By BUTCH HARMON
The fall sports season was an exciting one for fans of Pewamo-Westphalia teams. On the football field, the Pirates turned in another exciting postseason run that ended in the state semifinals, while on the volleyball court the Pirates reached the state quarterfinal round.
Led by middle hitter Madison Smith, along with Allison Martin and Andrea Spitzley, the volleyball team turned in a 49-4-2 record this season. Along the way, the Pirates won the Central Michigan Athletic Conference title and added district and regional titles before falling 3-1 to Unionville-Sebewaing Area in the Class C state quarterfinals.
Pewamo-Westphalia captured the regional title at Ravenna by defeating Covenant Christian 3-0 in the semifinals and Western Michigan Christian 3-2 in the regional title match.
“I’m incredibly proud of my team,” Pewamo-Westphalia coach Lauren Iszler said. “They have been super amazing this season. They worked hard all season. Our team chemistry was real good this year, and everyone worked hard together.”
This year’s squad senior-dominated team was led by Smith and Martin.
The Pewamo-Westphalia football team also had good senior leadership, as it reached the state semifinals for the second straight season. The Pirates made a long trip north for the Division 7 state semifinals, where they dropped an 8-7 decision to eventual state champion Ishpeming.
After finishing the regular season with a 6-3 record, the Pirates went on a thrilling postseason run as they looked to return to Ford Field for a second straight season. Pewamo-Westphalia opened the playoffs in a big way by defeating Union City 41-10 in the district opener and then defeated Gobles 48-12 in the district title game. The highlight of the postseason came in the regional game against Decatur. Trailing 21-0 at halftime, the Pirates scored 26 second-half points to defeat Decatur and win the regional title.
Pewamo-Westphalia ended the season with a 9-4 record after going 13-1 last season.
“The expectations are up there,” coach Brad Weber said. “It’s more than just the coaches and players now; the entire community believes as well.”