Cros-Lex edges Imlay City in battle of two of area's best in volleyball

CROSWELL — Two of the best high school volleyball teams in the BWAC this season finally met on the court Tuesday night.

Croswell-Lexington held off a late rally on its home court to defeat Imlay City in five sets, 25-20, 25-23, 12-15, 19-25, 15-10.

Both the Pioneers and Spartans know the result won't matter in the long run. But it served as a measuring stick for two programs that are hoping to go deep in the postseason.

Cros-Lex has 'learned a lot from last year'

Ryan Wilson first noticed the difference in July. Well before the 2022 season began, the Cros-Lex coach witnessed his team playing more "cohesive volleyball" than it did in 2021. Two months later, that trend has continued.

"This team is mentally tough and they're just really excited to play volleyball," Cros-Lex coach Ryan Wilson said. "They know that if they don't come out with a ton of energy, they're wasting a great opportunity to play an amazing game."

Fortunately for the Pioneers, lack of energy hasn't been a concern. Cros-Lex is 21-4 overall and 5-1 in BWAC play.

"We learned a lot from last year," Wilson said. "(There was) a lot of inconsistency with how we handled our emotions and how we handled winning and losing. But we learned a lot from that. And we've been really resilient."

Two of its key players are Elara Rankin and Riley Robertson.

"We have two of the very best defenders in Elara and Riley," Wilson said. "I really believe that. They just play amazing and the rest of the girls really trust them and play well around them."

But he knows that every team's fate rests in the hands of its setter.

"All your successes and failures ultimately fall on their success," Wilson said. "And our setter, Annalise Weeder, has just worked her tail off all year. She never quits on anything and really holds this team together."

Weeder will play a big part in guiding the Pioneers through the final month of the regular season.

"Our October schedule is really tough," Wilson said. "It's going to push us. And that's what we need going into the postseason with the district we're in with Imlay City and North Branch. We're really going to find out just how far we can push ourselves."

Imlay City works on "pulling it together"

There isn't "one star" that stands out for the Spartans. And Imlay City coach Rachel Van Dyk sees that as a plus.

"We don't really have one," Van Dyk said. "Which I think is a really awesome thing. We've got a lot of players that are really solid. It's just a matter of playing together."

The Spartans are doing just that with an 11-4-2 start to the season. For most of Imlay City's players, volleyball isn't their primary sport. So they realize how important attitude and repetition is to their approach.

"It's (about) developing a volleyball IQ, working on that in practice and then executing it in a game," Van Dyk said. "And when we do execute in a game, we play really well."

One Spartan who consistently executes is freshman Emma Keeping. She finished with eight kills, three blocks, 14 assists and seven digs against Cros-Lex on Tuesday. While Imlay City ultimately fell short, Keeping is part of a strong freshman class that includes Makayla Bruman and Makenzie Craven.

"We've got a couple of freshmen that've been big difference makers for us in the setting position," Van Dyk said. "We've also got two great senior (middle hitters) ... we have it all, it's just a matter of pulling it together."

Part of that process will include limiting unforced errors. The Spartans had 14 in the first set against the Pioneers. They know that'll have to change.

"There are lots of learning opportunities to be taken away from a loss," Van Dyk said. "That's what I told them in the huddle. Nobody is going to remember a match versus Cros-Lex in the middle of the season when it's time in November to compete in the district (tournament).

"We're (also) working on our mental game," Van Dyk said. "High highs are great, but we also have low lows. And I'd rather us have a nice even tone, no matter what the score is on the scoreboard."

Contact Brenden Welper at bwelper@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.