive ended with Sandridge connecting with Julian Hayes with a 15-yard scoring toss where Hayes displayed his best version of shake and bake around a pair of defenders along the left since to tie the game at 22-22 with 9:42 remaining in the third frame.

That would be the last time the Patriots would score this season, as Cousino finished with a 353-212 scoring edge this season – the third time in four seasons the Patriots reached the postseason after years of misery.

Whitley finished with 25 carries for 238 yards and his three rushing touchdowns. Shannon finished 3-of-7 for 40 yards passing with six carries for 25 yards on the ground and his one touchdown run.

Hammonds had two catches for 35 yards and also recorded six tackles and two sacks for the Falcons. Taylor added a pass breakup to aid his strong night. Connor Eldredge and Kam Smith both chipped in with four tackles apiece for Groves.

Cousino still racked up 340 total yards on the night. LJ Hayes had eight catches for 101 yards and Sandridge was 17-for-36 passing for 204 yards, but his receivers dropped five passes and the Groves defense did a great job breaking up several passing plays in the secondary. Carter had 19 carries for 127 yards to lead Cousino’s running game.

ROCHESTER HILLS — Senior quarterback Ryland Watters threw for four touchdowns and ran for another as Rochester Adams dispatched Stoney Creek 43-18 in Friday’s district finals.

“We worked hard for this one. We knew it was a battle, especially last game,” Watters said. “It feels great to be Rochester champions, beating them twice. They’re a great football team, and beating Rochester (High) twice as well is a great feeling.”

Early on, the Cougars’ offense was moving the ball. Stoney Creek took the opening kick off and drove 53 yards in 14 plays before coming up short on fourth-and-goal.

Adams, by comparison, needed only three plays to score. Watters hit Matt Toeppner on a screen pass to the short side, and Toeppner picked up a couple of blocks, racing down the left sideline for a 93-yard touchdown. A 2-point conversion gave Adams an 8-0 lead, and the Highlanders would never trail.

Stoney Creek finished its next drive, a 12-play possession capped by a 13-yard TD pass from Brandon Gergics to Jake Lantzy that made the score 8-6.

But Adams would roll after that. The Highlanders kept hitting big plays, including a 57-yard touchdown from Watters to Cameron Dawood on their next possession that made it 14-6. That was the first of three touchdown catches on the night for Dawood.

“That was the game plan going in,” Adams head coach Tony Patritto said. “They were trying to guess what we were doing and taking some gambles, and we made some good checks and made some really nice plays.”

 

Adams finished the game with 15 plays going for 10 or more yards. Meanwhile, the longest play for Stoney Creek covered just 14 yards until the Cougars finally hit for several big gains on their final drive. By that time, though, the visitors were down 43-12. Once the Highlanders got dialed in on defense, Stoney Creek’s offense ground to a halt. After running 26 plays on their first two drives and gaining 118 yards, the Cougars generated just one first down on their next six trips.

“We just didn’t make enough plays tonight, and that was the frustrating part for us. We had a couple of good drives early on to put the ball close to the end zone and just couldn’t capitalize on it,” Cougars head coach Rick Powell said.

Photos of Rochester Adams vs. Stoney Creek in a D1 district football championship

With the win, Adams improves to 9-2 and will take a six-game winning streak into next week’s regional matchup against Romeo. The Highlanders and Bulldogs met on opening night with Adams winning 39-7. But after dropping its first two games, Romeo has now won eight of its last nine contests, including a 56-0 destruction of Macomb Dakota on Friday.

“Romeo is just crushing people,” Patritto said. “We’re going to have to be at our very best to beat them. They’ve got to come here, but the first game means nothing. They have us on film, we have them on film, so it’s really just about execution now.” He added that, “High school football is a momentum sport, and it’s really what the kids believe in. Our kids are starting to believe in themselves a little bit more, and I think that’s the difference.”

Stoney Creek finishes 7-4 in Year 2 under Powell.

“We’re just trying to take it one step at a time,” Powell said. “Last year, we made the playoffs and lost to these guys in similar fashion. This year, we challenged our seniors. What were our seniors going to do? What would they make for the program and for the team? And they really stepped up. Our motto and our goal was '1% better,' and if you look at the season overall, as a whole, we got 1% better as a program, and the seniors did it all. They lead the way. They were true to who they were, and I thank them for everything they did."

The Cougars will graduate 24 seniors, but also return many key pieces from this year’s team.

Rochester Adams defeated Stoney Creek 43-18 to win the D1 district title on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025 at Adams. The Highlanders host Romeo next week in regionals.

CLARKSTON — When Clarkston was forced to settle for a 42-yard field goal from Aidan O’Neill in the last 10 seconds of the first half, it seemed consequential considering Grand Blanc’s offense was also thriving up to that point.

That turned out to not be the case.

The Wolves’ offense continued to feed many mouths Friday night, which ended in hoisting a D1 district championship following their 44-22 win over the No. 4 Bobcats.

