Sophomore’s diving dig lifts Northville to epic 5-set win over Salem

The split second late Tuesday night when Salem’s rocket-launching senior hitter Elizabeth Nordstrom sent the volleyball blazing toward an empty spot just inside the end line, the Rocks’ players and fans were prepared to erupt.

Nordstrom’s rocket was launched with her team holding a fifth-set lead of 14-13 against Northville, a perennial power Salem had not defeated in recent memory.

Northville sophomore defensive specialist Kaia Bednarz put the home team’s celebration on hold when she came out of nowhere to place her fist between the ball and Salem’s shiny new court.

The ball popped softly to Northville’s Hadley Conrad, who delivered a crazy-good over-the-head pass to Reilly McLaughlin, who finished the point with a hard kill, evening the match at 14-all.

What a finish!

The Mustangs captured the final two points to win 16-14 and posted one of Head Coach Sarah Lindstrom’s most dramatic regular-season wins.

(Check out a video clip of Bednarz’s match-extending dig by watching this short video clip here.

“This was all about resilience — 100 percent,” said Lindstrom, moments after the drama-coated victory that lifted the Mustangs’ record to 7-1. “We have a mental performance training coach come in who helps the girls for moments just like this.

“We know we’re not the biggest and best team in the state, but these girls know how to work. Going into the fifth set, we kept saying: ‘play to win’, ‘push through’ and ‘focus on the next point’. I’m very proud of this team. Our little No. 1 saved the day.”

The days of once-underdog Salem hoping to win just one set against Northville’s juggernaut appear over.

Rollercoaster ride

After the Mustangs handily won the opening set, 25-14, the Rocks bounced back with a gutsy 25-22 triumph in set two.

Led by Nordstrom Nya Kuhn, CJ Kiffner, Stella Whirley and Tamari Wheatley, Salem won the third set to put the Mustangs on the ropes.

Set four was so tense, it could have been scripted by Christopher Nolan. Neither team managed to earn a cushion more than three points.

Leading 24-23, a perfectly placed tip by Juliet Raiti sealed the Mustangs’ 25-23 win to set up the dramatic fifth set.

Facing adversity 101

A crushing kill by Salem’s Tamari Wheatley gave the Rocks a seemingly insurmountable 14-12 lead before Northville won the four point — thanks to three kills by Reilly McLaughlin and Bednarz’s match-saving dig.

The final point was epic, with bodies sliding across the floor to extend the point.

“We’re always expecting a battle agains Salem,” Lindstrom acknowledged. “I know a lot of their players and I knew they were coming after us tonight. I saw some social media posts that said we lost all of our good players last year — and don’t think I didn’t let our girls know in the minutes leading up to the first set.”

Lindstrom had high praise for senior middle Olivia Smith, who missed most of last season due to an injury.

Smith comes up big when needed

“Tonight was the best I’ve seen Olivia play,” Lindstrom raved. “She stepped up when we really needed her to. We have four middles, so sharing the position. She’s been asking what she has to do to lock in the position and tonight she played all five sets.”

“Tonight our setter got hurt mid-way through the match, so we had to make some adjustments, putting girls in positions they’ve never played. “But I told them, ‘Trust yourself as much as I trust you … and they played great.”

McLaughlin led the Mustangs with a career-high 17 kills. Freshman Addalyn Moore threw down 13 kills and Olivia Smith had 10 from the middle.

“But it all wouldn’t have mattered if not for No. 1, Kaia Bednarz, who saved us with the huge dig.”

Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.