Saline Volleyball Cruises to Second Straight District Title

The Saline volleyball team made it look easy as the Hornets cruised to its second straight Division 1 district title, but now is where things will get interesting.

The Hornets cruised the sweeps of Ann Arbor Skyline and Ann Arbor Pioneer to take the district trophy and move on to this weeks D1 regional at Ypsilanti Lincoln.

The Lincoln regional is a juggernaut for teams with three teams being ranked in the top 10 of the Division 1 polls and the honorable mention Hornets.

The Hornets will take on sixth-ranked Brighton Tuesday night at 7:00, with the other side of the bracket featuring ninth-ranked Bedford and the second-ranked Northville Mustangs that ended Saline’s season in a five-set thriller in the D1 state semifinals in 2022.

The Hornets have faced all three teams this season but are 0-6 against them so it will be a tall task for Saline.

While the regional awaits, the Hornets made quick work of the Skyline district.

The semifinal against Skyline saw the teams tied at 22 in the first set when the Hornets scored three straight and Marie Laurio ended it with a kill for the 25-22 opening set win.

Saline took a 2-0 lead with a 25-16 win in the second set and the third set saw the teams tied at 23, but Skyline was called for an illegal formation for a 24-23 lead and Allie Smith ended the match with an ace.

The championship match saw the Hornets take control early and an Addison Ashley kill ended the set 25-12.

The second set saw Pioneer keep it close at 15-12, but the Hornets would go on a 10-7 run to close out the set 25-19.

The third set was all Saline as the Hornets jumped out to an 18-5 lead before Pioneer went on a four-point run to make it 18-9. Saline answered to push the lead to 24-11 and Rylee Bero closed out the match with an ace.

Saline improved to 33-12-2 overall on the season.

Photos by Dawn and Dennis McCann