It’s a stark contrast to the Wolves’ 41-0 loss in the district final last year to Rochester Adams, who then beat the Bobcats 21-14 in regionals.

“Last season was tough, and we had a horrible game (against Adams), not gonna lie,” Wolves senior Griffin Boman said. “But this just shows where we can be and we’re gonna try to make it to Ford Field.”

Though Boman and his brother, Lukas, tend to get plenty of due praise for their offensive accomplishments, the spotlight was big enough for many others in Friday’s triumph, which never saw the sixth-ranked Wolves punt.

Signs of a shootout began when Clarkston junior quarterback Alex Waszczenko spun out of a tackle and dove across the pylon on a 17-yard touchdown run with 8:49 on the clock in the opening quarter. Within the next 1:50, a tipped pass from Grand Blanc senior quarterback Jake Morrow fell into the hands of Angelo Chapman for a 60-yard gain, then Jeremiah Coleman’s 24-yard completion down the left sideline tied the game, 7-7.

The Wolves quickly chunked down the field in response, and Waszczenko, who had three receivers lined up right, opted to go over the middle to Hank Hornung. It resulted in a 27-yard touchdown, the first of a few significant plays by Clarkston’s senior receiver.

Morrow, who threw for over 300 yards in the loss, orchestrated the Bobcats down the field on their next drive, but Griffin Boman got his hands on a fumble recovery when Grand Blanc was approaching the end zone and ran it back roughly half the length of the field to the Bobcats’ 27-yard line. Clarkston handed the ball to Griffin on fourth-and-2 for a 4-yard gain, and several plays later he turned a 12-yard run around the left edge, making it 20-7 with 8:01 to go in the second quarter after Grand Blanc blocked the extra point.

Aided by a 41-yard completion to Micah Kemp and a roughing the passer penalty against the Wolves, Morrow finished off Grand Blanc’s next possession with a 1-yard keeper that cut the lead back to one score with 3:41 remaining in the first half, which preceded Clarkston’s drive that resulted in the field goal that made it 23-14.

After halftime, a sack by Gabe Mansour and a penalty against the Bobcats on their drive to start meant their punt only pushed Clarkston back to start at the Bobcats’ 42-yard line. Griffin Boman converted on fourth-and-2 from the 34 for a 12-yard gain, and on the next play Waszczenko went untouched on a run into the end zone that made it 30-14 less than five minutes into the third.

“I see what I can on the field,” said Waszczenko when asked how much of his rushing production was by design. “When we’ve got reads, I take what I can and I can use my legs. It helps our offense a little bit, having us three in the backfield, me and (the Bomans).”

Despite a sack by Hunter Kauth early in the corresponding drive by Grand Blanc, Morrow ended up throwing a 28-yard TD pass to Kemp, and then connected on a crossing route with an open Caseton Sendry for the 2-point conversion that made it 30-22 with 2:40 left in the penultimate quarter.

It only stayed a one-score contest for 19 seconds, however, as Hornung took an end-around 70 yards to the house.

“Honestly, it was great,” Hornung said. “I got great blocks. Without Cam (Love) and that block (from him), I wouldn’t have been able to get down there.”

Photos of No. 6 Clarkston vs. No. 4 Grand Blanc in a D1 district football championship

The Bobcats looked as if they might bite back yet again when their first play of the next drive resulted in a 44-yard catch by Kemp to continue his big night, but after a 14-yard catch by Daylin Taylor that got it to the Wolves' 3-yard line, Clarkston's defense stiffened. Kauth broke up a pass intended for Kemp, then Love was in on coverage on the fourth-down attempt in the corner of the end zone for Sendry, handing the ball back to Clarkston just 13 seconds into the fourth.

Clarkston then effectively put the game to bed with a 74-yard completion on third-and-6 to Hornung and a 3-yard rushing TD by Griffin Boman the next play for the game's final score with 7:25 remaining.

In desperation mode but also in Wolves' territory, Morrow went deep on third-and-15, but Love picked it off and ran it back roughly 30 yards with 5:36 left in the game. Clarkston got all the way down inside the 10-yard line and likely could've tacked on another TD, but instead knelt the rest of the time away, the only possession in which the Wolves didn't score on all night.

"(A shootout) was definitely a possibility, especially the way that the game started," Clarkston head coach Justin Pintar said. "I just thought the offense did a great job. The offensive line gave our guys opportunities to run the  ball, and when our playmakers got the ball in space they showed what they could do. I thought Alex played an outstanding game running and throwing the ball. He showed what he's capable of doing. Our offense started the season really well -- maybe had a little bit of a lull in the middle -- but I think we've played great football on that side of the ball the last couple months."

Previously unbeaten Grand Blanc finishes the season with a record now identical to the Wolves (10-1), who remain in their own backyard for next week's regional game against No. 2 Detroit Catholic Central. The Shamrocks beat Hartland 45-7 in their district final.

