Richmond volleyball's remarkable run ends in Division 2 regional final

MARYSVILLE — While a single loss isn't strong enough to define a season, it still has the power to end one.

The Richmond volleyball team fell to Detroit Country Day, 3-0, in three sets (25-12, 25-16, 25-19) of a Division 2 regional final at Marysville High School on Thursday.

The Blue Devils finished the year at 44-11-0 overall.

"I honestly feel like (our players) gave it all they got today," Richmond coach Charlene West said. "Detroit Country Day has a great team ... (we had) opportunities, we came back a few times and their one outside (hitter) was just a big force."

Early in the first set, the Blue Devils used a 7-1 run to pull in front, 8-6. However, Country Day, the No. 2 team in Division 2, closed the set on a 19-4 tear.

"They have a really good serving team," West said of Country Day. "A lot of teams, you can tell when they're really strong servers. I have some really strong servers (and) some of them were just trying to keep (the ball) in play. You can't score if you don't keep the ball in play."

Richmond kept the final two sets close and even finished the third on a 9-4 spurt. But the Yellowjackets always had an answer.

"Volleyball is all about mistakes," West said. "The team that makes the fewest mistakes is the one that's going to win. We had some great moments … we had some good hits, and then, we had some moments where we forgot how to serve-receive pass. But I'm very proud of (our players)."

Thursday's defeat came exactly one week after Richmond clinched its first district championship since 1988.

Having been a senior on that 1988 team, West understands the magnitude of what the Blue Devils accomplished this season.

"It means a lot," West said. "In the five years I've been back coaching, (these girls) have played with maturity. I've had great team leadership — I'm just very proud of them."

Contact Brenden Welper at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrendenWelper.