Eisenhower hits ‘reset button’ and aims to make state tournament

SHELBY TOWNSHIP — Utica Eisenhower volleyball players can clear their minds with a quick glance at their shoes.

It was a tactic the Eagles adopted before the season began when they brought in mental toughness coach Kelsey Gustafson from Champion Mindset.

“We have green bow ties on our shoes and we see it as a reset button because we always just want to reset,” said junior team captain Kayla Ostrander.

Ostrander, a 2023 all-region selection, is a veteran leader alongside junior captain Gina Fedrigo, who leads a roster loaded with sophomores with varsity experience.

As sophomores and freshmen, they were thrown into the fire on a state tournament-prepared team that Eisenhower led to a district championship before being eliminated by Macomb Area Conference Red rival Macomb L’Anse Creuse North.

But similar to the first thought that came to mind when they saw the green bow tie, this season is a reset season for the Eagles, and they showed the rest of Division I volleyball that this is not the same team they see in 2023.

“Last year, we had to deal with a lot of things because they were so young and they handled themselves in big moments,” Eisenhower head coach Caitlin LaPratt said. “They did a great job in the postseason and I think that has continued this year and increased their motivation knowing their potential.”

The fire continues to burn for Eisenhower, who has amassed a 19-3 record thus far and has been dominant on the tournament and quad stages. Currently sitting in 9th place in Division 1, there is no end in sight.

In addition to the returning firepower, Eisenhower also added sophomore captain Lily Tripi, who was sidelined all season due to knee surgery last season.

The 1.83-meter-tall setter had 115 digs, 18 aces, 52 points and 492 assists in his debut season.

It’s rare for a sophomore player, especially one who hasn’t played any varsity minutes, to earn the captain’s title, but LaPratt said it says a lot about the type of player Tripi is.

“He’s just a mature kid,” LaPratt said. “He has a quiet confidence about him because he knows how to command the court. He’s not a very vocal player, but I think the girls trust him and trust him to make big decisions. That’s important, and the girls respect him as someone who doesn’t leave the court in games.”

Ostrander and Fedrigo, who played Division I college volleyball at Eastern Michigan University and Florida International University, respectively, are showing why they are the best players at their positions in the MAC.

Hitman Fedrigo currently has 150 kills, 20 aces and a team-high 21 blocks, while libero Ostrander has 273 digs and 227 serves received.

Teammates at the Legacy Volleyball Club said that Fedrigo and Ostrander’s communication is on a different level.

“Kayla understands me in a different way,” Fedrigo said. “We’ve been through a lot together during our club seasons – the challenges and the benefits – and we’ve been there for each other through it all. I feel like she’s never left me alone, but I love her for that. She’s someone who will always be one of my closest friends simply because she understands me.”

Eisenhower’s success was due to the contributions of every player.

Sophomore Elise Biermann led the offense with 166 points, along with 137 digs and 155 serves received. Sophomore Olivia Berishaj added 85 points and 14 blocks.

Sophomores Rease Buza and Anna Bellomo, along with junior Liliana Gegovic and senior Nicole Rek, have been consistent contributors when their numbers are called. Fourth-grader Mia Dodaj, junior Ella Haugan and sophomore Nora Nikollaj have also been impactful players.

Facing some of the state’s top teams on the same day, including Warren Regina, Macomb Dakota, Lowell, Bloomfield Hills Marian, Hartland and South Lyon East, the Eagles’ depth on the roster should shine when LaPratt needs it most, and they never let him down.

Eisenhower went 6-0 in the Program Cup on September 7, including a win over No. 4 Marian, to take first place in the tournament and solidify its status as one of the state’s top teams.

“I was thinking about that this morning with the Program Cup,” LaPratt said. “There were some heavy-duty teams there. Marian was there, Lowell was there and Dakota was there. There were some big-time programs, so it was no small feat. It wasn’t like we beat everybody. We earned those wins.”

Winning the Program Cup is an accomplishment in itself, but what Eisenhower showed was even more impressive than coming in first.

One game before the tournament, Eisenhower lost in the league to Macomb L’Anse Creuse North, who currently sit atop the MAC Red.

A division loss like that can eat away at a person, but most losses in 2023 appear to have stalled the momentum the Eagles have built.

Eisenhower went 1-6 in its next game after last year’s loss, snapping three-, four- and five-game losing streaks.

Forget about that, because LaPratt said he hasn’t seen anything like it this year.

“I think maturity is in the sense that they don’t let a set loss define the game,” LaPratt said. “We’re all over the place and we’re not worried about the outcome. I think last year when we lost our first game in the league, we took a loss and I think they let that define the rest of the season. They were very demoralized after that loss. It was very hard for them to get over it. Every time we lost after that, it was like it reopened the wound. It’s like, ‘Why did we lose this game?'”

Eisenhower will get another shot against L’Anse Creuse North before the league schedule ends with the Eagles still contending for the MAC Red title, but LaPratt’s squad is still moving game by game.

Ostrander said the whole point is to make the boat go faster, attributing the analogy to Gustafson and what he told the team before the season.

Fedrigo said that if you watched Eisenhower take the field together, you could see the chemistry between them in real time.

“Everything is flowing and everything is moving and we all know that someone will have our back and protect us on the field,” Fedrigo said.