Rocks capture tournament that honors former Plymouth coach

  Kim Renzi would have absolutely loved the volleyball tournament that carried her name and strengthened her legacy Saturday in the Plymouth High School gymnasium.

  The brand of volleyball played in the Kim Renzi Memorial Invitational was passionate and high-energy -- just like Renzi, who passed away in the spring of 2009
following a courageous battle with melanoma.

  When stricken with her illness in September of 2008, Renzi was just a few weeks into her dream job as head coach of the Wildcats' freshmen volleyball team.

  Proceeds generated from Saturday's event -- there was a silent auction and raffle in addition to gate and concession sales -- will be donated to a college scholarship fund for Renzi's two daughters, Marina and Adeline.

  All three P-CEP teams excelled, advancing to the semifinal round. Salem earned its second title in as many weekends, upending North Farmington in the final, 25-17, 25-13.

  "It was a great day and my girls played well throughout the day and I am very proud of them," said Salem coach Amanda Nies. "They beat some good teams today and pushed through at the end of the matches.

  "It was such a great tournament and I have to give my highest respects to the Plymouth volleyball program. Kelly McCausland ran a wonderful tournament and it is just such a great thing to all come together and help support the Renzi family. I am proud to be a part of the Park and such wonderful people. It was an honor to play today."

  Salem breezed through the first round of pool play, sweeping Detroit Cass Tech, 25-4, 25-13; and Dexter, 25-22, 25-18.

  In second-round play, Salem split with Ann Arbor Pioneer, 24-26, 25-18, before taking down Garden City, 25-14, 25-17

  Salem outlasted cross-campus rival Canton, 25-21, 25-21, to advance to the final against the Raiders.

  Nicole Merget had a huge day, notching 58 kills and five aces. Jillian Sommerville was also a front-row force, knocking down 35 kills and nine blocks.

  Defensively, the victors were led by Kerstin Johnson (team-high 42 digs and 21 kills) and Lauren Aschermann, who dug 30 balls.

  Salem's offense was engineered by senior setter Kerry MacDonald, who racked up 107 assists, 19 digs, seven kills and a team-high 13 aces.

  Inspired by the memory of Renzi, the host Wildcats played extremely well, going 3-1-1.

  "Seeing as we could not take the title, I am glad to see one of our 'sister schools' win such an inspirational tournament," McCausland said. "The tournament means a lot to the whole program, but it especially means a lot to Rachael Hille and Tayler Pastor who both played for Kim. They brought emotion and energy today, and they both had an outstanding day of volleyball.

  After opening the day with a 25-20, 21-25 split with Ann Arbor Huron, the Wildcats found their groove, upending Redford Union, 25-7, 25-11; Cass Tech, 25-12, 25-18; and Canton, 25-21, 25-18.

  "The win against Canton was, by far, the highlight of our day," said McCausland. "This rivalry has been a hurdle of ours for the past several years, and I could not be more proud of our girls for finally realizing that, yes, they can beat Canton. It is huge step for us mentally.

  "Our girls played with so much intensity, confidence and energy against them. From the very first point, everything was clicking. From our last encounter with them, we knew that they were going to go to Alaina (Turner) and Kristen (Muir), so we set up defensively to counter their offense. We did not allow them to take the lead in either game, which is a huge accomplishment for this team."

  The Wildcats gave North Farmington all it could handle before falling, 25-22, 25-17.

  Hille sparkled against the Raiders, bringing the 'Cats back from a 22-13 deficit in the first game with eight straight service points.

  Several Wildcats played well, including Kayla Bridge (31 kills, 30 digs), Dani Risi (30 kills, 23 digs), Alex Roberts (21 kills, 12 blocks), Rachael Hille (12 kills, five blocks), Jessica Scott (49 assists, 12 digs), Shayla Smalls (40 assists, 18 digs) and Mariah Tesarz, who had 42 digs.

  Plymouth is now 14-7-2. 

  Ed Wright can be reached at (734) 453-1980 or info@plymouthcantonsports.com.

Pictured is the victorious Salem volleyball team, which won its second tournament in two weeks. (Rob Merget photo)

Plymouth's Jessica Scott and Alex Roberts elevate for a block against North Farmington. (Ed Wright photo)

Jillian Sommerville goes high for a kill in the Rocks' semifinal victory over Canton. (Ed Wright photo)