Big Bay de Noc junior Caragan Thill (in the air) braces to attempts to kill the ball during a match against Mid Peninsula on Aug. 27, 2024 at Mid Peninsula Schools. (“The Big Dog” Mitch Vosburg/Daily Press)

GARDEN CORNERS — Why play one game when you can play two?

Big Bay de Noc hosted Mackinac Island for a weekend volleyball doubleheader, splitting with the Islanders.

Friday night’s showdown saw the Black Bears in a battle with their Northern Lights League foes. Ultimately, Big Bay rallied late to walk away with a 25-18, 20-25, 25-27, 25-16, 16-14 win.

“It was closer than I would have liked it to be, that’s for sure,” Black Bears coach Angie Carley said. “We started falling back into our old habits, letting our nerves get to our head and we made some silly mistakes. Thankfully, after a lot of hard work and positive thinking, we were able to walk away with the win after five sets.”

Caragan Thill mustered 27 kills and three blocks. Lila Morris added 16 kills. Macy Peterson tallied 32 assists and Dixie Morris added 26 assists.

Saturday morning’s showdown saw the Black Bears come short in delivering the big blows, suffering a 23-25, 22-25, 24-26 loss to Mackinac Island. The Black Bears committed 15 service errors in the loss. Thill totaled 24 kills and seven aces. Payton Pederson added 14 kills and 19 digs. Morris ended with 10 kills and two blocks. Peterson finished with 26 assists and 16 digs. Morris added 19 assists.