ONAWAY – The Onaway Cardinals kept their impressive start to the Ski Valley Conference season going by picking up a 3-0 home victory over Pellston (25-21, 25-15, 25-18) on Tuesday.
Now 3-0 in the Ski Valley, the Cardinals were led by Grace Watson, who finished with 25 assists, six kills and 13 digs, while Ema DeMaestri tallied six kills, 16 digs and five aces, Sadie Decker recorded five kills, 12 digs and three aces, and Ella Lintz had 10 kills and three digs. Amya Janusky (10 digs, three kills), Carley Karsten (10 digs, three aces, two kills) and Marley Szymoniak (two digs) also contributed.
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For the Hornets, Lanie Irwin led with eight kills and 15 digs, Allie Cameron tallied 12 digs and two kills, and Alivia Pelaccio added eight digs. Others chipping in were Ella Klungle (four kills, two digs), Makenna Cooley (four digs), Aubrey Kewaygeshik (four digs), Erin Kewaygeshik (two blocks), and Sadie Keck (two aces).
Onaway heads to Bellaire on Thursday, while Pellston hosts East Jordan on Thursday.
Comets earn hard-fought road win over Alanson
ALANSON – The Mackinaw City Comets keep finding ways to win Northern Lakes Conference matches.
Tuesday was another huge night for the Comets, who moved to 6-0 in NLC play by capturing a 3-1 victory at Alanson (25-21, 19-25, 25-21, 25-20).
“My ladies showed a ton of grit and fight in pulling out tonight’s match,” Mackinaw City coach Jake Huffman said. “I was very proud of our ability to fight through some tough adversity against a good team and pull out a victory. Our serving was excellent again tonight, as we served 92 percent and our hitting was efficient. We did a great job of cleaning up the floor defensively tonight as well.”
The Comets (10-7-1) were fueled by Alaina Brown, who led with 15 kills, 12 service points, 10 digs and three aces, as well as Abby Brown, who tallied 12 points, nine digs, four kills and two aces, and Vanessa Groenewoud, who added 12 kills, 10 points, seven aces and six digs. Mackinaw City also received solid contributions from Rian Esper (28 assists, 10 points, three aces, four digs, two kills), Kerry-Ann Ming (10 kills, seven points, six digs, three aces), Elizabeth Kruczynski (three kills, three points, three digs, two aces), and Jillian Poumade (two digs).
Mackinaw City hosts defending NLC champion Boyne Falls in a showdown on Wednesday.
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Cheboygan native, OU men’s golf first at Valero Texas Collegiate
SAN ANTONIO – In his second season with the University of Oklahoma men’s golf team, Cheboygan native PJ Maybank III is starting to make a huge impact.
Maybank and the Sooners recently earned first place at the Valero Texas Collegiate event at TPC San Antonio.
Finishing in a tie for 19th individually was Maybank, who fired second-round 66 on Sunday to help keep the Sooners in the chase for the title. On Monday, OU capped off its comeback by beating out teams that included Auburn, the No. 1-ranked program in America coming into the event. Currently, the Sooners sit at No. 8 in the national rankings. OU finished at 30-under, six shots in front of runner-up Ole Miss (24-under). Auburn (19-under) placed third.
During Maybank’s 66 on Sunday, he made two eagles in the round.
OU next plays in the Ben Hogan Collegiate, hosted by Colonial Country Club in Fort Worth (Texas), on Sept. 30.
Contact sports editor Jared Greenleaf atjgreenleaf@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter@sportsCDT