The Michigan Tech volleyball team celebrates a point during a match against the University of Mary on Sept. 6, 2019, in Houghton, Mich.. (David Archambeau/For the Gazette)

HOUGHTON — When he stepped on the campus of Michigan Tech University prior to the start of the 2012 season, head coach Matt Jennings was taking over a volleyball program that had won just twice the previous year and seven times in the past 24 months. He set lofty goals that seemed years away from possible to those looking in from the outside.

Heading into the fall 2021 season, those goals are well within reach. The Huskies have qualified for the GLIAC Tournament five straight years in a row, and have made it to the finals each of the last two seasons.

The Huskies are also in the midst of three straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994-96 under Mary Kaminski. In 2019, they made it to the semifinals before falling. This year, the goal is to take the next step.

However, Jennings is the first to admit that will not be easy, even with four seniors returning for a fifth season due to COVID.

“I think the region is a strong one,” he said. “There seems to be eight, five, six teams every year that you could make an argument, if they catch fire at the end of the season, (they) can make a run. I’ve seen five seeds make it through to the region. I’ve seen the No. 1 seed make it to the region. 

“We are determined to get there, however we can. Last time we were in the NCAA, we felt like we ended the season on a high note, even though we lost that game. That was a great moment, just that with the win, and then in being just so close. So I think they’re determined. That’s part of what’s left on the table. I think if we are in a position to compete in the NCAA tournament, that this group is very determined to, and I think confident, to extend our season as long as we can.”

Super seniors

Thanks to the returns of setter Laura De Marchi, outside hitters Anna Jonynas and Olivia Ghormley, and defensive specialist Megan Utlak, the Huskies appear poised to make that run that Jennings is referring to. 

De Marchi was named GLIAC Women’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year for her efforts last season. Jonynas was named to the All-GLIAC First Team. Ghormley was a member of the All-GLIAC First Team while also being named Attacker of the Year. Utlak earned All-GLIAC Second Team honors.

To be able to bring all that experience and poise back will really help the Huskies again this season. 

“It means the world to me, and the program, to have that group back in another year in the gym,” Jennings said. “They’ve given so much of themselves to the program, and to the efforts that we’ve put forth in trying to get better and win games. You couldn’t ask for a group with a better, higher, stronger character. This is the whole package, great people, great young women with great moral compass, and intelligent and hardworking, and, of course, very talented, so very experienced. 

“You can make the argument that this is the most experienced you’re ever going to get. There’s so much that they have done already. (They) know what to do, and to see them to have another year with them, at the top of our team. What that means to the players that they’re playing with, is priceless.”

Beating the Bulldogs

Last season, the Huskies slew a dragon of sorts in sweeping the Ferris State Bulldogs in the GLIAC semifinals after defeating them during the regular season. More impressively, they did it without Ghormley available due to injury. 

Jennings is proud of how his team has developed through the years and how his leadership group has helped them take that crucial step forward with the wins over the Bulldogs.

“It was the elephant in the room there for a bit for us,” he said. “So I think that was a relief in a way, but I (also) think a big confidence boost for the group. We always knew that we were as good as Ferris and some of those losses (over the past three years). The culture of winning that they had possessed, it was something that we were trying to aspire to.”

Evolution of Janie

Another area of the game that Jennings has been working on over the years he has been at the helm for the Huskies is blocking. He has always had tall blockers who do a very good job, but always felt like there was another level the Huskies needed to aspire to. In the spring, a smaller player emerged in the blocking scheme in then-junior Janie Grindland.

She has fundamentally changed how the Huskies block.

“Janie is a gifted player with a lot of natural leadership qualities that are very apparent to people watching her,” said Jennings. “From when we recruited her to now, the energy that she plays with and the positivity with which she plays with is so infectious. She works so hard in between points, and she scores in ways that are super impressive.”

Grindland racked up 59 blocks and 110 kills, totals which included 11 blocks and nine kills in a match against the Bulldogs on March 12.

Matching her leg speed with her arm speed has given the Huskies a more dynamic blocking ability. She also plays with confidence, which is something that cannot be taught.

“She’s such a fun and really, really driven teammate,” Jennings said. “The team just thinks the world of her. She feeds off that energy for confidence, and she exudes confidence. The other players in her position look up to Janie in a lot of ways. I know that the seniors who are just a bit older than her look for leadership.

“Janie has a lot to offer. If it’s true that she builds off confidence, and knowing what she did last year, there’s a lot to look forward to again this year.”

Tough start to schedule

The Huskies open the season Sept. 2 when they host the Keweenaw Classic. They will face the Minnesota-Duluth Bulldogs on Thursday. They will follow that up with Minnesota State and St. Cloud State on Friday before finishing with Concordia-St. Paul on Saturday.

Facing multiple teams who are consistently among the top teams in the NCAA should be a great measuring stick for the Huskies.

“Three out of those four teams in Minnesota are Top 10,” said Jennings. “Concordia has been a team that we’ve been wanting to play. The fact that there we have them on our home court, I think speaks to the progression of the program over time. They can go play wherever they want. That’s a nine-time national champion, six times in a row.”

In a scheduling quirk, the Huskies will face Grand Valley State, Davenport, and Ferris State at home in a three-day stretch to open the GLIAC schedule Sept. 17-19. After that, things settle and the Huskies face Northern Michigan, the team that beat them for the GLIAC Tournament title in the spring, twice in 21 days.

They finish the regular season with Northwood and Lake Superior State at home before traveling to face Saginaw Valley State and Wayne State. All four are part of the GLIAC North Division, which the Huskies were picked to finish first in this season.