CHESTERFIELD TOWNSHIP — Looking back a couple of weeks after Austin Catholic won its first state district volleyball championship, first-year coach Peyton Grand recalled her early impressions about the team.
“I definitely knew we had some of the most talented athletes we'd ever had in the program,” said Grand, a 2017 grad of Austin. “They were really committed and they knew that if they all worked together, that this was going to be a year to do it.”
They did it Nov. 7, a three-set sweep of Sterling Heights Parkway Christian for the MHSAA Division 4 District 125 trophy after disposing of Kimball New Life Christian and Marine City Cardinal Mooney. The season (18-17-1) ended in the regional final against No. 3-rated Ubly.
“At the beginning of the season, we came out super hot (10-2-1) and I was feeling really good,” Grand said. “And I think we kind of started to realize that we were actually a good team and maybe let up off the gas just a little bit.”
The Crusaders lost the next eight matches in a row, then recovered to close out 8-7.
Senior Allie Gianino, who’s been playing volleyball since she was 9 or 10 years old, was the only player on the roster who had played all four years in high school.
“We were doing well and then we kind of went downhill,” she said. “Before our district games, I had this book (“The Champion Teammate,” recommended by her Legacy club coach) that was for athletes specifically to help them with their mental games.”
“I was thinking,” Gianino said, “why don't I try and use this with my teammates and see how it goes? And it was great. The mental preparation really worked, about working together, all of us doing our part.”
“We were just so determined on winning,” Gianino said. “We had to really prep for the loud crowd and their student section. We were just so focused and we just drowned that out. We swept them because of our mental drive and our motivation.”
All season, Gianino fired up Austin’s attack with 256 kills from her outside hitter position. “Allie’s a big difference maker for us,” Grand said. “She has a great volleyball IQ that raises up everyone around her. She’s a great leader.”
Senior Rebecca Shrodes, as the setter responsible for distribution of the ball, had 483 assists. “She was our second string setter last year and worked really hard in the off season,” Grand said.
Senior Mary La Montaigne “was definitely up there with Allie as one of our best girls,” Grand said. “She started outside for us at the beginning of the season. But she finished as the libero with 510 digs.”
Senior Emerson Minjoe “was an absolute block machine in the middle. She had hundreds of blocks.” Senior defensive specialist Josie Bouterwick had 228 digs. “She was an awesome server,” Grand said.
A pair of sophomores rounded out Austin’s key players. Madison Mondry “was a back row specialist.” Sarah Hoffman on defense had 88 kills. “She made a big difference.”
“This was a fun team to coach, a fun team to watch even,” said Grand, who said she will return to coach next fall. “At the banquet the other night, parents came up to me and said it’s fun to win, but it’s also fun to watch. The girls definitely put on a pretty good show.”
This was Austin’s second state team trophy. The girls basketball team won a district in 2019.
Austin has an individual state champ, Lyla Mullins, who won individual shot put and discus state championships at the 2024 Division 4 finals. She is in her second year on the University of Detroit Mercy track and field squad. At the 2025 Horizon League Championships this past May, she scored in the discus with a season-best 130 feet, ninth in the shot put (40 feet) and 20th in the hammer (113 feet).
Allie chooses art over volleyball
“Well, my original plan was to play collegiate volleyball,” Gianino said, “and I was being actively recruited by Division 3 and Division 2 schools. But I decided that I want to go to art school.”
She chose the Savannah College of Art and Design, a private, non-profit university with global locations and online options, offering more than 100 degree programs in fields such as animation, fashion, and user experience design.
Her long range goal? “I want to be a creative director. So I see myself being a leader and directing big projects.”
Students at Austin Catholic have had an opportunity since last March when Gianino’s life-size mural of St. Augustine on the chapel wall was unveiled and blessed.
“I spent a lot of time doing this,” she told The Macomb Daily. “I have no idea how many hours because I lost track of the amount.”
“She was in here painting every day, every chance she got,” said Frank Slanczka, Gianino’s art teacher and mentor.
Contact Don Horkey at [email protected].