TROY – Down a set and facing a 24-20 deficit in the second set of its Division 1 district final with Birmingham Marian, it’s like a light went off in the head of Bloomfield Hills senior Kayla Nwabueze on Friday night.

She had to remind herself that she was the best player on the floor and it was time for her to prove it. And prove it she did.

Nwabueze would spark a 6-point rally with four kills to push the Black Hawks to a 26-24 win in the second set and completely shift the momentum of the game.

From there, the Black Hawks took the next two sets behind a match-high 29 kills from their Miss Volleyball finalist, as No. 2 Bloomfield Hills topped No. 4 Marian 18-25, 26-24, 25-20, 25-21 at Troy Athens High School.

“I was just telling myself that this could possibly be my last game, and I need to just go out hard, and I need to go out with the bang,” Nwabueze said of her mindset to close the second that. “My mental space just changed.”

Bloomfield Hills (39-6-1) didn’t hide its strategy once it started to work. They set Nwabueze everywhere on the floor and challenged the Mustangs to stop her.

“I think everybody saw that Kayla got a little bit hot. I think the setter found the hot hitter for sure,” Bloomfield Hills coach Brian Kim said. “We were fortunate to be able to come back in that second set and then just ride that momentum into sets three and four.”

Nwabueze, a Harvard commit, put down another eight kills in the third set, then nine in the fourth to wrap up the match. Her final two kills came from the back row to push the Black Hawks to a 24-21 advantage.

“She is by far the best hitter in the state. Honestly, she’s the best hitter I’ve ever seen in the state,” Marian coach Mayssa Cook said of Nwabueze. “In all the years I’ve coached, nobody, in my opinion, that we’ve ever played, even touches her as far as talent goes.”

Marian (44-6) started fast, taking a 5-1 lead in the first and never trailed to pick up a 25-18 win. In the second set, the Mustangs would lead 8-1, but eight service errors in the frame opened the door for Bloomfield Hills to rally, which it did.

“It didn’t help that we missed eight serves. In the second set, we missed eight serves. We had a seven-point lead twice. We were still up 24-20 and missing those serves at critical moments got (Nwabueze) to the front row quickly,” Cook said.

Nwabueze felt the momentum shift after that second set, as it seemed to put the Mustangs on their heels, while her teammates started to play with more confidence.

“I definitely did,” Nwabueze said on if she felt the momentum changed after the second set. “I was really happy that my team started riding behind me, and our whole energy just flipped.”

It wasn’t just Nwabueze’s play on the court that helped turn the tide. She was the first to speak in each huddle, and she was coaching up her teammates following the first set, telling them to remain confident. To Kim, that just defines why she’s more than just an on-court leader.

“Her leadership really shows, and everybody on the team, I think even spectators, everybody can see what kind of leader that she really is,” Kim said of Nwabueze. “As hard as she plays, everybody else follows her lead. So, she’s really something special.”

When the match concluded, Nwabueze and her teammates collapsed to the floor in joy. When the district trophy was handed out to Kim, he immediately walked it toward his senior star.

“It was definitely a feeling of relief that we didn’t have to keep fighting anymore,” Nwabueze said of seeing the final point. “We didn’t have to take it further than we needed to, and that we got the job done.”

Aiding Nwabueze and the Black Hawks in the win was junior setter Brynn Wilcox, who recorded 43 assists. Freshman Emily Nwabueze, the sister of Kayla, added seven kills while sophomore Allison Stakoe had four.

Photo gallery from the D1 volleyball district final between Bloomfield Hills and Marian

Marian was led by senior setter Allie Davison, who had 34 assists and five aces. Junior Sophia Smith recorded 15 kills, while sophomore Quinn Nelson had 10 kills with four aces.

The Mustangs will graduate four from their 2025 roster, but will return a loaded roster once again for the 2026 season.

“Wanting it is one thing, showing it is another thing,” Cook said of her team. “I know we wanted it. We've worked hard all season. We've been a top-five, maybe even top-four, team all season. It sucks that we saw them in districts, for sure, because we are better than a team that loses in districts. But ultimately, you have to show up and play who is in front of you. Bloomfield Hills brought their A+ game against us.”

The Black Hawks will now head to Marian next week for regional play. They open up with a regional semifinal against Grosse Pointe South at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

“There are a lot of players on the team that had to step up in different moments. So, every player on the team contributed throughout the season,” Kim said. “We’re excited to see how this season goes.”

Grand Blanc’s offense was formidable, but Clarkston’s was even better in the Wolves’ 44-22 district title win Friday, Nov. 7, 2025 in Clarkston.

Bloomfield Hills defeated Birmingham Marian 18-25, 26-24, 25-20, 25-21 in a Division 1 district volleyball final at Troy Athens High School on Friday, Nov. 7, 2025.

Nwabueze wills Bloomfield Hills to 4-set district championship win over Marian