Eric Guzma?n
It was nearly deafening inside the Troy Athens High School gymnasium as two of the top teams in Michigan high school volleyball – and rivals – squared off in the district finals on Friday, Nov. 7, thanks to the enthusiasm of the Bloomfield Hills volleyball commenity.
Chants of "She's a freshman!" and "You can't do that!" – among other cheers of support – echoed each time momentum swung in favor of Bloomfield Hills. But in a moment during the final match of a four-set game, one chant rang loudest.
"You can't stop her," the crowd shouted after Bloomfield Hills senior Kayla Nwabueze scored the second-to-last point of the game.
Nwabueze, a Miss Volleyball finalist, led her Black Hawks to a 3-1 victory over Birmingham Marian, sending Bloomfield Hills to the regional round of the Michigan High School Athletic Association Division 1 volleyball tournament. It was the fourth meeting this season between the two teams, and the first postseason game, dating back to the 2011-12 season in which the Black Hawks bested the Mustangs.
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"It was definitely a battle, but I'm so happy that we won," Nbwaueze said. "I'm so happy that our team came together and decided to that it doesn't matter what the score is, as long as we play together, we play hard and we play point-for-point, that's all that matters and the end of the day."
She also added that beating Marian for the district title makes the victory "way more special."
"We've been the underdogs a lot when it comes to Marian, and we really just went out there and proved a point that we are the better team, and if we play together we play hard."
In an interview in September, coach Brian Kim shared his star player's sentiments of wanting to win a state title this year. After accomplishing the first step toward that goal on Friday, he said he wanted the team to celebrate the moment.
"We're very happy that we're able to achieve one of our goals," Kim said. "We're going to enjoy the day or enjoy the night, and we're going to accomplish our next goal."
The next goal? The same as every remaining team's: A state title.
Marian didn't make it each, though, winning the first set, 25-18, and playing off the momentum at the start of the second set. But after the Black Hawks called timeout, they flipped the momentum for Bloomfield Hills.
Marian coach Maysa Cook said that her team became "timid" as it surrendered a seven-point lead.
"We didn't take the swings we were taking earlier, even though we had the advantage being up at some point," she said.
Cook also said Nwabueze's presence made a big impact.
"Kayla is the best hitter I've ever seen at the high school level," she said. "And if we're missing those serves and just giving them free points, she's going to so often. She's probably hitting around .600 [hitting percentage], which is unheard of for an outside hitter."
Brynn Wilcox, Bloomfield Hills' junior setter, acknowledged the crowd's importance, rallying the Black Hawks in Troy.
"It really helped us feel at home and it made our job easier because they were bringing energy, which helped in terms of give us energy and it took a little bit of energy out of them," Wilcox said.
The Black Hawks will likely need another big turnout from their fans, as they advance to regionals against Grosse Pointe South and another Miss Volleyball finalist, Gabby DiVita, with the match set for Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at Birmingham Marian.
Nwabueze said the game plan for the match is to play comfortable.
While the Black Hawks have accomplished their goal of a district title, the job is far from finished, Nwabueze said, despite their a winning mindset.
"It gives me the mentality that we're not done and we still have a lot more to go," she said. "We have a long way to go and that we can push ourselves farther and prove more points that our program is building."
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Contact Eric Guzma?n: [email protected]; 313-222-1850.