Wild West: Top Players to Watch in East Grand Rapids

Moving from the east side of the state, to the west side. This side of the state is no strangers to producing some of the best volleyball in the Mitten state. Especially when it comes to the greater Grand Rapids area, this is a volleyball hub!   Last year saw the likes of Hudsonville and Grand Rapids Christian march all the way to the Final Four in Kellogg Arena. I would bet big bucks that more west side teams would finish further in the tournament in a model that didn't favor east side squads. That's how much talent is here.   So vast, we're breaking it up into East and West sides. We checked out <a href="https://prepdig.com/2022/08/wild-west-top-players-to-watch-in-west-grand-rapids/">West Grand Rapids yesterday</a>. Now, let's take a look at the East Grand Rapids area.   [player_tooltip player_id='66314' first='Kennedy' last='Louisell'] - 5'11 OH - Forest Hills Northern   <figure class="wp-block-embed alignright is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/LineShotVBall/status/1558161058912772096?s=20&t=AXRPRhRpV4u1ZT52bJIQyw </div></figure>   Arguably one of the top returning seniors in the entire state, [player_tooltip player_id='66314' first='Kennedy' last='Louisell'] is looking to continue the hot streak she's been on since last fall. Since last fall, Louisell has garnered huge honors including second team All-State honors in high school, All-American honors in club and then a national championship with FaR Out Volleyball. This 5'11 fireball will be a menace to control this fall and I could see her playing up until late November this year.   [player_tooltip player_id='110305' first='Kendall' last='Hopewell'] - 6'0 MB/OPP - Forest Hills Northern   If you thought Forest Hills Northern was just the Louisell show, you're badly mistaken. Right alongside her at the net will be the Swiss army knife of [player_tooltip player_id='110305' first='Kendall' last='Hopewell']. I predict we see a lot of Hopewell in the middle during the high school season, but she boasts such versatility that she can be a deadly option anywhere on the court. Hopewell even has some elite ball control for a middle which is always fun to see.   [player_tooltip player_id='110295' first='Elana' last='Erickson'] - 5'11 OH - Forest Hills Northern   Nope, the list doesn't stop there for the Northern Huskies. There's no escaping firepower on the left side or out of middle back when playing this team. [player_tooltip player_id='110295' first='Elana' last='Erickson'] combined with Louisell creates one of the toughest outside hitter duo you will find in Michigan. Erickson has the ball control for days to keep Northern within a speedy rhythm and she has some gnarly cuts on the ball that will leave opponents flustered.   [player_tooltip player_id='110318' first='Carley' last='Piercefield'] - 5'4 L - Lakewood   Lakewood is going to look very different this season without an O'Gorman at the net. With the question of offense up in the air, one thing is for certain, their pass and defense will remain top notch. [player_tooltip player_id='110318' first='Carley' last='Piercefield'] returns for another season at the helm of the Viking back court. Piercefield is noted as one of the top liberos in Michigan and will be critical in Lakewood's success this season.   [player_tooltip player_id='66321' first='Aubreigh' last='Oswald'] - 6'2 MB - Lowell   Lowell has been a constant threat in the post season tournament for a few years now up until last season. Bowing out in arguably one of the toughest districts in the state, Lowell returns a fairly young roster. A roster in which returns a huge 6'2 [player_tooltip player_id='66321' first='Aubreigh' last='Oswald'] in the middle. Oswald ranked third in kills last season and second in blocks. Oswald will be looked to for big senior leadership on and off the court to lead Lowell back to Battle Creek.   [player_tooltip player_id='66299' first='Sarah' last='Dunn'] - 5'11 OH - Forest Hills Central   This Forest Hills area is not too shabby when it comes to producing some top shelf volleyball! [player_tooltip player_id='66299' first='Sarah' last='Dunn'] is yet another elite six rotation outside hitter returning to her senior season looking to capitalize off of last season's success with Central. Dunn was able to lead this squad out of this cut throat district to the Regional Finals last season. I predict if she can lead her team to a district title this season, she'll lead them to Battle Creek as well.   [player_tooltip player_id='110332' first='Avery' last='Weslow'] - 5'11 OH - Forest Hills Central   <figure class="wp-block-embed alignright is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://x.com/LineShotVBall/status/1524047153622102016?s=20&t=AXRPRhRpV4u1ZT52bJIQyw </div></figure>   Your eyes don't deceive you, Forest Hills Central has their own killer left side combo in Dunn and [player_tooltip player_id='110332' first='Avery' last='Weslow']. Like her counterpart, Weslow is another top notch six rotation outside that brings a lot of great ball control to the court. Weslow can bring the heat at the net but she also has one heck of a serve. Last season saw the attacker ace 103 serves to lead the team by over 40 aces.   [player_tooltip player_id='66315' first='Lizzie' last='Macintosh'] - 6'1 OH - Rockford   Rockford is a perennial power when it comes to the post season and I can see this season being no different. This team may have lost a lot to graduation, but they return a big piece on the left side with [player_tooltip player_id='66315' first='Lizzie' last='Macintosh']. Macintosh was one of the premier attackers from last season that saw the Rams play up to the Quarterfinal round.   [player_tooltip player_id='66322' first='Avery' last='Palmateer'] - 5'10 S - Caledonia   If Caledonia finds any sort of success this season, it will be in large part due to the play of [player_tooltip player_id='66322' first='Avery' last='Palmateer']. Palmateer is coming off of a really good club season with FaR Out that saw the team go from a 6-2 offense to given the reigns solely to Palmateer by the end. She has the abilities to lead a team to great heights and she could do the same for Caledonia this fall.   [player_tooltip player_id='66327' first='Makenzie' last='Ritsema'] - 6'1 MB - Grand Rapids Christian   Grand Rapids Christian is entering an entirely new era this fall. Christian is fresh off of an impressive four straight semifinal appearances, with three straight state titles in a row. If they can make it a fifth straight, it will be the likes of Mackenzie Ritsema stepping up to the plate. A lot of the load fell on Evelyn Doezema last season, and if Ritsema can run with it, the Eagles will soar to great heights as the senior leader.

Moving from the east side of the state, to the west side. This side of the state is no strangers to producing some of the best volleyball in the Mitten state. Especially when it comes to the greater Grand Rapids area, this is a volleyball hub!