Top Performers in the Division 4 Final Four

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It may be a snow storm outside, but in Kellogg Arena, it is red hot with GREAT volleyball!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2022 MHSAA Final Four kicked off with the Division 4 matches. In the way of two sweeps, we will see a championship match take place between Athens and Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart on Saturday. Both of these teams will duke it out in their first ever title match for the chance to crown a new Division 4 champion. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Both Athens and Mt. Pleasant Sacred Heart are no strangers to the deep runs in November however. Last year saw Sacred Heart nearly miss out on a championship appearance in a five set thriller. Meanwhile, Athens, a Battle Creek area team, has been knocking on the door for a chance to play under the big lights of Kellogg Arena for quite some time now.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In case the snow kept you home yesterday, here's what you missed and here are the top performers from the Division 4 Final Four.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Alaina Brubaker</strong> - Athens</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Don't let her size fool you, <strong>Alaina Brubaker</strong> may have just established herself as the top setter in Division 4 after yesterday's match. At a mean 5'3, Brubaker is very easy to look over, but she can run a well-oiled machine. Alongside her 29 assists in the sweep, Brubaker led the Indians with 14 digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='297971' first='Kamryn' last='Parlin']</strong> - Athens</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the most clutch players on this Indians' team is in the middle with <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='297971' first='Kamryn' last='Parlin']</strong>. Her name was inescapable throughout the match. Parlin is a crafty attacker with a variety of shots, but she can do it all too. Right alongside Brubaker, Parlin led in digs with 14 and knocked down four blocks. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Kylie Quist</strong> - Athens</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If it wasn't Parlin, it was the name <strong>Kylie Quist</strong> all throughout the Arena. Another superb six rotation player for this Athens' team, Quist had all of the answers for her team tonight. She's another performer to put up a double-double, leading the Indians with 11 kills on a .321 hit percentage while scooping up 12 digs.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Madelynn Rottman - Lansing Christian</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was the battle of setters in this semi final, as good as Brubaker was, Madelynn Rottman was just as good too. With a significant size advantage against her counterpart across the net, Rottman not only ran a very tight ship, but had her hand in some of the offense too. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Eliza Wortz</strong> - Lansing Christian</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lansing Christian's team leader in kills for the semifinal match, <strong>Eliza Wortz</strong> was a pleasure to watch. Despite a higher kill-error ratio, Wortz seemed to deliver in the tough moments in the night's match. She can score in a multitude of ways serving as a complete player in her attacking, blocking and serving.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Audra Usiak </strong>- Lansing Christian</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Not many balls were able to fall if <strong>Audra Usiak </strong>had anything to do with it. A match leader in the digs department, Usiak popped up 18 digs in the three set match and was a vital component to the Pilgrim's success. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='173615' first='Angel' last='Brown'] - Mt. Pleasant Sacred heart</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the top attackers in Division 4, [player_tooltip player_id='173615' first='Angel' last='Brown'] was here a year ago, and showed signs of being a very dominating force. This semifinal round, she was all business. Never stepping off of the court, Brown was crucial in this match. Between her athleticism and the fire she brought to the court. Brown nearly hit .500 with 12 kills to go with 12 digs in the sweep.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Lillie Laney</strong> - Mt. Pleasant Sacred heart</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I wasn't too familiar with this name, but you could not forget it after this match. With an arguably career defining performance, <strong>Lillie Laney </strong>was on fire hitting a .560 clip with 16 kills. Along with her three blocks, Forest Park had no answers to Laney's dominance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bridget Ruiz</strong> - Mt. Pleasant Sacred heart</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This player was everywhere! No matter where the ball went, she was there. <strong>Bridget Ruiz</strong> showed off some stellar play in the semifinals against Forest Park with scrappy defense and a whole lot of leadership. Ruiz managed to bring up 14 digs in the sweep.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Join us at the<a href="https://prepdig.com/2022/09/the-prep-dig-top-250-expo-series-is-back-2/">&nbsp;Prep Dig Top 250 Expo</a>! Use code LShotPDExpo250 for 10% off your registration fee</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->