Volleyball: Lady Trojans made strides
Volleyball
CARNEY — Forest Park’s improvement from the first days of the season to the end was evident in an MHSAA Division 4 District 99 volleyball semifinal.
The Lady Trojans were thumped early in the season by eventual Skyline Central Conference champion Carney-Nadeau. Those same Wolves had a more difficult time beating Forest Park 3-0 (25-21, 25-12, 25-18) in the district Wednesday.
“It was a night and day difference of how our team performed against Carney in the beginning of the season to tonight,” FP Coach Ana Cornelia said after the match. “It was a hard fought volleyball match. I’m proud of how the girls held their heads high, because they left everything they had on the floor. I will say this team sure knows how to fight back even when things aren’t going their way.”
Cornelia said “that’s been a common occurrence for this team.”
“They have been resilient to anything that has been thrown at them,” she said. “Everyone on this team has continued
to push themselves, and their teammates to make the team better. These young woman embody the true meaning of being a good teammate.”
Mercedes Simmons’ 10 kills, Sydney Honkala’s 18 assists and Cassie Divine’s 5 solo blocks led the Trojans, who finished the season 12-17-3 overall and 6-5 in the conference.
“It’s been a pleasure to coach this team and I will miss our senior captains very much, but I look forward to working even
harder in the gym next year with these young woman,” Cornelia said.
Summary:
Caitlyn Bloomberg — 1 ace
Cassie Divine — 2 kills, 5 solo blocks
Destiny Ferrara — 2 aces, 7 digs
Elle Soderberg — 1 kill, 2 solo blocks, 2 block assists
Kelsey Ragio — 3 kills, 6 digs, 1 solo block
Laina Toivonen — 5 kills, 1 dig
Mercedes Simmons — 2 aces, 10 kills, 2 solo blocks, 2 block assists
Sydney Honkala — 1 ace, 1 kill, 18 assists, 2 digs
Elaina Perry — 1 ace, 1 assist