By Chad Wingert (Contact / Staff Bio)

Originally published October 21, 2009, 12:04 p.m. EST. Updated October 21, 2009, 12:04 p.m. EST

CARO — It may have taken a while, but the Caro volleyball team found their groove Saturday as they hosted their second tournament of the year. And, this time, they would would be crowned the champions.

“We had a fantastic day,” Caro head coach Bob Tobey said. “We ended the day undefeated with the championship trophy in hand.”

The Tigers steamrolled the competition as they posted a flawless 7-0 record on the day. Caro started off by ousting LakeVille (21-7, 21-15), EPBP (21-13, 21-13), Capac (21-10, 21-16) and Roscommon (21-11, 21-18) before moving into bracket play.

Then, the Tigers bumped their play up a notch as they easily slid past Akron-Fairgrove (25-16, 25-17) and Vassar (25-16, 25-19) right into the tournament championship.

In the title game, Caro edged out Roscommon for a second time, earning the crown in two straight sets (25-22, 25-17).

Tobey was very proud of his entire team, but he said it was the play of two seniors that made the difference on Saturday.

“Andrea Henry and Vanessa Taylor played excellent today,” Tobey said. “Andrea dominated at the net and Vanessa was exceptional in setting up the offense.”

Henry led the Tigers by totaling 62 kills, 42 digs, 10 aces and 10 blocks along with 92% serve recieve while Taylor set up 110 assists and posted 20 kills, 37 digs and 10 aces.

Hayleigh Vinson had 23 kills, 25 digs and three aces alongside Mary Laethem, who added 18 kills. Brittney Quick tallied 12 kills while sister Nicole Quick set up 21 assists on the day. Madi Campbell led Caro’s defense with a team-high 87 digs.

Caro improves to 19-18-5 as they now prepare to close out their TVC East schedule at home against Millington on Wednesday.

Akron-Fairgrove did not fare as well in the tournament as they posted only one win on the day.

“The competition was a little stiff for us,” Akron-Fairgrove head coach Judy Campbell said. “But still, this was a good tune-up.”

The Vikings struggled through pool play, chalking up losses to Vassar (12-21, 13-21), Clio (17-21, 19-21) and Bad Axe (22-23, 9-23) before defeating Birch Run (21-12, 22-20).

Akron-Fairgrove then ended their day with a elimination-round loss to Caro (16-25, 17-25).

Alyssa Monchilov was the leader for the Vikings, piling up 40 kills, 13 assists, 19 digs and 18 points while Sarah Crane had seven kills, eight assists, 20 digs and 14 points. Dana Davidson set up 16 assists, while Kacy Foster added 11 points and eight kills. Amber Tumblin chipped in with 12 digs and 12 points.

The Vikings are now 9-10-1 overall.

North Branch faces familiar foe for fifth time

NORTH BRANCH — The No.1 team in Class B, North Branch, faced the No. 1 team in Class A Bloomfield Hills Marian for the fifth time this year at the 27-team Michigan Elite Tournament. Once again, the Broncos gave a valiant effort but fell to Marian in the tournament finals, the No. 15 ranked team in the nation by prepvolleyball.com (22-25, 26-14).

“We had our opportunities, but we could not get points at critical times,” North Branch head coach Jim Fish said.

North Branch posted a 7-1 record on the day with victories in pool play over Macomb Dakota (25-10, 25-14), Ann Arbor Pioneer (25-12, 25-18), Troy (25-13, 25-19) and Utica Eisenhower (25-19, 25-18). In the round of 16, the Broncos were able to top Ida (25-12, 25-11) and easily handle Flushing (25-18, 25-16), sending them to the semi-finals where they would face Fraser.

In the semis, North Branch dropped the first set, 22-25, and was down 12-1 in the second before storming back to take a 25-23 victory. Then in the third and final set, Fraser fought off four match points before the Broncos eventually won the match, 15-13.

Katie Owens led the North Branch offense with 72 kills and added 15 digs while Kara Stuewer racked up 53 kills. Danika Racknor had 32 kills and 46 digs while Jordan Fish dished out 157 assists and added 34 kills and 36 digs. Defensively, Catherine Brusie gathered 109 digs and 12 aces while Taylor Wiegle chipped in with 40 digs and 12 aces.

North Branch is now 55-5-2 and is ranked No. 93 nationally. The Broncos travel to Garber on Wednesday (today) before hosting the North Branch Invitational on Saturday.