MUSKEGON TWP. - Grace Darke assumed her career as an active Reeths-Puffer volleyball player was over.
The senior setter was hoping to have a great final season in a Rocket uniform, but she broke her collarbone two different times this season.
The first break occurred during a match when a teammate’s elbow connected with her collarbone.
She was cleared to return by a doctor a few weeks later, but broke the collarbone again during warmups before a match.
R-P's Maddi Dyer (2) sets up a shot for Hailey Johnsen (13). Photo/Jeremy Clark
As a team captain, she’s still been with the Rockets, cheering them on and doing everything possible to be a positive force from the bench, After the second injury, however, there was no thought of returning to the court.
Until Wednesday night, that is.
The Rockets were rolling to an easy 3-0 win over Muskegon in their final regular season match on Senior Night in their own gym.
They got down to the end, with only one more point needed to win, when R-P head coach Justin Birr called time out and informed Darke and fellow senior Hannah Lindstrom, who also had a season-ending injury, that they were going into the match.
R-P's Kiera Ketner keeps the ball in play. Photo/Jeremy Clark
Both are still hurt, of course, so they were told to stand in the corner and let their teammates finish things off. But they were on the court, all the same, and Darke said it was an unexpected and amazing experience.
“Hannah and I had no clue,” Darke said. “When he told us it was a very emotional moment. It was game point, but we ended up being our there for a few points, because we made a few errors.
“We were both told to stand in the corner and not let the ball come near us. Of course the ball comes to me and I wanted to pass it so bad, but I restrained myself. I didn’t need it happening a third time!”
The special moment for the two seniors capped a really good night for the Rockets, who rolled to the victory with set scores of 25-15, 25-11, 25-10.
R-P's Alissa Klopp tries to get the ball past Muskegon players. Photo/Jeremy Clark
The Rockets honored their nine seniors all night, keeping the healthy ones on the court throughout the match and allowing them to shine one more time.
Senior Madi Snyder, who also missed a lot of time with an injury this season, led the way with four kills and four aces. Senior Hailey Johnsen also had four kills, along with three aces and two blocks.
Several other seniors also turned in strong stats.
Maddi Dyer totaled 11 assists, eight aces, three kills and one dig while Chloe Brainard added five aces and six digs. Kiera Ketner finished with three aces, one kill, one dig and one block.
The Rockets improved to 12-22 overall and finished the O-K Green conference season with a 2-8 mark.
Johnsen takes a shot in her final game as a Rocket. Photo/Jeremy Clark
R-P now has five more victories than it had last season, which is a significant accomplishment, considering all the injuries and the very tough schedule the Rockets played.
Their O-K Green conference had some new teams this season, including several that are ranked in the state, so R-P had to endure a number of brutal matches against powerful opponents with a shorthanded roster.
Birr thinks the Rockets could have done a lot better if they had been able to play last year’s schedule, without the new powerhouse opponents to deal with.
“I look back at our conference from last year and think we would have finished third this year,” said Birr, whose team finished 7-30-1 last year. “We’ve improved in wins, and we would have improved in that conference even more. These seniors have been a huge part of it and have really upped their game. They learned a lot from one season to the next.”
Reeths-Puffer will open Division 1 district play next Wednesday against Mona Shores at Coopersville High School.