By By TOM NYHUIS / Niles Daily Star
BUCHANAN – Edwardsburg and Buchanan saved what may have been their best play of the season, so far, for Saturday's Lakeland Conference varsity volleyball tournament at Buchanan High School.
The Eddies and the Lady Bucks battled for the championship after Edwardsburg defeated Coloma 20-25, 25-20, 15-11 and Buchanan got past River Valley 27-29, 25-18, 15-11 in the semifinals.
Edwardsburg finished the day setting the Lady Bucks down in two games 26-24, 25-18. With the championship win and Coloma finishing the day with a third place finish by defeating River Valley in the consolation game 25-15, 25-16, the Eddies vaulted over the Comets for the Lakeland title. Buchanan jumped from fifth to third in the final standings with their second place outcome.
"We have had a rough last three weeks and we had two starters out today," Buchanan coach Lisa Holok said following the title match. "I just thought they did an amazing job coming together as a team. They didn't give up all day and they played hard for each point."
The win, coupled with Coloma's third place finish in the league tournament, gave Edwardsburg the outright conference crown.
Coloma came into the league tournament with a perfect 7-0 record in regular season matches. The Lady Eddies were 6-1, their lone loss to Coloma late in the season.
Edwardsburg captured its pool on Saturday with a 3-0 record, while Coloma finished second in its pool after splitting with Buchanan and Bridgman.
That set up a semifinal matchup between Edwardsburg and Coloma, instead of a possible showdown in the title match.
If Coloma had met Edwardsburg in the finals and lost to the Lady Eddies, there would have been a tie for the league championship.
Edwardsburg defeated Brandywine (25-15, 25-10), River Valley (25-13, 25-13) and Cassopolis (25-10, 25-9) to claim the top spot in its pool.
In the semifinals, the Lady Eddies knocked off the Lady Comets 20-25, 25-0 and 15-11.
Buchanan reached the finals of the tournament by winning its pool with a 2-0-1 record.
The Lady Bucks split with Coloma (24-26, 25-10) and defeated Berrien Springs (25-19, 25-19) and Bridgman (25-16, 25-13).
In the semifinals, Buchanan was a 27-29, 25-18 and 15-5 winner over River Valley.
Buchanan moved out of Pool 1 the No. 1 seed after a 5-1 finish splitting the two game set with the Comets. Coloma also dropped a game to Bridgman to finish the No. 2 seed and move on to meet the No. 1 seed team Edwardsburg from Pool 2.
Buchanan may be peaking at the right time, as they get ready for district play this week.
"In districts we have a bye so we play the winner of St. Joe and Dowagiac on Thursday," Holok said. "This can do nothing but keep pushing us in the right direction."
Lakeland Conference
Volleyball Tournament
At Buchanan
Pool A
Coloma d. Berrien Springs 25-16, 25-23
Coloma split with Buchanan 24-26, 25-10
Coloma split with Bridgman 25-8, 20-25
Buchanan d. Berrien Springs 25-19, 25-19
Buchanan d. Bridgman 25-16, 25-13
Berrien Springs d. Bridgman 25-13, 25-12
Pool B
Edwardsburg d. Brandywine 25-15, 25-10
Edwardsburg d. River Valley 25-13, 25-13
Edwardsburg d. Cassopolis 25-10, 25-9
River Valley d. Brandywine 25-20, 25-17
River Valley d. Cassopolis 25-10, 25-9
Brandywine d. Cassopolis 25-24, 25-9
Championship
Semifinals
Buchanan d. River Valley 27-29, 25-18, 15-5
Edwardsburg d. Coloma 20-25, 25-20, 15-11
Consolation Semifinals
Berrien Springs d. Cassopolis 25-17, 25-22
Brandywine d. Bridgman 25-22, 25-19
Championship Match
Edwardsburg d. Buchanan 26-24, 25-18
3rd Place
Coloma d. River Valley 25-16, 25-15
5th Place
Berrien Springs d. Brandywine 25-14, 25-14
7th Place
Cassopolis d. Bridgman 21-25, 25-20, 15-12
Regular Season
Standings
1. Coloma; 2. Edwardsburg; 3. Brandywine and Berrien Springs; 5. Buchanan; 6. River Valley; 7. Cassopolis; 8. Bridgman
Tournament Results
1. Edwardsburg; 2. Buchanan; 3. Coloma; 4. River Valley; 5. Berrien Springs; 6. Brandywine; 7. Cassopolis; 8. Bridgman
Final League Standings
1. Edwardsburg; 2. Coloma; 3. Buchanan; 4. Berrien Springs; 5. Brandywine; 6. River Valley; 7. Cassopolis; 8. Bridgman
Edwardsburg statistics
Stephanie Koontz 41 kills, 38 digs and 15 blocks
Evie Tafunai 37 kills, 9 aces and 44 digs.
Buchanan statistics
Kills: Emily Ross 27, Courtney Miller 30, Anna Callahan 20, Taylor Henry 19.
Aces: Ross 4, Callahan 7, Jollene Borr 3, Rachel Briggs 5, Brooke Shultz 3
Assists: Ross 75
Digs: Ross 45, Miller 45, Callahan 37, Rachel Downs 43, Borr 12, Briggs 17, Shultz 20
Blocks: Ross 8, Callahan 4, Borr 4, Henry 10
Brandywine statistics
Emily Lowe 120 assists, 2 aces
Adrianna Rudlaff 1 kill, eight aces
Katie Smallwood 10 kills, 3 blocks, 2 aces, 5 digs
Jenna Harris 7 kills, 4 aces, 4 digs
Lauren Leonard 5 kills, 5 aces, 3 blocks