Division 4 semifinals breakdown & predictions
The time has come for state finals weekend. Three days of exciting volleyball action gets started on Thursday at noon with the two Division 4 semifinal matchups. The defending champ is still alive, with three new faces joining them to…
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Continue ReadingThe time has come for state finals weekend.
Three days of exciting volleyball action gets started on Thursday at noon with the two Division 4 semifinal matchups.
The defending champ is still alive, with three new faces joining them to compete for the hardware.
Here’s a closer look at Thursday’s two matchups
No. 10 Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart vs. Indian River Inland Lakes, Noon
Both teams are coming off impressive sweeps in the quarterfinals Tuesday night. Inland Lakes ran through Ironwood 25-14, 25-17, 25-13 in a statement win. Sacred Heart bested No. 5 Traverse City Christian 25-21, 25-23, 26-24 in a hard-fought sweep. Inland Lakes will look to use its array of hitters, led by Natalie Wandrie to slow down the Irish. Olivia Monthei, Emily Van Daele and Hannah Robinson are also options that setter Alyssa Byrne can feed to keep the Irish guessing. Maddie Munley has been a dominant player at the net for SHA and will be a lot for Inland Lakes to handle. She’s got a supporting cast of Hannah Ajumobi, Angel Brown, Laura Goenner and Lillie Laney to turn to as well. Setter Delaney Scully plays with a lot of poise and spreads the ball out nicely while delivering a great serve. Both teams are playing their best, but Sacred Heart’s road to Battle Creek is just a little more impressive. The Irish should feel like they can beat anyone right now, including Inland Lakes. Prediction: SHA over Inland Lakes in 4
No. 2 Battle Creek St. Philip vs. No. 8 Allen Park Inter-City Baptist, 2 p.m.
Try as they might, D4 just isn’t able to get rid of St. Philip. The Tigers found a way to a five-set win over No. 3 Athens in the regional final, and then managed another five-set win over top-ranked Lenawee Christian on Tuesday night. Inter-City Baptist will take its short at St. Philip next. ICB bested No. 7 Ubly in four sets to advance to Battle Creek for the first time in program history. Bethany Estell led the charge on Tuesday night with 18 kills, but Madison Handyside and Ali Bettinger also had double figures in kills. ICB will need that balance on Thursday, as well as the blocking ability of Handyside, who had nine in the quarterfinal. Defense will also be key behind Marissa Peterson and Evelyn Karamon. St. Philip definitely will play with poise and very fundamentally sound. Baily Fancher is as steady as they come in the back row. The same can be said of setter Rachel Myers. Offensively, they don’t get better in D4 than Brooke Dzwik Brooke Dzwik 5'10" | OH Battle Creek St. Phil | 2022 State MI , she’s just a cut above with her arm speed and all-around play. While Inter-City Baptist has been knocking off ranked teams in the last week, St. Philip is another animal. This will be ICB’s first time in Kellogg Arena and that plays a factor. St. Philip is well versed there and knows how to win in Battle Creek. These back-to-back five-set wars will also help keep the Tigers calm in the tense points. Prediction: St. Philip over Inter-City Baptist in 4